My soul mate found me, though I certainly didn't realize what he was when we first met. No "I knew the moment I saw him" stuff. He just grew on me over time. We've had a few *cough* decades together and I'm hoping for many more. We don't always agree, but I always know he has my back. And vice versa.

I do believe in soul mates...I think it just doesn't happen very often.

I don't think life with a soulmate is always flowers and snuggles, though. Your soulmate should challenge you and help you continue to grow, and that path isn't always smooth. But at least it's an interesting ride!

Oh, I absolutely believe in soul mates. I have to!!! But I believe that it is more than happily ever after. Finding a soul mate, to me, is finding someone who is so very compatible with you that you just can't miss him or her when they're standing right in front of you! It's about that connection that binds two people - spiritually, emotionally, physically, mentally, ethically and morally. And I agree with Kimberly that the person should also be one to challenge you each and every day on some level, to help you grow as a person. To help you be better and feel better as a person. And of course, you should be the same to that person as well.

I've always thought Romeo and Juliet the ultimate soul mates, but again, tragic. Next would be Jamie and Claire from the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon. Love them!

Great question! I totally believe in soul mates. My sweetie and I knew, the moment we met that we belonged together. Which wasn't a good thing, timing-wise, because it was the week I'd turned 15 and he was 17, nearly 18 and off to college. Our worried parents wouldn't let us date -- we felt JUST like Romeo and Juliet, or Tony and Maria, from West Side Story -- but we also just knew. It wasn't a "wow, you're cute!" chemistry thing. But a "Wow, there you are!" thing. An absolute recognition.

Now, a case could admittedly be made that my belief comes from being the type of person who'd grow up to write romances, but he was, and still is, a left-brain computer math major who doesn't usually believe in woo-woo stuff that can't be proven by science. But he remembers, after over forty years and two marriages (as Kimberly said, the path isn't always smooth!), every detail of that long-ago moment and also believes -- as do I -- that not only have we done this special soul-mate dance before, we'll do it again. And again. And again. :)

I was just getting out of a very unhappy and brief first marriage, going to college and working in a sporting goods store, when this tall, lanky, long-haired guy walked in to make a purchase. He hung around flirting for an hour or so, and when he left, I told my co-worker I was going to marry him. She laughed and said, "What about the one you're still married to?" I still remember laughing and telling her I was working on it. One week after the divorce was final, I married the guy from the store--that was thirty-six years ago, and I'd still pick him out of a crowd. Belief in soul mates? You bet, and it makes it so much easier to write a romance with that kind of relationship. In my Wolf Tales series, Anton Cheval and Keisha Rialto are perfectly matched, two people who never expected to find love, yet have discovered how perfectly they complete each other. I think that's often what makes the concept of finding a soul mate in fiction work--the fact that it's often such a surprise to those involved. The unexpected chemistry makes for a wonderful love story.

I believe in soul mates. Hotrod is proof of that! He's like a messier version of me, but with ADD and OCD. Love him!

I believe in soul mates. Hotrod is proof of that! He's like a messier version of me, but with ADD and OCD. Love him!

I totally believe in soul mates--not just romantic, but in deep, enduring friendships. To me, a soul mate is someone who "gets" you, who cares about you for who you are, and you feel the same way...that goes beyond race, gender, etc.

Kate, LOL. That's the same thing I told the woman who worked in my dad's store, where I met my sweetie. She asked me what the name of this kid I was going to marry was. I told her I didn't know. But I was sure going to find out. Less than ten minutes later, he came back with the same mission -- to find out who I was.

I've written lots of books with the soul mate idea (trickier, I think, in straight contemporary than paranormal/fantasy, because the heroines are often more cynical than the heroes and readers are less willing to suspend disbelief), but there were two HQ Temptations that were pretty much lifted from our life together.

I'm also always amused by readers or even editors who say they don't really believe reunion stories because I've been living a happy one for years. Which is also why all three books of my High Risk trilogy have heroines from my Spec-Ops heroes' pasts. I just LOVE giving my characters' second chances at their happily ever after endings.

What a great question! Like Joann, I met my soul mate at a very young age! I was only 16. We married and will be together 34 years this August. And perhaps my idea of a soul mate is influenced by the fact that I'm a romantic and have written romance for as long as I can remember, but I truly do believe that there is someone special for everyone. Maybe you don't know when you first meet, maybe the electricity is there and maybe it's not, but there is a draw, I firmly believe, between two people destined to be together. There is a "fit" that is not always readily identifiable, but it exists. I thank God every day for bringing me my soul mate on my father's birthday all those years ago. And for giving both of us the patience and determination to stick it out through those oh-so-very-young early years!

