Thursday, December 31, 2009
A Major Reason I Read Romance: Bad Boys
Happy New Years Eve, everyone! I hope all of you have fabulous plans for the evening. I'm chilling at home with some friends and playing board games. Since I can't drink, it's just as PG as it sounds.
But though my life sometimes lacks adventure and excitement, I can always turn to romance for those things. Lucky for me because I don't REALLY want too much adventure and excitement. I may love reading about a bad boy, but I'll take my DH any day.
He can be bad when I want him too. *snicker*
Here's a blog by Sin that I think really exemplifies why I like these bad boys. Thanks Sin!
So, enjoy your day! And we here on the boat wish you all a prosperous and productive New Year.
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‘Tis true.
I grew up loving bad boys. I have this thing for tall, dark and handsome. Just ask my DH. He’ll agree. Because he’s like that. He’s not modest at all. lol.
The ultimate bad boy just makes me tingle all over. The swagger. The way he doesn’t care about what people think. The ability to throw caution to the wind and just do it. (And not just that “do it”. But still they do it well.) There hasn’t been a time in my life when I hadn’t thought about the bad boy and how I was gonna get my hands on him. It’s that initial rush when you’re in a bad boy’s arms, the way he makes you feel about yourself. The way everything is new and exciting. And it stays that way because he’s mysterious. He’d dark and edgy. And he knows how to light you on fire with one single look.
The bad boy is my favorite part of writing a novel. Creating the man who’s gonna make my heroine want to pull her hair out with his sarcasm. The man who is gonna knock her socks off with his looks and make the room feel two sizes too small when they are together. He’s the man, who at the end of the day, when she’s trying to sleep, all she can hear is his smart ass comments. And remember the way his eyes raked over her when she stepped into the room. The way he makes her temperature sky rocket when he brushes up against her. The man who invades her dreams, kisses her lips, touches her bare skin, makes her cry out his name.
He is her bad boy. He is her crutch. He’s everything she could want and more. If she was looking for someone.
When I started fleshing out my Romantic-Suspense WIP, I had this vision of a man. I could hear his voice in my head as I was driving to work one hot summer day. I was sitting in traffic, minding my own business (okay, so I was flipping off the person who had cut me off) and I could hear him laughing. It was this deep, gruff laugh, the kind that belongs to a man with dark intentions and even darker abilities. Then I heard this woman, very girly voice, yelling about him not sneaking up on her. They got into a very heated argument. And then I knew. I had my leads for my first original.
I wasn’t looking for them at the time. At the time I was in the middle of a very intense and detailed fic about a Colombian drug lord who had almost killed my heroine in the first fic and she was trying to stay alive long enough to solve the mystery. I was thoroughly involved with the story line. I wanted to give it life, watch it soar and remember it always. After all it was a part of the first time I’d ever written for pleasure. Writing 20 page papers on music theory and computer programming are not really up my alley. No matter how much I like to talk about computers. lol
But there are some times no one listens to you, the writer. Sometimes your characters dictate what you’re going to do and what you’re going to write. And so Double Vision was born. A novel created from the insanity that is my mind. A plot that I’ve consistently changed every three months for the past year and a half. My hero/heroine are very hard to please and every time I think it’s right it’s not.
But it is this time.
So this man keeps coming to me. He talks to me in the shower. He talks to me while I’m putting on my makeup. He scolds me when I let people in front of me while being stopped in traffic. And he laughs when I swear at the person I just let in front of me. He tells me I need to get a new job because I can't shoot anyone who pisses me off. And he follows me to the gym while I run on the treadmill, bitching that I don’t stay longer ( I think an hour is long enough, thankyouverymuch! ) and he follows me into my dreams. He shows me what he wants to do, how he wants to do it. Ash is a doer. He doesn’t follow. He blazes the way and he won’t rest until he gets his way from me. And Sadie. However he can get it.So I guess the question of the day is: Do you have a bad boy in your life? A favorite bad boy from a series or book? And if you have one in mind, does he play a major part in writing your own WIP bad boy?
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Bo'sun!! Have a wild and crazy night!!
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30 comments:
I *LOVED* this blog. Great pick!! *fans self*
Yes, I have a bad boy in my life. Love him dearly. *grins* Yes, he features quite a bit as my WIP bad boys. The witty parts, in any case. Strangely, I have the same solution for dealing with fiction bad boys who don't yield to my demands as my real life one--I go into another room and read a book.
