I think the similarities in style between romance novels and L&C fanfic aren't in the physical descriptions but in the emotional content of the interaction between two people in love, which one wouldn't necessarily find in other genres. So, no, it isn't inevitable.
Bev, could this be because the focus of most L&C stories *is* the romance between the two characters, just as the focus of most romance novels is the relationship between those characters? Maybe it's ineviteble in the sense that in each case, you are describing a couple with strong romantic feelings for each other and the ups and downs of how they get together. Maybe "romance" is such a universal theme that we all 'know it when we see it', even if we can't describe it in specific terms?
Kathy (off to answer the poll <g>)
