Only A Chemical Reaction
I've seen a large number of stories-- not just in the speculative fiction subgenres-- where two characters have an immediate attraction for each other, and the end result is love and happily ever after monogamy.
Now, as a closet romantic and general optimist, I am very much in favour of happily ever after. My problem with this plotline is the idea that life partnerships can run on lust alone, without anything else that goes into a relationship.
I'm not saying your characters should get together by sitting down with a list of likes and dislikes and drawing up a contract. Also, there certainly isn't a problem with characters who have a quick fling or a 'friends with benefits' relationship, or with characters entering an ill-matched romantic venture and having it implode when their incompatibility becomes too much.
But to build up a believable, functional long-term relationship, you have to demonstrate what the characters can give to each other besides hot sex. Show how these two characters can communicate and compromise to work together without chipping away at their own identities. Show what they have in common, and where they compliment each other. Show that they really care about each other's happiness. I say 'show' because there's an overabundance of stories in which the author assures us loudly that the characters are in love and destined to ride off into the sunset, but nothing in the text actually shows this.
The bottom line-- don't fixate on the need to have a love interest, and work on developing your characters. If they are compatible and have a spark, so be it. If there isn't, your readers will thank you for being true to your plot and characters.
Now, as a closet romantic and general optimist, I am very much in favour of happily ever after. My problem with this plotline is the idea that life partnerships can run on lust alone, without anything else that goes into a relationship.
I'm not saying your characters should get together by sitting down with a list of likes and dislikes and drawing up a contract. Also, there certainly isn't a problem with characters who have a quick fling or a 'friends with benefits' relationship, or with characters entering an ill-matched romantic venture and having it implode when their incompatibility becomes too much.
But to build up a believable, functional long-term relationship, you have to demonstrate what the characters can give to each other besides hot sex. Show how these two characters can communicate and compromise to work together without chipping away at their own identities. Show what they have in common, and where they compliment each other. Show that they really care about each other's happiness. I say 'show' because there's an overabundance of stories in which the author assures us loudly that the characters are in love and destined to ride off into the sunset, but nothing in the text actually shows this.
The bottom line-- don't fixate on the need to have a love interest, and work on developing your characters. If they are compatible and have a spark, so be it. If there isn't, your readers will thank you for being true to your plot and characters.
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