On Writing Romance_ How to Craft a Novel That Sells - Leigh Michaels [28]
If she's had a bad marriage, it ended with the death of her husband. Like her contemporary sister, she's willing to live independently for the rest of her life, though the realities of society may force her to consider a marriage of convenience. And even if she's required by society to marry for something other than love, she'll find a way to turn that marriage to her advantage.
In her single-title historical Something About Emmaline, Elizabeth Boyle introduces a heroine who's quite able to defend herself from an intruder—if she wants to:
It had been a very busy afternoon at the house on Hanover Square and Lady Sedgwick had sought her bed early. ... The door of her bedchamber burst open. It rattled on the hinges and banged into the wall with a furious slam.
Emmaline sat bolt upright and stared at the caped stranger marauding into her sanctuary as if he had every right.
So she did what any lady of the ton would do when her honor was in peril. She pulled a small pistol from under her pillow and pointed it with dead-eyed aim at the intruder.
So perhaps she hadn't gotten this lady of the manor part down completely, but it was what she would do.
"Stay where you are, sirrah, or it will be the last thing you do."
He ignored her warning completely, coming closer. The candle he held aloft cast a circle of light around them both. His gaze fell first on her face, then ... fell to the pistol in her hand and one regal brow rose. "Put that away!"
"I will not," she said, her hand shaking. ... She could ... see that he was devilishly handsome and well dressed. ... She'd always had a weakness for impossibly handsome men, especially dark-haired ones. ... She took one last regretful look at the magnificent man before her. ...
It was at that moment that Emmaline Denford, Lady Sedgwick, realized she was about to shoot her husband.
The very notion startled her so much, she dropped the pistol. And then the damned thing fired for her.
Emmaline is hardly a typical woman of her time (1801), but she's a typical historical heroine—able and willing to protect herself and not at all above noticing a handsome man.
1. What qualities does your ideal heroine possess?
2. What qualities would make you want to be friends with her?
3. What qualities in a heroine turn you off?
4. What careers or jobs would be off-limits for a likeable and sympathetic heroine? THE HERO
In most romance novels, the hero is the second most important character—but he's also the pivot around which the story revolves. Because he's central to the entire story, it's very important that he be a fascinating character—someone the readers want to learn more about, someone they can fall in love with.
Today's romance hero is more verbal, tender, and vulnerable than the romantic hero often or twenty years ago. While the strong and silent type still exists, this modern man can show flaws, ask for emotional support, and have a sense of humor.
It is possible, however, to make your hero so sensitive, so vulnerable, or so wounded by life that he appears to be a wimp. When a female author, writing about the kind of man she thinks she'd love, gives him habits and characteristics that are more commonly found in women, the hero may end up acting more like a girlfriend than a hero—readers may find him unconvincing as a man and vaguely dissatisfying as an object of affection.
Nor should you go too far in the other direction and make him look like the sort of man who wouldn't hesitate to abuse a woman to get his own way. Forcing kisses or other intimacies is controlling—not romantic—behavior.
It's also frighteningly easy to make your hero look like a fool. If, for instance, he's divorced from a simply horrible woman, readers are going to wonder—with good reason why he was stupid enough to marry her in the first place.
Convincingly Attractive Heroes
The hero has to be convincingly attractive to both the heroine and the readers. It's fine for him to be a bad-boy type if he displays positive qualities that balance out his naughty