Social Mores in Paranormal Romance

Social Mores: The accepted social, traditional and cultural customs and habits of a particular group of people.



 Every social group has its social mores and an author of paranormal romance can have a lot of fun with this.

In paranormal romance, it is important to understand the social mores of the time and place  from which your characters and mythical beings come.  Simply being aware of the social mores will add volumes to your tale.
For example, nose picking in most western societies is considered highly inappropriate in public, and few people do it (or if they do, they'll do it when they think no one is looking). Yet in other countries such as Thailand and Ghana, nose picking is completely fine to do in public.









Imagine then, you have a mythical being who heralds from some distant land from several centuries past; what social mores with they have?
I personally have a lot of fun imagining!



Of course, you often read that most 'age old vampires' etc in paranormal romance 'evolve' and 'adapt' to the new society in which they find themselves. While I agree with this, that yes, they must adapt to survive - I absolutely love it when a writer throws in a slight age old cultural habit or comment from the creatures time and place of origin. These little details help create the reality and engages the audience by titlating interest, tapping into humour, or giving a glimpse into the reasons behind their behaviour.

Having said all that, do remember (particularly with your hero) that if he is going revert to his original social mores, make sure they are heroic social mores. I'm not sure even I would dare try to pull off a nose picking hero in public...Or worse one breaking wind in the presence of a lady...



Yes, my humour verges on the edge of toilet and down-right wrong - but there you have it, I have no remorse.

And on that note, have a fabulous remainder of the week and remember; an understanding of the cultural and social traditions of your character's past is highly beneficial. The correct use of these facts adds enormously to the story, providing of course, that the writer uses them well.

The breath of death...

[image courtesy: Flickr Creative Commons; AlishaV]

Welcome to my ramble of the week!

Halitosis, morning-breath, garlic-breath, onion-breath, coffee-breath, cigarette-breath, beer-breath, boozer's-breath, fish-breath... the list is as endless as it is stinky.

I tormented my character Primrose, from "Magical Gains" with the unfortunate odour of fish, and I have to say that smell plays a fairly large part in my writing. However, it has come to my attention that many novels neglect breath. Breath and particularly bad breath is a reality of life and it's a neglected reality in most genres.  I've read of characters passionately kissing first thing in the morning... I don't know about you, but that seems to be asking for trouble, especially if you're a mouth breather during the night. Dry, stinky morning breath is not endearing on anyone, and is in reality an unfortunate side effect of sleeping. So when considering writing a pre-coital pash at sparrow fart, it's worth remembering dribble encrusted lips and sour breath and re-evaluating the whole scenario. Now I have also read about a couple lost for several days lost and starving in the wilderness. This couple used frayed sticks to 'brush' and 'freshen up' ala Bear Grylls. Hmmm,  I know the romance characters weren't chowing down on worms, maggots or squeezing elephant dung to drink, but their lack of food and general hygiene would have made them high on the pong stakes, and as a reader I simply couldn't get over it. However, the worst I've heard of (a friend read this!) was a kiss, *gasp* after a vomit, with only a squirt of mouthwash. I'm serious! This is wrong on so many levels. A quick swill of mouthwash just won't do it after a vomit. Firstly, when you vomit, you're sick and you're not going to feel like a passionate snog marathon. The thought of swapping saliva and sumo-tongue wrestling is seriously going to be the very last thing on your mind, and will only help to start the second wave of nausea. Secondly, 9 out of 10 vomits result in some nasal spewing - and you're going to need to blow your nose, gargle, snort and otherwise try to dislodge those pesky bits of 'carrot' that seem to get trapped in the throat and nasal passages. There is nothing sexy about having a vomit and then having a pash. Unless of course you're on the Jerry Springer show and have a fetish you want to talk about... and seriously, that was the last time I ever watched Jerry Springer.

Now there is the argument that you're reading fiction, and therefore there doesn't have to be any bad breath - because  the story isn't real life... This is a fair point, however, I've spoken to several people and asked "have you noticed that in movies/books no one's breath ever stinks?" or "You know what? People never crap in movies/books." The resounding answer is "Yes, I know!" and an amusing example usually follows. So people do notice these things, it's not just me!  I did read one criticism of Harry Potter (and I do not abide with any criticisms of Harry Potter) and someone stated that during the whole seven years, Harry only has one bath... and that's during the "Goblet of Fire" (when he was attempting to decipher the meaning of a screaming egg.) The argument put forward in support of Harry was; that the novel didn't need to go into Harry's bathing details, because it wasn't pertinent to the story, and the scenes worth focusing on did not take place during bathtime. Maybe the same could be said about bad breath.

