# Showing Romantic Affection



## Black Dragon (Jun 14, 2011)

Small, fleeting gestures can often provide great insight into characters and their relationships.

What are some ways of showing affection between two characters, apart from the obvious (kissing, holding hands, etc.)?  I'm looking for ways that are more nuanced and less typical.


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## Nick (Jun 14, 2011)

less typical? 

how about a female who wears the shirt of her lover to bed when he's away because it still has his scent in it?

also some indirect ways of showing how one character can feel about another are by becoming jealous or even displaying rage.  Or being overprotective of something that once belonged to the love they've lost?


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## Joe the Gnarled (Jun 15, 2011)

One that is overused in the fantasy realm is keeping a lock of someone’s hair or a piece of cloth from that person.  You can amend this to be less clichÃ©.  Have them wear or carry an item that has sentimental value of their beloved.

If this is the wrong direction for this person, try another.  He/she can be attempting to compose a poem or song dedicated to that person, or saving up money to buy something for him/her.  Perhaps he/she has carved the initials of that person in their knife hilt.


You could also use something more subtle like eye contact held just a little too long, or a touch that caused an upwelling of emotion.

I have more, but I’ll stop now.


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## Derin (Jun 16, 2011)

Have them stalk their beloved, secretly drug them, steal some of their blood to drink and force some of their own down their beloved's throat so that they will be a part of each other forever!

That's normal behaviour, isn't it?


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## Hans (Jun 16, 2011)

Derin said:


> Have them stalk their beloved, secretly drug them, steal some of their blood to drink and force some of their own down their beloved's throat so that they will be a part of each other forever!


That raises some questions. For example: Does drinking blood in your world have real consequences?


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## Chilari (Jun 16, 2011)

I struggle with romance. Which, considering romance is a key part of the story I'm writing at the moment, is a bit of a problem. How do I show affection between two people who are meant to be enemies?


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## Ophiucha (Jun 16, 2011)

I am a big fan of established relationships, and I tend to imply history through dialogue cues and familiarity. Obviously the touches and the kisses puts it out there, but the rest of it reinforces it. Saying "Alzea doesn't like onions" when the team cook is making something for dinner, having the girl pick up his coat that he tosses outside the tent before bed and hanging it up - then having him pick it up off the branch in the morning. Make routines for them, make them know each other as well as you know them, that sort of thing. At least part of it is making all relationships unique - romantic or otherwise - because that's been a problem I've had with many books. Best friends seem closer than lovers, and all friends are basically on equal grounds afterwards. It's kind of just categories of friends instead of different people.


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## J. Rosemary Moss (Jun 16, 2011)

Chilari said:


> I struggle with romance. Which, considering romance is a key part of the story I'm writing at the moment, is a bit of a problem. How do I show affection between two people who are meant to be enemies?



I love, love, love stories where enemies can't help but give each other a grudging respect--and can't help but feel an attraction.

I think there are lots of ways you can show affection between two enemies, or two people who are supposed to be enemies but can't seem to manage it. Perhaps they share a sense of humor, and every now and then their eyes meet and they realize they're both appreciating a joke that no one else quite gets. Perhaps one treats the other with exaggerated, almost mocking chivalry--but it's only mocking to save face. Perhaps when something horrific happens to one of the characters, he realizes that the other is the only person who will truly understand what he's going through. And perhaps one character can't help but be impressed by the schemes of the other--even when he's the intended victim of said scheme. 

Most of all, I'd have one character's thoughts straying to the other with alarming regularity--he can't get that character out of his head!


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## CicadaGrrl (Jun 26, 2011)

Can't tell from your world set up or how much they are enemies, but I like the absent touch.  The brush of a hand to a shoulder while walking by.  The hand shake that goes a little too far.  Yes, staring is great too.  I like to expand out the senses.  Have her perfume, or his musk, haunt the opposite character as always being with that person.  Have the touch of a hand be so soft, or strong.  Things like that.


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## Kelise (Jun 27, 2011)

I like things like answering for each other, or fetching things for each other, maybe calling each other by a different name (though that can get confusing in print if done wrong) and so forth. Maybe when something goes wrong, their first thought is to check on each other. That's what usually alerts me to hidden romance in novels first - they all go crashing into some danger, and you see they help each other up first, or something.


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