What Romance Readers Want to See in Chapter One

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Reader Poll On How To Being A Romance Story

To further the discussion from The Right Way To Start Your Romance Novel I decided to create a reader poll to hear what’s in demand straight from the source.

The following Facebook Reader Groups took part:

Erotica Readers and Authors with 10,107 members

Interracial Romance Readers with 1,852 members

Romance & Thrillers with 13,507 members

Without further ado here are the results:

In 1st place is a tie between Slowly and With a Bang.

It looks like readers are divided.

  • Half want their story to start slowly in favor of  rich characters and a connection.
  • Half want it start off with a bang in favor of action and suspense to get hooked from the start.

Coming in 2nd place is Cute Meet.

When it comes to the cute meet, readers are looking for the romance to start right away in a lighthearted and funny way gradually getting more intense as the relationship progresses through the storyline.

In 3rd place was Other.

Other turned out to be more of a combination of the other 3 choices depending on what genre was being read and what mood the reader was in at the time.

However, no matter how the books start everyone was in agreement that no story is worth the read if the characters are flat and the story line is unbelievable.

Are you surprised by the results of this reader poll?

How do you like your romance stories to begin? 

Stay Tuned

#curyliving: The Great Bathing Suite Debate

3 responses to “What Romance Readers Want to See in Chapter One”

  1. kirizar Avatar

    I go back and forth between slow burn and red hot intro. I’d say, it depends on the type of romance. I lean toward the paranormal or ‘has other plot bunnies running amok’ variety of romance. This requires inputting a lot of elements besides the romance. So, usually there is a quick flash of attention getting, then a burst of villainy to set the stage for the conflicts and excuses that bring the handsome hero together with the feisty female lead. Sparks are the only true important factor. The characters have to sizzle or I’m just not that into them. That said, they have to have more than physical attraction or I just find the story to flimsy to sustain itself. It takes real craft to find the balance.

    1. Darla G. Denton, Writer Avatar

      Wonderfully put 🙂 I tend to agree. The more elements in the story to more invested I seem to be as a reader.

    2. PauliAtomic Avatar

      Thanks so much for this comment. It’s so helpful to know the preferences of a reader who truly loves the genre ❤️

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