Well, I think is that breath a little different. Most people consider breath and notice it, and when an erotic kiss happens just after ciggy, and the kiss is described as 'sweet', most readers get a little jolt and think... No it's not, it'd be smoky!  This then take the reader out of the story if only for a second, which is not what an author wants (nope not even a second). So I think it's important to make the kisses somewhat smell and taste realistic.                                                                                                    OK, enough of the rramble.... But as an after thought I'm adding a link to one of my favourite video clips by Cyrine Abel Nour, of her song 'Law bass fi aini'. Something not so sexy takes place... and I'm not talking about the scene with the cut throat razor. Watch it now. Yep you got it, they're squeezing a lemon over a can of fish!Maybe I'm missing something, but fish isn't sexy (unless you're Troy McLure from The Simpsons), and if he ate it, he wouldn't smell so sexy either. Unfortunate, because it's one of my favourite songs ever. Anyway, enough is enough. Edits await and "Magical Redemption" won't write itself.



[images courtesy: Flickr Creative Commons; Joost-ijmuiden, and Pink sherbet ]

Pain - making your characters hurt

[Image courtesy Flickr creative Commons; Shekynah ]



Pain is an intrinsic part of humanity. Our ability to anticipate it, avoid it and cure it is a large part of what makes us human, and such a successful species. 
Pain comes in three main forms, emotional, physical and spiritual - or some variant of the three. It also comes in varying intensity, from mild annoyance or discomfort to gut wrenching, excruciating agony - there is a gradiating scale of intensity.
In romance (I have absolutely no interest in horror or thrillers), pain usually comes in the form of emotional pain and turmoil, and it is how a character reacts topain that makes the story interesting, believable and engaging.
The majority of people strive to avoid pain and suffering (I am not going to dwell of fetishism, s&m or whatever - that's a whole different story). As humans, we have created a world where we cushion ourselves in cotton wool, take the easy path, and constantly weigh up risks. Yet, in our reading we expect our characters to suffer, be burdened by pain or failure and hopefully overcome it. Pain and suffering are the characters motivation in a story.  Then, the characters reaction to pain and suffering is generally termed the "conflict". The "conflict" is what holds them back from gaining their Happily Ever After.
 
It is in describing pain and suffering however, that the author can have a lot of fun. For either physical or emotional pain, a good description makes the sensation real in the imagination of the reader.
For example, "a hot sick swoop of panic", is one of my all time favourite descriptions of panic. Over the years I've used it in my own writing and read it in others.  Alas, it's not a very unique description but it is very evocative. No matter how many times I read this, I can almost feel it, as the description fits so well with the horrible sensation.
The challenge for the author is to invent new (or use uncommon) ways of describing pain (or any emotion in fact). When your character's "heart aches" you're pretty much using a cliche. Although there is a place for cliche's in writing. You don't want to use them too often. So inventing a new way of saying "her heart ached..." is well worth the effort.
 
I have two methods for describing pain (and other emotions). Firstly, I consider what it would actually feel like... How would I feel if the man I loved could never be with me... yep, my heart would ache, but what else? Perhaps, I'd feel suffocating, cloying misery cloak me, and shadow my every move. Or maybe anger would burn in my gut and smolder like a septic ulcer. I'm going overboard now, but you get the idea.
 
Secondly, my lovely critique partner is constantly at me to "show"not "tell". To this end, I've spent hours looking at body language. How do you show when someone is in pain (emotional or physical it doesn't matter). Well, obviously, muscles bunch, sweat beads, brows furrow, lips thin. Going out and looking at peoples behaviour will give you some great descriptions.
 
So, all up, in literature (romantic or otherwise), pain is an important motivator. Finding good ways to describe it will ensure sympathy and empathy from the reader - which ultimately is all a little author could hope for.
 
:)

Red Shoes - dressing to impress...

[Image courtesy: Flickr Creative Commons Miss Karen]

Dressing your characters.

Is your heroine decked in Dolce and Gabana and spinning on those sweet Jimmy Choos? Or is she hunkering down in torn faded denims with a moth eaten T?

