R.W. Richard's Blog, page 26

Heroes Don’t Understand Handbags & Shoes

Yes, yes, they’re bought to match other apparel. But a guy doesn’t see that, no matter if he’s alpha, beta, gamma, an artist or creative type. Addressing his growth in understanding the opposite sex is necessary in a romance, but I’d be wary of expecting too much in the shoe department.
Once upon a time, guys (and sometimes, some gals) went hunting and brought home to the cave protein necessary for survival. The women used everything they could from the kill or catch. The more pelts, bones, etc., the more successful the tribe.Guys often laugh with buddies, about their lack of closet space or the amount of shoes Imelda (insert wife’s name here) has. Why is this funny? Guys see survival (the kids’ education, food on the table) and think of the cost of said shoes and try to smile because they love their mates. Gals see a successful marriage. Although they aren’t strictly in a tribe, they are in a village of their making. Women are more social, generally. So, to not dress properly sends the message to their friends that their marriage has failed. Men don’t usually wear many variants. Their tribal message when they dress solidly is that their marriage is successful.
So you can tell a guy until you are blue in the face about this and he won’t understand. Listen, I’m a senior citizen. I just figured it out last night. But us renaissance men do eventually solve problems.David Bowie, 1983, Let's Dance (Red Shoes)

http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=d...

The Bachelorette confronts violence

Libby Hall, a writer for the LA Times, starts her story in Monday’s (6/20/2016) paper with, “If reality dating shows are all about channeling the romantic narrative of the fairy tale, what happens when they [producers of the show] pivot to the darker side of Grimm?”
JoJo Fletcher, in her attempt to find a husband, had to deal with a slow reveal from her “men” about the violent—steroid riddled, IMO—tendencies and remarks of Chad Johnson. This bad boy with too many fatal flaws, threatened to remove heads, teeth and track down after the show, his tormentors. The men “tormented” him because, basically, he scared them and they asked him to cut it out and become human. They didn’t sign up to get their jaws broken, etc.
They did sign up to get their hearts broken. All save one.
For those who are sceptics, The Bachelor franchise has scored consistent wins (marriages) over the last few seasons. With three shows a year (The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise). From The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, married is Jason and Molly, Sean & Catherine, Ashley & J.P. and Desiree & Chris. The summer filler, Bachelor in Paradise, has scored two for two with Marcus & Lacy and Jade & Tanner. Successful season or not, the emotions are often raw for both sexes, the dialogue intriguing and the love (as you identify with the heroine and hero) will warm your heart, just like a good romance novel.
For football fans out there, Aaron Rodgers, the great NFL Greenbay quarterback, gets to watch his brother Jordan, who is on the show.Jo Jo on Access Hollywood:http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=j...

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee

It took me forever to realize that I didn’t have to follow Robert McKee’s Story or other writing books, in which you learn to raise the stakes with special attention to the physical world (outward conflict). The stakes translate mostly to great visuals or action scenes. It is much harder to raise the stakes of the inner story. A human can raise their awareness and change their attitude. They can see change in survival, sex, love, but they can’t change into Superman or raise their IQ (well, these are different stories when compared to the romances we typically write and it doesn’t improve the book, IMO). A book is different from a movie. A movie must rely on physically compelling scenes to make up for the lack of interior monologue. A good book must rely on the inner development of characters. So, it doesn’t matter if your character is James Bond or Casper Melbatoast. As long as the characters go through change that a reader can identify and empathize with, you’ll have a story.
Note these best sellers: The Secret Life of Bees, A Man Called Ove, The Nest, etc.
I’m not saying it doesn’t matter if your hero saves the world, just that he or she save their smaller world. You can write a story with plenty of outer conflict or not. If you want to write it, and believe in the story, well then, you’ve got something others will love too.
So, that’s my two cents… What if someone wrote a story about a poor boy who saved his pennies to help feed his family and then the coins were stolen?Just don't float like a bee or bite like a butterfly.

What’s the Difference between Obsession and Love?

We’ll often see novelists pen words such as, he couldn’t stop thinking about her, nearly all thoughts came back to her. “I think about you every day (moment).” “I’m obsessed with her.”

