Anyone Who Thinks Romance Novel Plots Are Unrealistic Should Read These Twitter Stories

Many romance readers have probably heard the phrase at one point in time: “You know that’s not real, right?” It’s often spoken by people that don’t know how to keep unwarranted opinions to themselves. Rarely do comments like this permeate through other reading communities. And yes, I’m including those who read science fiction, fantasy, or horror. You don’t frequently hear, “Talking unicorns aren’t real, why do you like them so much?” While this can be a shared experience to many entrenched in different niche communities, it feels like people really like to tell romance readers (a women-dominated genre) about what to enjoy and why, as if we needed reminding?

More happily for us, this conversation manifested on Twitter recently as a new and delightful meme format. Many people took to sharing tales of the outrageous, silly, romantic, and over-the-top ways they really did fall in love.

Universal problems

While I certainly didn’t catch all of them, some of the references came directly from popular books. For example, one of the most popular ones straight up wrote lines from Jane Austen‘s Pride and Prejudice.

This moment is immortalized in the novel and many adaptations. That tweet, even if you didn’t know it came from Austen, sounds very relatable even 200 years later. (Part of Austen’s appeal is that her work remains accessible and applicable to every era.) For those that do want to marry (and not marrying is always an option!), staying at home until then isn’t necessarily a requirement in many families, but a financial necessity in this economy.

Wait a minute…

The more I read some of these tweets, the more I started to wonder … how many were actually real? We all know a person that got married or had a long-term relationship with someone under odd circumstances. One person’s “odd” is another person’s “that’s romaannnttic!” Also, there is the flip side of finding yourself after a disastrous relationship.

Everyone’s HEA (Happily Ever After) looks different and is completely (to a degree) possible. It’s all a matter of perspective. Do you have any stories of unexpected romance to share?

(via Twitter, image: Paramount Pictures)

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Alyssa Shotwell

(she/her) Award-winning artist and writer with professional experience and education in graphic design, art history, and museum studies. She began her career in journalism in October 2017 when she joined her student newspaper as the Online Editor. This resident of the yeeHaw land spends most of her time drawing, reading and playing the same handful of video games—even as the playtime on Steam reaches the quadruple digits. Currently playing: Baldur's Gate 3 & Oxygen Not Included.

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