4 Ways to Start a Romance

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4 Ways to Start a Romance
4 Ways to Start a Romance

Video: 4 Ways to Start a Romance

Video: 4 Ways to Start a Romance
Video: Before You Start Your Homework... 2024, March
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The beginning of a romance brings out the most intense and torrid aspects of a passion. Things like an unexpected and hilarious encounter that would change two people's lives, or that overwhelming feeling when we discover that the attraction is reciprocal and the eventual coziness of joining two lives into one. When you decide to start your story, think about and relive those feelings to make a compelling narrative. Whatever the theme, plot, characters and depth of the novel, it will take skill to excite the reader and make him want to know more about this love.

Steps

Method 1 of 4: Developing the Plot in the First Scene

Start a Love Story Step 1
Start a Love Story Step 1

Step 1. Define the moment when the reader will enter the story

Even if you know what the first scene will be like, the character's presentation and the beginning of the plot, you will have to elaborate the description of the moment, the opening dialogue and the narrative that will draw the reader into the story; this will require some reasoning.

  • Know that the beginning is and is not the most important part (this goes for relationships too). However, it is vital to attract the reader, interest him and, why not say, in love with what you have to tell.
  • The reader must be hooked on the first pages. So give him something very interesting right away, something he'll think about even when he's not reading. That's the key to keeping you committed to reading.
Start a Love Story Step 2
Start a Love Story Step 2

Step 2. Add suspense on the first page

There is no recipe for starting a novel, but some classic models can melt any reader's heart. For example, imagine what it would be like if one of the romantic characters had a challenge to face, perhaps a radical change of situation or a real threat to a character or his relationship with someone else.

A widely used approach is to create a moment when one of the protagonists recognizes a threat or experiences a risky situation

Start a Love Story Step 3
Start a Love Story Step 3

Step 3. Use action to excite the reader

This is also a great option for opening the plot. Develop the moment when the reader will be abducted by the plot with a breathtaking action sequence early in the story. Compose the scene clearly, make an accessible description, and remember that the action does not imply imminent danger; it is possible to narrate an adrenaline scene that anyone has felt and with which the reader identifies.

Focus on engaging the reader, don't worry about continuing the story from there. The action scene should be relatively simple, without creating too many questions in his head

Start a Love Story Step 4
Start a Love Story Step 4

Step 4. Question your decision

Literally ask yourself "Why should I start the story with this moment?" List the reasons and the impact the opening scene will have on each protagonist and on the plot unfolding in the future. This technique will allow you to represent this moment with more intensity, knowing why it is so interesting.

Read the list and see the most compelling relationships between this moment and other aspects of the plot. Use these relationships to narrate the scene to the reader

Method 2 of 4: Introducing Romantic Couples

Start a Love Story Step 5
Start a Love Story Step 5

Step 1. Introduce someone who the reader is passionate about

It's a good idea to focus the narrative on just one character, but that's not mandatory either. For that purpose, choose one that will have or will lose a romance or something like that. As predictable as it sounds, this is exactly what the reader is waiting for and they will be captivated by the character you introduce first.

  • Make the reader care about the character, root for his success and happiness with real emotions.
  • For example, introduce the hero in the middle of a revelation (personal or about another character) of great importance to the story.
  • Another option is to introduce him at a difficult and unfair time.
Start a Love Story Step 6
Start a Love Story Step 6

Step 2. Introduce the romantic couples

The trick of this part is to make the reader imagine these people involved in a novel in the future and, if possible, deceive them with a few plot twists, which will bring the story's complications. As such, the time they meet doesn't have to be romantic, but it should tease the reader's mind. For example:

“Sarah was walking down the platform when she came across a man with amber hair. Standing in front of her, he introduced himself saying, “I am honored to meet you. Her letters were so immersive to me that I couldn't help but be the first to see her in person. I am…” he continued, bemused by the beautiful woman he had imagined thousands of times, but not even his most divine fantasy had reached the foot of reality”. She looked at him for a moment and replied, "Give me a horse."

Start a Love Story Step 7
Start a Love Story Step 7

Step 3. Create funny, tragic or supposedly impossible obstacles

In reality, the difficulties in getting the other's love will create an effort that will serve several purposes in the plot, such as intrigue and suspense. Obstacles will make the reader give their own heart to see the romance happen. For example:

“The man waved to one of the servants to bring a horse. Unfortunately, he forgot he was holding the rope that tied the platform to the deck and let go. Like a conspiracy of fate, a gust of wind came across the dock as the rope uncoiled at inconceivable speed. The result turned out to be expected: platform, luggage and Sarah visibly upset, all in the water.”

Method 3 of 4: Considering Ideas to Craft a Captivating Introduction

Start a Love Story Step 8
Start a Love Story Step 8

Step 1. Synthesize the entire opening moment into a single sentence

It's possible to do this even if your opening scene lasts a few pages, think of a sentence that describes the opening as a whole. This sentence may be the first in the entire story or it may be contained throughout the introductory chapter. In any case, crafting provocative sentences will help you start the novel with powerful emotions that will engage the reader.

