Thursday, February 17, 2011
Make Mine Blue, Thanks
As you all know, Monday was Valentine’s Day. And as you probably also know, I am single. Now, 99% of the time, I’m really happy with that status. As I told my daughter, a boyfriend will eventually open his mouth and talk, and that’s just annoying. There are always exceptions to the rule, but Q is married, so single I must stay.But, I’m only human. All that love talk and the hearts and the chocolate (Gah! I’m dying without chocolate!). It gets to a girl. And by “get to” I mean there might have been an email conversation between Hellie and I over the weekend that should have been accompanied by wine and Krispy Kremes.
I say MIGHT.
Anyway, then I was chatting with Chance and got to thinking, if I did want a man, and that’s a giant IF, what kind of man would I want. She made suggestions and I kept shooting them down for one reason or another. What I realized is that I do have a preference, and that preference can be seen in the heroes I write.
I prefer blue collar. In my real men and in my fictional men.My first hero was a chef and former sailor. My current hero is a baseball player. My next hero is a charter boat captain. Another in the future is a cop and I admit, another is a lawyer, but he’s a lawyer who goes through a bit of an awakening. Okay, he’s a namby when the book starts, but his heroine is total blue collar so it works.
The heroes I’ve loved in fiction are blue collar men. There were the wealthy CEOs of McNaught Contemporaries, but they were always capable and usually had to work their way up. I’ve waxed poetic about my love of Hardy Cates (BLUE EYED DEVIL – Kleypas) and Jack Travis (SMOOTH TALKING STRANGER – Kleypas) might have been born with a silver spoon, but no self-respecting alpha male from Texas could ever be called anything but blue collar.
Maybe this is why I don’t read the sheik and CEO and tycoons anymore. The playboy with the secretary mistress or the movie star whose never broken a nail. I’m positive that they are fantastic reads….for someone. Just not me.
I realize Dukes and Earls and Viscounts might fall into the white collar category, but some of them box and duel and use rapiers with the skill of a construction worker using a nail gun. And, they ride horses and get all sweaty. We’ll call them starched blue collar. With cravats.I know we could say any man that is capable is attractive, but I still don’t think I could date a doctor even if he changed his own oil. I’d just never feel comfortable with the guy. I grew up with a mechanic/machinist father. I love the smell of an auto repair shop. I live for the hunky carpenter dudes on all the HGTV shows.
What about you? Do you like your collars blue or white? Or does it even matter? And do your reading tastes follow your real life tastes? (Sorry, Q, I can’t think of a way to ask you the same thing. LOL! How about, do you mind a Yankee now and then, or are you strictly English Rose stock?)
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45 comments:
I've noticed that my male leads in all my books tend to be those with natural authority with a playful streak. Not necessarily blue collar, but not white either.
I don't think of them all alphas, but I do tend to think of them as 'tops'...
Wow, now all suspicions are confirmed regarding where my mind likes to play...
I don't know, with what I read??? Sorta the same, I guess.
Glad you're feeling better now Terri. :D
I don't think that social class really matters that much nowadays, though it can't be ignored.
Even the Royals now date educated commoners!
I also seem to recall that Edward VII abdicated to marry Mrs Simpson, an American lady.
I think I might feel a bit uncomfortable in a duchesses drawing room or wearing a top hat at Royal Ascot, but I would overcome it for the right girl.
I think its personality that counts for most and I can think of some Yankee maidens, not far from here, who have that in spades. :lol:
From your descriptions Terri, I reckon that its men of action that attract you more than intellectuals. With that thought I note that a high proportion of the English cricket team are Oxford or Cambridge blues. And some are highly intellectual and also upper class. By contrast Fred Trueman, a very famous fast bowler, started life as a coal miner and ended up as a highly respected BBC commentator, hob nobbing with the rich and famous. Shows that talent can easily ignore social class. There are no longer any unsurmountable boundaries.
Noting your love of engine oil, there are loads of vintage car ralleys over here, and I occasionally hear upper crust accents cursing from underneath bonnets with steam rising in clouds! :lol:
Seems to me that outside of the work place, blue/white is hardly recognizable any more, and no longer matters that much anyway.
Fascinating as always Bosun! :D
I don't think it matters so much what they do to make money because there's so much more to a person than that. My own real life hero works all day doing absolutely nothing with his hands, but he can also renovate our entire house (every freaking year it's another damn project). He can also fix my car. He likes to play hockey and soccer, and I love listening to him grunt and groan at the gym :)
I sometimes wonder about this. Honestly, as far as fiction, I'll read any hero as long as he's got the heroic qualities we always talk about. I personally prefer a bit more of an alpha than not but that's a personal preference.
