As a romance writer, even a paranormal romance writer, there is one thing that I cannot fail to do — deliver a Happily Ever After!
In books it’s easy to do if you set up the conflict correctly, know what issues need to be resolved and last, end the book while the couple are in the throes of that blissful true love moment.
In life, and in books, the Happily Ever After once that blissful moment is over is sometimes not so easy to maintain. It’s why I loved being able to revisit Diana and Ryder from DARKNESS CALLS in their second book – DEATH CALLS. It’s probably why I’ll write yet another story featuring them since readers understand that achieving that Happily Ever After can be difficult, but oh so joyous when it finally happens.
With the benefit of age and hopefully some wisdom, I look back at my marriage and realize that it hasn’t been easy staying married. There have been ups and down, most times caused by external pressures such as jobs, illnesses and deaths, but somehow through it all, we’ve not only persevered, we’ve stayed happy together.
Some might wonder how that’s possible. How do you slog through the rough times in life and still manage to keep alive the Happily Ever After?
I realized the other day that the answer was: Humor. Respect. Understanding.
Oh wait, that’s three answers, isn’t it! LOL!
But there it was, one way to Happily Ever After and not just in the books that I write, but in real life.
Find someone who can make you laugh and pick you up during the hard times. Someone who respects your opinions and your contributions to the relationship. Someone who understands your needs, both physical and mental. In reality, combine all those attributes and you will usually find Love and with Love comes the Happily Ever After.
How about you? For those of you who have been in long term relationships, what do you find keeps you going through good times and bad?
