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Help with My Book?

Waddler

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I'm currently working on my debut novel, a science fiction love story about a disabled veteran and his mentor's daughter, who fall in love as the world falls to pieces in the zombie apocalypse.

Where I need your help is in building the romantic relationship between Vincent (my protagonist) and Blair (his love interest). What I won't do is a typical romance novel, where the relationship is based primarily on sexual attraction, things get hot and heavy after a week, and somehow they live happily ever after.

This is a love story, and it will take time for them to go from "hello" to "I do," and they'll grow into that relationship for the right reasons. I'm in the interesting position of being able to recognize love, though I've never been in love. Perhaps this thread will lead to interesting discussions on what love is, how to recognize when you're in love, how to avoid some pitfalls in a relationship, and so on.

My characters just met. Vincent is awkward, goofy, self-deprecating, and physically scarred. He's not used to people looking at his face and smiling in response because of his scars, and he's got the mental damage that can sometimes go with combat injuries. Blair was a combat medic until three weeks ago, when she retired from the Air Force.

They have an awkward exchange, after which Vincent goes to his room and tries to convince himself of the truth: Blair only smiled at him to be polite, not because she intended to express any interest in him. He berates himself for wanting to make too much of the encounter, and gives himself truthful, good, logical reasons to forget her as anything more than his boss's daughter.

We'll find out later Blair has some similar thoughts, the way people might when they have a brief encounter, but the memory lingers. I suspect I'm not the only one who has had a similar struggle to Vincent, which is what I'm basing his struggle on. I've had women smile at me, and because it's so rare that happens, my brain sometimes tries to make more of that smile than she intended.

Has anyone else experienced that? If you read that in a novel, would you be able to relate, or would that come across as creepy to have that window into Vincent's thoughts?
 

Waddler

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Just don't do any of that kiss right after an action scene nonsense, no one does that.
*Blow up zombie* "My hero!" *kiss*
Yeah, that kind of junk annoys me to no end. You save the kisses for after the battlefield. And Blair is hardly the damsel in distress type.
 
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Swan7

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My dad and I were talking about writing over coffee this morning and he brought up this "Save the Cat" book on how to write a story. The book is directed for movies, but a novelist did actually use this method and her book was really successful. :)

Apparently there's a software for this method as well to help better map out the story.
 
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Waddler

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My dad and I were talking about writing over coffee this morning and he brought up this "Save the Cat" book on how to write a story. The book is directed for movies, but a novelist did actually use this method and her book was really successful. :)

Apparently there's a software for this method as well to help better map out the story.
I'm familiar with "Save the Cat" and Blake Snyder. It's on my Christmas list and is generally considered "required" reading for us aspiring screenwriters.

Does anyone have any thoughts on the question I posed in my first post?
 
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Evergold

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Hi. I am currently brainstorming concepts for my first attempt at a science fiction novel. Naturally, I couldn’t resist integrating a romantic relationship into the main plot (as though life isn’t complicated enough). That being said, I thought it might be interesting for me to jump into the conversation here. Who knows? It might help me tackle my own book with a little more confidence.

I personally think it would be completely relatable for your characters to question the intent of something as seemingly innocent as a smile. Even if a reader has not experienced the same insecurities as your male character, I am inclined to think that it will still remind them of whatever perceived shortcomings they do have.

I’m not sure which time period your novel is set in, but assuming it is modern day I think it would be even more realistic for characters (particularly self-conscious or otherwise) to have trouble determining the intent behind face to face interactions. In a world that is becoming increasingly reliant upon electronically assisted socialization, it is sometimes harder to decipher what face to face social cues are purely innocent versus desirous. After all, people tend to be more direct and assertive in virtual environments than in real life.

Perhaps this applies more to younger generations who grew up making friends through a screen, but I often find myself to be far more reserved, awkward and uncertain in my face to face interactions with others. Although I do not assume a smile in my direction indicates romantic interest (I’m far too aloof to notice anyway), I do question other things.

Anyhow, I hope I didn’t write too much. I simply thought I’d share my thoughts on how aspects such as time period and societal socialization norms may further impact your characters and their interactions/thought processes.
 
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Saucy

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I'm currently working on my debut novel, a science fiction love story about a disabled veteran and his mentor's daughter, who fall in love as the world falls to pieces in the zombie apocalypse.

Where I need your help is in building the romantic relationship between Vincent (my protagonist) and Blair (his love interest). What I won't do is a typical romance novel, where the relationship is based primarily on sexual attraction, things get hot and heavy after a week, and somehow they live happily ever after.

This is a love story, and it will take time for them to go from "hello" to "I do," and they'll grow into that relationship for the right reasons. I'm in the interesting position of being able to recognize love, though I've never been in love. Perhaps this thread will lead to interesting discussions on what love is, how to recognize when you're in love, how to avoid some pitfalls in a relationship, and so on.

My characters just met. Vincent is awkward, goofy, self-deprecating, and physically scarred. He's not used to people looking at his face and smiling in response because of his scars, and he's got the mental damage that can sometimes go with combat injuries. Blair was a combat medic until three weeks ago, when she retired from the Air Force.

They have an awkward exchange, after which Vincent goes to his room and tries to convince himself of the truth: Blair only smiled at him to be polite, not because she intended to express any interest in him. He berates himself for wanting to make too much of the encounter, and gives himself truthful, good, logical reasons to forget her as anything more than his boss's daughter.

We'll find out later Blair has some similar thoughts, the way people might when they have a brief encounter, but the memory lingers. I suspect I'm not the only one who has had a similar struggle to Vincent, which is what I'm basing his struggle on. I've had women smile at me, and because it's so rare that happens, my brain sometimes tries to make more of that smile than she intended.

Has anyone else experienced that? If you read that in a novel, would you be able to relate, or would that come across as creepy to have that window into Vincent's thoughts?
If this is my book, here's what I would do that would turn on the angst (if that's what you're going for). Have her fall for him first. He's old, dejected, and crusty. He's long given up on life, much less a relationship. So, when she smiles at him, it's a noticeable blip on his radar, but nothing catastrophic. She will have to reintroduce warmth and love to him, starting even with that million-megawatt smile and innocent gleam in her eye when she looks at him. Nonverbal communication, body language is huge. Good luck!
 
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