In RL, I come from a blue collar background. Coal mining, one stoplight town in Pennsyltucky. Daughter of a carpenter.
Even though I went on to a private, well-respected college, full of very wealthy kids who came from much different backgrounds than me (I knew girls who literally shopped in Milan and my first roommate's father was the original CEO of Cellular One). A lot of times I felt like a real hillbilly around these kids. Eventually, I figured out that in most way, the people I went to school with were just like me. Just drove much nicer cars. There would always be moments, things that would come up in conversation where I'd realize that some of these people just didn't have the same backstory as me.
Because of that, I never really felt comfortable dating guys like that. They just had really different experiences growing up than me.
But that could definitely have been more about my insecurities and prejudices than them.
Great post, Terri. I don't know that I'd exclude any particular collar from consideration -- LOL. I've had experience interacting with people from a wide variety of jobs: celebrities, Supreme Court justices, janitors, lawn care people -- so I'm comfortable with just about anyone, as long as they're interesting.
I don't know that I'd be comfortable with a mortician, but other than that, I guess I'm more interested in their character traits outside of their job. Maybe because I know how many people work a job to pay bills, not because it's the best fit with their personality.
So if a guy was rude or dismissive or arrogant, especially to someone he thought beneath him -- I couldn't find that appealing. I think those traits can be found in a lot of job classes.
Also, if he has a shitty job to pay the bills so he can pursue a passion -- I would find that intriguing. However, no matter WHAT job they have, if they're a workaholic -- ugh. You can never be the top of the list with a man who loves his job more than anything else!
The commonality of the heroes I write: they always have a great sense of humor, and are indulgent towards the heroine. I have written highwaymen, pirates, cops, chefs, and plenty others, and they all have a roguish sensibility but a huge tender spot when it comes to the heroine.
Chance - Are you talking natural born leaders? I think that's the alpha element Janga always mentions. And that's the alpha element I tolerate best.
Q - That settles it. I'm moving across the pond the first chance I get. From what I've seen of Top Gear (the original) there are distinct differences betweem American gear heads and British ones. I'll take the Brits. (Plus, their just damn funny.)
JK - I'm not sure I even realized the specificity of the jobs mentioned. As I say, Hardy and Jack (Kleypas) are very wealthy men leading large companies, but they are blue collar at the core. I guess it's an inate trait to me, that sort of comes through in their line of work from time to time.
I need a guy around who can fix my house. I don't suppose your DH is available for hire? LOL! Or even better, as a loaner. You could come too! (It's the beach, think vacation.)
Marn - I'm sure any issues I have stem from me and have nothing to do with the other person. And there are always exceptions to every rule. I guess I'm just trying to figure out where I fit sometimes. I deal with the upper management of my company and am on the track to joining them someday. But I never get used to $300 ink pens (they really bought me one that cost that much!) and spending money like they do.
The Mercedes thing I think I can live with. That's my new goal, to eventually own one. But I still don't feel like I'd fit in on that level. Not that I'm going to turn down the chance to find out. LOL!
Donna - You have the best policy as always. LOL! This is all guesswork based on what I know of myself. But I did realize my reading/writing interests go along with my real life preferences. Though now I feel like it would be a fun challenge to write a totally different guy.
That lawyer hero of mine is going to be way different. His heroine is sort of a gear head and it's going to be interesting making these opposites attract.
Terri, I think my reading/writing interests also coincide with my real-life preferences. It's just a lot easier to find these guys in books. LOL
I like the lawyer and the gearhead girl story. That should be fun. :)
Tell me about it. LOL! Though you'd have to think there's someone who likes reading the opposite of they guy she's willing to have dinner with in real life. Ya think?
Now I'm taking notes on this book because the heroine (Sydney) has decided to start talking. This book is WAY off in the future so this chick better be prepared to wait. Well, actually, she is introduced in the next one. That'll have to be enough screen time for now.
Ter, hubby is only on loan for RENOVATION duties. That's it. Otherwise he's mine :)
LOL! Yes, ma'am, I promise that is the only thing I was asking for. Which is why I suggested you come along. Kiddo could watch your little one and we could have lots of time to chat.
While he works. :)
As long as the hero has a sense of humor, intelligence, and integrity, I don't care whether he earns a living with his head or his hands or a combination of the two. These preferences apply to my reading and my writing. As for real life, I find knowledge seductive, and I've known some really sexy professors. On the other hand, I grew up with Southern good ole boys who lived for sports, liked their long necks, and retained an old-fashioned chivalry. I'll always have a soft spot in my heart for the guys who, in the words of Trisha Yearwood's song, possess "some down home, rugged sweetness / A little bit of outlaw, A little bit of Jesus." That's pretty close to the heroes I write. If I ever use one of those sexy professors as a character, I'll probably be writing women's fiction rather than contemporary romance.
