Emily Houghton takes a chance on the grumpy/sunshine trope

Emily Houghton tackles the grumpy/sunshine trope in Take A Chance On Me, where Olivia plans her trip down to the t, and Jacob just goes with the roll of a dice. Today, we are honoured to have Emily Houghton here to chat why she decides to take a chance on this trope.

Guest post written by Emily Houghton and edited by United by Pop.

Opposites attract. The adage we’ve heard repeated constantly over the years. Whether in reality it’s true or not, there is something incredibly satisfying when it comes to reading about it. Two people, from opposite ends of the personality spectrum, who, by all intents and purposes should loathe each other (and at the start of most stories normally do), yet, over time, they realise that actually, their differences are what make them so beautifully made for each other. What’s not to love? It’s a heroic, love conquers all romance-fanatics dream. And I for one, am a sucker for them!

When writing Take a Chance on Me, I loved being able to play with Olivia and Jacob’s dialogue. Jacob and his carefree, light-hearted humour, teasing and poking at Olivia’s stand-offish serious nature. The back and forth between them was a writers dream to put on the page and show cases wonderfully the tension that can be built between two opposing personalities. And my God, do we love a bit of tension between twocharacters. With the grumpy/sunshine trope there’s a wonderful investment that as a reader, I can’t help but make. I want them to see past their differences, to peel back the layers and see the connection beneath the friction. I’m rooting for them, screaming at the page begging them to hurry up and realise they don’t hate each other, in fact quite the opposite! It provides the intoxicatingly infuriating will they won’t they emotional rollercoaster, made all the more frustrating because as the reader we get to see what’s going on behind the scenes. And with this type of dynamic there is so much of the character’s inner worlds to explore.

As a writer this provides amazing opportunity to be creative. Firstly, how do these two polar opposites even cross paths, why would their worlds collide? Then, what makes them behave the way they do. Usually the grumpy character is misunderstood, protecting themselves, hiding something beneath the cynicism and sarcasm. How do we begin to unravel and unpick the defences to allow a romantic connection to form. For example, in Take a Chance on Me, Jacob is hiding a deeper, darker reality behind his sunshine laisse faire attitude, which we only come to know about as the book progresses.

I also feel this trope speaks to the human part of us. Unconsciously, or consciously, we all assume different roles and identities during our lives. I personally have spent a lot of time playing the ‘sunshine’ character, desperate to make others happy. It’s a part I can relate to, and I love to be able to put some of my own experiences on the page.  To write the love stories I would want for myself. To bring to life characters you can’t help but fall in love with, and want to fall for each other. I think the grumpy/sunshine dynamic brings so much humour, playfulness and also depth, that as a reader and a writer, makes it one of my absolute favourite tropes!

Some of my favourite books with the grumpy/sunshine trope are:

Before I Saw You – me

Beach Read – Emily Henry

The Love Hypothesis – Ali Hazelwood

The Simple Wild – K. A Tucker

The Flat Share – Beth O’Leary

Take A Chance On Me by Emily Houghton is out Aug 1 (Penguin UK).