I'm in doubt about this new development in my manuscript, and I am curious what you guys have to say about it. Ever since I started on this story, it seemed that my main character (an ordinary teenage girl) would have no love interest. Not because she is anti-romance or because I was adement she wouldn't; it just never seemed to fit into the story so I never paid much thought to it. Recently though, the possibility of a bit of romance has come up and ever since it seems to fit perfectly - but not to deliver my MC her happily ever after. Quite the contrary - I am thinking of having my MC's new crush killed by my antagonist, possibly before my MC can even tell him about her feelings. I am wondering though, if this would be a bit too "well, that escalated quickly". At the start of the story, romance is quite the last thing my MC has on her mind, so her feelings for her new crush will only develop later in the story... Killing him off fits in quite well into the story, in my opinion, but I am slightly concerned if it isn't a bit too fast... Any ideas on the subject?
This could be a good development for your story, but you need to ask yourself a few questions first. How genuine are her feelings for this person? If they are trivial, it's one thing, if they are deep it's another. If the antagonist kills this person, will it change the story at all? If not, it probably means the romance was trivial, and it might prove a distraction that doesn't quite work for the reader. If, however, the killing makes a deep impact on your main character ...well, that might be quite a game changer. It's fun when stuff you don't intend creeps into your story, but do let it settle a bit, and make sure it has the effect you want it to have. You can easily end up writing a different story from what you set out to write, and that's excellent, if it makes for an even better storry. But don't try to cram something into your story that doesn't fit. If the romance is trivial, you can use it, but make sure you don't disappoint the reader by leading them to believe it's going to really matter. If the romance is major and deep, however, the death will have a huge impact on your story.
Does the character offer any other plot significance? Are they friends with the protagonist beforehand, or important to other characters? Because if not, killing off a character like that will seem like just a way to add drama/character depth. I would recommend either making this character more developed or dropping them altogether. Nothing is as bad as a "satellite love interest".
Thank you both for your advice The character I am contemplating killing off does know my main character before she's falls inlove with him - they're not particularly close friends but he does play an essential part in her staying alive in the first place (She lives under very difficult circumstances, he works at a diner/Subway kind of thing, and he provides her with the leftovers so she at least has something to eat.) After her life changes for the better she runs into him again and develops feelings for him. It would be her very first romance, and him being killed off it meant to be a complete eye-opener to her that will reveal the antagonists true colours. I do agree with both of you that it should be more than just a little crush. This would have to work with the ongoing plot rather than distract from it.. Seems I have some fleshing out to do then And if it doesn't fit, I'll just drop it