I could stand someone who helped with renovations too. JK, you and the fam feel like stopping up in NJ too? LOL! My hubby, while perfect in every other way, is as handy as my kitchen table. :) It would be fine if I were, in fact, handy. But, alas, I'm right there with him. We're pretty bad.
BTW, I heart Jayson Werth. :)
See, even your comments here reflect your experiences. The line A little bit of outlaw, A little bit of Jesus makes me scrunch up my nose. LOL! I have very little experience with professors, seeing as I got my degree online. The prof I had in person was quite odd, in shape and personality. But interesting.
However, if I'd had a different upbringing with a different experience, I believe I'd feel totally different. Even be attracted to totally different men, both in fiction and otherwise.
I'm sorry I'm late, but I had a raging headache this morning and have been trying to sleep it off. It's not working.
Yes, I'm BLUE collar all the way. Always have been, imagine I always will be. (Though I'm imagining Deerhunter thinks of himself as more white collar, and I'm not sure he could ever fix my car--but I'd still think of him as more blue collar.)
My favorite blue collar vs white collar love triangle romance is Sweet Home Alabama. I was for Josh Lucas the WHOLE TIME. My friend Tammy, who loves white collar, was for Patrick Dempsey and could not see what Pam and I saw in Josh. *LOL* Pam must be rather blue collar herself.
Now I do like a blue collar who will put on a white collar occasionally--think of Australia, with Hugh Jackman. He was blue collar--but he put on a tux, and baby oh baby....
Deerhunter is white collar and a Republican, you can't talk your way out of that. But since he hunts, we'll give him a pass. :)
I did like that they didn't make Patrick an asshole in that movie. That would have been the copout and made her choice easier. But it really was more about who she'd given her heart to. Which I liked.
Australia. *sigh*
Last year at RT, we actually shared the space with a mortician's conference... Several of the girls went out partying with them...had a blast! LOL!
Natural born leaders...yeah, maybe... I'm real partial to observant guys,too. The ones that pay attention...
I’m real partial to observant guys,too. The ones that pay attention…
I'm pretty sure this would be the case with every woman. I know it's a major pet peeve of mine.
Marn - I used that picture just for you! LOL! Though I didn't know his name until you mentioned it.
There is something about a guy who really has a knack for observation and understanding what motivates the men he leads. I think I've written this scene over and over...where the heroine bitches about something in regards to the crew and how he seems so removed from them...and he proceeds to give details of the motivations, likes, dislikes, etc of the men he leads. And she's floored.
But then he reminds her that as the voice of authority, it wouldn't be proper for him to seem so aware and involved with his crew, seeing how he might have to send them into danger.
Yeah...I like that scene!
That's something that would never occur to me to write, but it makes a lot of sense. Keeping that line between authority and friendship. A level of comraderie, but not too much.
My guys can take the lead when necessary, but they're not charging in to do it and they're not in any way involved in danger. I'm a non-danger kind of gal. (Which might mean I'm a coward, but I hope not.)
I'm big on the responsibility part of authority. Not just the power-mad stuff, but the personal at war with the cold remove necessary to look at the larger picture and use men/crew/troops as necessary to survive. If you're too close, you die with every decision...to far away, you don't feel anything and that is just as bad.
I'm not sure natural born leader is the truth of that position, but it is part of it. Might be the guy who found himself there and found that balance point to do the job, but it doesn't come natural at all!
You're probably right about Deerhunter. But I enjoy my denial as much as he does. :)
I agree with the comments everyone's been saying--and I was going to reference The Full Monty to say England has their own blue collars to go with their blue bloods. (And can I just say how excited I am for Wills and Kate?)
It does matter more about their integrity, intelligence, humor, and other non-surface qualities--however, I think it's the stuff that Marn was talking about that makes me prefer blue collar. It's the background experiences. It is MY hangup, yes, but eventually it could be his too. There is a certain comfort in being with someone who had had similar experiences as you, who doesn't look at you like you're an alien if you say you came from a farm and grew up around cows...or grew up in a boarding school and had servants more than parents.
Chance - I think that's one of the many aspects of life I've chosen not to think too deeply about. I couldn't imagine sending others into battle, knowing they could die. I don't believe I could do it. But I can see how the study of such leaders, from those far removed in big fancy houses, to those on the lines with them, would be interesting.
Exactly, Hellie. It's my hangups that are the topic here. I still have issues being a writer without a Lit/English/Writing degree. Don't even get me started about not being well-traveled.
I must have caught your headache, Hellie! I got rid of mine, though. Excedrin is most definitely my friend today!
