Guest Post: Deliciously Flawed Characters and Why I Love Them by Josephine Myles

Today is the first in a series of guest post coming up here at Well Read and I'm delighted that my first guest is the lovely and charming Josephine Myles.  Jo has a new book out at Samhain at the moment, which you can find out all about, as well as have a chance to win a copy, at the bottom of this post.  So without further ado, I'll hand over to Jo.

Deliciously flawed characters and why I love them

I've said in the past that I write character-driven romance, and have been asked to explain what I mean by that on a couple of occasions. To my mind, this means that the plot of the story revolves around the emotional development of the heroes, and in order for them to develop they need some character flaws - preferably some big, juicy ones. I'm not talking about minor irritants like not picking up after themselves or being forgetful - no, I need something meaty to sink my teeth into and generate plenty of conflict to keep the story going.

So what does make a good flaw? I honestly don't think I could handle anything too repellent, so I'm not about to write a romance about a murderer, rapist or anyone who deliberately sets out to cause harm to others. What I'm after is something that could be an asset if channelled correctly. For instance, in Barging In, Dan's flaw is his promiscuity (as far as Robin is concerned, anyway). However, this springs from two things: a deep-seated fear of commitment which he needs to deal with in order to move on; and an uncomplicated love of sex. With the right partner, situation and a certain amount of character growth on Dan's part, his libidinous tendencies could be channelled in a way that doesn't destroy his relationship.

Of course, to give us the necessary conflict in a novel length romance, the flawed hero needs to be paired up with someone whose own faults clash with them. Dan is pitted against Robin, a man who has not been able to move on from a past hurt and has let it sour his whole outlook on love. Robin finds it very difficult to trust other men, but is also intensely loyal to those few he does let into his heart. Free and easy Dan represents everything Robin is suspicious of, but also everything he needs to make peace with in order to move on with his life. Conversely, Dan needs someone as uncompromising as Robin in order to find the motivation to earn his trust.

There is a danger in writing deeply flawed characters, however. It's vitally important to give them good qualities too - not just at the superficial level of appearance, but to show that they have a sense of humour and exhibit kindness towards others - even if that's only to some people some of the time. Of course, good looks never hurt a romantic hero, but being fundamentally good somewhere on the inside is even more important. It can be hidden under the grumpiest veneer, but it needs to be lurking there in order for the character to be lovable. Being aware of and struggling against their own faults is also a real plus point. I seem to be able to tolerate a large amount of bad behaviour, provided I know the character is at least trying to change.

I know some readers want their heroes less complicated and are easily put off by what they define as "immoral" behaviour: cheating, lying, promiscuity and drug use being prime examples of non-heroic behaviour. However, if a writer has created a compelling character who lies through his teeth, yet takes the time to explain why he acts that way, I'm likely to love that character precisely because of his flaws. I love watching a character change for the better through the course of the novel, as the events make them question their outlook on life and find new ways of seeing the world. So long as light wins out in the end, I can take a fair bit of shadow on the journey there.

Who wants to read about the perfect hero? Not me, that's for sure. I find perfection dull and prefer my heroes deliciously flawed. How about you? What character faults can you tolerate in a romantic hero? And do you have any favourite deliciously flawed heroes to share with us?

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Barging In blurb:

When the boat’s a rockin’, don’t come knockin’!

Out-and-proud travel writer Dan Taylor can’t steer a boat to save his life, but that doesn’t stop him from accepting an assignment to write up a narrowboat holiday. Instead of a change of pace from city life, though, the canal seems dull as ditchwater. Until he crashes into the boat of a half-naked, tattooed, pierced man whose rugged, penniless appearance is at odds with a posh accent.

Still smarting from past betrayal, Robin Hamilton’s “closet” is his narrowboat, his refuge from outrageous, provocative men like Dan. Yet he can’t seem to stop himself from rescuing the hopelessly out-of-place city boy from one scrape after another. Until he finds himself giving in to reluctant attraction, even considering a brief, harmless fling.

After all, in less than a week, Dan’s going back to his London diet of casual hook-ups and friends with benefits.

Determined not to fall in love, both men dive into one week of indulgence…only to find themselves drawn deep into an undertow of escalating intimacy and emotional intensity. Troubled waters neither of them expected…or wanted.

Product Warnings:
Contains one lovable tart, one posh boy gone feral, rough sex, alfresco sex, vile strawberry flavoured condoms, intimate body piercings, red thermal long-johns, erotic woodchopping, an errant cat, a few colourful characters you wouldn’t touch with a bargepole, and plenty of messing about on the river.

Available now from Amazon and Samhain.

Author bio:
English through and through, Josephine Myles is addicted to tea and busy cultivating a reputation for eccentricity. She writes gay erotica and romance, but finds the erotica keeps cuddling up to the romance, and the romance keeps corrupting the erotica. She blames her rebellious muse but he never listens to her anyway, no matter how much she threatens him with a big stick. She’s beginning to suspect he enjoys it.

Visit Jo's website for more about her published work, saucy free reads and regular blog posts.

COMMENT TO WIN: All comments during the Barging In blog tour will be entered into a prize draw for a 10″x7″ signed and mounted print of Jo's photograph of the Kennet and Avon canal, near Bath – as used on the cover of Barging In! What’s more, the stretch of canal shown here is the location where Dan first crashes into Robin.

The more comments you leave, the more chances to win. Please remember to leave your email address in the body of the comment so Jo can get in touch with you. She’ll make the draw on 2nd October, 9pm GMT, so you have until then to leave your comments