Inquiry - Romance (Not a vent post, promise)

[kriadydragon]

So I think most know how I feel about pairings. I've never been a fan of romance, can't stand the whining, angsty complications with some romance, character A worrying if character B really loves them all while they're running for their lives or the world's about to end, and cringe whenever a show or book introduces a "potential love interest." Oh, and mustn't forget my distaste in sex scenes.

The thing is, though, I'm not so opposed to romance as to not have it at all when it comes to my own stories. The other thing is, I tend to be subtle about the romance - in that it's not front and center, yet neither is it entirely not there at all. The best way I can sum it up is to say I "leave it open"; in that you can see it as friendship that might one day become more, friendship that is becoming more, or - well - very subtle romance ;)

The recent story I'm attempting to plot (original fic, not fanfic) got me thinking about how I handle romance and romance in general. When is it too much? Too little? Cringe worthy or just right? That kind of stuff. I want to hear other's opinions on romance. For example, is a story/show just as good if no romance is involved? Can friendships be just as powerful? Etc. Anything you have to say on the matter, please say it. The story I'm plotting isn't a romance, but there's a guy, a girl, the potential for feelings but hopefully not to the extent that it dominates most of the plot. But plots can be sneaky that way ;)

Comments

Re: kriadydragon fic fan

[kriadydragon.livejournal.com]

I am not opposed to romance as long as it is realistic, pertinent, and smart...not too sappy, but honest expression of emotions/feelings are nice.

Exactly. But it begs the question of what is realistic, because I've read and seen romance handled in ways that have always struck me as completely exaggerated or complete wish fulfillment.

The kind of romance I like is the kind that isn't jam-packed with emotional complication - romance that isn't back and forth love/hate. If there has to be a complication, then it has to be real, something I can relate to, something that doesn't make me want to smack the character's upside the head. To use a cliche example - poor guy and rich girl fall in love, but rich girl's parents try to set her up with a rich guy because they don't like poor guy. That type of thing. I don't like character A outwardly refusing to like character B because they annoy them, while inside character A actually likes character B but refuses to acknowledge those feelings for most of the story. Now, I'm not saying that kind of romance is wrong. I'm just saying it's not the kind of romance I like. What can I say, I'm a bit of a fluffster ;)

Exploration of emotions and feelings, though, have a tendency to drive me nuts no matter the romance type. They have a way of going incredibly sappy and sticky sweet, or over the top angsty. Being a "less is more" type of person, it frustrates me. Thus another reason why I try to keep any romance mild in my own fic, to avoid the risk of the story taking a turn that has it drowning in sap.