Conventions of the Romantasy genre
Romantasy is the child of two parent genres, and it inherits conventions from both. The romance side brings the emotional architecture: the internal need, the obstacles, the grand gesture, the happy ending. While the fantasy side brings the external scaffolding: the quest, the stakes, the battle between good and evil. A Romantasy novel that's working well delivers on both sets of conventions at once, which is part of why the genre feels so satisfying!
Genre conventions are the recurring elements that readers expect when they pick up a book in a particular category. When you fulfil them, you give your reader the comfort of familiarity. When you subvert them, if's best to do it knowing that the convention was there in the first place. Either way, you need to know what you're working with.
Here are the conventions that show up most reliably in Romantasy (but again, it's your book! You can choose to subvert them):
- Need — The internal goal of the protagonist (the thing they need to complete their character arc) is connection.
- Quest — There must be something outside of the romance that your characters will come together to fix (this is the thing that creates adhesion).
- Good vs Evil — A main staple of the fantasy genre, a battle against good and evil usually culminates in a massive battle in the finale.
- Triangle/Blocking Belief — There might be a romantic rival, or a moral/ethical reason that one hero turns away from the other.
- Helpers & Hinderers — Secondary characters for/against the relationship will either help the two get together, or will try to keep them apart.
- Secrets — They might be keeping secrets from each other, lying to themselves, hiding something from everyone, or having something hidden.
- Polar Opposites — The heroes have different approaches to just about everything, but as they become closer they will learn from each other.
- Proof — The climax of the story is a scene where we experience proof of the love the heroes share. This is usually the grand gesture.
- Happy Ending — While not a convention of fantasy, a happy ending is a convention of romance — so readers may expect it.
