Cinderella or Ziva?

Cinderella_PhotoZiva-David

 

 

 

OR

 

 

 

 

 

Did you ever notice that in many romance novels, the hero rescues the damsel in distress?

That’s one of the reasons I like the “Outlander” series by Diana Gabaldon.  Her characters, Claire and Jamie, are partners and take turns rescuing each other.  But since her saga hasn’t yet ended, happily or otherwise, is it a Romance Novel?  Bill’s characters, Sarah and Jamie, are also partners and look out for each other.

Would anyone read a novel where the female rescues the male?  Would he be perceived as weak, and therefore undesirable?  How would the woman be perceived?  Strong, Sexy, and Independent like Ziva in NCIS?  Maybe…

I think it is built into our DNA: women are attracted to “strong” or powerful men, and men have a need to protect their women.  Strong doesn’t have to mean muscles; it can refer to “backbone”, skill, and/or tenacity.  Ever notice how Tony always watches out for Ziva?  And sometimes he does rescue her.

I don’t believe a woman has to be weak.  She can be smart, attractive, independent and self reliant, but still need some occasional help; as Claire and Sarah did in “Outlander” and “Sarah of The Wilderness”.  What do you think?

Today’s fun poll.

 

What Makes A Man “Sexy”

ClarkGableJudging by the covers of many romance novels, a sexy man has dark nicely cut hair, a bare shiny chest, 6 pack abs, and tight fitting pants   Of course the “cowboy” stories will  add a cowboy hat to the attire!

Now ladies, we’re not all married to, or in a relationship with a man that looks like he belongs on the cover of a romance novel… I would guess that not many of us are, yet we are still attracted to our mates.

Think of all the various attributes that we may be attracted to.  Some of us really like an attribute while others don’t, beards for example.  Thinking about attributes, I came up with these:

  • Beard, 5 o’clock shadow, clean shaven
  • Long Hair, short hair, bald
  • Light hair, dark hair
  • Chest hair, no chest hair (shiny chest)
  • Tight jeans, loose jeans, a suit, cowboy look
  • Manner of walking: swagger, saunter, no particular gait
  • Tall, short
  • Lithe, muscular, stocky
  • Personality:  too many types to mention

Searching for “sexy men” seemed dangerous.  It just might return porn sites.  A quick  Google for “leading men” yielded this interesting set of images.  They come in all shapes, sizes and personality types.

What attributes are you attracted to?  If you have any other attributes to add to the list, please reply with your ideas.

For the next 2 or 3 weeks, we will be running some “just for fun” polls.

Here is this weeks:

Hard at Work or Hardly Working?

At Work?

Hard At Work?

My new story was going so well, then all of a sudden, nothing. Maybe it was the nice weather. I would so more rather be outside working on something, than sitting in front of a computer daydreaming. I don’t think it is writers block; I think it is rebellion.

Abby and Michael are staying in his parent’s tavern and have just spent the night bundling. Now they are on their way to retrieve the sawmill parts from the ship docked near by on the Hudson River, and here my daydream stops. Maybe I should go on to something else.

How does one haul saw mill parts, what ever they might be, through a wilderness where no trail exists? How do you make it interesting, entertaining and adventuresome? Help, I need inspiration.

Looking Back

Luykas Van Alen House

Luykas Van Alen House

Once you start something, never look back; I did and I found out things I didn’t want to know. Now I need a major revision to the premise of my new story. Ignorance can certainly be bliss. Continue reading

Why Do I Care About the Old Post Road?

Tavern where "Abby" takes place

Tavern where “Abby” takes place

You may wonder why I care about the Old Post Road. There are two reasons. First I lived near the Post Road as a youth and I often road my horse along it on my way to swim in Kinderhook Creek (Jamie’s creek) after chores on a hot summer night. At the time, Continue reading

Notes from Sue: It’s not the beach but…

BillGreenHouseIt’s a glorious clear sunny day, and unusual for this part of the world at this time of the year (Lake Ontario provides lots of snow and clouds).  Continue reading

50% off During Read an Ebook Week!

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For this week only get “Sarah of the Wilderness” at 50% off the regular price.

Read an E-Book Week is this week.  It is being sponsored in part by Smashwords.  Read about it here and here.  We are participating by offering “Sarah of the Wilderness” at this great discount.   

This discount is only available at Smashwords

 Use coupon code AU26V

Historical Fiction vs. Romantic Historical Fiction vs. Historical Romance

To me there is a significant difference between the genres of Historical Fiction, Romantic Historical Fiction, and Historical Romance.

A great example of Continue reading

What Makes A Great Historical Romance Novel

There are many “Top Ten” lists on the Internet.  They have some overlap, but they don’t agrree 100% with each other.  I suspect this is reflective of the reviewer’s personal tastes, for example subgenre:

  • Colonial America
  • Pirate
  • Western
  • Regency

You get the idea.  I personally prefer American History, starting with the earliest Colonial America and working my way forward through time.

But, what makes a Great Historical Novel?  Continue reading