"The Honest Vampire" by Chloe Neill
What can I say about Chloe Neill? I can't wait to see SOME GIRLS BITE out on the bookstores shelves. Folks, this is one to watch for! Awesome voice, great characters. If you like vampires (and I know that you do!) this one's not to be missed!
"The Honest Vampire" by Chloe Neill
It's a soap opera classic: A shot of the heroine, her eyes wide, her lips trembling, just before she turns away and storms out of the room, the tail of a floor-length peignoir sweeping behind her. There's practically an encyclopedia of similar shots: bodice ripping, chest beating, face slapping. Scenes like this are all about the drama--and sometimes less about believability.
I have an unfortunate tendency to draft these kind of "bad" soap opera scenes. It's easy for me to make a character scream or cry or pout or storm off. It's easy to write a character who makes glib comments and laughs at tragedy. A character who overreacts.
A character who *overacts*.
It's a lot harder for me to write a reaction that's a realistic, proportional response to the unfolding drama. It's a challenge to write an emotional reaction that's honest to the situation, that takes into account the character's experiences, her life story and her history with the other characters.
Admittedly, in paranormal romance, readers are willing to suspend their disbelief about a lot of stuff--the existence of vampires, a character's ability to work magic, or, as Laura Ann Gilman discussed in her blog entry, the fact that a book's New York isn't quite the New York we know.
And that's not to say a romance, paranormal or otherwise, shouldn't include "good" soap opera scenes. What would a romance novel be without a great entrance? A great exit? The moment the hero (or heroine) is flabbergasted (or heartbroken) by another character's revelation? Personally, that's why I keep turning the pages. My favorite books have always been those in which I felt I was living out a heroine's experiences, good and bad. I could understand (or even feel) her shock or sadness or joy because that reaction made sense; it was believable within the scene, and it was believable within the larger context of the heroine's life and experiences.
Why does believability matter? Because without it, the reader won't be able to share the experiences of a heroine like her--hopefully, the heroine she wants to be--who just happens to be wrapped up in a world of magic and mystery.
There's definitely a fine line. Too much drama, and the story isn't believable. But too little drama, and you have a heroine that's cold, or a story that's flat-out uninteresting. I've run this route, too. I've written heroines who are glib, or whose reaction to drama is to become numb. They gets quiet, they gets sullen, and they storm off alone. Sure, sometimes a heroine needs time, needs space, and needs to remove herself from the action. But I have to be careful that giving my heroine time and space isn't a shortcut-an excuse not to delve into her complicated psychology and then honestly express her hurt or fear.
So how, as a paranormal writer, do you find the balance?
I'm still figuring that out. But a couple of tips come to mind. First, if possible, get a second opinion. It's sometimes hard to relinquish control over our literary "children." But as the "parents" of those children, just as in real life, we bring to the table our own emotional histories and prejudices. Having someone take a second look can bring much-needed objectivity to a character's reactions. (And, yes, you'll eventually forgive the critic who asks, "Shouldn't she be crying here?" when you realize she's right.)
Second, take a step back, and imagine how *you* might react in similar circumstances. Take a moment and evaluate-rationally consider-what an average person's reaction might be. Yes, it's undoubtedly fun to write the heroine storming off into another room . . . but would she really storm off? Would you? Similarly, it's easy, at least for me, to have the heroine laugh off a tragedy. To use sarcasm as a defense mechanism. But that's a shortcut for me, a cheat, that helps me avoid considering the real issue-would my heroine *really* laugh in the face of heartbreak or loss? Would I? Try not to be so personally invested in the character's reaction-in writing the One Great Scene-that you put your own interests as a writer before hers as a heroine. Let her experience life's ups and downs and the entire range of humans emotions, and let her forge her own path through them. Your readers will thank you.