On Writing: Monster Romance
Oct. 10th, 2022 02:01 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
quillpunkCurrently, I’m in a monster romance Phase™. All I want is monster romance, just *give it all to me*. (The gayer the better.)
But monster romances, probably more than any monster stories—because you’re meant to like and root for the monster—run the risk of making the monsters… *too human*. They act like humans, they talk like humans, they understand social cues like humans, they have body language like humans. Even the Monstrous series by Lily Mayne that I enjoy so much is not immune; indeed, when they talk they sound so human it’s almost shocking.
(Make no mistake, I still like and recommend the books.)
And obviously there are times when that’s on purpose, but those times isn’t what this post is about.
I want to read a *monster* romance—a monster that’s a little too out of touch with reality, that moves strangely, that can’t read human body language, that has an entirely *different* body language, that takes things too literal or not literal enough, that has a different culture and outlook on life, that thinks humans are Other and strange, that breathes too much air and have a body that’s so symmetric it’s horrific. I want a monster—not a human in monster skin.
I remember reading a novel with a dragon protagonist on Tapas *oh*, actual years ago now. It was interesting, and I’m pretty sure it was on sale. I think I actually bought all chapters upfront! So I was excited about it!
But there was nothing inhuman, nothing draconic, nothing *strange* or unfamiliar about the protagonist.
He was not a dragon, just occasionally told me so.
I’m attempting to write a Monster/Human Romance myself (at the moment, it’s kind of a mix of steampunk and fantasy, and also very gay) and this is something I worry about. How do I make the monsters *different* enough, but also keep them relatable, and understandable, and *attractive*?
Then I remember that humans can form emotional connections with literally anything, and I try not to care so much anymore. (At least not on the first draft!)
Anyway, wish me luck in writing!
first posted on this blog months ago, which i'm no longer using
But monster romances, probably more than any monster stories—because you’re meant to like and root for the monster—run the risk of making the monsters… *too human*. They act like humans, they talk like humans, they understand social cues like humans, they have body language like humans. Even the Monstrous series by Lily Mayne that I enjoy so much is not immune; indeed, when they talk they sound so human it’s almost shocking.
(Make no mistake, I still like and recommend the books.)
And obviously there are times when that’s on purpose, but those times isn’t what this post is about.
I want to read a *monster* romance—a monster that’s a little too out of touch with reality, that moves strangely, that can’t read human body language, that has an entirely *different* body language, that takes things too literal or not literal enough, that has a different culture and outlook on life, that thinks humans are Other and strange, that breathes too much air and have a body that’s so symmetric it’s horrific. I want a monster—not a human in monster skin.
I remember reading a novel with a dragon protagonist on Tapas *oh*, actual years ago now. It was interesting, and I’m pretty sure it was on sale. I think I actually bought all chapters upfront! So I was excited about it!
But there was nothing inhuman, nothing draconic, nothing *strange* or unfamiliar about the protagonist.
He was not a dragon, just occasionally told me so.
I’m attempting to write a Monster/Human Romance myself (at the moment, it’s kind of a mix of steampunk and fantasy, and also very gay) and this is something I worry about. How do I make the monsters *different* enough, but also keep them relatable, and understandable, and *attractive*?
Then I remember that humans can form emotional connections with literally anything, and I try not to care so much anymore. (At least not on the first draft!)
Anyway, wish me luck in writing!
first posted on this blog months ago, which i'm no longer using