Intriguing Character Occupations - Laurie London
Intriguing Character Occupations
By Laurie London
As a romance reader, I’ve found that my favorite stories are those where I can relate to the characters, particularly the heroine. If I can put myself in her shoes as I turn the pages, it’s easier to pretend that her experiences are mine. Even if our lives are totally different, our hopes and dreams make us similar. And if she has an interesting job or career—one I’ve had, wish I had, or that I just find fascinating— I’m in reader heaven.
Sookie Stackhouse of the Southern Vampire series by Charlaine Harris is a waitress. I’ve been a cocktail waitress and can relate to her crazy hours, the unwelcome come-ons, and customers who’ve had too much to drink.
Teal Williams from Undertow by Cherry Adair is a master boat mechanic. Not that I’ve ever wanted to work on engines, but I found it fascinating how she became well-respected in a field dominated by men. She reminded me of the sweet, yet socially awkward Kaylee in Firefly.
Sara McMillan in If I Were You by Lisa Renee Jones is a schoolteacher working in an art gallery for the summer. She’s an everywoman character who ends up living the ultimate fantasy.
In my Sweetblood vampire series, I wanted to write about heroines with careers and personalities that would intrigue me as a reader.
Mackenzie in Bonded By Blood is a movie location scout and an art teacher. She gets to travel around the Pacific Northwest looking for the perfect spot to shoot various film projects for clients, and she teaches painting classes at an art studio.
Lily from Embraced By Blood is a vampire known for her tracking abilities. She’s well-respected among her peers, even though her parents believe she should stay home and have more babies.
Arianna from Tempted By Blood works for a gaming company by day and blogs about the paranormal at night. I interviewed a good friend who is one of the animators of a very popular game. Through his input, I developed the scenario where Arianna and Jackson steal company secrets from her employer…including the part about the developer who was teased for wearing My Little Pony underwear.
Roxy from Seduced By Blood is the head of a training academy for vampire warriors. She’s a librarian of sorts—someone who collects and disseminates information, and she’s unaccustomed to hand-to-hand combat. So when she’s thrown into a situation where she needs to kick some butt, no one expects her to succeed.
And in the two short stories in the series, Brianna from Hidden By Blood wants to become a doctor, and Charlotte from Enchanted By Blood (A Vampire for Christmas anthology) is a party planner.
How about you? What are some of your favorite character occupations?
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