Rosalie Lario

I’m currently rereading Book 4 of Jeaniene Frost’s Night Huntress series in preparation for the release of Book 5 later this month. For those of you who haven’t read it, the series features Cat, a half-vamp in love with Bones, a full vampire who’s a former prostitute and reformed playboy.

Something about Bones drives me crazy. He’s the perfect blend of naughty and nice. That led me to thinking about today’s discussion topic: bad boy heroes.

What is it about bad boy heroes? You can’t help but be drawn to them, even if you might know better. Something about them is totally irresistible. So just what is it that makes them so fun to read and write about?

• They are Powerful

Bad boys have enough internal strength to go against authority. Remember the television series Angel?

Once Angel’s soul was returned, the easy thing for him to do would have been to run and hide. He was now vulnerable. But what did he do instead? He opened up his own detective agency focused on helping people suffering from supernatural problems.

• They Have Sexual Charisma

Bad boys are sexy as hell. Much of this stems from their confidence. They aren’t afraid to be who they are. Going back to Whedon-land, I’ll use Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer as an example.

Spike knew exactly who he was and what he wanted, and he wasn’t afraid to show it. That’s sexy.

• There is a Hint of Vulnerability

Bad boys don’t become bad boys for no reason. Using Spike once again, we learn that at heart he’s a man looking for love. He only became a vampire because he was heartbroken over being jilted by Cecily, the woman he loved. Although he may act tough, what he really wants is to be loved and needed.

• They Make their Own Rules

Bad boys balk at authority. They operate outside of the boundaries of the law. In effect, they are natural leaders, and nothing draws people like leadership. William Wallace in Braveheart is the perfect example of this.

• We like to Watch them Fall in Love

Those of us who read romance love to watch a bad boy redeemed. In the Night Huntress series, Bones gives up his playboy ways when he falls in love with Cat. Despite her insecurities, he shows her over and over again that she’s the only one for him. What’s hotter than that?

So what is it about a bad boy that calls to you? Do you have a favorite bad boy character?

I have been listening to the “Freud Knows Romance” Workshop given by Sandy James during RWA’s 2010 Conference. While it contains a lot of great information about psychology in writing, there were a few concepts I found especially interesting. These are basically nature vs. nurture concepts to examine when thinking up a character.

• Nature

This is a study of temperament, an inborn way a person acts and reacts. There are four types of temperaments:

1. Sanguine: Kind, fair, generous, adventurous, spontaneous. Comic sidekick. Think Iron Man.
2. Phlegmatic: Patient, rational, innovative, unflappable. Think Obi-won Kenobi.
3. Melancholic: Serious, pessimistic, idealist, moody. Brooding heroes and tortured heroines. Think Mr. Darcy. Could use a comic sidekick to offset moodiness.
4. Choleric: Courageous, enthusiastic, bossy, stubborn. Alpha males and strong heroines. Think Hans Solo.

• Nurture

This concept relates to the types of parents a character has, and how this shapes their personality. There are three types of parent figures:

1. Authoritarian Parents – very strict. The offspring of authoritarian parents either rebel or are too afraid to go out on their own. Psychopaths tend to have a strong authoritarian parent (think villains).
2. Permissive Parents – give their children their way all the time. The offspring of permissive parents tend to lack focus and motivation. They can be your playboy-types.
3. Authoritative Parents – work with their children. They tend to have well-balanced, independent offspring (which, let’s face it, can make for a boring character).

I have to admit, I don’t consciously examine psychology when thinking up my character, but the above concepts seem like useful tools for crafting 3-dimensional characters and rationalizing their motivations.

For you writers, do you examine psychology when creating your characters? If so, do you find it helps you to create a fully fleshed-out character?

With the ever shortening attention span of readers, tightening prose in order to get rid of unnecessary words becomes a necessity. Readers want their story delivered quickly and effectively, and rambling prose should be kept to a minimum, if not avoided altogether.

So how can you tighten your prose? Here are some tips I‘ve picked up:

• Don’t Edit While Writing

Writing and editing are two different creatures. Writing is a creative process, and trying to edit while you write may stifle your creativity.

• Read It Aloud

Hearing your written words spoken aloud can unveil grammatical errors or awkward phrasing, things you might not be able to pick out by reading alone.

• Take Time Off Between Finishing Your Draft and Editing

I’ve heard authors say they’ll give themselves 2-6 weeks after finishing a manuscript before they go back to edit it. At first I thought this was insane. Why not edit as soon as you finish, while the story is fresh in your mind? But after taking this advice, I now realize why so many authors give it. Taking time off allows you to view your story more objectively. Going back into it with fresh eyes, you are much more likely to spot ineffective writing that needs to be altered or tightened up.

• Keep it Simple

Don’t use a fancy, complicated word if an easier word will do just as well. No one will be impressed by your command of the English language. Your readers want to immerse themselves in a good story, and having to bust out the thesaurus every ten minutes is bound to detract from that.

• Don’t Go Crazy with Description

Yes, you have to set the scene, but you don’t necessarily have to do it all at once. Use only as much description as is necessary for this part of the scene. You can sprinkle the rest in slowly, interspersing it with action and dialogue.

• Choose Strong Words

Instead of modifying your verbs with adverbs (-ly and –ing words), choose stronger verbs. Instead of “walked angrily”, why not say “stomped”? Instead of “spoke loudly”, why not “shouted”? This is my personal weakness; I’m the adverb queen. I try not to worry about it during my first draft, but I know I’m going to want to edit a lot of these out of the manuscript before I can consider it complete.

Do you have any tips for tightening your prose?

For a good primer on editing, take a look at the “Fat-Free Writing or How to Eliminate Wordiness in 10 Easy Steps” Workshop given by Darlene Buchholz and Annie Oortman at RWA’s 2010 Conference (it’s available for download from RWA).