Love is a part of every story. A love of someone, a love of something. Passion drives the plot just as it does our lives.
I enjoy writing romance as a way to discover and engage with the various desires and bonds that drive our stories. Two people meet and they instantly fall in love or perhaps they find common ground after a rocky start to their eternal bond. What obstacles are in the way as they ebb and flow in their journey?
The road one takes to finding one’s own personal happy ending isn't going to be the same as someone else's.
Little details lead the charge. My wife Barbara and I met years after our lives had already intertwined over and over again without either of us having locked eyes with one another. Barbara had played soccer against my sister and I no doubt had attended games and watched from the sidelines not knowing what waited for me in the future. We each had articles appear in the same issues of a local magazine. Her mother worked alongside two of my uncles and Barbara even took art lessons from my grandmother, someone I will forever hold dear to my heart.
One of the last conversations I ever had with my grandmother was when I told her I was dating someone she'd already met years before. She expressed a desire to know whatever happened to that little girl over the years and I had the privilege of telling her the impact her kindness had had.
Those are the kind of coincidences that if you saw them play out in a movie, you'd raise an eyebrow. Really? Over and over and over? But that's life. Life is a moment-to-moment ride and you don't always know where the rails will take you.
Love is something I weave into every story because it's a part of every life. It comes in the form of family, of friends, spouses, pets, creative outlets, and shared hobbies. People close to you drift away only to come back years later when you least expect it. Sometimes the timing is perfect, sometimes you have to make the time and perhaps share a taxi or sit beside one another on the bus to catch up on years past, but other times you’re headed out the door and don’t have the time to say “Hello, how’ve you been? Do you still….”
Whether it be any of the three genres I dabble in (romance, science fiction, hardboiled mystery) the pull of love and connection rests at the heart of every tale.
Each genre brings with it a different set of rules to play in the sandbox with. In science fiction it may come down to an overwhelming love for humanity, the desire to be a hero that sets someone out on their path. It could even be as simple as wanting to preserve the world for that one person they hold dear that sends someone off on a perilous journey. Perhaps adventure calls. Someone who has waited their whole life to do SOMETHING! ANYTHING! is called into a cozy office with men and women dressed head-to-toe in big business. They need Victoria Manning, the middle school math teacher, to save the world and she can't wait to say yes. She sits there twisting in her chair waiting for the question she's been waiting for all her life. “Yes! I love adventure! I'm passionate about new experiences! What time is it? Can I get a refill on my coffee? Do you validate parking?”
In a hardboiled tale the private eye is lured into a case that reminds him of his past. Perhaps an old friend is gone forever. The rage burns inside him as he drives through the city at night. The moon flashes in the reflection of every window. He's tired. He's hungry. He's angry. His friend saved him time and again when they were young. The city, in its cruel way, had placed them at odds with one another. Henry and Jack had gone toe-to-toe in bar brawls until a common enemy put them back-to-back. With the enemy circling around them, they'd realized working together was the only way out. Now, the private investigator stands in a room, wondering what happened to his friend Jack. He needs to solve the case. The urge burns inside him. “Yes. I'll take this case as a consultant. What time is it? Has anyone made coffee yet? I think I'm in a tow-away zone.”
She's on her way to the taxi. Her bag is packed. She's going to save the world. She hopes the substitute can handle the rest of the school year. It's raining and a crack of lightning ignites an approaching stranger. He's fitted for the office, but it's late. Why is he out so late?
“I need this cab,” he says.
“I can't give it up,” she replies. “I'm saving the world.”
“I'm avenging my friend.”
She can see he's tired. A sandpaper rug covers his face. The rain drips from his hat as he raises his head. He has hazel eyes.
“Henry?” she says.
“Victoria?”
“I thought you'd left the city. I thought I'd never see you again.”
“I didn't want you to see what I'd become. I was lost without you.” He lowers his head. “I'm still lost without you. Are you still teaching?”
She opens the door and ushers him in. She gets in beside him.
“I'm still teaching,” she replies.
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Dan Leicht is a mystery, romance, and science fiction author living in Upstate New York with his wife Barbara and their mischievous tortie cat. He has a Bachelor's in Creative Writing from SUNY Brockport. His work has appeared in Sci-fi Shorts, 365 Tomorrows, The Kraken Lore, and Ripples in Space. You can find him online at danleicht.com and on Instagram/Threads @danleicht. Dan can also be found on Substack -
- where he publishes a bit of romance every Friday.***
A huge thanks to Dan for sharing what the romance genre means to him as a writer and what draws him to write so much about romance, so well.
Dan has a sweet romance, Bagged Lunch, coming soon to Micromance Magazine.
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If anyone is interested in submitting a guest post related to being a romance writer and/or getting published as such, etc etc - specifically flash/short romance - send write-up to micromancemagazine@gmail.com (put guest post in subject line) for consideration. If you have another idea for a guest post, don't hesitate to reach out.
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