1. How would you describe your primary protagonist’s goal? (Their goal can include being in a relationship, or it can be something separate.) It’s the thing that the protagonist tries to achieve throughout the course of the book.
   1. They don’t have a goal at all.
   2. They have a fuzzy goal. One where it’s hard to know when it’s been achieved.
   3. They have a specific goal. One that makes it easy to know when it’s been achieved.

2. For your primary protagonist to get what they want, what needs to happen with their love interest (i.e. the second romantic hero)?
   1. Nothing. The first hero can get what they want regardless of what their love interest does.
   2. The first hero must make a small change in their behavior, negotiate a minor compromise with their love interest.
   3. The first hero must make a significant life change or negotiate a major compromise. Bonus if the love interest must change too.

3. Could you replace one of your romantic heroes with another character and still write a romance novel?
   1. Totally. Nothing makes the characters unique enough to prevent a swap.
   2. Probably, as long as the new character has some shared interests with the other hero.
   3. No way! Each of the heroes has something to teach the other and it would be very hard to create another character who would work as well.

4. What holds your romantic heroes together and forces them to interact for long enough to fall in love?
   1. Just their attraction to each other. Nothing external.
   2. A general situation like working together, living in the same town, or pursuing the same hobby.
   3. A specific time-limited situation such as co-leading a project, running for the same city council seat, or going on a month-long rafting trip.

5. What’s the basis of attraction between your romantic heroes?
   1. Undeniable physical attraction.
   2. Undeniable physical attraction, shared interests, appreciation for each other’s personality.
   3. Undeniable physical attraction, shared interests, appreciation for each other’s personality, and shared values and life experiences.

6. What keeps your romantic heroes from making a long-term commitment to each other before the end of the novel?
   1. They have to overcome a single misunderstanding.
   2. They have to overcome external obstacles (e.g. unsupportive family members, commitments to other romantic partners, a difficult financial situation, a hit man out to get one of them).
   3. They have to overcome external obstacles as well as internal obstacles, such as mismatched goals, personal hangups, or scars from past events.

7. How many words are in your manuscript right now?
   1. < 20,000
   2. 20,000- < 60,000
   3. 60,000+

8. How do you feel about how your romantic heroes meet in your story?
   1. I’m not sure how they meet yet.
   2. I’ve got a general idea about how they meet, but the details are murky.
   3. I’ve got it written and I love it!

9. How do you feel about the climax of your story?
   1. I have no idea how to end it.
   2. I have a general idea of how they reach a happily ever after, but I’m not sure what the grand gesture will be.
   3. I know what the grand gesture is that leads them to a happily ever after, and I’ve got it written.

Count up how many times you answered a, b, and c to each of the questions above. If you chose mostly….

• A, you’re Getting to Know Each Other

• B, you’re Falling in Love

• C, you’re Ready to Commit