Bad Boys, Bad Girls, and why we love them so...

When I heard this month's topic, I must admit I got just a little frustrated. I'm not a Bad Boy. Worse, I've had to help friends recover from the fallout of a relationship with a Bad Boy who they just couldn't resist.

I asked the Ur-Goth why they had such an appeal, but she couldn't tell me. She's not really into them, either in reality or in fiction. Thing is, we both acknowledge that they do seem to have a huge appeal. So in the interests of trying to talk about them, I thought about the equivalent, Bad Girls. I certainly relate to the attraction there. The zest for life, the lack of attention to societal pressure, and the wanton disregard for anything resembling rules.

Of course, what with me totally getting distracted from the topic, that didn't really pan out either, so I started looking at 'Bad Boys', trying to see what they have in common. Han Solo, Malcolm Reynolds, Angel, Spike yeah, I'm a Sci-Fi fan, as you can see. Thing is, even with that short list, one stands out. Three of them are really good guys with a tough outer shell, and maybe some dark impulses...


...And then there's Spike. Unrepentant vampire and thug. You get too close to him, and he'll eat you up, and not in any kind of good way. But even before he turned over a new leaf and became a 'good guy', he had legions of romantically inclined fans. It took me a while to figure out what he's got in common with the other two, the core of the appeal of Bad Boys (and Bad Girls, for that matter).

Bad Boys do what they want.

Bad Boys don't do anything they don't want to do.

If a Bad Boy shows interest in you, it's real.

Once I realized that, I realized I'd been writing a Bad Boy for a while now. Steve, the firefighter-turned-superhero in my serial Blue Bloods, is a guy who does the right thing for all the wrong reasons. His reprobate behavior is forever getting under the skin of his teammates, Drew and Angela. Every time they're about to kick him out the door, he takes a hit for them. Not because he felt obligated, or because he thought it was the right thing to do.

Because it seemed like fun at the time.

And he wanted to.

Bad Boy - Captain Mal

Bad Boys

This is a hard topic. Maybe it’s because I never liked bad boys. I remember them from high school. They wore blue jeans to school (horrors!) and white T-shirts, cigarette packs tucked into their rolled-up sleeves. They hung out in a pack, just outside the school fence. And they SMOKED. They leered at girls and shouted at us as we walked back into school after lunch.

Scary.

As I grew older, I still stayed away from the bad boys. Just call me Goodie-Two-Shoes. But I love reading about them or watching them on TV or movies. Especially when a GTS reforms him. More likely, he already has the character of a good guy. Bad Boy is just a façade.

My favorite bad boy is Captain Malcolm Reynolds of the short-lived TV series Firefly and the movie Serenity. He was a rebel in the war and stayed one by working on the fringes of space. He and his team are scavengers, carrying cargo of dubious legality. Captain Mal seems hardhearted. He’s been beaten down by the Alliance but refuses to stay down. He grouses about his passengers yet, underneath, you know he cares about them.

Finding a way to not only survive but work outside the “system” is Mal’s strength. Another is that he takes responsibility for his crew. One of the hardest episodes for me to watch was when the ship’s life support system fails and he orders the crew to leave in the shuttles to find aid. He stays behind. Alone. Being rescued would be a miracle. My heart ached for him in his loneliness and despair. Yet he had to do the right thing with his crew. He gave them a fighting chance of staying alive.

Self sacrifice. What more could you ask for in a bad boy?

Did someone say Bad Boys?

One of our themes this month is Bad Boys. Oh, whatever will I write about? I think a gambling demon thief and con man who happens to be a BDSM top and a celestial brothel owner—as well as one of Russia’s vory v zakone—probably qualifies.

In the upcoming third installment in my Demons of Elysium series, Master of the Game, the aforementioned bad boy, Belphagor, is up to his usual tricks. But Master of the Game also features another bad boy: Silk.

In Book 2, King of Thieves, readers meet Silk, a 21-year-old demon pretending to be a 16-year-old at an underage brothel. More than a few reviewers and readers mentioned curiosity about further adventures with Silk—along with trepidation about whether he could be trusted. The answer to that question depends on who you are. Silk looks out for himself, but he’ll put his life on the line for those he cares about if he has to. Then again, if there’s money in it for him, he may just put your life on the line. You just never know.

I had a lot of fun writing Silk, precisely because he’s so hard to figure out. Belphagor and his lover, the firespirit Vasily, are fairly easy to read. They may have a few secrets, but their hearts are worn on their sleeves. What they’re feeling is pretty much never a secret, particularly with Vasily, who speaks (or roars) before he thinks. But Silk, even as a character in my own head, was full of secrets. I never knew what would happen when he walked into a room, and half the time, I didn’t even know if I believed him when he said something.

