All sorts spring to mind – the innocent secretary, Cinderella, the pampered princess (figuratively and literally!), the secretary, the single mum… These archetypes can produce amazing results – from heart-wrenchingly vulnerable to endearingly feisty, you name it, we’ve read it and loved it! However, in the wrong hands, these heroines become the worst kind of cliché – spineless doormats or spoilt brats, and nothing else. So let’s have a look at what characteristics all these women need to share that makes them rise above the stereotype into 3D personalities that capture our hearts and engage our attentions right from page 1.
So, after some fierce Romance HQ debating, here are our top tips on what makes a great Mills & Boon heroine…
Pride comes before fall(ing) in love
These women might be victims of circumstance, but they aren’t victims in any other sense! Whatever their range of life experience, it’s this strength of character that gives them the power to tame their heroes. So, does she stick up for herself, proud of where she’s come from or what she’s made of herself? Or perhaps she’s more vulnerable and shy, and it’s up to the hero to teach her how to stand up for herself, whilst she teaches him to look below the surface? Perhaps she’s massively spoilt, and has to learn to reveal her vulnerabilities under the hero’s expert teaching! Either way, let’s see that the hero and heroine contribute equally to their relationship, challenging each other in some essential way that forces them both to undergo journeys of emotional development.
They’re human – that means flaws
Let’s be honest here – who likes a perfect woman?! Recognisably human flaws go a long way towards dissolving the sickeningly perfect stereotype, and making your heroine 100% real. So, is she spoilt/ stroppy/ too forgiving/ dangerously generous? If so, why?! Show us the true character hiding behind her external characterisation and you’ll be able to make any heroine empathetic!
Choices for 21st century girls
In the 21st century, we all know women can have it all: work, love, and a family. So, if she wants to bag a job, a child and a husband, that’s great, but if she wants to be a stay-at-home mum, that’s fab too! Your heroine can make whatever life choices she wants – after all, it’s not just what choices she makes, it’s the woman behind those choices that grabs the reader’s attention!
So, what do you think? Is it time for Romance HQ to think more carefully about our heroines? What do YOU think is the most important characteristic in a female lead? Any particular faves? Let us know!
Love Flo x
So, that’s the hero and heroine covered. Of course, they’re the most important characters in a romance, but there can also be a place for secondary characters. Use these with caution – they should only be there to help move the romance forward. Here are some tips from the editors…
The Heroine’s Best Friend – For Ever or Never? Posted 14th April 2011 http://community.millsandboon.co.uk/forums/behind-scenes-romance-hq/heroines-best-friend-ever-or-never
Really interesting to read about the memorable books that got you hooked onto category romance last week! I was running an eye over my books over the weekend and there were a pleasing amount of similarities – Flambards, Shadow of the Moon, Jilly Cooper…check check check. Don’t you love the idea of a global community of romance fans all growing up and discovering the same books?!
What Romance HQ latched onto with particular interest, however, were the reasons why some of you drifted from M&B for a while - disappointment over weak heroines seemed to top the list. So, to touch on that, and because I’ve just been on my first ever hen weekend so am full of love for all things friendship-related, the topic that’s being hotly debated in the office this week is…
The heroine’s best friend – to write or not to write?
Not always, but often a romantic heroine tends to be rather isolated – emotionally, socially, professionally etc. This works because it places the heroine in a space where the hero can truly possess her, and her emotions. She has either everything, or nothing, to lose by falling for him! This isolation also enhances the sense that the characters need each other, and only each other.
But in a 21st century world, is it really believable that someone would be so alone in the world, and what does it say about them that they are? If you’re asking readers to step into the shoes of, let’s be brutally honest here, a lonely virgin, is a best friend hovering in the wings the most useful weapon in your empathy arsenal?!
First of all, what’s the function of the BFF?
Simple! On a positive note, they can offer much needed advice in times of need (I love a friend who encourages the heroine to take a risk with the hero, or better yet, the best friend who tells the hero to go get his girl – think Miranda at the end of Sex and the City!); they also provide a contrast to the heroine, showcasing why she’s like no other woman and is worth the hero’s attention. Alternatively, sometimes a BFF plays false, forcing the heroine to accept she needs to let go of her past life and throw her lot in with the hero. But regardless of their functions – as a catalyst or contrast – well-written best friends can add texture and depth as they orbit the central relationship.
So, advice time – here are Romance HQ’s top three tips of making your heroine’s best friend the best ever…
1. Make sure the support network is series-appropriate! For example, in Medicals, chances are the best friend will also be a colleague, someone who shares the same vocation as well as being compatible personality-wise. (My recent hen-do was for a work friend. You’ll be pleased to hear the not-entirely-sober M&B contingent tried to commission our jaw-droppingly built, nude waiter to write a ‘Confessions of a Naked Butler’ exposé for RIVA, but he wasn’t biting…now that’s what I call dedication to the job!) In Cherish, the heroine is often more embedded in her local community and/or family, whereas RIVA is where the more outrageous BFFs hang out – the girls who encourage the heroine to have that one-night-stand etc.
2. The reasons behind the friendship need to be believable. Friends with opposite personalities – the quiet heroine and the ballsy BFF – are great as a vehicle to encourage the heroine to leave her comfort zone, but extra thought needs to go into explaining their connection.
3. Finally, think about how the dynamic of the friendship will reflect on the heroine. For example, if you love the idea of using a heroine plus friends scene to open your book, remember that girly and giggly can be fun and believable (my friends are definitely pretty squealy when we get together) but it can also fall into the trap of cliché. A more adult friendship can work nicely too, and allow your heroine to bask in reflected emotional depth and maturity!
But if you decide a best friend isn’t for you, that’s ok too!
The challenge with writing a more isolated heroine is making that aloneness exceptionally convincing, so that the readers truly get on board with it and can still identify with her. Always ask yourself, why would this woman be like this? And think outside the box here – what other ways can your heroine be emotionally vulnerable or isolated that doesn’t preclude having no friends/ family?! Ultimately, it’s going to come down to uber-sympathetic characterisation – if she’s alone, we have to want to step into the book and befriend her ourselves, not be secretly thinking no wonder she doesn’t have any mates…
Now, it goes without saying that the emphasis always needs to be on the central romance, but to ensure our stories remain as contemporary and believable as possible,