h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Isn't literature full of disastrous love affairs? Romeo and Juliet, Anna Karenina and Vronsky etc.

Yes, that's true. What do you notice about why those love affairs were disastrous?

Does it have anything to do with a goat in the woods?

I sing about Romeo and Juliet,
Their folks narrow-minded and cruel, yet
Their passion was real,
Their fate not ideal,
For love wasn't taught in their school yet.

Yep, those two children grew old enough for passionate love faster than heir families could prepare them for it. Plus, Shakespeare the old fox!) had some slings and arrows of outrageous fortune to hurl at them . Remember, to be a great writer you need to be willing to do bad things to good characters.

'Romeo and Juliet' I wouldn't describe as 'a disastrous love affair' - it was doomed in the Tragedy sense so it was made all the more brilliant because of its brevity (which I can relate to).

"But first, figure out one thing about your character: what does he or she desire in terms of belonging to the world? Then you'll know what kind of person they're going to be attracted to. Do they want wealth? Power? To belong to an intellectual elite? Artistic achievement? Spirituality? Respectability? Domesticity? Adventure? They'll be drawn to someone who promises to show them more, or help them achieve this goal. "

Wise words for real life, too - some people thought my partner and I were an odd couple, but we each brought something that the other person needed so we made a great team! Even now I carry her with me in spirit, I can do more because of what I have given and gained

Thanks for those wise words, Sasha.