Start a Love Story Step 9
Start a Love Story Step 9

Step 2. Be blatantly seductive

There's nothing like a good dose of sensuality to interest a human being. Make him feel butterflies in his stomach with tasteful insinuations. See how good it feels: “At that moment, Sarah felt the heat of the kiss go through her body and tingle her skin. She felt the ground disappear under her feet and her breath caught at the soft, soft touch of his lips kissing her voluptuously. The gentle caress of the tongues made the lovers become involved with desire, as if they wanted to wear each other's skins, to belong to each other”.

Or, if you prefer a funnier approach to a sensual occasion: “She straightened herself in place so the sunlight illuminated the most favorable parts of her constitution (or what she thought were the most favorable) as he took off his shirt. Both pretended not to look and didn't notice that the other was watching, but the last moment came and they caught each other; by good luck, or bad luck, this occurred at the same time that a beautiful bird romantically relieved itself over their heads. The universe really conspired for them.”

Start a Love Story Step 10
Start a Love Story Step 10

Step 3. Get the reader to think

A fun and very effective way to get his attention is to pass on information that needs to be clarified, something surprising in the middle of the story. Use an intriguing fact that grabs you and makes you wonder what's going on. In other words, expose an idea that makes you curious.

  • For example: "Sarah got down from the extremely well-sealed elephant and passed the straps into the hand of a shirtless man she had never seen before."
  • Or: “The thick broth bubbled inside the pan. She added the last ingredient and felt an immense grief inside her, like a truly broken heart.”
Start a Love Story Step 11
Start a Love Story Step 11

Step 4. Sadden, disgust or frighten the reader

The most electrifying emotions (both for the reader and the characters) are not necessarily pleasant. Fulfill people's morbid and unpleasant wishes by starting the story with a scene with no romance at all.

  • For example: “He woke up, opened his eyes slowly and counted the stains on the ceiling as he did every day. Lazily, he looked at the empty space beside him and decided not to eat breakfast."
  • Or: “As soon as she stepped through the threshold, her cats came to curl around her ankles, where her pantyhose were already worn out by them. She sighed in dismay as she glanced at the darkened stain, right in the middle of the one-room carpet in the apartment. She knew that she would be able to clean his appearance and also that the smell would never come out.”
Start a Love Story Step 12
Start a Love Story Step 12

Step 5. Get inspired by other authors and songwriters

Contemporary and classic writers can be an incredible source of inspiration. Tune the radio to your favorite station. Depending on the degree of literary authenticity you want to achieve, the songs that play on the radio can be ideal for romantic ideas. Consider “And when I kissed you, it was better than I imagined, if I knew I had done it before, deep down we were always good lovers”, for example.

Contemporary artists are also inspired by classical novelists. For example “I'm going out to see the sky, I'm going to get lost among the stars, see where the sun rises”, in the song Busca Vida, by Paralamas do Sucesso, based on the work “O Pequeno Príncipe”

Method 4 of 4: Leveraging Initial Scene Emotion

Start a Love Story Step 13
Start a Love Story Step 13

Step 1. Build exceptional characters, but with whom the reader can identify

Introduce your characters as ordinary people, but excited by the love they feel for someone. To put it mildly, try not to write a story that is too simple and predictable. It will take more than “Ana met Maria. They fell in love and lived happily ever after” to captivate the reader.

For example, start by describing your hero on yet another dull day at work. Add the intrigue by informing the reader that this young man has no time for romance as he has to work hard to care for and support his aging parents. Unbeknownst to him, his romantic partner also works too hard and, by a move of fate, he already has more than enough money to pay for these treatments

Start a Love Story Step 14
Start a Love Story Step 14

Step 2. Bet on the emotional appeal of the plot

Love stories have a certain fascination precisely because both the reader and the author can probe the emotional aspects of any kind of situation. The strength of the characters' sensations should be highlighted right at the beginning, through demonstrations that make it clear how much they are willing to risk for love and relationship with their peers.

For example, have one character say or do something emotionally significant, such as a sacrifice, to show their level of commitment to someone they love, without the other character even knowing

Start a Love Story Step 15
Start a Love Story Step 15

Step 3. Suggest an internal conflict

After all, maybe the character himself doesn't know he's in love! This simple cue can be as exciting as the most open loves. You can start the story with that same question; expose the characters to questioning their feelings for each other.

Start a Love Story Step 16
Start a Love Story Step 16

Step 4. Make one of them face a tough decision

One way to hold the reader's attention beyond the first few pages is to describe a situation in which an opportunity or choice arises in the protagonist's life. Make it even more human by stressing your personal struggle over a decision or the dramatic evolution of the plot.

An example would be making the fan root for them with an unmissable opportunity, or sympathizing with a missed opportunity

Start a Love Story Step 17
Start a Love Story Step 17

Step 5. Develop character after opening

It may not be exactly what the reader expects after a first moment. Even though it is extremely consistent, it is necessary to deepen its essence to move from the beginning to a complete love story.

  • Make strong female and male protagonists. They must be independent and able to make decisions on their own.
  • Your reader must respect each character and it's up to you to give a reason for that. This automatically excludes the helpless princess and the incomprehensible villain.
Start a Love Story Step 18
Start a Love Story Step 18

Step 6. Don't be afraid to cite their faults too

For example, start by making a negative characteristic of the protagonist clear. Another option would be to introduce the antagonist early on and develop it so that it becomes as appealing as the protagonist. That is, make the reader create an opinion and question it eventually.

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