By Julie Shackman
Chemistry between your characters in your writing is everything.
If there’s no chemistry between the two, how can you expect your readers to believe that they find each other attractive and can fall in love?
But how can you achieve chemistry between your characters?
Light that Spark
All romance novels need their two main characters to feel an immediate spark – even if they try to deny it!
Whether it’s a mutual attraction, a flicker of interest or an immediate dislike (enemies to lovers is my favourite trope) there has to be something there, to trigger initial feelings.
Perhaps your characters clash over a promotion at work or you could have them staring at one another, before they both want that last, much sought after gift on Christmas Eve?
Close Call
In my latest book, Journey to the Scottish Highlands, my two main characters Daisy and Evan find themselves in close proximity, when Daisy drives them to the Scottish Highlands.
This allowed me to push these two strong characters together and begin to create stirring emotions and flirtations – even if they were both trying to deny it to themselves!
Bringing your two characters into a similar situation, allows you to use your romantic trope (enemies to loves, meet-cute, friends to lovers etc.) to good effect.
Victoria Walter’s Long Story Short, about an ambitious young woman who wants to become a literary agent, is a great example of this. She’s given the task of trying to resurrect the flagging career of a gorgeous grumpy romance author, and is sent to New York with him to try and do just that.
Compare and Contrast
It’s often said opposites attract, so perhaps you could make one of your characters a book lover and the other is only interested in gadgets. Or maybe one is obsessed with Christmas, and their love interest is a Grinch?
This is a perfect way to develop both your love interests and carve out room for character growth.
You can show the reader the effect they have on one another and how this effect changes each of them as the story progresses.
Lip Service
Using dialogue to show relationship development is also an excellent way to illustrate how your characters are growing closer to each other.
You can bring in revelations (perhaps how they speak to each other; revealing secrets that they’ve never told anyone else) so that the reader witnesses first hand how your character is developing trust and intimacy with the other.
Lights, Camera, Action!
That said, action over dialogue is more important in my opinion. The old adage of actions speak louder than words is true. So, implement your writing skills and show by action how your characters are growing closer. Perhaps flirting or hands accidentally brushing against one another and breath catching in their throats.
Show, Don’t Tell
This ties in nicely with the previous advice. Everyone tells writers to show and not tell in your writing and writing romantic scenes is perfect for this.
Show through descriptions of the chemistry between your two love interests. Again, the prolonged gazes, the shy smiles, the ragged breaths, the blossoming, shocking realisation that he/she is crazy about that other person. It’s all about sensations, feelings, tumbling emotions, realisation of the depth of feelings.
Here’s an example.
Jamie appreciated the sparkle in Marnie’s bottle green eyes. His stomach flipped like a circus acrobat. God, she was gorgeous!
Channel how you feel when you fall in love.
Feelings
Falling in love is the most wonderful sensation – it’s also chaotic, mind-blowing and surprising!
Very often, there are bumps in the road too involving misunderstandings or conflict.
You can’t have a story where everything goes well and where your love interests fall in love and live happily every after.
To get there, they have to experience ups and downs like we do – and it makes a much more compelling story!
Addicted to Love
Think about the fizzing in your chest when you see that special someone; your inability to sleep. All these vivid, exhilarating emotions and sensations have to come together and spill over. Describe how this is making your characters feel about themselves and each other.
Get Flirty
Flirting between your characters will create tension, deepen the intimacy and trigger anticipation.
It will also stir up the possibility of ‘Will they-won’t-they’ in your story and made your reader keen for these two characters to stop dancing around one another and kiss!
You could use subtle double meanings, jokes or backwards and forwards banter to good effect. This will show the growing bud of attraction.
Good luck!
Bio: Julie Shackman’s latest feel-good romance, Journey to the Scottish Highlands, is out now in e-book, paperback and audio from the HarperCollins imprint One More Chapter.