I do believe in soul mates. Haven't met mine and I hope to someday, but I write romance, so maybe I'm predisposed to thinking that something as romantic as a perfect match for people exists.

Yes, absolutely, I believe in soul mates. They never question the size of your rear end, they watch Lifetime movies with you whenever you ask, don't care if you cook or wear a size two! This is my soul mate who just so happens tobe my husband of eighteen years!

Yes, absolutely, I believe in soul mates. They never question the size of your rear end, they watch Lifetime movies with you whenever you ask, don't care if you cook or wear a size two! This is my soul mate who just so happens tobe my husband of eighteen years!

Eeee. I want to say yes. I read romance, I write romance, I believe in romance--and I think of my partner as The One (15 years next month!). But the thing is, I've known two women who said their partners were their soul mates, and they both ended up breaking up from them. In one case the break-up was quite nasty, it seemed as if her partner was extremely controlling, and he ended up married to someone else within about 6 months! Also, the uncontrollable soul mate idea is a bit scary. What if I'm *not* my partner's soul mate, and she turns up all of a sudden? Would he be justified in leaving me for her? I'd argue *not* (surprising, huh?) but I bet there are people who would justify it using the soul mate reasoning!

I'm one of the believers, then... I met my hubby online - he was in Italy, I was in Tennessee - and we started speaking on the phone after he'd asked for my number. One thing led to another and he visited me in the States less than three months after our initial online chats. As soon as I saw him come off the plane, I thought "I'm going to marry him." I did, too, just six months later. We've been together for four years now (our anniversary is next week), and even though we have our tiffs from time to time, he's definitely a perfect fit for me. :)

Wow, these are great stories. We kind of have an anthology going on here about soul mates with real life romances.
I'm so happy for all of you and your significant others also. :)

Soul mate or not, I think every relationship takes hard work and understanding. Two individuals can love each other deeply, but they still have to learn to work together to keep the relationship strong. Like Rhonda said, it's the deep, enduring friendships that are so important. One bit of advice that has helped me through the years is to "pick your battles." Don't sweat the small stuff--just worry about making the larger issues work and the rest will fall in line.

I married my soul mate. The kicker here is that I didn't believe at first, but my son (only 6 at the time) introduced me to him :) We have been happily married for 12 years now.

Absolutely. I wouldn't be writing romance if I didn't!

I believe in soulmates, but haven't found mine yet, sigh....but the wonderful thing about believing is I know it will happen and just keep looking. Maybe that's why I make it so hard on my characters, lol!

Oh yes. I believe. When my husband is in the room, I feel a sense of rightness that just isn't there when we are apart. And I had dreams and premonitions of him before we got together. I'd even go so far as t say we had some past life issues that we cleared up this go around.

Oh yes. I believe. When my husband is in the room, I feel a sense of rightness that just isn't there when we are apart. And I had dreams and premonitions of him before we got together. I'd even go so far as t say we had some past life issues that we cleared up this go around.

To be honest, no, I don't believe in soul mates. After fifty two years of waiting it's hard to keep the faith. I figure if I do have a soul mate she either lives in Bloemfontein, South Africa or Perth, Australia. Which are the places farthest from me geographically. So there isn't a lot of point in believing in them. Doesn't mean I won't write about them though. ;)

Is there a restriction on the number of legs a soulmate must have? My best soulmates have been of the four-legged variety........ And I'd appreciate it if all would refrain from suggesting counseling... haaaaaaaaa

Nupe. Uh-unh. No. Nyet. Non. And that whole 'lid for every pot' person has obviously not seen the inside of my kitchen cabinets. Which, I might add, are not in Blomfontein.

The very first time I heard my husband's name mentioned, two years before we met, I got a strange shiver of recognition. His aunt was my roommate at the time and she said I reminded her of him, that she thought we'd really get along well -- but only as friends, of course, because he was so shy, he'd probably never get married. He lived 500 miles away, so I tried to ignore that shiver. Then he came out for his first visit, and I was so nervous I didn't go home that evening, but stayed at the hotel where I worked instead. When I got home after work the next day, he'd already left, and I was CRUSHED. I bawled for a week. A year later, I accompanied the aunt to his sister's wedding. We got to the church and she said, "Oh, there's my nephew -- come on, I want you to meet him!" She dragged me to the back of the sanctuary, and there he was in a tux and a red bowtie, and the first time I looked into his eyes, I knew he was the one I'd been waiting for. It took me almost four years of chasing him, but he finally caught me. We shared our first kiss -- and each of our respective first kisses -- at the ripe old age of 31, and now we've been married for 12 years and I can't imagine ever being with anyone but him. So yes, I definitely believe in soul mates.