Favorite bad boy in a series is still Ranger, before Janet goofed him all up. Though I love all the bad boys in the Dark Hunter series by Sherrilyn Kenyon. Hardy Cates. Garrett, the Earl of Mayne.
Awesome post! I read for the bad boys as well, but who could pick just one?
This post just helped me realize what's missing in my WIP...my hero needs a splash of bad.
I hope everyone has a great start to the new year!
Oh, and today is Bo'sun's BIRTHDAY! Wish her a Happy Birthday, everyone!!!
Hells - great bad boys! I love Hardy Cates too and the Dark Hunters. yummmm....
Some of my favorites are JR Ward's brothers. I'm currently waiting (not so patiently) for Lover Mine and John Matthew's book.
Sabrina - Every guy needs a splash of bad, I think. :) Happy New Year too!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TER!!
Thanks for the Birthday wishes, Marn & Hellie. My Facebook is lighting up! LOL! People are so sweet.
I'm pretty sure Hardy Cates would be my favorite bad boy, but I don't have the pension for them that many do. I mean, I like them, I'm not dead. But I prefer a touch of bad than the dark, brooding, mysterious ones. And lets face it, no bad boy is going to look at this pudgy soccermom twice anyway. LOL!
I do have a bad boy in my past. May be having lunch with him tomorrow. LOL!
Ooooohhh have a VERY Happy Birthday Terri!
Thanks, Julie!
And a note from yesterday. You can *play* at being daft, but we all know you're not. ;) Thanks for brightening up this place with you quirky ways.
Happy bloody birthday, Bo'sun! May ya have jus' the amount a' bad boy ya heart desires sweep inta yer new year!
I realize in me writin' I don't truly do bad boys. I do witty, know it all, men. Hmmmm, yet, I like Sin's description and reasonin'... I guess one hasn't stepped up and smacked me in the back a' the head yet!
I gots ta say I liked Ranger.
Anyone hits me in the back of the head, he better be ready to run his bloomin' ass off.
Thanks, Chancey! I like that wish.
Happy Birthday, Terri! Have a wonderful day!
The bad boys I like are those who turn into real good men--in every sense (to bend a line from Tim McGraw). Georgette Heyer created the prototype with Vidal, Damorel, and others. Lisa Kleypas excels at creating these heroes--St. Vincent, Nick Gentry, Hardy Cates. I'm a BonBon, so naturally Mayne is a great favorite, as are Loretta Chase's Dain and Marsha Moyers' Ash Farrell. Nora Roberts' Rafe MacKade, Cameron Quinn, and Tucker Longstreet have to go on my list too.
I agree that every woman needs a bad boy in her life, but the problem with real-life bad boys is that too many of them never grow up. Mine fell in that category, and I consider myself fortunate that he is far in my past and that he left me with a life-time immunity to him and his ilk.
Ahoy, the pirate ship! I'm new today--swinging by from the bandit lair on Ms Hellion's recommendation and yowza, did I enjoy today's bad boy blog! Thanks, Sin! Whew.
As for bad boys I know & love, can I say Roarke from the In Death series? I know he's all civilized & stuff, but it's totally a veneer. He's still completely dangerous and it gives me the tingles. Yummers.
I feel I had to admit, though, I like bad boys to look at, & in fiction. In real life? I think I'd commit heinous acts by day two of housekeeping together. :-)
Yeah, I prefer the bad boys who are real good men. (I am not a fan of the Charlie Sheen variety!)
I just like the aspect that bad boys are at ease with pleasure--and want you to be at ease with your pleasure (if you get my drift)--they just make that more pleasing for some reason. *LOL* But when we're not fooling around, I'd prefer a housebroken variety who doesn't make me want to stab him on a minutely basis.
Ter - You're welcome, sweets!! :)
I'm not for dark and brooding unless there's some sweetness there. Then they're my favorite. Dark and brooding with sweetness. Ahhhhh.....
Having lunch with a bad boy? Do tell....
Happy Birthday wishes, Terri -- that means TWICE the celebrating today, right?
I loved the description of how the bad boy makes the room feel two sizes too small. Perfect!
And I'm partial to two bad boys in fiction: Mick from One Reckless Summer (the prologue was enough to make me a fan! LOL) And Sam from Suzanne Brockmann's books. Both are good at heart, and bad in all the other ways that count!
