For me, a great romance takes two people who seem to be worlds apart in Chapter One and are inseparable by the time I reach The End. The trick is making the relationship of such people believable and not leaving your reader with the impression: What does he see in her or she in him?
In Timeless Wish my hero and heroine were literally from “different worlds”. Corby Hillhouse was the typical strong silent type 19th century lawman and Laura Bennett was a 20th century liberated woman. Their love for Corby’s daughter brought them together and also kept them at odds. Corby thought the best thing he could do for his daughter was remain aloof, not allow her to become too attached lest he fail her as he’d failed her late mother. Laura felt the opposite, seeing how Corby’s seeming indifference was hurting Sabrina more than it could ever help.
Ultimately, the thing that cemented Corby and Laura’s relationship was understanding. Each had made many bad choices and serious mistakes in their pasts. Consequently, they both realized that they couldn’t judge the other’s character on past events. From the past they both developed strength of spirit and learned the importance of forgiveness. They shared compassion and understanding for one another which led them to forge a new life together, a strong emotional bond that lasted long after that last book page was turned.
The same reasoning went into Bittersweet Surrender the story of Jason Hillhouse and Star McNamara. These two had been walking that fine line between love and hate since childhood and leaned heavily towards the hate side. While they were both proud of the Choctaw blood in their veins and both very dedicated to keeping their heritage and traditions alive they were at opposite ends of the spectrum in how to achieve that goal.
Jason was firmly convinced that the best way to preserve the tribe was by becoming part of Oklahoma Territory and eventually part of the United States. To him it was ridiculous and devastating to have the Choctaw Nation as a separate entity in the Territory and be unable to enforce tribal law on the United State citizens who chose to commit crimes within Choctaw borders.
On the other hand, Star wanted to remain a separate nation, in fact she wanted to evict all but recognized tribal members. She also wanted Choctaw women to have the legal right to decide their fates, to be able to vote as could any man who married into the tribe.
Being another typical 19th century man, Jason thought the idea of a woman being in office was pure folly especially if the woman in question were to marry and have children. He was very set in his belief that a woman’s primary place was in or near the home.
Even after events led them to admit the attraction and the feeling of “completeness” that being together brought, Star and Jason’s conflict centered on independence—for both of them. They each had to do a lot of soul searching and decide to compromise whenever and wherever possible when they realized that as full as their lives were apart, that together they were better, happier.
Examples in conflict/common ground can also be seen in movies. I find that Gone With the Wind is a good example even if Rhett and Scarlett weren’t together in that last scene. They were both strong willed, spirited survivors, they went after what they wanted, they both suffered the same joy and pain at the birth and loss of their child. Even though Rhett didn’t “give a damn” I’m sure that if Margaret Mitchell had done a sequel he and Scarlett’s paths would cross again and that the wisdom maturity brings would have led them to realize how alike they were.
Even if the fictional hero and heroine you to create are “not of this world” –perhaps vampires or aliens– you can still give them some background experiences or traits that will make a relationship between your characters believable, your reader satisfied and not making bets on how long this couple will last.