The very first time I heard my husband's name mentioned, two years before we met, I got a strange shiver of recognition. His aunt was my roommate at the time and she said I reminded her of him, that she thought we'd really get along well -- but only as friends, of course, because he was so shy, he'd probably never get married. He lived 500 miles away, so I tried to ignore that shiver. Then he came out for his first visit, and I was so nervous I didn't go home that evening, but stayed at the hotel where I worked instead. When I got home after work the next day, he'd already left, and I was CRUSHED. I bawled for a week. A year later, I accompanied the aunt to his sister's wedding. We got to the church and she said, "Oh, there's my nephew -- come on, I want you to meet him!" She dragged me to the back of the sanctuary, and there he was in a tux and a red bowtie, and the first time I looked into his eyes, I knew he was the one I'd been waiting for. It took me almost four years of chasing him, but he finally caught me. We shared our first kiss -- and each of our respective first kisses -- at the ripe old age of 31, and now we've been married for 12 years and I can't imagine ever being with anyone but him. So yes, I definitely believe in soul mates.

I think we do have soul mates -- we may each have several.

I definitely believe in soul mates. Hubby and I fell in love at first sight and will be married for 38 years this year. We love each other more each day.

Bah-Humbug! That was my first response to the question. I don’t believe like in Highlander “there can be only one”. However, I was in the Air Force when I met (quite memorably) (I did not keep dropping my pencil on purpose!) an airman who was the guy I ended up with time after time when the hunky cool guys overlooked me. Snotty, huh? But that’s how I was back then. After we were out of the service, we got together and married after a year or so. But it didn’t work out well, and after a couple years, we went our separate ways with no further contact. 11 years later , through some goofy, garpy and awfully, unbelievable coincidences, we joined up again. We celebrate the 20th anniversary of our 2nd marriage later this year. First and foremost, we’re perfect friends and companions, and I’m spoiled rotten. Soulmates? Don’t know. But I do know I’m awfully lucky.

I believe there is a deep difference between love and Love. You can be in love and not be with the person you are linked to at the deepest, soul-hitching level. The other loves are ways to learn how to do it well. I'd been in love with some wonderful people and never really thought one way or another about the validity of "soul mates." It's like so many loaded terms, I suppose. Then I met HIM. Literally, first sight, eyes locked, and something went CLUNK. Tumblers in the universe plopped into place and even before I had a name for it I knew in an absolute instant Ahmed was going to change my life forever. Now I have a more well-defined understanding of it, of course. But prior to him I didn't think much, or perhaps even believe in, the difference between love and Love; between someone and THE ONE.

I find this a hard questions, because I want to believe it. My ex-boyfriend used to make my heart beat so fast I thought it would explode and our whole relationship was like that - either up or down. I thought we were destined to be together and now I thank God that we aren't. I know that my dh and I are life partners and that we came together because we were supposed to. Are we soul mates? Maybe. He's my best friend, my best supporter, my lover and the best husband and daddy I could have ever imagined. And that's good enough for me. :-D

The characters of my Pauline Sokol series are definitely soul mates. Jagger and Pauline. Yet they don't know it. There is a very strong sensual attraction, there is also a protectiveness from him when they work a case and they seem to know each other's thoughts. That is what Jagger wants her to know.

I'd met him years before. He dated my best friend, I dated his. We both went separate ways. Out of the blue some 10 years later, he called, came over. The moment he stepped out of his de-mufflered car, I knew he was The One. Evidently, so did the elderly gentleman who lived next door to me. The old guy told me a few days later that "this is the one you're going to marry". Thirty years later, I still get a thrill when I see him. He has a better car now.

I'd met him years before. He dated my best friend, I dated his. We both went separate ways. Out of the blue some 10 years later, he called, came over. The moment he stepped out of his de-mufflered car, I knew he was The One. Evidently, so did the elderly gentleman who lived next door to me. The old guy told me a few days later that "this is the one you're going to marry". Thirty years later, I still get a thrill when I see him. He has a better car now.

