Release Week Post 3 - Bad Boys
RELEASE WEEK POST 3
BAD BOYS BAD BOYS WHATCHA GONNA DO
If you’ve read any of my books, you probably already know this: I love character arcs. I love people that change, even when they don’t want to or simply aren’t ready for it. And I generally prefer that change to be a move from “bad” to “good” (or flawed to slightly less flawed). And more than all of that, I love it when a book (any book, not just mine) promises a “bad” character, then delivers one.
When I came up with the idea for this story, I started with the title, My Roommate’s Girl, and from there I contemplated how best to get things going. I considered developing a slow burn, innocent “oh no I have feelings for her—but she has a boyfriend!” story, but I didn’t want a passive main character. In my last book, “Undeclared,” the plot was dictated by the hero’s inaction; this time around, I wanted the hero’s action to direct the story. And I wanted his first move to be the wrong one.
I liked this approach for several reasons: A, it meant he got to do something bad, which is always interesting to me; B, there would be consequences for that decision; and, C, we’d get to see him learn from it. That’s the story in a nutshell, and that’s why there are no quaint “Should we kiss? No, it’s wrong!” moments in this book. Aidan’s not fumbling his way into an affair—he’s bulldozing his way into a relationship and wilfully ignoring the consequences of his actions. (But don’t worry—I’m not ignoring them!)
My books get a lot of reviews that say something similar: I didn’t like so-and-so at the beginning, but by the end, I was rooting for them. I always wish I could pipe up and say, “That’s totally the point.” I don’t necessarily want people to hate my characters at the start, but if there’s no room for improvement, what’s the story? I think I’m in the minority when I say I don’t really care if I relate to a character, I just want to find them interesting and engaging. I don’t read to find book boyfriends or book BFFs, I read for something new and something that makes me think. That’s why I love this book—when I started it, I never really intended to finish it, I just considered it practice. But the more I wrote, the more Aidan’s potential to be “good” revealed itself. He might never be Citizen of the Year, but by the end of this story, he’s definitely a contender for Most Improved.
BAD BOYS BAD BOYS WHATCHA GONNA DO
If you’ve read any of my books, you probably already know this: I love character arcs. I love people that change, even when they don’t want to or simply aren’t ready for it. And I generally prefer that change to be a move from “bad” to “good” (or flawed to slightly less flawed). And more than all of that, I love it when a book (any book, not just mine) promises a “bad” character, then delivers one.
When I came up with the idea for this story, I started with the title, My Roommate’s Girl, and from there I contemplated how best to get things going. I considered developing a slow burn, innocent “oh no I have feelings for her—but she has a boyfriend!” story, but I didn’t want a passive main character. In my last book, “Undeclared,” the plot was dictated by the hero’s inaction; this time around, I wanted the hero’s action to direct the story. And I wanted his first move to be the wrong one.
I liked this approach for several reasons: A, it meant he got to do something bad, which is always interesting to me; B, there would be consequences for that decision; and, C, we’d get to see him learn from it. That’s the story in a nutshell, and that’s why there are no quaint “Should we kiss? No, it’s wrong!” moments in this book. Aidan’s not fumbling his way into an affair—he’s bulldozing his way into a relationship and wilfully ignoring the consequences of his actions. (But don’t worry—I’m not ignoring them!)
My books get a lot of reviews that say something similar: I didn’t like so-and-so at the beginning, but by the end, I was rooting for them. I always wish I could pipe up and say, “That’s totally the point.” I don’t necessarily want people to hate my characters at the start, but if there’s no room for improvement, what’s the story? I think I’m in the minority when I say I don’t really care if I relate to a character, I just want to find them interesting and engaging. I don’t read to find book boyfriends or book BFFs, I read for something new and something that makes me think. That’s why I love this book—when I started it, I never really intended to finish it, I just considered it practice. But the more I wrote, the more Aidan’s potential to be “good” revealed itself. He might never be Citizen of the Year, but by the end of this story, he’s definitely a contender for Most Improved.
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