Whether you trust Silk or not, there’s never a dull moment when he shows up. And my cover artist at Samhain, Kanaxa, captured him perfectly:

Love is the ultimate game changer…and this time it’s winner take all.

Now that his lover is back in his arms, Belphagor is taking his own sweet time to say the words Vasily longs to hear: “You’re my boy.” And savoring the sweet torture of driving the firespirit into a frenzy of unfulfilled need.

As the undisputed master of Heaven’s gaming tables, Belphagor never plays unless he’s certain of winning. But this time, political machinations send the game—and Vasily—tumbling to the brink of even his formidable control.

Vasily can’t deny enjoying their delightfully edgy play—until the airspirit auctions him off for a night to the one demon with a gift for taking things too far. Seductive Silk, tight-lipped about the end of his relationship with the sweet submissive Phaleg, may also be involved with a new faction threatening the pregnant queen of Heaven.

Belphagor couldn’t be less interested in the games angels play, but when angelic and demonic intrigues overlap, he’s drawn in against his will. And forced to break his one inviolable rule: Never gamble what you can’t afford to lose.

Warning: Contains more than a mouthful of m/m ménage, with intense D/s situations featuring intricate rope work, balaklavas, and a flurry of snow.

Master of the Game, coming August 5 from Samhain Publishing, is available now for pre-order:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo | Samhain

Freeing The Muse

By Maureen L. Bonatch

~Happy Independence Day!~

Writers are often asked the question, “Where do you get your ideas from?”

Inspiration is different for every writer and sometimes that inspiration runs dry, or hits a wall and the muse becomes silent. Some call it writer’s block, others might say it’s a mental block, but most would agree in calling it frustrating when the faucet runs dry and the words that had flowed so freely have now sputtered to a stop.

Just as each writer has different methods of writing their story, most have their own method of getting their muse freed to keep the stories flowing.

One of my best ways to free my muse is right in line with the Bad Boys of Summer theme…

You know the ones…loud, leather-wearing, tattooed, sexy, confident…

Bikers.

Of course I must point out that this is the Stereotypical (though hot) image of a biker as many biking groups are well known for their fundraising rides, support of military, retirees or for a social group.

Recently, I attended Thunder in the Valley, which is known to attract over 200,000 bikers and is one of the largest Pennsylvania biker rallies.

With bikes, bands, a parade, food stands and more...it attracts both bikers and those of the four-wheeled variety as well.

Lucky for me I have my own Bad Boy Biker. It used to be that I was a tad jealous of his love for her (which you can read about on my blog...here) but then decided…If I can’t beat her, might as well join them. It’s been one of the best ways for me to awaken my muse as I cling to my hero’s back and watch the world rush by. 

So for me requesting a ride on the back of his big, sexy beast of a motorcycle helps clear away the cobwebs of my story for it to flow freely through my mind. Thus why I have tiny tablets stashed everywhere to jot down ideas.  

So it came as no surprise to me to find that in my upcoming release, DESTINY CALLING, my Bad Boy happens to be a biker who despite/because of his bad boy persona, my heroine has a hard time resisting.

 Here are other strategies a few of my fellow Paranormal Romantics offered to help defeat Writer’s Block and Free the Muse:

Sometimes I take a step back; stop writing and watch TV or read a book and then hit the writing the next day. Normally stress is what's blocking me so have to take the pressure off of myself and approach things with a clear head. ~ Selena Illyria 

I listen to music, all kinds, which usually sets my creativity loose again! ~Veronica Scott  

When my Muse takes a hike, I watch movies—esp. a science fiction thriller. If it has a romance, all the better.~ Diane Burton 

I let things rest and percolate in the background while I concentrate on other things, such as figuring out how I was going to market  my upcoming novel. Promoting other authors. Writing short pieces for blogs. Reading books for fun!

I am a creature of habit, so I absolutely don’t like change and it appears change upsets the flow of my writing. So after the great hard drive crash of 2014, my muse hit the highway, and did not return until I had my laptop fixed, was sitting in my office cross-legged on the daybed at 3:30 in the morning with a cup of coffee beside me.~ Sophia Kimble

If I'm writing on the computer I will switch to writing long hand. Sometimes I can squeeze out several more pages just doing that. 
 ~Beth Matthews

Thank you for stopping by! 

Bad Boys - I Think its a Disease

BAD BOYS - I think it's a disease.



What causes the normal conservative woman to go crazy when they see a good-looking bad boy? Is it the shades, the tight pair of jeans, the long hair, the Harley parked out front, or is it a non-diagnosed disease, we as women, are born with, that makes us want to cast aside our inner inhabitations and run off into the sunset with one?

Hopefully you’ve had more common sense than I’ve previously known when it comes to these shaded hunks; because Honey, I’ve become possessed more than once.

