Part of the fun of writing contemporary romance is creating unique, fun, or interesting ways for the hero and heroine to meet. Over the years I’ve used real-life things to inspire cute meets in my books. Like the time back when my husband was a youth director. We took a busload of teens to a Christian concert in a huge church gym in Little Rock. I had over a hundred dollars in my wallet from the youth fund to pay for snacks for the kids. Once we found our seats, several of the kids wanted to go get drinks and snacks. I pulled out my wallet full of fives and ones and promptly dropped it. Several other people sitting around us helped gather it all up and gave it back to me. I thanked them profusely, while thinking the entire time, if that happened anywhere else, the money would have been gone. But we were with a bunch of Christians. The experience inspired the opening scene of Rodeo Reunion, when my heroine dropped her wallet in a restaurant and of course the hero picked up her money for her.
I’ve had my hero and heroine meet in a church, a post office, a historic mansion, an advertising agency, and a wedding. I’ve even had them meet in a bar. That was based on a real life story a former co-worker told me thirty-five years ago–long before I started writing. She’d gone out with friends and they decided to go to a bar. She’d never been to one and didn’t want to go, but had no choice since she wasn’t driving. A man hit on her, so she ran and hid in the bathroom. But a girl came in the bathroom and tossed her cookies. In Rodeo Ashes, my heroine ended up in the bar when friends drove her there. She planned to stay in the car, but a guy was headed her way, so she darted in the bar. A guy hit on her, the bathroom incident happened, so she went back in the bar. The persistent guy hit on her again and the hero came to her rescue, pretending to be her boyfriend.
One of my heroines was attacked and she fainted in the hero’s arms, one remet the hero when she went to
his concert and he pulled her on stage and sang to her. That was inspired by a dream. Back when Michael Bolton rocked the love songs of the late 80’s, my husband I went to a concert. Michael ran out in the lobby during a break and did a few songs floor level on the opposite end from the stage. That night I dreamed, that I was in the lobby when he ran through. He grabbed my hand and pulled me on stage, where he sang Georgia on My Mind to me, because I used to live in GA. When he finished singing, he asked me to dinner backstage and I said. . . I’m married. Because I’m faithful, even in my dreams. My husband got a laugh out of the dream and it inspired a great meeting in a book for Rodeo Song.
Another book wasn’t inspired by real life thankfully, when my hero came to stay at his friend’s guest house, only to find a statue wielding heroine with a black eye. My H & H remet when he moved in next door and she brought a dessert to welcome the new neighbor only to realize he was her best friend in high school, the one she inadvertently fell in love with. My hero and heroine have met when they each inherited half a dude ranch. One couple remet when he hired on as a ranch foreman at her dad’s ranch. Another met when she hired him to build cabins at her sister’s ranch. Lately, my H & H have met when she came home to sell her childhood ranch and he’d bought the one next door after she’d hidden 
their daughter’s existence from him for seven years. One hero met the heroine, when he got bucked off a bull and woke up in the hospital with a 2 year memory loss. My last hero and heroine met when he learned his brother had twins and signed them over to their aunt. And my next hero and heroine meet when her grandmother’s dog barks him off his horse.
That’s eighteen books. And every time it gets harder to come up with something fresh. My favorite two H & H meetings are Melissa Tagg’s From the Start and Denise Hunter’s The Goodbye Bride.
So tell me your picks for favorite H & H meetings in Inspirational Contemporary Romance novels. Just the titles and authors, no spoilers please. I only spoil my own books. All comments will go in the drawing for a copy of The Cowboy’s Missing Memory. Deadline: August 3rd.
Award winning author, Shannon Taylor Vannatter writes contemporary Christian cowboy romance and has over a dozen published titles. A romance reader since her teens, she hopes to entertain Christian women and plant seeds in the non-believer’s heart as she demonstrates that love doesn’t conquer all—Jesus does. She gleans fodder for her fiction in rural Arkansas where she spent her teenage summers working the concession stand with her rodeo announcing dad and married a Texan who morphed into a pastor. In her spare time, she loves hanging out with her husband and son, flea marketing, and doing craft projects.
Hmm, while I do enjoy a good meet cute, they don’t tend to stick with me. I don’t really go for the trip and fall into the hero’s arms bit. I much prefer some literary irony; the unexpected outcome that leads to a relationship. It makes me think of one of my favorite t-shirt sayings: “Go ahead. Underestimate me. That’ll be fun!”
A recent one that I enjoyed was Brenna Jacob’s “The Christmas Letters.”
Thanks for offering the giveaway.
My fave ever is from a Jenny Crusie book just because it made me laugh harder…her dog steals her padded bra from the laundry pile and runs off with it through the fire escape and into some guy’s apartment. The dog evades capture as they both try to stop him. I’d need to look up the title!
In my own books, I like more realistic. Ducking into a museum from the rain and meeting the lonely caretaker, a busy McDonald’s parking lot and the heroine spills sweet tea while juggling her baby.
Love your ideas!
Oh, this was a wonderful read, and I love nothing more than a good cute meet! I agree, it’s tough to come up with something fun and fresh. Among my own books, my favorites are from Plan B and my 2021 Christmas novel (coming in Dec.), Eight Cats of Christmas. The second one was based on a real-life experience, even though it was never meant to lead to a romance, since the guy was married and I wasn’t! In the book, it was easy to write them both single.
