I’m in the midst of writing a romantic scene for my book. (No, I’m not going to tell you who it’s with — that would ruin the surprise! This is part of the fun of not writing in the genre of romance — you guys have to play guessing games about my heroine’s love interests.)
Though part of the fun of writing anyhting romantic is the possibility of living vicariously through one’s own creations, even if just for the span of the book/chapter/scene. Gena Showalter is currently discussing bad boys and their endless appeal on her blog. I’m not so much into bad boys. I remember one of my first TARA meetings talked about hero archetypes (I believe using Tami Cowden’s list). The idea was to look over your favorite books/movies, etc. and see which type you as an author, were drawn to over and over again. At the time, I’d only written two books, but now that I’ve written more, I can see my pattern emerging (and it’s not a shocker, considering who I’ve been dating for the last four years). Here’s Tami’s list, with asterisks next to the ones I’ve written.
1. Chief
2. Bad Boy
3. Best Friend *
4. Charmer *
5. Lost Soul
6. Professor
7. Swashbuckler **
8. Warrior *
I think that all of my Swashbucklers have the element of the Charmer in them, and my Warrior, Vincent, was definitely a bit of a Swashbuckler. Ethan, my Charmer, never had a chance for much action, though I’m sure he would have taken to it in a heartbeat. Nate, my Best Friend, was part of my trial book, and so I don’t think he really counts. Jonathan of course, is your standard Swashbuckler (she calls him a pirate, throughout) and of course, a consummate Charmer to boot. I’ve got a Professor in the back of my head, and think that in general, I want all of my heroes to be Indiana Jones, so they’re all going to be a steady mix of Charmer and Professor all wrapped up in a big hunk of Swashbuckler.
But that’s romance, where the characters tend to be larger than life. Here, they are much less so. Amy has a lot of potential love interests, but what is interesting about them is that they aren’t all heroes — that is, I can write a bad boy who is actually a bad boy, not a hero masquearding as one. This is a very different conceit than what one follows in a romance, IMO. It’s been rather fun to work with. Right now, the most heroic of the characters is a quintessential Best Friend — to the heroine, though I think if he were to be the hero of his own story, he’d be a Professor. Interesting, how the archetype of a character can change depending on who it is he’s relating to.
What archetypes do you feel drawn towards writing (doesn’t have to be your heroes)?
May 29th, 2005 at 6:55 pm
Of course you know I love bad boys, but I’m equally infatuated with warriors and lost souls. I’m intrigued by the best friend, though I’m not sure I could write one and do him justice, if that makes any sense.
[Reply]
May 29th, 2005 at 8:21 pm
That’s so interesting, Gena, because I don’t think of you as having written any bad boys. I think the Stone Prince was a warrior, the Pleasure Slave was a warrior and/or charmer, and the alien in AMD was a Chief. I think *Dallas* was more like a Bad Boy…
[Reply]
May 30th, 2005 at 6:50 am
You know, you are totally right. Seeing it written like that is an eye opener. Absolutely. Jorlan is a warrior, Tristan is a warrior/charmer and Kyrin is a Chief. Smart cookie!
I’m in love with Dallas, hince he gets no woman but me yet
I do plan to write his story one day and unleash all his badness LOL
[Reply]
May 30th, 2005 at 9:59 am
My guys are all best friend types. Funny guys with a heart of gold. Maybe I should stretch myself a bit. I might like the results.
Teri
[Reply]
May 30th, 2005 at 10:06 am
Tami wrote about the archetypes with Caro LeFever, I think they have a book about it. Anyway, I have the article in a writer’s guide so I had to look it up and figure it out.
Okay, I write professors. They are driven by their intellect and are inflexible. They are also lost souls at the same time. They are fun to build conflicts with because the heroine throws them into a situation they are not familiar with and makes them act opposite from what they are used to.
[Reply]
May 30th, 2005 at 12:56 pm
I have Tami’s book, and I do like it a lot, though I can never figure out who my heroine archetypes are — they never seem to fit into any of her molds the way the heroes do. Maybe because I write more modern women with more classic heroes? Anyway, the thing i like best about the book is that she’s very careful to say that any character can work in any situation — it’s how they react to that situation that works in teh archetype. So say your characters are lost in a basement. How would the professor react? Or the warrior? Or the best friend?
It’s just one of the tools you can use for writing though, and like most of the other ones i’ve found (GMC charts, plot color-blocking, etc.) it tends to work for me better *after* I’ve written the story. LIke the first draft is organic, and then, in revising, to see which parts i need to fix, then I apply the rules and techniques and etc. I liken it to knitting — you make the sweater, then block it after you’re done to make the edges all neat.
[Reply]
May 30th, 2005 at 6:49 pm
I love Tam Cowden and Caro Lefever’s book. It’s up there on my shelf along with GMC, and No Plot, No Problem. My male characters tend to be either the Chief, the Charmer, or the Bad Boy, or a combination of both. I have yet to write a professor or a swashbuckler, but I’m sure I will in the not too distant future.
My heroines tend to be the spunky kid, with touches of the waif. I don’t know why.
[Reply]
May 31st, 2005 at 4:42 am
The one I wrote most often would be a Charmer who is also a Bad Boy. That is, he is bad to the bone, but becomes smooth as silk and sweet as sugar when it is useful. Sometimes making the impression of being a gamma, but he is as alpha as they get, only he’s not rough around the edges. Often with a healthy dose of Swashbuckler
[Reply]
June 1st, 2005 at 6:39 am
I hadn’t realized it until this moment that I’m constantly writing professors. I never really thought I was attracted to them, but now that I examine it – Wagner is for sure a professor. And so is the hero in my wip!
I love those uptight, totally controlled and intelligent men, bent on whatever project is SO IMPORTANT only to be brought down by a sexy heroine.
And here I thought I was always into Warriors. Maybe I should have hung around the Engineering Club more in college.
[Reply]