With one click
Export a perfectly formatted traditional script.
I’m not a big fan of Rom-Coms. There I said it.
The Rom-Com is one of my least favorite genres, and there are a few reasons for that.
The genre lacks diversity
They’re incredibly predictable
I can only take so many meet-cutes, darn it!
So, what kind of tips can I possibly give since the genre’s not my favorite? I’m going to provide you with things to think about that I’ve noticed great stand out Rom-Coms possess!
- Break conventionality
Think of "Pretty Woman." Who would have thought the love story between a prostitute and a john would go on to become one of the most iconic romance movies. But it did! And I attribute that to the strangeness and unconventional nature of the plot. “Pretty Woman” is not a film that just relies on its meet-cute and then supplies shenanigan, after shenanigan, until we end up with love. The film introduces us to this world of prostitution, as well as the business world of Richard Gere’s character. It explores the treatment of women in sex work, and what happens when someone from a lower class enters a higher class. It’s interesting outside of the relationship!
In a genre that regularly deals in the conventional, a Rom-Com that goes the unconventional route stands out!
- Do the unexpected
The formula of Rom-Coms is tried and true. There’s the set-up, the meet-cute, the complication, things come to a head, and finally, everything’s resolved. People are in love; we all go home!
If you can break away from doing what the audience expects, it can make for a more exciting movie. Maybe a character acts in a way we weren’t expecting, or some outside force causes something to happen, but being conscious of ways that break us out of the expected path of the Rom-Com is something essential to think about!
- Strengthen your characters
When we’re talking Rom-Com, the whole premise is that we’re going to follow these two characters through various trials and tribulations that will eventually result in their falling in love. Well, for this to work, we need to like the people!
I’m not saying every character needs to be likable, that’s just not true, but they do need to be engaging! Make them interesting; make the audience want to know more about them!
- Make it inclusive!
Be inclusive and write about characters we don’t see as often in Rom-Coms! More recent movies like “Love Simon,” “Isn’t It Romantic,” and “What Men Want” all embrace diversity and feature leads that bring something different to the Rom-Com table.
Consider same-sex couples, like one of my favorite movies “But I’m a Cheerleader! But I’m a Cheerleader!” written by Brian Wayne Peterson, which follows a high school cheerleader whose parents send her to conversion therapy to cure her of being gay. It doesn’t sound too Rom-Com-y, but I assure you, it is! It’s a hilarious movie, and the main character finds love in the end. It subverts and parodies the genre, takes place in a unique setting, and explores other topics besides the central love story.
Speaking of diversity in the genre, consider people of other races and ethnicities as your lead characters, or interracial relationships! Recently, I watched “Always Be My Maybe” on Netflix, and I loved it! It was so funny and so cute. While it’s pretty traditional in terms of Rom-Com tropes and structure, I was (SPOILER) legitimately surprised by the absurdity of one of the main characters getting into a fight with Keanu Reeves. It’s just a great, unexpected, fun movie that focuses on mostly diverse characters. We need more of this in the genre!
I hope this blog was able to give you some things to think about when it comes to writing a Rom-Com! Take it from a not-such-a-big-fan of the genre: Thinking about how you can step outside of the box in terms of what’s expected can only help you to write a script that’s sure to stand apart from the rest!
You may also be interested in...
Give Writer's Block The Boot - 10 Tips For Restarting Your Creativity
Let's face it - we have all been there. You finally find the time to sit down and write. You open up your page, your fingers hit the keyboard, and then...nothing. Not a single creative thought comes to mind. The dreadful writer's block has returned once again, and you are stuck. It's important to remember - you are not alone! Writers around the world are plagued by writer's block every day, but it is possible to overcome these feelings of blankness and keep moving forward! Here are 10 of our favorite tips for restarting your creativity: Try writing in a different location. Do you always write at your desk? At...
10 Tips For Writing The First 10 Pages Of Your Screenplay
In our last blog post, we addressed the “myth” or rather FACT about the first 10 pages of your screenplay. No, they are not ALL that matter, but they are certainly the most important ones when it comes to getting your entire script read. For more information on this, check out our previous blog: “Debunking the Myth: Are the First 10 Pages All That Matter?” Now that we have a good understanding of their importance, let’s take a look at a few ways we can ensure these first few pages of your script shine! Set up the world your story takes place in. Give your readers some context. Set the scene. Where...
6 Tips for Setting Strong Writing Goals
Let’s face it. We’ve all been there. We try to set writing goals for ourselves, and we totally fail. It can be hard to work on your screenplay when you have another full-time job, a family to take care of, or any access to the biggest distraction of all…the Internet. No need to feel bad; it happens to us all. Let’s look to the future and start leaving those feelings of disappointment behind! Let’s set some strong writing goals using these 6 tips! 1. Create a calendar. While it may feel frustratingly time consuming, take an hour and write your goal deadlines out on a calendar. This can be a physical, paper calendar...