It all started when I was five. I was out camping with my grandparents and along came Brian, the shaded six-year-old…

And then there was Roger, Norman, Tom, David, Michael, Butch, Tony, Cecil, Bob, Robert, Blackie, Bill, Dale, Anthony, and, and, and…

I think you’re beginning to get the picture. Thankfully, I ended up with one that I perceived as a bad-boy who ended up being one of the good guys. But before I found my bad-boy hero, I often asked myself the question: What magical lore did they possess which caused me to loose my mind and go a bit bonkers?

 Here are my conclusions.

 First off, one must recognize bad boys come in many variations. There are some seriously bad apples out there; ones you want no part of. You know the ones I’m talking about; those that have had serious run-ins with the law, can’t seem to stay out of jail, can't keep their hands off of other women or keep their noses out of the white powder. Try looking the other way and find a slightly milder variety of bad boy, one who has learned to channel their high testosterone in a positive light and aim it in your direction. It’s okay if they drive too fast, drink a little too much on occasion, or want to sweep you off to a motel every chance they get, because in the long run, they’ll treat you right and you’ll be in for a romantic ride of your life.

Researchers say there are reasons we fall for the bad boy, not that I personally agree with all of their findings, but I think they are worth mentioning.

 1. The strong appetite for adventure.  Okay, they got me here. Ever since I was old enough to look, the bad boy screamed, adventure and boy did I have some. Have you ever dreamed of being the center of attention of the famous rock star,  football player, MMA fighter? I know I have. Or were you the one who secretly had fantasies of being with the military hero or secret agent's mistress? Bad boys scream excitement, adventure and erotic fantasies.

 2. The impulse to “save” the wayward man.  Most real bad-boys (those that I mentioned above) are beyond saving. You either take them as they are, or leave them standing next to that Harley. Believe me when I tell you the really bad ones will change you more than you know. If you're not ready to follow them to jail or a gun fight at the Okay corral, leave these guys alone and find another. They don't want to be changed anymore than you do.

 3. Father-Daughter relationships. Are we looking for someone who reminds us of our rogue daddy? Do we fall for the older guy? Who really knows, I don’t.

I’d love to hear what makes you fall in love with a hopeless hero, that perpetual bad-boy who captures our heart and holds on to it like a pair of Harley handlebars.

Our Bad Heroes and Getting to a Happy End

Yesterday, I made the decision to temporarily leave a critique group that I had been for a long time.  It wasn’t an easy choice to make because I love the women who make up that group and I learned a ton working with them.  But, several months ago, I hit the jackpot and found a really fabulous critique partner.  The woman really knows her stuff and there is nothing like having someone really pay attention to your work to make you write better.

 

So, when it started to feel like my head might explode—I’m pregnant, we’re renovating the house, I’m editing a full length novel, I just finished writing a full length novel, I’ve started writing another full length novel, and I have a husband and two small children at home who need me—I knew something had to give.

 

Fortunately, I happen to be a member of two critique groups.  So I knew that giving up one group did not have to mean giving up critiquing all together, it just meant that out of everything I did, something would have to be let go. 

 

I will miss them all terribly and I hope they continue to let me know what they are doing in their writing and in their lives.

 

This got me thinking about endings.  I really struggle to end a book.  My father had this great line he used to say when I was growing up, and I have no idea if it is someone else’s quote that he uses, or if he made it up himself but he used to say: It’s better to have a horrible ending than horrors without end.  I think about this a lot in real life.  I’ve had to end ‘friendships,’ business dealings, and relationships that just were getting too horrid for words.  Each time although the end was awful, I felt better for having made the break. 

 

But this just doesn’t work so well in the land of Happily Ever After or Happy For Now.  For the record, up until this point all of my work has been HEA although I am currently working on something that is a little different for me (1^st person narrative, HFN) and we’ll see how that goes.  I digress. 

 

Readers aren’t happy with a good enough happy ending.  Especially in a full length, they have spent a lot of time reading and investing in your hero and your heroine and they expect to see them reach their conclusion. In Romance, that is a Happy Ever After.  Whatever challenges they have been through, they just want to see them ride off into the proverbial sunset and be happy together. 

 

Our readers, however, are not stupid.  Just because you claim the couple is happy does not mean they believe you. If ten pages before the end of the book, the hero is berating the heroine in a terribly demeaning manner, having him simply come back and apologize does not a happy ending make.  We all live in the real world (or some semblance of it) and we know that a woman who takes that kind of abuse and forgives it with a smile is most likely doomed to a life of that kind of behavior. 

 

So I guess my question is this: Since we write about bad boys, alpha males, and lets face it the kind of guys our mothers told us to stay away from when we were children and were smart to do so, how do we redeem them at the end?  What is the secret for taking a bad boy and making him so much better that we can’t help but forgive them?  Why do we forgive them in our books when we would never let our friends, sisters, girlfriends get any where near them in real life?