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Post by blueyed358 on Oct 20, 2012 11:07:39 GMT -5
This is an open question to readers and authors alike..Do you prefer romance over adventure or the other way around?
Anyone who has read my stories can tell you I am big on adventure. Intense situations bring out the best or worse in characters. They also can make characters bond or be pulled apart. While I love romance (who doesn't?) I have a need to have my characters embroiled in mysteries or life threatening situations. I like a balance of both.. but I do LOVE my adventures.What are your thoughts....
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Post by Kpatch on Oct 20, 2012 12:05:02 GMT -5
Ooh, great question blueyed! I like a good balance, where romance springs from the adventure, or where the adventure is the backdrop for the romance. But I'd say for my taste, I'd give romance the edge over adventure.
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Post by stickywicket on Oct 20, 2012 13:02:36 GMT -5
I like both, but I think the scale for me is tipped slightly more to the romance side.  |
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Post by MrsM on Oct 20, 2012 20:35:11 GMT -5
I like adventure with a touch of romance.
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Post by MrsM on Oct 22, 2012 7:23:55 GMT -5
I love romance but I need some action to go with it. I love the build up that gets you to the point that they get to that all important kiss.
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Post by fluffysmom on Oct 22, 2012 18:06:38 GMT -5
I enjoy both types of story. If it's an action story then I want some romance in the story as well. I enjoy a great romantic story whether or not there's a lot of action.
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Post by jwsel on Oct 23, 2012 0:15:41 GMT -5
I'm definitely a fan of adventure, though I would characterize it more as drama. People hear the word "adventure" and assume it has to be 80s-style send the characters off on the Kern River, to Miami, or onto the Cruise of Deception, which are great stories, but there can be as much adventure in a local crime or a business-related storyline. The key for me is that it gives a backdrop to the character development so that they are not just constantly sitting around and talking. A dramatic event will propel the romance by forcing Character A to confess his/her love for Character B. Or it put them in a situation where the chemistry is palpable and the fans want them to act on it. A good drama provides the build-up.
In my fics and the weekly soap I post at ONTV, I've tried to do that by putting a lot of obstacles in the way of the various relationships. I want the real romances to develop slowly and have the characters overcome a lot before they really come together. I think that makes the payoff in the relationship much stronger.
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Post by blueyed358 on Oct 23, 2012 22:47:37 GMT -5
I totally agree with you jwsel, I have involved my characters in terrorism, police corruption, jewel thieves, murders and plan old fashioned crazy villains. I believe that the couples can still be together in these adventures/dramas and still grow and evolve and their relationships along with them. I enjoy putting them in these situations and letting theirs strengths and fears come through..having them face all the emotions that these situations dredge up and then deal with the fallout.
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Post by slyn11 on Nov 5, 2012 23:44:50 GMT -5
I like character studies....so I guess that would put me in the romance column, although I don't consider what I write romance per se. I just like characters in intense EMOTIONAL situations where their moral codes are tested.
Instead of the action plots Jwsel and Blueeyed mentioned, I like to have the character deal with a loss of limb, or sanity, or control, or esteem...I guess I write about the aftermath of the adventure. I always wonder what happens when the movie ends and the hero has to go home and process the day he just saved...that is what I write about.
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Post by jwsel on Nov 6, 2012 17:08:46 GMT -5
Maybe I'm misreading what you're saying, slyn11, but it sounds like you are suggesting that my stories don't deal with the emotions of the characters or test their morals because I said they involve adventure or action to help drive the plots. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The emotions and the aftermath of the action are major components of my stories (and in the case of Collateral Damage, of my story with esp13).
Since you haven't read Collateral Damage and probably others reading this thread haven't, I will try to give an example from relatively early in the story so it doesn't spoil too much. After the action sequence where Steve is rescued, Shane struggles with how to tell Kayla that Steve is alive. Shane knows he has to tell her, but it's a battle for him because his relationship has become something of a port in a storm after the collapse of his marriage to Kim. In Shane's head, he knows his relationship with Kayla is dead, but it's just hard to face. So he finds an excuse to delay calling Kayla and he convinces himself and others that it's better that Kayla not find out Steve is alive by a phone call, but rather that it wait until they can meet face to face.
That to me is all character and emotion, dealing with the aftermath of what I would call the "adventure" part -- the rescue. And that's only a tiny bit of the "character" stuff. There is so much that follows right after -- Kayla dealing with Steve's return, Steve struggling with the physical and emotional toll of what he went through, the emotional upheaval when Steve finds out about Kayla's and Shane's relationship, Kim watching all the conflict while knowing she and Shane could be happy again if he would just admit he loves her, Shane finding ways to avoid dealing with his emotions, etc. So I really don't think the story avoids dealing with the emotional consequences of the action. I would say it largely is the other way around; the action frames the character development. And periodically, a new event or action will inject new issues for the characters to deal with. Nor do I think the story shies away from moral dilemmas. The whole story opens with one: Does Shane risk his life, his career, and the happiness he has found with Kayla on the chance that Steve is alive?
I hope that clarifies what I meant, because it certainly was not intended to suggest that the characters in my stories run from one adventure to another without dealing with the emotional consequences of their experiences.
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Post by slyn11 on Nov 6, 2012 18:14:01 GMT -5
Yep you misunderstood me LOL. I was just pointing out how the stories I write differ from the action/adventure stories you and Blueeyed were referring to. I definitely didn't assume you didn't deal with the emotional lives of your characters.
I was just saying that in my stories the big "action" might be moving to a new town, going away to college (I like writing about young adults), having a baby, having an affair, etc...rather than an espionage plot. I write more about the every day stuff and then throw in some soapy monkey wrench to make them all spin. Like in Undertow I drop Philip on his head (literally) - and the story is about what happens because of that.
Thank you for that summary of Collateral Damage, sounds like a great story.
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Post by blueyed358 on Nov 7, 2012 0:14:27 GMT -5
I too like the emotional fallout of the situations. Recently I had a character die and I went through each of the main characters and how it effected them personally and as a group.
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