When we think of science fiction, we think of galaxies and stars and the occasional misuse of Star Wars. We think of superheroes and their awesome powers, or a dystopia that advertises itself as paradise on earth, even though its own citizens are dying. We think of technology advancing at a rapid rate, and diseases that are mutating beyond our expertise, so much so that humanity is finally subject to natural selection. And when we think of our characters, we think of them as spunky. Spunky and adventurous and caught up in the battle for justice. Because of this, there’s something charming about having a romance story in the midst of all the chaos.

Books such as Ella and the Emperor by Honey Phillips and Sticks and Stones by Tasim Ley are just an example of these romances. Whether it be an interspecies romance about an alien and a human, or two soldiers fighting an intergalactic war for Earth, a budding romance brings a sort of relief, even when it’s in the darkest, most gruesome setting a sci-fi story can take place. It brings a smile to a reader’s face when they can distract themselves from what’s about to take place.

But what does it take to write these romances? How do we make it engaging? And most importantly, how can we balance both the science and the romance?

An interesting setting
The fact that science fiction has many worlds at its disposal is a great way to start. Like fantasy, science fiction allows you to explore both humanity and any of the innovations we’ve made over the past few centuries and put them on steroids. We see these dark, gritty places that allow us to foster the narrative. But bear in mind that since science fiction is somewhat based in reality, it’d be helpful to do some research beforehand as well. Look at the latest medical articles involving gene editing. Read lectures about space exploration. Critique recent studies involving society and technology. It’ll help you in the long run.

An interesting plot
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology created a psychopathic AI. They were able to do this by feeding the robot violent comments Reddit users have made over the past few years. What’s more, they used their experiment to show just how powerful an impact data has on machines, especially AIs.

This very idea can transform into something more desirable for us writers, and that is the plot. For instance, what if an AI fell in love with a human? What if the AI made it possible for two characters to fall in love with each other? The ideas are endless.

Just be sure that the plot is smooth, gives us a realistic viewpoint as to how these characters fell in love, and what they can do with their love, and most importantly, that it makes sense. Even if you can have two characters designed to give us the perfect romance, and an awesome setting as the backdrop, if the plot is nonexistent, be prepared to have readers complain about how there was so much wasted potential.

An interesting love story
And finally, there’s the key ingredient: the romance.

Despite the unfortunate tropes of women being forced to support men, nowadays, women have more of a say in the genre. This, in turn, forced writers to create characters that are more along the lines of, well, human. Give your characters time to actually get to know each other. And don’t withhold common sense just because it suits the romance. After all, no one’s going to stop and kiss when aliens are shooting up Earth.

Another important point: you can’t make the love story seem super cheesy either. Because, like it or not, you don’t want to end up like Star Wars. No one wants to be Star Wars, where that pitiful line, “I’m haunted by the kiss that you should never have given me,” exists.

Sci-fi romances are immensely enjoyable to write. Not only do you have this complex narrative going on in your head, but you also have an equally wonderful romance to match. It’s wonderful to see this play out in front of your eyes, even more so when you’re actually writing it down. However, make sure that science and romance are working in conjunction with each other. It doesn’t do any good for one to overwhelm the other.