Susan - A touch of incivility hiding underneath. I can see the attraction in that. And welcome aboard!
Janga - Thanks! I love that Tim McGraw song. And it makes sense since you and I share the love of the Beta that we like the same kind of bad boys. Funny enough, I think of Mayne as more naughty than a bad boy. LOL!
Hellie - Betas can haz skillz. Just sayin'...
Marn - My ex-BF and I are still friends and I have several hours in the Little Rock airport to kill tomorrow. He's over there so he might come to the airport so we can have a visit. Very innocent, I promise.
Donna - Thanks and you'd think so, wouldn't you? But no, most people don't usually remember it's my birthday. Not one person at work has said a thing. *sigh* I've been saying for years, there's always a party, it's just never for me. :)
Terri, my mom's birthday was on Christmas, so I know exactly what you're talking about. Everyone thought they were "efficient" by giving her one present, when in reality they were cutting it in half!
I'm a fan of giving myself presents -- LOL -- maybe you should do the same!
Donna be right, Terrio. Ya need ta give yerself a present. Send yerself flowers...ta the office. (Men are such jerks.)
Better yet, a male stripper.
Crew - Next year, we send Terrio a male strip-o-gram fer her birthday. No matter where she be workin'!
BTW - Ya sure Sin wrote this blog originally? It's very short fer one a' hers...
*ducking
Happy birthday, Terri! Now go get into some trouble. :)
Whew! *fans self* This blog is steamy! It's an eye opener that I couldn't really pick out what was so "bad" about the bad boy. All the feelings from his influence are good, that's for sure. LOL It's confidence. I like what Helli says:
...just like the aspect that bad boys are at ease with pleasure–and want you to be at ease with your pleasure (if you get my drift)–they just make that more pleasing for some reason.
She do make a bad boy sound good, I agree wit' that Melissa...
I find meself more interested in the comedians, the wit...the mouth?
I like clever men...bad or good?
Donna - Exactly! "Here's your Christmas presents." Looks around. "What is that one over there?" "That's the one we set aside for your birthday.
*huff*
Trust me, I buy my own presents. '07 it was my iPod Nano, which I love. '08 it was my car. Okay, so that was kind of over the top. '09 is my cool new phone. Touch screen and everything. I'm still figuring out how to work it. LOL!
Thanks, Melissa, but I'm past the trouble-making days. I'll try to find a little mischief just for you. But I'll have to take a nap first.
And NO male strippers! I don't mind watching them across a room, but don't want any strange men shaking their junk in front of me nose. I'll pass, thanks.
Now, if you want to send a hottie to say, clean my house, then we can talk.
A-clean-o-gram?
Hmmmm. New business?
Killer idea. And I bet you could find all kinds of employees over there in Cali. All those out of work actors. LOL!
Ha! Out of work programmers!
I don't know, they might be a little pasty and soft around the middle.
Chance - I think there's an art to the "bad boy"... at least an art to writing them. I don't think I've perfected yet but I'm definitely working on it.
Susan - welcome!! I haven't read the In Death series. Do you recommend? I'm always interested in new recommends.
And I'm with you. Fine in fiction, not so ideal in RL. :)
Janga - Here are a whole bunch more recommends!! Thanks! I seriously need to get reading. And you're right; many bad boys don't grow up. I dated a few myself, mistaking arrogance for confidence. DH arrived after that phase... thank goodness.
Hellie - So, maybe it's not the "bad boy" as much as the "pleasure enlightened." I love heroes who are secure with themselves and bring out the best in the heroine that way. And I like them with some spine, but not completely overbearing. There's some line in the middle, between dark/brooding/arrogant and marshmallow they walk.
Donna - Here are a couple more I need to read. Love this!! And good at heart but bad where it counts? Sounds delicious....
Ter - Your rendezvous with your ex-BF sounds like the set up for a great romance.... *wink wink* :)
Melissa - I think that trying to get at the heart of the bad boy really is helping me plan my next story. I don't think I ever "really" thought about it before either.
PS. As for male strippers, I personally think they're a little overrated. I'll take pictures or watching from afar as well. They get too close and you end up smelling like cheap cologne. *shivers*
Marn - If he comes, he should have his girlfriend with him. :) We really are "just friends." And since he lives in AR, the land upon which I will never again live, it will stay that way. LOL!
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