A romance is much more than a girl meets boy story where the characters fall in love and live happily ever after in the castle of their dreams. It begins with the creation of full-bodied characters that jump from the page, grab the readers by the heart and pull them into the story.

This becomes even more tricky when writing a Beatles-related romantic adventure. Just writing your favorite Beatle’s name on the page and making him the hero is not enough. You’re going to have to flesh him out and turn him into a living, breathing man the reader can relate to.

A good way to begin this process is by watching as many videos and interviews as you can. This way you become attuned to your hero’s body language, verbal accent, and basic temperament. Now, for the emotional flavor that will bring your hero full circle, study your boyfriend, brother or husband. Watch his moods and see how he handles them. Is he arrogant and distant sometimes? What is he like when he’s tender? By weaving these kinds of details into your Beatle hero, you create a full-bodied man any reader can fall in love with.

The same concept applies with the creation of a heroine. She should be someone the reader can find believable as the romantic interest of your Beatle hero.  She should not be flat or whiny, fainting at every turn. She should be sure of herself and her goals. To obtain the proper effect, think about yourself and how you deal with situations. Study your mother or girlfriend. What qualities do they posses that you admire? Don’t be afraid to add some negative emotions to your heroine either. Women run in cycles, sometimes irritable, crying for no reason and then kind and loving. Once again, by weaving these foibles together, you create a heroine  readers will admire and follow into the tale to experience the romantic adventure.

Next you will want to consider what the goals, motivation and conflicts confronting your characters are. For instance in the Shelly Series, Paul and Shelly’s main goal as a couple is to make their marriage work. Shelly’s personal goal is her consulting business. Paul’s personal goal is to finally accept the loss of Linda and move on. The motivation for this is their deep love and mutual respect for each other.

Now we come to the conflict. A story without conflict is dry and lifeless. Nobody enjoys a life filled with conflict, but without it, a story fails. Once again, in the Shelly Series, there are many conflicts at work to keep Shelly and Paul apart. The main one for Shelly is learning to accept Paul for what and who he really is. Meanwhile, Paul has made a promise he cannot keep. He spends the first portion of the series trying to protect Shelly from the media and what the news of their marriage would mean. Then the secret begins to unravel and the truth is found out. By figuring out the goal, motivation, and conflict of your characters you create a story that captivates the reader.

Romance Categories

There are several categories in the genre of Romance: Sweet, Sweet to Hot, and Hot.

A good example of a Sweet romance is the kick off to the Shelly Series: Stranger In The Penthouse. Shelly and Paul’s relationship slowly grows and the story ends with a hug and a kiss, nothing more.

Next is Sweet to Hot. The hero and heroine will meet, work at their relationship and only consummate it after marriage. For some reason not many romantic Beatle stores fall into this category. The closest example in this genre is Cheryl Mortensen’s Young Love, First Love. It is a tender, bittersweet story about a young girl and young Ringo experiencing love for the first time.

Finally we come to the third category: Hot. This type of story brings the main hero and heroine together quickly, and usually by the second chapter they are having sexual relations. A very fine and well-written example of this is A Dark and Snowy Nite by Bonnie Mullen. Her trilogy takes Paul and Kate McGuire from star-crossed lovers through a battle to preserve their love while they overcome numerous obstacles that would destroy most relationships.

A more recent addition to the Hot category is Erotica. Not only has this been introduced in the mainstream Romance industry, but it has also found its way into Beatles-related fiction. These stories are intended for the mature audience, as the subject matter is adult and the language and descriptions are extremely graphic. Sandy Johnson handles this newest genre well in her time travel epic, Like Dreamers Do.  Her main characters are John and Paul, and her heroine is Amanda Bailey. Each travels back in time from the present to the early 1960’s. Paul is trying to overcome his devastation from the untimely loss of Linda, while Bailey is trying to find her way after the death of her husband, Jack. John is their unexpected ghostly guide who helps Bailey and Paul find new and fulfilling love.

When creating your romantic adventures, try and keep in mind the steps and techniques discussed above. Decide which category the tale falls into, plot your story out, and remember to build those believable characters. You’ll have your readers begging for more!

Mary Spollen has been pursuing a career as a writer for the past six years.
She has studied various genres with the Long Ridge Writers Group and is an
active member of New Jersey Romance Writers and Romance Writers of America.
Mary has tried her hand at poetry, children's fiction, and romance. And now
as a form of relaxation, she is exploring the world of Beatle fan fiction.