The hero arrives at the farm stay B&B his grandfather has arranged for him. He’s there to hide out from an influential woman determined to marry him. When he parks his car in the serene woodland setting all heck breaks loose. Terrible screaming causes the stressed out city slicker to flip a switch into fight or flight mode.
It turns out the beautiful owner of the B&B is wrestling a runaway pig bent on the destruction of the rose bushes. She loses the battle and the hero pulls her up out of a duck puddle, dripping with “duck poop soup.”
😉
I honestly can’t say I have an all-time favorite! It’s usually whatever book I’m reading at the time!! I will say some of the unique ones I’ve read have been Mandi Blake’s Blackwater Ranch series. Also, Hallee Bridgeman’s Jewel series. I put an idea on FaceBook, and one of my author friends may use it in a book. It actually happened to me, back in May. I received a text EARLY one morning (thankfully, I turn the sound off on my cell phone when I go to bed), and it was from some guy named James who met some girl named Amy at a bar. He wanted to meet up with her again. I didn’t answer, and now I wish I had! lol!! I need to know if Amy really gave him the wrong number, if he entered it in his phone wrong, or what!!
Hiking in the mountains.
I enjoy more unconventional meetings, though reading the post I wonder when some of those would be possible again. Currently all the meetings in real life would be outdoors and with masks that could lead to fun ones.
I always love when the H&H were kids and grew up together!
The trip and fall has become a cliche. Though I’ll admit, I’ve used it. Not at the first meeting though. I’ll have to add that to my TBR pile, Lincoln. Thanks.
The dog and the bra sounds too funny, Christina. That’s what I loved about the Melissa Tagg one I mentioned. So funny.
Eight Cats of Christmas sounds like fun, Erin. Wow, I had three at one time. My husband’s limit is two.
Duck poop soup. Yuck and hilarious wrapped up together. What book is that? If you don’t want to do a spoiler, email me at stvauthor@yahoo.com, Dalyn.
How funny Trudy. I’ve used author’s how they met their husbands that they share on my blog. I get permission of course.
That sounds like a good place to meet, Kim. Oh, I feel a thunderstorm coming on and they have to hide in a cave together. And maybe cuddle for warmth :)
I read a funny facebook post about him lowering her mask for a kiss. Ugh, I never plan to put this pandemic in a book. I think everyone would rather forget it.
Me too, Abigail. I’ve done lots of remeets in my books. I especially love when the hero has always been in love with her and she has no clue.
Your books all sound great. There are so many great books with so many great meets that it’s hard to pick anyone of them cause they are so different and so good. Thank you for sharing these awesome meets. Have a great week and stay safe. God Bless you and your family.
It’s called Love Happens At Sweetheart Farm. :)
Thank you for sharing.
You’re right, Alicia. It’s amazing how many books there are and they’re all so different. It always amazes me how two authors can take the same basic concept and their books turn out completely different.
Thank you for stopping by, Lucy.
I enjoy the funny ones – like an accidental text message or a coffee spill :)
Great blog! Some awesome first meetings there!! The padded bra one sounds hilarious. Wonder if the rest of the story is as funny?? You authors do a great job of giving us lots of variety!
Accidental text sounds fun, Natalya.
Imagine the fun outdoor meetings you could create in a mask free society, that could be realistic and fun!
I may have to find that book, Margaret. I’m definitely intrigued.
second chance and they “meet” at a family get-together
I love second chance, Denise. And family gatherings can be fun too.
I like so many that I can’t really pick a special book for sure.
There’s a few that I like personally.
I can’t say for sure what my favorite meet or remeet is. I read so many books.
What about meeting at an interview? Both go in to interview for jobs in the same place and meet in the office lobby. They talk a little and then run into each other a little later at coffee shop and neither gets a job in that office and they start helping each other job hunt. She can be a single mom who just finished her degree and is trying to find a job in her field and he randomly up and left (we find out later why) the last town he lives in and needs a job in this new town.
Good answer, Amy. It was hard for me to pick too.
Thanks Sylvain. I have fun with opening scenes and first meetings.
Sounds like you need to write a book , Jennifer. You’ve already got the setup.
The last few I read were that
1. They were both running for mayor
2. They were assigned to the same work location
3. They were both looking for the same person.
Sounds great! I just wish I could remember which Jennifer Crusie book it was–they were all hilarious. :)
I can’t say that I have a favorite, thank you for the giveaway
The running for mayor sounds good, Maryann. What’s the title and author?
You’re welcome, Angeline. Sometimes it’s hard to pick. I have lots of favorites.
I’m currently reading “Dream a Little Dream” by Debra Clopton (Love Inspired from 2007) and while the hero & heroine have seen each other around the town of Mule Hollow where they live, it’s that first cute/meet that makes me laugh! I won’t spoil it, but they have these hilarious conversations between them. I’ve read quite a lot of the books from her Mule Hollow series & her cute/meets are just great….I also love her sense of humor that shines through her characters.
I can’t really name all the cute/meets but there sure are a lot of different types out there!
Hi Trixi. I love humor with my romance. That series sounds fun. I’ll add it to my list.
True.
Cold Case Pursuit by Dana Mentick.
I’ll add that to my list. Thanks Debra.