Spoiler alert: 1st blog on GR, and I'm analysing Paul Jackson from Flawed. Only read on if you've read Flawed
I know, I know. I'm an author and that's the best title I could come up with?
If I'm a new-to-you author, I write contemporary erotic romance. The Definition series isn't dark, it definitely isn't sweet. I'd say it's about dysfunctional relationships and is essentially the story of Scarlett and Dev.
* Spoiler alert #2 *
Only read on if you've read Definition of Flawed.
* End of spoiler alert *Definition of FlawedDefinition of Flawed
So what is this blog post about?
I thought I'd analyse the much maligned Paul Jackson, the 'romantic' lead in Flawed.
Reviewers say many different things and you can't please everybody all of the time. However, one thing remains constant in the Definition universe and that is pretty much everybody dislikes Paul Jackson.
Given the book is in the contemporary romance genre, why did I take a risk on creating a character like Paul? After all, he's an anti-hero without the usual likeable attributes, isn't he?
I did it because haven't we all met someone like him? Yeah, the person you're thinking of may not be the sum total of Paul, but there will be elements of that person in Paul. The bottom line is that he's a d**k.
Oh yeah, there's no denying he has shed loads of charm. He can turn it on or off when needed. He's probably a little sleazy, too. But when it comes down to it isn't he just a tad shallow?
Let's look at how he became the guy he did.
Brought up in the care system, he lacked stability and fell into a relationship with the wily Stacey at the care home. Of course, he was only seventeen when Dev came along and he wasn't as manipulative as Stacey.
Paul absolutely wanted to keep the baby. He didn't want a kid of his ending up in the system. He found a minimum wage job and worked long hours to save for the birth. Little did he know that he wasn't the baby's father.
When Stacey had twins, she took one and left Paul with the other one. Poor guy, he didn't even know the babies weren't his.
It must've been hard for Paul, but he didn't succumb or go under. Instead he worked hard and ended up working as a supervisor in a callcentre.
Keeping Dev out of foster care was the most selfless act he'd committed. Knowing how Logan - Dev's twin - ended up I think that Dev had the best parent.
I'm not trying to excuse his forays into infidelity territory or the fact that he didn't share his drinking habits with Scarlett. I'm just looking at him from the other side of the coin.
Did he ever love Scarlett? Yes he did, in his way but in the words of the song, it was tainted love (I'm totally singing that now lol). His sociopathic tendencies stunted his ability to be the man he should have been with her.
Why did he do what he did to Scarlett? Because he could. Ailsa was available. Although he was a shoulder for her to cry on at first, it didn't take long to develop into something else. Some men enjoy being needed. Paul is one of those men.
Alcohol clouded his judgment and was the catalyst for many of his arguments with Scarlett and Dev. He was weak and gave in to temptation.
Do I dislike him as much as everybody else? Well, I did try hard to make him this way and I guess if people aren't having a 'meh' reaction, that's a good thing.
What's next?
Craving is released on 21 August 2018. It's book two of the Definition series - technically it's book three. Early reviewers are thankfully not giving away too much of the plot. If you're reading this, try not to read the reviews because there is so much happening, I want you to have the same reaction as the reviewers.
Okay, it's time to wrap up because it's been a very long day and my eyelids are drooping.
Until next time, happy reading!
Luv
Lia xx
If I'm a new-to-you author, I write contemporary erotic romance. The Definition series isn't dark, it definitely isn't sweet. I'd say it's about dysfunctional relationships and is essentially the story of Scarlett and Dev.
* Spoiler alert #2 *
Only read on if you've read Definition of Flawed.
* End of spoiler alert *Definition of FlawedDefinition of Flawed
So what is this blog post about?
I thought I'd analyse the much maligned Paul Jackson, the 'romantic' lead in Flawed.
Reviewers say many different things and you can't please everybody all of the time. However, one thing remains constant in the Definition universe and that is pretty much everybody dislikes Paul Jackson.
Given the book is in the contemporary romance genre, why did I take a risk on creating a character like Paul? After all, he's an anti-hero without the usual likeable attributes, isn't he?
I did it because haven't we all met someone like him? Yeah, the person you're thinking of may not be the sum total of Paul, but there will be elements of that person in Paul. The bottom line is that he's a d**k.
Oh yeah, there's no denying he has shed loads of charm. He can turn it on or off when needed. He's probably a little sleazy, too. But when it comes down to it isn't he just a tad shallow?
Let's look at how he became the guy he did.
Brought up in the care system, he lacked stability and fell into a relationship with the wily Stacey at the care home. Of course, he was only seventeen when Dev came along and he wasn't as manipulative as Stacey.
Paul absolutely wanted to keep the baby. He didn't want a kid of his ending up in the system. He found a minimum wage job and worked long hours to save for the birth. Little did he know that he wasn't the baby's father.
When Stacey had twins, she took one and left Paul with the other one. Poor guy, he didn't even know the babies weren't his.
It must've been hard for Paul, but he didn't succumb or go under. Instead he worked hard and ended up working as a supervisor in a callcentre.
Keeping Dev out of foster care was the most selfless act he'd committed. Knowing how Logan - Dev's twin - ended up I think that Dev had the best parent.
I'm not trying to excuse his forays into infidelity territory or the fact that he didn't share his drinking habits with Scarlett. I'm just looking at him from the other side of the coin.
Did he ever love Scarlett? Yes he did, in his way but in the words of the song, it was tainted love (I'm totally singing that now lol). His sociopathic tendencies stunted his ability to be the man he should have been with her.
Why did he do what he did to Scarlett? Because he could. Ailsa was available. Although he was a shoulder for her to cry on at first, it didn't take long to develop into something else. Some men enjoy being needed. Paul is one of those men.
Alcohol clouded his judgment and was the catalyst for many of his arguments with Scarlett and Dev. He was weak and gave in to temptation.
Do I dislike him as much as everybody else? Well, I did try hard to make him this way and I guess if people aren't having a 'meh' reaction, that's a good thing.
What's next?
Craving is released on 21 August 2018. It's book two of the Definition series - technically it's book three. Early reviewers are thankfully not giving away too much of the plot. If you're reading this, try not to read the reviews because there is so much happening, I want you to have the same reaction as the reviewers.
Okay, it's time to wrap up because it's been a very long day and my eyelids are drooping.
Until next time, happy reading!
Luv
Lia xx
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