These words and similar are often used in describing various points in the romantic arc; to describe the hero's awakening, previously content with one-night stands or video games. But, it is technically wrong. These words can be used to describe obsession, a word that carries so many negative connotations. Yes the hero can be overwhelmed by the heroine over time (or in the case of love at first sight, instantly) but it is all in the way this affection is focused with appropriate prose. Before we go further, let’s review the definitions.
From Webster’s:
Obsession: 1. the domination of one’s thoughts or feelings by a persistent idea, image, desire, etc.
Love: 1. A profoundly tender, passionate affectionate for another person, esp. when based on sexual attraction.
Fiction writers are forever being told to show don’t tell. A man falling in love when confronted by thoughts of his beloved will think of how he can make her laugh, happy, lighten her day, make her feel special, plan for a great life together, which will mesh their ideas. He’ll plan something to do or say for when he sees her next. And oh yes, he will listen to learn, react and for both of them to grow.
On the other hand, an obsession can often by all about the hero. Something in his psyche (or hers) needs feeding. He will feel better about himself because he can get or have that very lovely heroine. He might declare that she completes him or that he is nothing without her. This is hyperly and sweet but deep down it is often a sign of insecurity. It could be said that the heroine is a momument to his ability to pick, or an acclimation of his worthiness.
I’m just saying, be careful in developing his focus. Is it inward and needy or outward and healthy?
On a side note: Mohammad Ali was not only obsessed in its most positive form but he dearly loved humanity.  He knew he would be champ (because he was that good) and said so. He also said that the heart was the greatest gift we have (the hero is not a champ without it).
There is no better mix of obsession and love than in the following, I’ll be Seeing You by Billie Holiday, 1944 (if clicking on Billie's picture doesn't work, click on the link below the picture. For the greatest generation this song described the hell of war. Any guy or gal had every right and perhaps a duty to their own mental well being to grow an obsession for a soldier who either will not or may not come home.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDlKb2cBAqU

Having a Zealot Overstay His Welcome

If a romantic hero is a zealot, his flaw may be truly fatal.
What is a zealot? A person who is always right in his own mind. On top of that cannot tolerate diverse opinions. He thinks lowly of those who he suspects has the wrong opinion (in the case of terrorists, would rather see them dead). I say “suspects” because many shy away from discourse with zealots, but he knows they’re wrong anyway.
Writing a zealot as a hero in romance—proud of the arc created—is asking for less audience. Readers have been confronted by zealots and they don’t like them. Even zealots don’t like those who inflexibly stand against them. The hero would make any reader uncomfortable. In other words, it is too much to expect the reader to develope empathy for or identify with the hero.
Zealots who might read the story would be saddened if the hero started to change. They’ll put the book down and go out looking for somebody to beat-up mentally or physically (or just call a name).
Zealots often use verbal abuse (bullying) or if literate or trained may engage in conversation in which their target is forced logically (as they see it) to agree with them.
The last zealot I had to deal with disliked the Catholic faith. I like him all right, anyway. An otherwise good man, if misguided. Due to my—nearly a priest—education, I saw all the sophistry or weaknesses in his sideways questioning of how devout a Catholic I was. I answered easily with humor. We continued to play ping-pong. However, I really wanted to focus on the game!
Would a reader put down a book and declare he needs to see the dentist.

Be Willing To Serve

Many times a hero and heroine are embroiled in making a decision of which is more important, a career or their relationship. This is often a necessary ingredient to a good story.

However, advancing a career is an integral part of not only their ability to put food on the table but their willingness to serve, to give back. Hopefully, the hero or heroine take this same approach to how they love each other.

It need not be preachy. It does, IMO (and many others), need to be part of the charm that helps sell your characters to the readers.

In the Hallmark premier of Date With Love, 2016, the heroine, a movie star, worries that her new boyfriend is using her to advance his career (he writes). He worries that she is just acting to advance her career or have a little fun.

The "I Wish" Song

It is common and important in movie and play musicals to start with the I Wish song by the protagonist.
The hero or heroine doesn’t have to know how they’ll achieve it and all the better.
Eliza Doolittle wishes for a warm room away from the cold streets.
The Little Mermaid wishes to be with humans.
Quasimodo wishes he could be with instead of high up over the people, to share their stories and lives.
Dorothy wises to be somewhere over the rainbow.
Writing prose need not resort to song or poetry, although it has been done (The Jungle Book and help me here with other examples).
However, some statement of goal (even if it changes) is valuable to writing good prose.
In all cases, the audience/readers can begin to empathize with the protagonist and invest in the story. Empathy up front can be delivered with an inciting incident, a come-to-Jesusrequest from a friend, an awakening. It can be subtle or blunt. The one thing it shouldn’t be is misleading, unless there are clues for the audience/readers that the protagonist has a little growing up to do and will face an unexpected outcome. Then we cheer for a different reason. Rick pretends not to be interested in the war or any dame but will soon be asked to choose between a woman and the fight for freedom. We all know he’ll change.
In Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips a star quarterback who has all the gorgeous women he’d ever need or want, slams on the brakes of his Aston Martin Vanquish to pull in front of a girl in a beaver suit in the middle of nowhere (all this in the first paragraph). The reader interprets this as his unknowing wish for change and commitment. The story never varies from his unknowing quest until he knows.
Here’s the great Judy Garland singing Somewhere Over The Rainbow, 1939. What does Dorothy really want?