Yes, I believe! the first time I ever kissed my hubby to be I just knew he was the one for me. And we've been married 21 years now and I still feel the same :)

Yes I do believe in soul mates. I met mine in 1968 at a teacher's party where we actually played spin the bottle. From that point on we never dated anyone else, and five months later we were married, and remained married for the next 33 years until his sudden unexpected death in 2002. He was only 55 with one more year of teaching before retirement. Of course for the last five year I've walked around feeling as if half of me is always missing. Will I find another? I don't know. I'm just thankful I found a soul mate in this lifetime. Perhaps the next.

Fantastic post! I definitely believe in soulmates. I met mine while I was suffering from a chronic illness. Although my future was uncertain, he didn't let that deter him one bit. Fifteen years later, he's laughing as I train for my first triathlon. Like most romances, the story has a happy ending!

I'm definitely in the believers group - weird feeling and all. Both my hubby and I just knew, the minute we met, and paid little heed to everything and everyone that tried to keep us apart. Eight years later, we're still as inseparable as we were then, more so. We are not that much alike, but compliment each other too perfectly for it not to be destiny.

My husband and I met at a Halloween party--he was a wizard and I was a witch, and somebody's spell worked! 25 years in August. I believe in soul mates. Made them the basis for my Magic Series. We complement each other, have the same outlook on almost everything, and have a lot of fun too. Laughing together is sooooo important. We work well together too--I'm the intuitive one and he's the numbers guy. When we got married, the preacher thought we might have trouble living together because we're both strong personalities. We just looked at each other and said, "So?" The only thing missing is that we can't cast spells like my practitioners, but, well, you can't have everything. Soul Mates Forever!

I'm a believer, but I don't think it has to be just one person. There are several people in my life right now that I connected with instantly when I first met them. If that's not a soul mate, then I don't know what is.

I do believe in soul mates. However, I don't think that there is one and only soul mate for everyone. I think people have many soul mates and it's just about being able to find one. Once you find one you don't have to worry about the others :).

I didn't recognize my soul mate the first time I saw him. He was the pain in the neck who sat next to me in the 7th grade. I was an A student; he was my polar opposite. During geography, he napped behind his geography book. The nun would ask me if Mr. Blair was asleep again. I'd cringe and check. "Yes, Sister," was always my answer. Fast forward to a blind date in senior year. OMG, it's him--get me out of here. Love hit like lightening. The kind of love we write about. We married shortly before my 19th birthday. More than 40 years later, he still lights my heart when he walks into a room, tells me daily that he loves me, that he's proud of me. He's my best friend. My favorite traveling companion. His arms are my perfect haven. This is why I write romance; I believe there is a soulmate waiting out there for each of us and I set out to prove it over and over again. Annette Blair www.annetteblair.com

You know, the other day I realized that everything I write is based on the concept of soul mates. I think it's because i know I found my soul mate, and knew him the instant we met. I remember reading a book where the idea of soulmates was the main focus and I kept saying "that's not how it works. She didn't do it right..." and before I knew it, I was writing about soul mates, and how it REALLY works. LOL SheWolf is about what I call "True Mates" which is really nothing more than the soul mate concept. There's nothing more romantic than two people meeting and knowing, despite what they may say, that they are made for one another. What makes good romance is conflict, and many think soul mates stops that, but it doesn't. Sometimes it's stronger. Imagine that character who's lived thousands of years... do they really believe this is their soul mate? Think of the commitment phobias! Or the differences in behavior because of age difference. Anyone who lives a long life has to suffer, and that weighs heavily on everyone involved. Oh yes, it can definitely make an awesome story!

Well, I didn't expect this blog to be as emotional as it turned out to be. Some of your stories brought tears to my eyes (in a good way). Being the hopeless romantic that I am, I'm so glad to hear that our perfect soul mate is out there. Thanks for sharing your beautiful stories.

So, if anyone happens to see my soul mate, can you turn him around and point him in the general direction of Wisconsin. Oh,and pin a pink carnation on him in case I walk past him by mistake.

I believe! And I'm lucky; I've found mine. Of course, he forgot to bring home flowers on Valentine's Day -- but the next day he showed up with 24 roses, so I forgave him. I didn't know he was made for me immediately, and perhaps some of the "making" has happened over years of marriage, but I'm so lucky. I think it's the engine behind my romances, in truth. And Barbara -- I'm going to start stocking pink carnations!! Eloisa

I believe in soul mates. I saw mine at a party, dressed in a leisure suit (remember those?). I admired him from a distance, but my date that evening was an army captain. My best friend wraggled my soul mate's telephone number and invited him to her house for dinner. She wanted him for herself. She invited another guy for me. However, at the end of the evening, my soul mate walked me to my car. In a few minutes, he had my telephone number. We've been married for thirty-one years now.

