Hotter than Romantasy
By: Laura Huie
Romantasy is quickly growing to be the most marketable genre out there. But it’s not werewolves and vampires. Now it’s dragons, shapeshifters, fae, elementals, whatever magical creature (or animate object) you want out there. In fact, Sarah J. Maas is on track to become the biggest fantasy author ever soon*, surpassing Brandon Sanderson.
So, what’s the next hottest genre?
Romantasy currently appeals to romance and fantasy readers. A middle ground that focuses on world-building and character-driven stories.
It’s just missing the last flair of addiction to appeal to a wider range of readers.
Those delicious stats like strength, luck, charisma, endurance, etc.—and what comes with stats? The rest of the male reading market.
Back in the early 2000s, thrillers, fantasy, and science fiction drew a good reading chunk of the male readers. But now there are new genres that combine all of those: Progression, LitRPG, and GameLit. You can have a fantasy or pure science fiction with stats on seeing how the character grows and controls/saves the world around them. They come with delicious cliffhangers that match a thriller novel. Inside the pages are literal tables of information for the data-obsessed reader. Fantasy-football is a fun pastime for many people, and now LitPRG stories have those same stats in a story format. Kinda like a fantasy-fantasy- player-league.
But how can a book combine Romantasy and Progression fantasy?
With character-driven stories and slow-burn relationships. You can’t go too fast or it will scare away the readers who squirm at the sight of hand-holding. The lead’s intense gaze shouldn’t scare away potential love interests, just a few weak monsters. Perfect execution of these hybrid genres will create the hottest genre yet: Progromantacy (this word is not trademarked).
Progression thrives on an overpowered (OP) character who fights solo and never in a group. To avoid monologue dumps, they use a talking pet or weapon to share ideas with. Side characters also float in and out of their lives to show the humanity of the OP character.
Then how do you create romance with an OP character who avoids being around people consistently?
By using the greatest trope of all time: Forced Proximity. Make it so the OP power weapon or skill for the main character only works with the romantic lead nearby. This can add the spin of the enemies-to-lovers trope, and how they fight against each other on their skill points every time they level. Are they working together or against each other? Who caves first and realizes that they need to save the world and toss their pride aside, which just makes the other main character fall in love with their selfless act and BAM we got romance showing up.
The thrill of saving the world (which is the halfway point of the story) switches to two important questions: Who will slay the most monsters and who will kiss whom first?
In this relationship, it won’t be about going out to dinner in a fancy car. No, the main characters will eat the delectable artifacts to power up and pass on the bigger monster to the other person because seeing them get down and dirty just makes the romance bloom even more.
Where the shadow daddy character says, “Touch her and you die” while pulling out a sword to stop a raging monster. And thanks to their impressive endurance, they’ll be able to go a few rounds with the romantic lead after this battle for the ultimate climax.
*https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/discover/sarah-j-maas/sarah-j-maas/
Laura Huie
Laura Huie is a Fantasy author from the Midwest who grew up hiding among bookshelves filled with stories from other fantasy and science fiction worlds. She is constantly hitting the keys whether it’s writing her next book, writing a post, or stopping the swarm of zerglings that are rushing her.
*All Porridge Report articles are satire and should be taken with humor in mind. If offense is taken, please let us know in the comments and we will rectify.
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