The I Wish Song

It is common and important in movie and play musicals to start with the I Wish song by the protagonist.
The hero or heroine doesn’t have to know how they’ll achieve it and all the better.
Eliza Doolittle wishes for a warm room away from the cold streets.
The Little Mermaid wishes to be with humans.
Quasimodo wishes he could be with instead of high up over the people, to share their stories and lives.
Dorothy wises to be somewhere over the rainbow.
Writing prose need not resort to song or poetry, although it has been done (The Jungle Book and help me here with other examples).
However, some statement of goal (even if it changes) is valuable to writing good prose.
In all cases, the audience/readers can begin to empathize with the protagonist and invest in the story. Empathy up front can be delivered with an inciting incident, a come-to-Jesusrequest from a friend, an awakening. It can be subtle or blunt. The one thing it shouldn’t be is misleading, unless there are clues for the audience/readers that the protagonist has a little growing up to do and will face an unexpected outcome. Then we cheer for a different reason. Rick pretends not to be interested in the war or any dame but will soon be asked to choose between a woman and the fight for freedom. We all know he’ll change.
In Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips a star quarterback who has all the gorgeous women he’d ever need or want, slams on the brakes of his Aston Martin Vanquish to pull in front of a girl in a beaver suit in the middle of nowhere (all this in the first paragraph). The reader interprets this as his unknowing wish for change and commitment. The story never varies from his unknowing quest until he knows.
Here’s the great Judy Garland singing Somewhere Over The Rainbow, 1939. What does Dorothy really want?

When is it okay to weep for the guy who doesn't get the gal?

We were watching a Hallmark romance movie and my wife said, “I don’t know who she’ll pick.”
I said, “probably the guy with no visible source of income, but let’s see.”

I was tickled by her remark. My gal reads a ton of romance novels, but she’s not a writer. I knew the who, what, where, when, why, how and throw in some tropes, 10 minutes into the 2 hour (well, maybe 1.5 hours after commercials) movie. The credit for my wife's confusion of who gets the gal, goes to the writer of the screenplay. It used to be and still is in some plots that the guy who will not get the gal, has a really fatal flaw.
Basically, one guy’s a doctor. The other, a struggling and not google-able writer of unspecified fiction (romance*). Both have caring hearts, love her, good senses of humor. Both are handsome. One seems well off; the other not at all.  *The heroine doesn’t read romance, thinks it’s fluff. He writes under and travels with his pen name and persona, a woman, Veronica something (can you ID the tropes here?). His fiction earns awards and nationwide bestseller status (like the ladies of RWASD) and when the heroine finally gets her hands on an example, thanks to her girlfriend— “just read this, maybe you’ll change your mind about some romance”—she loves the tender story.
Tickled? Yes, because I think the longer you can hold the suspense of who-gets-who, the happier and more entertained the reader will be. That’s if you play with a two-guy theme. BTW, Hallmark is doing more and more experimental movies and is trying to hide the obvious happily-ever-after in layers upon layers of conflict and misdirection. But, they can’t fool us, right?

Morning Has Broken

I’m sitting in Mass this morning listening to the opening song, Morning Has Broken, originally by Cat Stevens.
What kind of man appreciates the beauty of nature, reverence for life, the symbiosis of organisms and inanimate entities (like the Earth, Moon and stars) and his ties to it?
Consider an Alpha.
An Alpha or any other kind of hero can be this sensitive. One wouldn’t expect a Navy Seal or an NCS (CIA) assassin to have this type of appreciation or fervor and perhaps most don't. This is exactly why a writer would be wise to consider adding charm, or using apparent contradictions to create a memorable and identifiable character. In short, paint your Alpha with nuance and complexity and your readers will remember you (and the character).

Morning Has Broken, by Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam), 1976.