On Writing Realistic Medical Romance: Love in the ER

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Medical romance has become a subcategory of romance novels that’s gradually caught the interest of most. Although set at the backdrop of hospitals and riddled with technical jargon, such stories continue to impress with their compelling high-stakes narratives and intriguing yet relatable struggles.

The subgenre alone quickly catches the attention of readers. Now, it’s up to the authors to ensure this interest remains throughout.

Writing realistic medical romance is a separate classification of complexity on its own. It’s combining different layers and ensuring they’re in harmony. When writing realistic medical romance, authors don’t only have to worry about crafting a riveting and heartwarming romance. Instead, they also have to ensure the medical side is realistic as much as it’s exhilarating. After all, the balance between the romance’s softness and the high stakes of medical challenges is at the crux of all medical romance.

Setting the Scene by Crafting an Authentic Medical World

Although fictional, medical romance is mostly factual or realistic. The fantasy within these stories is limited to their nonexistent characters and organizations and not to how the medical situations unfold. This is why authors are tasked to equip themselves with enough understanding of the medical environment to write an authentic medical romance successfully.

How Authors Achieve Realism

This is done through either exposure to medical dramas or real-life situations.

As for author Dee Bostic, her background as a clinical lab scientist undoubtedly served as her foundation for writing realistic medical romance, as evidenced by her first novel, Love, Lies & Lab Coats. This book about a group of devoted doctors primarily touches on life’s unique intricacy and interconnectedness. It’s a slice-of-life fiction that follows multiple characters, from doctors to hospital staff and patients, navigating through challenges in hopes of finding success and personal triumphs.

She used her knowledge in the clinic and reflected this in her story; that, and an extra effort in researching medical facts and protocols, made writing realistic medical romance easier for her.

To add a deeper sense of authenticity, Dee Bostic sets her story in a real-life medical center in Washington. This usage of actual establishments plus the author’s background adds a layer of realism to the story, making it easier for the readers to believe such a story is plausible. This not only makes the story more believable and moving but also further intensifies the stakes at hand.

How Authors Balance Authenticity with Readability

However, while crafting an authentic medical experience, authors must ensure their readers will be comfortable reading the story. In writing realistic medical romance, authors must see that their books are still novels, not textbooks. While the medical situations are half the point of these stories, they shouldn’t be so technical that it takes out the fun of reading the whole story.

Balance is everything in medical romance.

Authors must be accurate in the medical direction but ensure they don’t overdo it. After all, at the core of these stories is still the heart of a romantic. Romance still plays a part in these stories, and information overload regarding medical facts should also be avoided. Hence, authors must keep in mind that they should write authentically without keeping much of the romance and fun away from the story.

Building a Believable Romance Amidst the Chaos

Now that the medical side of the story is settled, it’s time to dive into the characters’ chemistry despite the crisis. When writing realistic medical romance, authors have the creative liberty to play with the pressure and emotional intensity present in medical settings.

How Authors Develop Characters

Writing realistic medical romance doesn’t mean authors only have to limit their settings and characters to medical establishments. While a lot happens within these walls, these professionals’ lives still expand outside, and authors can leverage this. They have the freedom to not only play with character stereotypes and personalities but also delve deeper into their personal lives.

Medical romance isn’t only about operations.

Instead, it’s about the intimacy and reality that happens beyond shifts and outside operating rooms.

The contrast between life-and-death moments and the romance’s tenderness enhances the readers’ experience. This rollercoaster of emotions is the very reason why medical romance sells.

How Authors Enhance the Romance

The combination of conflict, tension, and emotional depth seizes readers’ eagerness. It’s both comforting yet exhilarating, relatable yet also something most readers are curious about—how do these exhausted professionals juggle their priorities? What do they choose between love and career? It’s these realistic questions that push readers through these stories.

In Dee Bostic’s case, the author didn’t limit her plot to a single category to authentically capture life’s complexity. Although medical romance combines medical scenarios and romance, writing realistic medical romance shouldn’t be limited to both facets. Realistic romance also delves into the characters’ real-life struggles outside romance, and authors must also take time to unravel these.

Writing Realistic Medical Romance Is About Balance

In writing realistic medical romance, authors should focus closely on achieving a balance between authenticity and fantasy. While these stories bank on realism for their success, authors should avoid overdoing this to prevent losing readability and relatability.

Writing realistic medical romance is separate from directing or watching medical dramas. For the latter, the audience might find it more enjoyable to see complex procedures. However, in literature, readers most likely prefer simplistic medical situations. For these stories, the romance should still be front and center while the setting is also respected.

If you’re interested in reading how a medical romance is best-paced and written, grab a copy of Dee Bostic’s Love, Lies & Lab Coats now!