With no further obstacles, they could finally be together, The End. In a normal romance, that would be the end of it.

When Pam and Roy finally set a date for their wedding, that solidified that obstacle further, which resulted in Jim transferring to a new branch in another town.ĭespite this new obstacle, Pam ends her engagement to Roy anyway, and as luck would have it, Jim’s new branch was closing and he was being transferred back. The fact that they had no wedding date set was the viewer’s first clue that all was not well in Pam’s relationship, and Roy’s constant mistreatment of Pam–and Jim’s subsequent frustration over her treatment–provided some good conflict and tension. Thinly veiled flirting, lingering looks, and bashful interactions made it clear there was “something there,” but Pam was engaged to Roy from the warehouse and had been for years. They were co-workers and work friends who bonded over tormenting an annoying co-worker. (Spoilers for The Office…) Jim and Pam are one of my favorite examples of a slow burn romance. But over time, that situation may change or their mutual attraction may transcend the situation, and that’s when you’ll start looking for other obstacles. In other words, something about the situation of one or both characters makes pursuing a romance undesirable or impossible, so they maintain a friendship instead. Initially, the obstacle keeping romance at bay will probably be situational. They’re what make us root for things to work out, but the key is that there are continued obstacles that hamper romantic development, drawing out out over several months or even years. The astute observer (whether that’s readers, viewers, or even other characters) should see clues that there are deeper feelings at play, and those subtle hints are the driving force of the slow burn relationship. remembering moments containing looking/touching moments When the characters aren’t together, you can do a lot with the mind: flirting disguised as platonic playfulness touching in non-intimate ways that feel intimate when touch is restricted When they physically interact, you can add in things like: communicating feelings through the eyes (worry, pain, hurt, pride, affection) their eyes meet and then they both look away bashfully When the two characters inhabit the same space, you can do a lot with just the eyes: Instead, the relationship develops as a friendship and all interactions appear to be platonic on the surface, but on the inside they’re slowly falling in love. This is due to whatever situation makes the romantic interest inappropriate, inconvenient, or otherwise undesirable at that time. Think Jim and Pam in The Office, Ross and Rachel in Friends, Niles and Daphne in Frasier, Jane and Rafael in Jane the Virgin, Nick and Jess in New Girl, FitzSimmons in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Jake and Amy in Brooklyn Nine-Nine, just to name a few.Īs with any romance, slow burn can start out with no romantic interest, one-sided romantic interest, or dual romantic interest, but unlike a typical romance, in slow burn that romantic interest isn’t pursued. In television, slow burn couples are called “will they/won’t they” relationships, because the romance develops over multiple seasons leaving fans to wonder if and when they’ll ever get together, and when they finally do it’s a really big deal. Unlike typical romances, which often begin with an open romantic interest, slow burn couples generally start out as acquaintances or friends, usually in situations that aren’t romance-friendly, such as being roommates, co-workers, or in other relationships. Slow burn relationships can take several months or even years to develop thanks to obstacles that prevent the romance from progressing. So here we go! :)Ī “slow burn” romance is one that takes longer to develop than the typical period of several weeks or a couple months. I actually have covered this before but this is a good opportunity for a guide on this subject, which I don’t presently have. Asked by Anonymous Guide: Writing a Slow Burn Romance

Slow burn fanfic