gordon ramsey: so what’s wrong with the restaurant? a staff member about to drag out every single bad and/or questionable thing their boss has ever done:
Don’t base them exclusively on physical and/or sexual attraction. While these kinds of attraction can certainly strengthen relationships, they can’t create anything but a weak foundation for a relationship on their own.
Know how your characters like to show and be shown affection. Not everyone shows their interest in others the same way. Some people like to give gifts. Others like to cuddle. Still others like giving compliments. Different people like to receive different kinds of affection as well.
Remember that love at first sight is a myth. You can have lust at first sight and romantic interest at first sight, but true love takes time to develop.
Show the characters interacting and getting to know each other. This should be obvious, but it is all to common for a character to be given a love interest at the last minute or to be paired off with someone the reader hasn’t seen them interact with much. Remember, the reader doesn’t have to see every little thing they do together, but the relationship will feel forced to the reader if they don’t see the characters interacting and establishing that they genuinely care about each other in a significant way. If the reader views your character’s significant other as little more than a stranger, then you’re doing something wrong.
Have both characters do things for each other and contribute to the relationship in meaningful ways. Relationships are two way streets. While you don’t need to keep score of exactly who does what for who (Relationships are not a competitive sport!), the relationship should seem fairly balanced or, if it’s not, then the characters should be working to change that.
Don’t give your characters completely incompatible traits. While it’s healthy for people to differ from each other, there are some differences that even people that are otherwise perfect for each other probably can’t overcome. For example, a environmental activist would have a hard time having a healthy relationship with someone who wants to chop dow a forest. Basically, know your characters’ deal breakers so that you won’t try to match up characters who are simply incompatible with each other.
Have them share interests. This is a great way to add substance to relationships outside of physical attraction and compatible personalities. Maybe they both like fishing. Maybe they share a passion for baking. Whatever you decide to have them like, don’t be afraid to use your characters’ shared interests as opportunities for them to bond. Also, if your characters don’t share a lot of interests/hobbies, consider having one character introduce the other to their hobby or have one character take initiative to try something the other likes. This is a great way to show how much your characters care about each other because it demonstrates your characters’ genuine interest in what makes their partner happy.
Let the relationship experience at least a few bumps in the road. No relationships are perfect. Let your characters disagree, argue, and maybe even have a full on fight. Relationships that withstand obstacles seem stronger to readers, especially if the characters grow as people because of these hardships.
The resemblance hits him all at once one evening, as he’s helping Rosita in the kitchen and he notices Cheque walking in, all smiles and bright-eyed, clearly looking to get a bite of the cake Rosita just baked.
The boy doesn’t look much like Ernesto; not now and not in life, either, judging from his picture on the ofrenda. Ernesto was on the chubby side as a kid, while Ezequiel had been on the thin side of lean. He is shorter than Ernesto had been his age, his shoulders not as broad, his frame nowhere as thick, and his features more angular. That, and Ernesto had been loud, always looking to be at the center of attention; Ezequiel is silent, of course, and far more at ease in the background.
No, all in all there are no similarities… until he sees them, and then they’re so obvious.
It is the tilt of his head, the innocent look, the cocky grin when he gets what he wants; it is the spring in his step and the unconscious, effortless grace of his movements. It is the look of pride when he manages a magician’s trick that baffles even Óscar and Felipe. It is how he pauses in front any reflective surface, the quick gesture to brush back his hair; he’s doing that right now, glancing at his reflection on the oven… and Héctor is not the only one looking, either.
Across the kitchen, Imelda is watching. Her expression is unreadable for a moment, her mouth pressed in a thin line, her frame tensing; then their gazes meet and Héctor knows that she sees it, too. Until Rosita laughs, and that grim moment of recognition is over.
He and Imelda turn to see she’s cutting off a slice of cake, reaching to ruffle Ezequiel’s hair with her free hand. The annoyed look as he fixes his hair is gone quickly, but it is there and oh, it is as familiar as the bright smile that follows.
“We’ll be dining in a couple of hours, Rosita,” Imelda says, in a casual tone that shows none of the thoughts she and Héctor shared – and that is good, it’s how it has to be, because no similarity, however unsettling, is the boy’s fault.
As Ezequiel takes his first bite, stuffing his face with clear satisfaction, Rosita chuckles. “I know, I know. I just can’t resist those eyes,” she says. “What Cheque wants, Cheque gets.”
Yes, Héctor thinks, that is familiar, too. What he wants, he gets.
But Ezequiel del Rio wants for nothing more than family, security, and the occasional slice of cake. And that, Héctor thinks, makes all the difference in the world.
Stop talking and start doing: My Fallout Shelter for my Tumblr blog 