Dressing characters is marvellous fun. Particularly because it doesn't cost the author one penny! In your imagination you can give her the Gucci boots that you'd never dream of spending money on, or you can get her to flash that saggy, greying bra without a touch of embarrassment to yourself. What characters wear, gives that extra drop of insight into the ocean of their personality. Clothes can help build your world, they can hint at class hierarchy, suggest inner rebellion or express a desire to 'fit in'. There are so many different connotations that a reader can take from the what your character will or will not wear.

One character that instantly jumps to mind when I think of clothes, is Anita Blake by Laurell K. Hamilton. In the early stages of the series she prefers to wear black and red, despite the fact her boss thinks they're too dark. Through her choice of clothing, we instantly we grasp an understanding of her personality.

 So whether your character lingers with doe eyes at the window of a Chanel store, or squeezes into jeans with an unfashionable rise. Fashion  - or lack there - of is a tantalising and visible marker in the world of fiction and one well worth noting.

Conflict; inception and resolution

[photo courtesty: Flickr Creative Commons; Available_Light]

Conflict; it's everywhere.

A year ago, I didn't know what the GMC was, I just wrote stories. For those of you who don't know what GMC stands for it's; Goal, Motivation, Conflict - and is the backbone of of many a novelists plot. As I'm something of a panster (so not a plotter), after I've written my story or got the lose idea for a new one, I now like to look over it and see if I actually have a GMC. Do my characters have believable goals set out early in the piece? Or secret ones hidden? What it the motivation behind their behaviour? What conflict is standing in the path to achieving their goal? It's quite amazing really, because even though I don't plot, if I go back and check - quite miraculously there's the GMC snuggled deep within my story.

Anyway, today, I'm concentrating on Conflict - because it's a bit exciting and something that is inescapable in daily life.

Conflict is important in a novel because if makes it interesting, without it, well, you wouldn't really have a story, you'd just have a snapshot of time, with no momentum or movement.

Conflict can be roughly described as an opposition of people, thoughts or entities.
Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (an English writer and critic) was one of the first to openly discuss Literary conflict, and classify literature into seven different plots.
-Man against Man / Woman against Woman
-Character against Nature
-Character against themself
-Character against God
-Character against Society
-Character caught in the Middle
-Man against Woman


Today, there are a few more modern conflict couplings, such as; Character vs Technology, Character vs Magic, Character against Destiny/Fate - and I'm sure there's more if you thought hard enough about them.

Conflict creates reactions - and thus helps create the story. So how characters react in your story makes them believable and enjoyable to read.

There are two main patterns of reaction when it comes to literary conflict. Firstly; the conflict evokes an immediate emotional response. Hurt, shock, horror, rage even joy, can be some of the initial reactions to a conflict (and it's worthwhile remembering that not all conflict is bad for every character.) The emotional reaction then feeds into a physical action. Or secondly, (depending once again on the type of conflict) the the automatic physical action caused by the conflict has resultant emotional reactions.

I think (though I'm sure some will disagree) that generally speaking when the conflict is emotionally based (ie character against themselves, man against woman, etc) you will get the emotional reaction first, then the physical second. Whereas,  when you have a physically caused conflict (character against society, character against nature) the initial action is a physical one the secondary is emotional.

1. Emotional Conflict = emotional reaction + physical action.

 or

2. Physical Conflict = physical action + emotional reaction.

I'm sure however, you could mix it up a bit, as we all know a story can take an unexpected tangent when you're writing it, and characters aren't always predictable.

Having said that, being the author (and controlling those wayward characters!) to create a coherent, well considered, pattern of emotional and physical reaction to conflict - is  one of the many things makes a story a good read.

Setting the Scene...

[Esperance coastline Western Australia - by me]

Having just returned from a gorgeous holiday in Esperance, filled with dramatic scenery and white beaches - I've been really thinking about what goes into setting up scenery in novels.

When creating a scene, I tend to focus on things like sight (what you can immediately see), smell, and temperature to give a rounded snapshot of what the place is like. However, there are other things that are equally as important when setting up a scene - things that aren't as physically tangible.

How a place feels to the character is invaluable. Some places are vibrant, pulsing with life, whilst others are creepy and some are old, decrepit and ooze desperation and sorrow (some neglected old Wheatbelt towns really have this feeling).

