Creating a
great character is probably the most difficult part of the process when it
comes to writing. While type of story I’m working on might be one that’s
been done before, it’s the characters that really need to be unique because
they’re what makes the book memorable. They live on in our hearts long after
we’ve forgotten every detail of the plot. Bringing a character to life and
making him or her leap off the page is definitely one of my biggest challenges.
Characters find their way into my head
through a myriad of ways, but their starting point is usually based off someone
I know in real life. It could be the guy that made my coffee that morning and
had a really awesome smile, or the incredibly obnoxious young woman I rear
ended when she stopped short on the road in front of me. (That’s one of the
really fun parts of being a writer – getting to eviscerate annoying people in
fiction. *twirls imaginary evil mustache*)
Once I’ve got that spark, the next step
is really getting to know him or her. What is that character’s deepest fears?
What it is they truly want? What’s happened in their past to make them the way
they are? What is the mask they’re hiding behind, and why are they
hiding behind it? In a romance it’s essential to know what’s behind that “mask”
– the front they put up for everyone else -- because it’s the love interest who
is able to see past that mask and love the person behind it, warts and all. In
The Duality Principle, Connor’s deepest fear is that he will be like his
father, and that he isn’t worthy of love. He also isn’t proud of his bad boy
past (a past that involved a lot of raunchy sex in public places) and thinks he
needs to be someone totally different in order to win Gabby’s heart.
Gabriella’s biggest concern is that there is something freakishly wrong with
her because of her kinkier interests, and that she can’t be both a serious,
career-driven mathematician and still long for hot sex with the embodiment of
her rough-and-tumble fantasies.
Without knowing their core issues, I
wouldn’t have been able to write a story that brought Gabriella and Connor
together in a way that was realistic, sexy and satisfying. It’s a difficult
process, but it’s so worth it in the end, because then you get to hear that
someone loves one of your characters. That everything you’ve poured into
writing that hero or heroine has lifted off the page and into their hearts.
That is the best part of all.
Published by: Samhain Publishing
Publication date: November 11th 2014
Synopsis:
Sometimes A + B = O. Yes. Oh, yes. Just like that.
Gabriella Evans’s life exists in terms of logic and definitions. She’s holed up in Portland, Maine, for the summer to work on her PhD thesis, but something is screwing up her concentration: the rumble of a motorcycle every time the embodiment of her rough-and-tumble fantasies rides down her street.
When her best friend talks her into a blind date, she finds herself out with the opposite of her fantasy. He’s polite and well-mannered, yet something behind his crisply tailored shirt doesn’t add up—a rebellious gleam in his eye that piques her curiosity.
Orphaned at fifteen, Connor Starks has finally put the years of failing grades, breaking laws and breaking hearts behind him. The only holdover? His penchant for getting down and dirty in public places. But Gabriella makes him want to prove he’s become a better man.
Nothing intrigues Gabriella more than a problem she can’t solve. But the more Connor tries to bury his past, the more determined she is to uncover it. And what she finds makes all her trusty logic begin to fail her…
Warning: This book contains a summer romance, dirty talk, dockside kissing, motorcycles and tattoos. Features a rebellious nerdy girl with an appetite for outdoor sex and light spanking, and a bad boy who’s turned good…or at least he’s trying.
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AUTHOR BIO:
Rebecca Grace holds a Bachelor of Arts in English with a double concentration in Creative Writing and Literary Comparison, which seemed like a good idea at the time. After stumbling through careers in entertainment, publishing, law and teaching, she’s returned to her first love: writing. A self-admitted caffeine addict and gym rat, she currently lives in upstate New York with her husband, two parakeets, and a cat with a very unusual foot fetish.
Author links:
Tracey Martin grew up outside of Philadelphia, the lucky recipient of a drama-free childhood, which is why she spent so much time reading about other people's lives. It was while she was working on her doctorate in psychology that she had an epiphany--imaginary people are way more fun than real ones. And so she began writing. Never able to choose just one of anything, she currently writes both urban fantasy for adults and contemporary stories for teens.
