Chip Chick
Hear me out. It’s peak cuffing season. You’re snuggled up on your couch watching the new Brooke Shields Christmas movie. She plays a romance writer who travels to the Scottish castle where her father grew up doing maintenance to find his initials carved into a doorframe.
You could be her! And an aged but well-preserved Wesley from The Princess Bride could startle you from behind. He’s Scottish now and would reveal himself as the castle’s current owner. He tries to run you off the property. Hijinx ensues. Love quickly follows.
Okay, so we’re not all obsessing over our relatives’ unfinished lives and vicariously living out our family destinies. Plus, who has castle money these days?
However, at any time, a grumpy groundskeeper could come into our lives and inevitably fall in love with us. Therefore, we must be prepared to use our rom-com expertise to live in the moment, to take the chance of romanticizing our mundane lives.
That being said, don’t flush away your 401K or date a walking red flag. Just live a little, and get with the holiday spirit. Who knows what could happen? As Taylor Swift once said, “Tis the damn season.”
So, here are some tropes that work for every romantic lead in any film, ever (holiday edition).
Enemies to Lovers:
Take a page out of pretty much every Katherine Heigl movie, “Pride and Prejudice,” or even “The Princess Diaries 2.” Go into every new situation with a plan to antagonize anyone you find attractive. You don’t have to be harsh—just challenge them, and keep them on their toes.
For a Christmas rendering of a modern online dating romance, check out “Love Hard.” Nina Dobrev takes a chance on her long-distance fling, flying to his hometown to surprise him for the holidays.
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