What causes these feelings is really up to the individuals own imagination. A place that one person thinks is marvellous can be down right hideous to another. I think this difference is due simply down to the individuals imaginative interpretation of what they see. I know for a fact, with my own ridiculously overactive imagination - I tend to experience places more intensely that some others who aren't as imaginative - which isn't always a good thing!!

Before setting a scene however, authors will first have to build the world of the novel. My critique partner forwarded me a very interesting article on world building. The name of the original author eludes me at the moment and if I spend hours digging through my inbox I'm sure I'll find it!  The essence of the article was how to build a believable world. To do this the author needs to show the readers what the people in that world fear, enjoy, misunderstand, forget, bless or bury. It was a very cool article indeed and following those points helps create a believable world with memorable and interesting scenes - well I hope so anyway!

The Anti-hero and the rise and fall of heroic virtues!

                                        [image courtesy: Flickr Creative Commons;  yosoyjulito]

 My ever faithful Collins Concise Dictionary (2001) defines the antihero as "a central character in a novel/play/etc who lacks the traditional heroic virtues."

Traditional heroic virtues are those that you'd expect a typical hero to possess; prudence, bravery, moral fortitude, and a sense of justice. The antihero therefore, is a character lacking these virtues. Instead of being prudent, he can be rash, instead of being brave, he can be cunning, instead having moral fortitude, he can be amoral and instead of being just can be corrupt. Subsequently the anti-hero can be a lot of fun to write!

I have noticed a rise in the antihero in recent years, characters such as Hellboy, Dexter, Le Stat and many more, are all non-conventional "heroes". Their behaviour ultimately is for good, but aspects of their personality and behaviour are definitely far from the realms of 'heroic virtue'.

Despite all this, the antihero must be redeemable (or if not redeemable at the very least likeable!) He should not do anything so heinous as to be unable to restore the readers faith in him. This is where ulterior motives are important. Those bad things your antihero says/does - need to have a good ulterior motive behind them. A traumatic childhood, a painfully failed relationship that has bittered his personality can be good reasons too. Oftentimes however, the antihero is simply forced to do bad things by someone else - but the reader and other characters are almost always unaware of these reasons. The true reason for the antihero's anti-heroic behaviours is usually revealed at another time. 

Why exactly the antihero has become so popular is a bit of a mystery to me - perhaps it has something to do with the global climate of suspicion and scepticism that has brought rise to these flawed heroes. I don't know. Either way, the Antihero is not only fun to write, but great to read. A good hero with antihero tendencies is intriguing and will keep the reader turning pages, guessing and predicting until the very end!

Making your man...

Creating a sexy, appealing man is an integral part of a good romance. Successfully blending character traits to create a man who is desirable to a broad demographic can pose something of a challenge to any author.

One author who I believe has perfected this art, is Karen Marie Moning (my favourite author). All her men (even the baddies) are incredibly sexy. Her character from the Fever Series, Jericho Barrons, however, is the one who takes the cake. He is, (in my eyes - and many other's I suspect) the most desirable male character of all time. It's a good job he's fictional - because my husband would be in real trouble if he weren't!

So, what makes Barrons so delicious? On the face of it, he's dark, controlling, secretive, possessive, and has no sense of humour. How could this character be attractive then? Well, apart from his incredible body and breath-taking beauty, his charm and desirability lies in the subtleties of Ms Moning's writing.
When Jericho Barrons looks at his heroine - Mac - the gesture and its meaning is much more important than what he actually says about her. The way Barrons notices small things about Mac and the way he reacts to them - is charming, beguiling and absorbing. His appeal also grows through the often understated way in which he expresses his care and concern, and the way he protects her even when she doesn't know it. All this makes for magic reading.
Additionally, the reader actually knows very little about Barrons which firmly slots him into the "tall, dark and mysterious" category. Simple questions like where is he from? What exactly is he? What exactly does he want - remain unanswered, and I, like all the other Fever Fans, wait with baited breath for the final installment in the Series.

Basically, choosing your hero's character traits and blending them with your story to create something that is engaging, desirable and believable is an absolute art, and one worth perfecting.

If you want a rollicking good read, I recommend the Fever Series (Dark Fever, Blood Fever, Fae Fever, Dream Fever and Shadow Fever coming January 2010!) by Karen Marie Moning. Also, if you're into the semi clad Scotsmen with broad accents and even broader... whatever... get into Ms Monings Highlander Series, they'll put the wind in your bagpipes for sure! ;)