Love Triangles are Wrecktangles

First off, I was a bad blogger last month and forgot to introduce myself. So here goes... *waves awkwardly* Hi! I'm Leah Clifford and I write YA Urban Fantasy. My first novel, A Touch Mortal is coming out with GreenWillow on February 22, 2011. And, um, it's got a hot boy with wings, Siders who spread Touch to the mortals and seedy New York City clubs with devilishly good bands. You should check it out here: http://www.LeahClifford.com

And onto the post! (/awkward)

Girl meets Boy. Girl is sure Boy is her forever and everything is going to turn out sappily every after. And then, just before a. boy asks out girl "officially" b. they're able to run away together from an evil goverment facility or c. Girl tosses aside her mortal life for Boy, she meets... Other Boy. And suddenly things have gone from the warm glow of happily ever after to a raging inferno of jealousy, passion and the knowledge that one of these Romeo's will end this book (or the book's sequel...or the third if it's a trilogy) with a broken heart.

Oh love triangles! You give stories tension (Who will she CHOOSE?!!), give characters depth (and WHY?!!), give fans rivalries and Team t-shirts.

To see what team you are, please answer this simple question. Who is Bella standing between?

A. Edward. There is no one else in the picture. (You are team Edward.)

B. Taylor Lautner's abs (happy sigh) and that creepy guy who watches her sleep (grr face). (Team Jacob!)

C. Cedric Diggory and... oh my gawd is that Shark Boy?! (You've been in a coma. Even if you don't like Twilight? You. Choose. A. Team. It's like presidential elections.)

Now, if I'm reading your book and you've done your job as a writer, by this point there's some plot going on, stakes are high and I'm making myself the One More Chapter And Then I'll Write promise...for the sixth chapter. I care about these three characters. I care about Boy 1 and Boy 2 that Girl is forced to choose between and I care about Girl and her terrible choice. I care about all of them.

And then things change. Maybe Boy 2 saves her (or she saves him!) from certain death. Maybe Boy 1 stops off at work with her favorite flowers just cuz and the hopeless romantic inside me swoons and *BAM* I've chosen a Team. Shortly after, we see Girl herself begin to lean.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the death rattle of a love triangle.

Once I've chosen and I'm pretty sure that she's chosen, your triangle isn't so much a triangle anymore. It's a Couple with an Awkward.

I don't want my guy to be an Awkward.

See, I usually root for the underdog (pun intended Team Jacob) and so I've fallen in love with this guy who I know will be crushed by her decision. The second she's just dragging Unchosen along because she doesn't want his feelings hurt, I'm gonna start to hate Girl a bit. But I don't want my guy left hanging. It's not fair! It's wrong! It's keeping him away from me! *ahem* The more she strings him along, the madder I get. The madder I get, the less I care about whether Girl lives or dies, or if she has sequels! Love triangles are a lot like burning a candle at both ends--sure, it gives a lovely light. Just make sure one of those sides burns out fast.

People are Scary

People are the scariest things out there. Or at least, they have the potential to be.

I’m in Colorado right now for a wedding, and had the chance to get together with some friends and just talk the other night. Since most of us were writers, we started talking writing (obviously) and then started telling stories about the creepiest things that have ever happened to us, or stories that we’ve heard.

I think everyone at some point has a brush with something inexplicable. At least once in their life, and sometimes more. And as we were sharing these stories, about strange figures seen in the middle of the night, fingers waving you into a creepy basement, or scary children with solid black eyes, one of the stories really stuck with me.

A friend of mine was up late, his parents were out of town, and he was all alone in his house. Around two in the morning he shut off all his lights, and passed by the front door to head up the stairs. And there, on the other side of the window next to the front door, was a man.

At two in the morning. Less than five feet from him. We all agreed that even with the ghost stories, a stranger outside the window was the scariest by far.

Like I said before, people are the scariest things out there. I think one of the things that makes urban fantasy novels so interesting is that, at the end of the day, it’s not about the scary vampires, or the blood-thirsty monsters: it’s about the people. On some level we’re conditioned to understand when the monster does something evil. But when it’s an ordinary person? Or worse yet, someone you used to consider a friend? That’s when we really get invested, and where the real fear starts.

In my YA novel, A Touch Mortal, one of the overarching plots of the book involves the war between Heaven and Hell, and some of the kids that are trapped in the middle. But it isn’t the angels in the book that strike a chord with me: it’s the teenagers. Lovable but damaged teenagers who make their choices listening only to the flood of emotions tangled up inside them. Some choose well. And others not so much.

But I think that’s what makes people so interesting. They have the potential to be super creepy, like popping up on a stranger’s doorstep at two in the morning and just STARING inside. Or like a best friend who decides he’d rather be evil than your friend anymore. Or like dating the bad boy who turns out to be REALLY bad. We expect monsters to try and hurt us, and we expect the supernaturals to be more than just a pretty face. We sympathize with their struggles. But at the end of the day, we all have to decide if we want to embrace our inner scariness.

What do you guys think? Leave me a comment and let me know.