Debra Webb, in response to your comment, my husband and I had our first "not so blind date" on my father's birthday, too, and by the time we got home, I swear we knew we belonged together.

Debra Webb, in response to your comment, my husband and I had our first "not so blind date" on my father's birthday, too, and by the time we got home, I swear we knew we belonged together.

I know my husband is my soul mate, partly because when I have a song playing silently in my head, he'll start singing it. Or if it's a song he doesn't know, he starts singing something very similar. It's uncanny!

I king of like to think of soul mates as that person in the cosmos that we were once part of a whole in another dimension but were broken apart in pieces to scatter thru time. Then in each life time we find bits of those pieces in the people we love and/or marry and ultimately in that one final lifetime we find all those pieces of the person who is our other half. Allows for those who find two or more people in their lifetime who appear to be their soul mate. And along the way to that final puzzle with all the pieces you have lifetimes where there are no pieces just a lot of trying to make the pieces fit. So don't worry Barb, in your next lifetime you will find more pieces or maybe he is already whole and waiting for you in the next lifetime. Some lifetime have a lot of ups and downs makes one enjoy the next one with some with more pieces of your soul mate.

Thanks Barb for generating all those wonderful comments about soulmates! I admit I saw my husband & knew he was the one--when he passed me his phone #, I almost passed out! Now 17 yrs. later, we have had ups & downs, but I couldn't imagine life without him! It is still a thrill to watch him get ready for bed & when he is gone, I confess I keep his (worn once) shirts around to have his aroma around too!!

Yep. I'm married to mine. We've known each other since high school and are each others first sweethearts, first and only everything. He challenges me, he romances me, he knows me better than I know myself. I can't imagine anyone would ever fit me better, and I sure as hell don't want to find out. A little bit of him is in every hero that I write.

The minute I saw my first husband in a nightclub, I thought, "It's him." My soul recognized him. A few years later I realized that he and I had a bad time together in our past lives and we had to finish what we started then. Not all soul mates have a happy ending. We divorced and I soon met my current husband, who is my true soul mate in this life. We've been together over 30 years. My first two books were reunion stories and my WIP, a paranormal, is a story of lovers reunited after 500 years. True soul mates. I love to read and write reunion stories.

I always felt like there was someone out there. Someone who was like me. Sometimes I could even feel them, but after a while I began to feel as thought I'd never find her. At least not in my home town. I joined the Army and decided that I would focus on serving my country and leave soulmate searching alone. One night on myspace,I sent message to a particularly beautiful woman. She soon sent me a reply and we just started chatting away! It turns out she had a crush on me I high school that I knew nothing about. I told her I was coming home on leave and asked her out to dinner and she said yes! On my last day of leave I went to pick her up. When I got of the car and saw her in person for the first time I just knew it was her. I knew she was my soulmate. Sure enough we hit it off as if we had always known each other! We are very much in Love right now and I just have to say she is the woman I have waited so long for and I know that there is no one else in the world that compares even slightly to her. There is no doubt in my mind that she is the one I was meant to be with. She is the only one I want to spend the rest of my life with! In fact, we are getting married later this year! My Love, My Sweetheart, You Complete Me!

Yes, i do believe we all have a soulmate! I met mine already, and definitely he is, my heart knew it since a long time ago, 7 years ago to be exact. We used to go to the same high school, he was already a senior and i was barely a freshmen when i saw him for the first time. I remember I used to follow him in the hallways and i was behind him all the time, but he didn't know, i would run out of my classroom just to see him get out of his class at least for a little while; he graduated from highschool and i stayed there. After 7 years he sent me a message through the internet and when i saw his picture i recognized him right away, and I replied to his message asking him if went to same highschool as me, and also asking if his lastname was ******, and he got surprised and since then we started talking and sending messages back and fort, then one day he came home for christmas and i saw him again after so many years; I felt just like when i was in highschool again, with butterflies in my stomach, i fell in love again, but from the man not the kid i used to follow when i was in school; it was the firts time for him, cause he never saw me, but now i know that god made us for each other to be together for the rest of our life. And now, we're getting married in the eyes of god, who would've said that he was destined to be mine after so many years..=) I love you, you're the love of my life! my everything, my other half.