𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 & 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐬

writing a relationship your readers will ship

Relationships, especially in beginner writer's works, have a tendency to feel forced. You don't want these relationships to feel unnatural.

A good romance in a story will give the reader a bit of second-hand infatuation. They'll root for the relationship. If the romance is well written, you can make the reader smile and blush just by reading a few sentences.

Does your story need romance?
First, decide whether the romance is needed.

If you're adding the character to the plot just for the sake of being a love interest, it's probably not a needed romance. You can still add it of course, but it will be much harder to focus on the central plot.

Step one
Make sure the characters have chemistry.

The characters should compliment each other's personalities. If he's loud, stubborn, and aggressively opinionated, a more tranquil and soft-spoken love interest would suit him well. Two headstrong people won't be likely to have a lasting relationship in real life, unless they (impossibly) agreed on every subject. But, there should be some similarities. While opposites do attract, polar opposites will not and the whole relationship will feel forced. The characters should have something in common. It could be morals, a parallel backstory, the same motivations, etc. As long as there's a reason for them to be drawn to each other, there's potential.

Step two
Slow burn ships are fantastic.

Don't make your characters fall in love right off the bat. There can be attraction, of course, but genuine feelings of true love don't happen instantly. Your characters should become closer as people, feel at ease around each other, and truly know the other before they fall head-over-heels. The readers will crave the relationship far more, like dangling a treat right in front of a dog's nose, but keep pulling it away.

Find ways of SHOWING (not telling) the characters are falling for each other. Have them stand up for each other, be protective. Have them break their own normal routine for each other. For example, a guarded character could lower their walls for a moment if their love interest needs emotional support. These scenes can be awkward for the character changing their typical behavior and that discomfort can demonstrate how much they care for the other, altering their own selves for the other's benefit.

However, make sure that you combine these cute emotional moments with distance. Make the characters deny their true feelings or even distance themselves from their love interest upon discovering their feelings. The more the characters long for each other, the more the reader will long for them to be together. Build barriers between them for your characters to have work to knock down. Keep them close, but maintain that distance until the moment is right.

Step four
Taking a break can help create tension.

You know you loved someone if you leave them and feel awful. Apply this into the writing. Your characters can break up, then get back together in a joyous reunion. Or have something separate them that gets in the way of their relationship.

Step five
Not every couple has a happy ending.

Sometimes, things don't always work out for different reasons. An ending that leaving readers craving for more can be a good move.