The Perfect Hero

Writing heroes and heroines with mass appeal is tough. The heroine needs to be vulnerable yet strong. Capable of taking care of herself, yet yearning for that special someone to lean on.

And heroes...

We women set the bar high. We're hard on our men. I know I'm hard on mine. We have standards and a vision of a man and what we want from him physically as well as emotionally.

These expectations change with our moods.

From our book boyfriends we want mature heroes with an ingrained sixth sense when it comes to people and sex. They set an example of how sex with a new partner should be. They push boundaries while building trust, always offering reassurance but not too much.

No one wants a wussy namsy-pamsy hero, and I want my heroine to be reassured not smothered. We the readers need at least a little sense of being helpless.

Writing an alpha male that takes complete control but extols virtues, a persona with mass appeal, and isn't in any way an asshole is tough. Nearly impossible. Finding the right mix is a talent that should be commended.

I'm not sure if I've mastered that talent. I've found the heroes I write are perfectly imperfect. They screw up. They admittedly don't know it all, but always come around in the end. 

This a clip of Brian Scott McFadden, summing up women's logic perfectly.

Well, is that too much to ask?