I would have to say humor and intelligence are upper most in my wants and or needs in a hero, fictionally and in RL. I like self deprecating humor not hurtful-cutting-people-down humor and I'm more fond of street smart intelligence rather than book smart intelligence, although it doesn't hurt to have both.
My real life hero seems like an uneducated goof on the surface and for some reason likes to perpetuate that myth, but even his tumultuous tidal wave waters run deep! LOL Underestimating him at the beginning is what took me so long to get with the program and realize he was the one. He does have his idiot moments (as they all do being male and all), but I always claim his ignorance is just laziness masking itself. He can't quote Chaucer, but he can fix anything and everything and he is very street and people smart. He's also a pretty amazing father - something that kind of caught me off guard. He seems to know intinctively what to do.
I'm also highly impressed with self assurance. I love a guy who is confident in his place in this world and his abilities and limitations. Probably along the same line as Chance's hero. Someone who can command and knows what needs to be done and can do it.
I always think of Marcus Wescliffe, from Lisa Kelypas' Wallflower series. I just love him. He takes his role very seriously and executes it wonderfully, but can still be brought low by the love of a good woman.
As I told Marn yesterday, I admire you ladies who got it right the first time. Irish, you must write your DH into a story. LOL! It's the only way we'll ever be able to clone him.
I've not read that Kleypas book. I know, I never did catch up on her historicals. Something else to do in my retirement. I'm all for self-assurance provided he does know his limitations. Too often we see the guy who is so sure of himself, he could never be wrong. Then I'm back to wanting to stab him. LOL!
Hey pirates -- I had to finish reading Kresley Cole's latest. Nothing like a demon hero to brighten up the day. :)
Now I've got figure out who's next. . .I kinda splurged on books this week. It was my Valentine's present to myself!
Where exactly do demon heroes fall? LOL! I'd have to think they get their own category!
So what are your other choices. I'm still reading Eloisa's WHEN BEAUTY TAMED THE BEAST and loving it. Chance's book is up next for me.
Yeah, I wasn't quite sure what sort of collar demons would have. LOL He would have singed it though. :)
And, um, I got a few more books than I realized! Borders was having a Buy 4 Get 1 Free with romances the other day, and then buy one paperback, get one half off. I haven't been reading very much lately so I went a little overboard.
Mmm. Might read Maya Banks next (I really enjoyed the first one of hers I read the other day). Or maybe I'll just spend a few minutes watching, I mean, looking at, the cover of THE PERFECT PLAY by Jaci Burton. *fans face*
Wow, I really screwed up that post! LOL Guess I should slow down, huh?!
I'm in the middle of an AWESOME western by Kaki Warner. It is the second in her Blood Rose Trilogy series, Open Country. Talk about incredible heroes. I love these guys. I liked the first book, Pieces of Sky, but this one tops it.
Yeah, I'm sure he'd love it if I used him in my books - he's got a big head like that! And of course all the character defects I assign to my hero he would see as positives. He took a personality test once. There were 2 columns of characteristics to choose from. He had to pick one per line. He actually picked crafty and thought it was a positive.
Crafty isn't a positive? It's a positive in my book. LOL!
Holy Toledo! That is HAWT. That needs to be enlarged (hehe) and framed. Great googily moogily.
This is a perfect time to dive into those Meg Benjamins, Chance!
I fixed it for you, Irish. :)
Well, I just finished Bo'sun's book and wow! I was really impressed! What's next? I need to do some shopping at my e-store. I have the new Eloisa...and Katharine Ashe, who I'm working with at RT... I think the new Kim Harrison is out... Sigh.
Just not sure what I'm going for next! Bo'sun sorta got me in the mood for a contemp...
I think I better read the Katharine Ashe, Bo'sun. I meet her in six weeks and we're doing a panel together...though I still have no idea what we're doing! Both she and Cherry Adair have books coming out a few weeks before the con and I want to read them, too! So I'm up on what they've written when I sit up at that big table with them...
Okay, I just freaked myself out...
What's the panel topic, Chance?
Thanks, Ter. The italics kind of got away from me.
Oh, I forgot to tell y'all - I got my NookColor!!! The DH and I went out last week and bought it. the first thing I downloaded was Venus in Blue Jeans. I'm really enjoying it!
Donna - It's called "He's A Pirate" and supposed to be a sort of treasure hunt. I'm pushing for a trivia contest...pirate fiction/hollywood, pirate factual history, and treasure fact or fiction.
Chance - With the speed at which you read, you'll have no problems. And you'll do fine on the panel. Once you all figure out what you're doing. Cherry is a force of nature, let her lead the way.
Congrats, Irish! And I'm glad you're liking the book. The rest are really good too. LOL!
I'm off to dinner! Let's hope I find something I can eat.
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