Each of my romance novels takes place in an isolated setting. So far, I’ve set a novel in a cabin in the woods, a college campus during a snowy winter break, and a desert motel stuck in time. Book four will take place in a lighthouse off the Oregon coast. What should I do after that?

Ideas I’m playing around with:
-a modern twist on Dracula (mansion or castle?)
-a Backrooms-style Tiki Bar
-a cowboy ranch renovation
-an automated tropical island resort
-a snowed-in holiday office party
-two security guards guarding a mystery box
-a quarantine situation

Coming up with locations, new mystery box concepts, and plot twists is a breeze. The tricky part is figuring out new characters and what keeps them apart, even though they still have lots of hot gay sex.

I’ve already written eight different guys and four different relationship dynamics. I have to come up with two new guys in every book, and I feel like there are only so many variations, especially when I want to write, at least somewhat, from my own lived experiences. I’m just a white cis male living in rural Oregon without any money. I can stretch my perspective with research, but only so far.

In some ways, this is good. Limiting my perspective means I have a distinct voice I’m bringing to the table. I’m not trying to be someone I’m not. But if I write enough Mystery Box Romances, my character types and relationship dynamics will start to echo those in earlier books in the series.

Is this a problem? Honestly, I don’t know. It all depends on what romance readers expect from their books. Maybe repeated ideas and themes are actually a plus.