Writing the Romantic Comedy

If you like watching romantic comedies or are writing a romcom, then Writing the Romantic Comedy by Billy Mernit should be your Go-To Book. It is a lot of fun to read and full of craft advice and knowledge.

If you like watching romcoms, then it’s like a friendly, witty conversation with the expert, Billy Mernit. He also has a blog. And he lists romantic comedies, so you can find some you may not have seen. I just watched the movie MAN UP (discussed in the book) and it’s BRILLIANT.

If you are planning on writing a romcom, then it’s like taking a class on how to write one. Here are my three takeaways from his book, but really, you need to read the whole book! The whole book is brilliant and has so many tips for comedy and for writing.

• Character Chemistry
• Supporting Characters Create Conflict
• The Romantic Comedy Plot Beats

He also added so much great additional stuff in this new updated version, particularly with how to write comedy.

Character Chemistry

Billy Mernit lists four keys to characterization: purpose, credibility, empathy and complexity. (Writing the Romantic Comedy, at p. 112). He uses Tootsie as an example to explain each of these concepts. I plan to do a longer post to delve into the comic character.

Supporting Characters Create Conflict

One of my main takeaways from Writing the Romantic Comedy was how supporting characters should create conflict for the main character and “force him to confront his issues.” (Id. at 145). My earlier post went into more detail about this.

The Romantic Comedy Plot Beats

The new edition of Writing the Romantic Comedy now has 8 beats (the first edition had 7 beats). I have taken two classes that cited these beats (one online class by Alyssa Cole and one class by Fiona Harper at the RNA Conference in Leeds), so I am not the only writer recommending this structure.

And the RomCom plot beats are:

• The Chemical Equation: Set-Up (show what is missing in the protagonist)
• The Meet-Cute Meet: Catalyst
• A Sexy Complication: Turning Point
• The Hook: Midpoint (raises the stakes of their relationship)
• Swivel: Second Turning Point (“stakes reach their highest point as the romantic relationship’s importance jeopardizes the protagonist’s . . . goal” (Id. at p. 198)
• The Dark Moment: Crisis
• Climax: a Fight or Flight
• Joyful Defeat: Resolution

Billy Mernit shows how these beats work using NOTTING HILL and CRAZY RICH ASIANS as examples. He recommends watching a romantic comedy and finding these beats.

The Romantic Comedy Beats in The UnDomestic Goddess

I thought I’d try applying these beats to a novel The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella. This is one of my favorite novels, probably because I’m a recovering workaholic lawyer who identifies with the protagonist Samantha (a workaholic lawyer). I love Sophie Kinsella books. Since I am trying to write a romcom, it’s worth studying her books, even if they don’t fit this movie structure exactly. The book is more focused on the protagonist’s journey, so the romance plot is a sub-plot. Again SPOILERS. I highly recommend reading the book if you haven’t already. It’s a very funny book and good for this quarantine period.

So here are the beats (I think):

The Set-Up: the Chemical Equation:

Samantha is a workaholic lawyer trying to make partner and who has no outside life. She has a birthday dinner and her family members cancel on her because of work and so she is just left holding phones talking to her at the table.

The Meet-Cute (the Catalyst):

Samantha misses a deadline to register a loan, causing a fifty million loss to her client. and walks out of the law firm in shock. She knocks on the door of a house to procure aspirin and the owner thinks she is from the housekeeper agency. Romance Meet-Cute: As she drinks a glass of her client’s wine, she feels a prickly sensation and meets the gardener of the house, Nathaniel. He says he heard she trained as a Cordon Bleu chef (she said that while she was interviewing for the job), and asks her what kind of vegetables she will want. He is suspicious when she doesn’t know the difference between various types of vegetables.

First Turning Point:

She is fired from her law firm and she decides to stay as their housekeeper. Romance Turning Point: She is trying to cook a dinner for the family, when she has no idea how to cook, and panicking as everything is exploding. Nathaniel comes in and confronts her, accusing her of exploiting her employers since she clearly can’t cook. She admits that she is on the run from “a situation” and she can’t cook. Then she saves herself from the cooking disaster (she tells her employers the meal was inedible and not up to her standards so she threw it out because she didn’t have the right equipment) and stays as their housekeeper.

Midpoint (the Hook):

Nathaniel’s mom gives Samantha a cooking lesson where she has to experience the flavors; she can’t just take notes. And the atmosphere is relaxed and enjoyable. Romance turning point: They plan a date.

Second Turning Point (the Swivel):

Samantha figures out that she was set up to take the fall for that mistake. She didn’t make the mistake. Romance Turning Point: Nathaniel and Samantha start dating. She also finds out that Nathaniel hates lawyers, so she doesn’t tell him teh truth that she is a lawyer. but dating him gets her farther from her goal of returning to law.

Crisis (the Dark Moment):

Samantha poses as a cocktail waitress to enter the firm and confront the partner who set her up, but she gets kicked out of the firm. Romance Crisis: she decides to go back to her law firm job. They break up.

Climax (Fight or Flight):

Samantha approaches one senior partner and tells him her theory that she was set up. He researches it and she’s right. She is offered a full equity partnership. Romance Fight or Flight: She realizes she doesn’t want to return to her law firm job while on the train with the law firm partners. She turns down the job again and gets out of the train to find a train going back. Then she sees Nathaniel seated on the train to London.

Resolution

Samantha and Nathaniel get back together and she realizes can “do anything. Be anyone.”

Let’s Talk

Have you read Writing the Romantic Comedy or The UnDomestic Goddess? What did you think?

On a personal note, we are on Day 25 in our NYC apartment. We are fine, but I cry when I read the news. I am so grateful to all the essential workers and I worry for them. At night, I try to watch or read a romcom to keep my spirits up. And I highly recommend watching Some Good News.

I hope you are #stayinghome #savinglives #flatteningthecurve.

And I did learn to use my tiny sewing machine and sew masks! Pretty good for a workaholic lawyer who didn’t know how to sew.

Thanks for reading.