Tag: Crafting the Heroine

Categories
Genre Romancing Your Story

Crafting the Romantic Heroine––Part III

Here’s what we know so far about Susie, our romantic heroine. We’ve made her Jewish, with fears of rejection, and by profession, a rabbi. What she notices when she looks in the mirror, is her nose. Because of it’s length, she thinks she’s ugly. Her voice is smooth and soothing, but she stutters when she gets nervous. She has flowing chestnut hair with great styling body. Her eyes are dark and beautiful, lips the perfect proportion.

[bctt tweet=”The romantic heroine’s flaws leave room for complementary strengths in the hero.” username=”@A3writers @donnalhsmith @AlmostanAuthor”] #amwriting #RomancingYourStory #AlmostAnAuthor #CraftingTheHeroine

This time, let’s change her name to suit who she is.

Naming Your Heroine

We’ve been calling her Susie, but maybe we should find a good Jewish name for her, such as Hannah, or Tovah, or Rebekkah. What do you think? Tovah reminds me of the actress, Tovah Feldshuh. I like the name. No one but a Jewish girl would have a name like that. Tovah’s her first name.

Maybe Cohen should be her last name. Tovah Cohen is a great Jewish name. Cohens, as I understand it, are descendants of the Levites, those charged with taking care of the tabernacle and the temple. Sounds good for a woman rabbi.

Connotations

Thinking of the connotations of the name you choose for your romance heroine is important. And, it’s precisely why in renaming Susie to Tovah, we’ve left little doubt as to Tovah’s heritage, background, and race.

If you name your heroine Bree, what nicknames would other characters come up with? Breezy, as in air-headed? You probably don’t want that connotation.

Once you have this basic information about your heroine, you can begin to add personality traits, backstory, and all those things to make Tovah a three-dimensional character.

Before diving into Tovah too deeply, we can begin to craft the hero. We’ll get to him next time.

[bctt tweet=”In naming your romantic heroine, choose a name that will reflect and personify your leading lady.” username=”@A3writers @donnalhsmith @AlmostanAuthor”] #amwriting #RomancingYourStory #AlmostAnAuthor #CraftingTheHeroine

How are you liking Tovah so far? Leave a comment and let me know.

Donna L.H. Smith is married and lives in Pennsylvania. She is a graduate of Christian Writer’s Guild Craftsman and holds two degrees in communications, with experience in publication and broadcasting. She blogs regularly and serves two Christian writer’s organizations. Her first novel, Meghan’s Choice, was an Operation First Novel semi-finalist. For more information, visit her website at www.donnalhsmith.com. Facebook: Donna L.H. Smith Twitter: @donnalhsmith

Categories
Romancing Your Story

Writing Romance 101 – Crafting the Heroine Part II

We’re still building a heroine named Susie. We don’t know too much about her yet.[bctt tweet=”Creating a Great Romance Heroine: – here’s a good tip: use little flaws or imperfections to make your heroine someone your readers can identify with.” username=”@A3writers @donnalhsmith”] #amwriting #writingromance101 #craftingtheheroine

Continue reading “Writing Romance 101 – Crafting the Heroine Part II”
Categories
Genre Romancing Your Story

Writing Romance 101––Crafting the Heroine

The heroine is the key to any romance. Yes, we women also want a great guy for her to end up with, and we’ll talk about crafting him, too, at a later date. [bctt tweet=”The romantic heroine is the reader’s alter ego. She controls everything the reader feels. #amwriting #writingromance101 #craftingtheheroine” username=”@A3writers @donnalhsmith”] #amwriting #writingromance101 #craftingtheheroine

The great majority of readers of the romance genre are women. The reader identifies with the heroine, and in a sense, becomes the heroine. Readers cheer her on and rejoice in her victories, gets irritated when she gets angry, and we feel her frustration with herself or others when things go wrong. So, how do we craft a heroine your readers will love? Let’s craft a heroine named Susie.

She must be real.

It doesn’t mean she’ll be anyone that could be recognized. All it means is that there are reference points which the reader can slip into Susie’s role, and be able to essentially think like she thinks, and feel as she feels. She’s not perfect, she’ll have flaws, foibles, and insecurities, like we all do.

She must have Realistic responses.

Susie is going to be dealing with things most women never will. She still has to be identifiable, and the readers must be able to identify with her. They won’t necessarily be able to say, “That happened to me.” But you need to get the reader to go along with you. The best way to do this is to have Susie respond the way the reader would. How would you respond to any given situation? That would give you a bit of a clue as to how Susie will?

There must be Conflict.

All romance, up until almost the last page, is the sparks flying between the heroine and the man she ends up with. What emotional inner conflicts can you give your heroine that will create sparks with the hero? What fear does Susie have that could potentially keep her from ending up with her hero? Deciding that is a beginning. Let’s say Susie fears rejection, because several boys dumped her in high school for the head cheerleader. That’s kept her from entering the dating game, so she doesn’t have much experience in dating “etiquette.” What scenes could that bring to mind?

[bctt tweet=”Crafting a heroine is important to any romance. The heroine must be likeable, identifiable, yet human and engaging. #amwriting #writingromance101 #craftingtheheroine” username=”@A3writers @donnalhsmith”] #amwriting #romancewriting101 #craftingtheheroine

How many romances have you read? Leave a comment and let me know.

A prairie girl from Kansas transplanted to Amish country, Pennsylvania, she’s married to a wonderful man since 1987. She’s a member of a great church, where she serves as a greeter and on ministry team. On Sunday afternoons, she stands a two-hour prayer watch at her local 24/7 House of Prayer. She also enjoys reading, occasionally reviewing books, and of course, writing. A graduate of Christian Writer’s Guild’s Craftsman program, she holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in communication. She is also a member of ACFW, RWA, and AWSA. Her debut novel, Meghan’s Choice will be released in late 2017.