Romance Protagonists

The protagonists of romance stories are designed to be relatable. Belle (Beauty and the Beast) is a bookworm who is more open to new experiences than her (slightly) stifling hometown culture. Bella (Twilight) is a shy girl who doesn't like the cold and wishes she lived in the big city instead of a small rural town. Bathsheba (Lord Perfect) is an artist who dreams of…you get the idea.

Wakana Gojō (My Dress-Up Darling) makes dolls all day. Kirito (Sword Art Online) is a dedicated gamer. Neo (The Matrix) is a shut-in computer nerd.

The protagonist of a romance story is a shy hardworking introvert with a heart of gold. If the story is a novel then the protagonist reads books. If the story is a manga then the proagaonist reads manga. The love interest takes the protagonist away from her/his boring hometown onto an adventure in an exotic realm full of new sights, sounds and smells.

The high-status love interest is effortlessly good at almost (but not quite) everything. The low-status protagonist works hard for every little thing. The love interest always has much higher social status than the protagonist.

Why would <popular love interest> fall for <ordinary relatable introverted protagonist>?