Hi, so this is my first time on the forum. I’m working on a Sci Fi romance novel about a man who is sent a little over a million years into the past and finds himself in the midst of an ancient civilization (Ancient Rome level technology) of large sapient ape-like humanoids—basically missing links with a mix of Ancient/Medieval clothing and civilization. Over the course of his journey/mission he unexpectedly meets and gradually falls in love with a rebellious female ape-woman who is his only ally in this dangerous world. Despite him being human and her being basically a humanoid anthropomorphic ape, they bond through their shared experiences and eventually begin a romantic relationship. Despite doing my best to have this romance to be written well, I know that some people may take umbrage to the interspecies aspect, but my goal is to take the relationship seriously. Make it genuinely sweet and healthy. So it all comes down to this: Is the species difference here going to cause too much squick and/or backlash from readers?
If it has a hole, the male has a goal. Okay, less crass, yes this could work just fine. Remember, you're writing sci-fi. Most sci-fi readers are used to non-standard things. Will they be able to have children?
Thank you, that makes sense. I guess it usually depends on how nonhuman the nonhuman is. The attraction is definitely going to be mutual for the main characters. They won’t be able to biologically have children (her species is technically more closely related to orangutans than humans, being a separately evolved lineage from their ancestors [aka Sivapithecus]) so either they decide they don’t need children to be happy together, or they’ll adopt an orphan in the end—It could go either way.
Haha I suppose I haven’t…do I want to find it? I’m definitely more interested in titles that lean towards romance as opposed to erotica (just my personal preferences).
It sounds like a good hook, frankly. Though each lead might have a different idea of what 'swinging' is.
How is this any different than all those vampire/werewolf/zombie romance books? Also, I am sure Planet of the Apes had romance, because Hollywood. Haven't seen it, but I don't see anything wrong in a sci-fi book. I mean, Star Wars had a Twilek and a human get together. I agree with other posters that since it's sci-fi, you have a lot of wiggle room.
Thank you, and good point! Star Wars has plenty of examples. I always assumed zombies, vampires and werewolves could get away with it because they were originally human and/or human sometimes. You’re right about Planet of the Apes except it’s really only subtext there and they don’t actually do anything with it aside from a brief kiss at the end. Anyways thanks that makes a lot of sense.
Thank you! And I think it IS the human-shape of vampires/zombies/werewolves, but both vampires and zombies are DEAD. Like, I don't know why a sci-fi book with a living being would be so weird. Sure, if the ape society hadn't evolved to be intelligent and it gets weird for me. But then again, there are SO many werewolf stories where I have heard it rides the line. Not one I like, but I do have vampire/vampire romance in my stories. Anyway, I am glad you like my point.
I completely agree, sapience is essential. The ape-people are definitely as intelligent as humans, wear clothes, have literature and culture, etc. They are slightly taller than humans and do look very apelike but have more human-like body proportions.
Howdy! I think your romance will work just fine - Mr. Spock was, after all, a Human/Vulcan hybrid. But I have a couple of questions: A million years in the past? You mean the character is from the earth's future and is going back in time? So the creature that he meets is something like Homo habilis? Is this female character fully sapient? In other words, does she have full human intelligence and the ability to know right from wrong? Is she actually an ape-creature, meaning she has more in common with apes than with humans? Will she be able to breed with the human male? I'm trying to get a feel for this because I don't generally have a problem with two intelligent creatures having a romance, but I wanted to establish that she's on the same level as he is before I let you know where my squick level is.
Howdy Quill Mistress (cool name by the way), thank you for your questions! I’ll address them in order: • Yes my protagonist is from the early 21st Century (when exactly is irrelevant, could be anytime from 2000s to 2020s), and goes back over a million years. So that’s roughly early Pleistocene. Her species isn’t Habilis or any other in the fossil record; They were a separate species of apes that evolved full intelligence long before humans. • I thought I had mentioned this in my post, but yes, she is fully sapient like all of her species. They live in stone cities, wear clothes, have their own language. They’re roughly about as advanced as Ancient Rome was. • They are very much ‘ape-creatures’ in that they look just like apes, BUT they have more human-like proportions (longer legs than arms, just like us), talk like humans and are more like us in their facial expressions and eyes even though they have ape faces. Think the Mark Wahlberg Planet of the Apes from two decades ago—I’ll include a picture from it. NOT the new ones. As for breeding…no and yes. Her species is way too different from humans to make hybrid children with him, but they still have sex for pleasure. So I hope that helps you get a read on things. If you have any other questions please let me know, I’m genuinely curious to know if you’re convinced. Thank you!
That totally depends on how you show it. An important element of that is to fully develop the characters, give them depth, and make them relatable. Then proceed to show what they emotionally give one another, how they fulfill one another's needs, show how the connection is made and sustained, how each completes the other.
Thank you for clarifying - In your post you did mention the stone cities and Ancient Rome, but I was being persnickety to make sure I was following correctly. With all the information you provided, I see no reason at all why they can't have a romance. It sounds perfectly acceptable! I hope you have a lot of fun writing your story!
