The criteria for a
great fairy tale is not all that different from the formula used for an
engaging romance. Both require the following:
A sensitive,
brave, intelligent hero—preferably good looking, or at least confident in his
appearance.
A strong,
beautiful, empathetic heroine who’s not afraid to kick a little butt should the
situation call for it.
A plot fraught
with angst, danger and attraction. Whether the attraction leads to a chaste
kiss or a steamy love scene depends on your audience.
A resolution that
is both enlightening and satisfying, not only for the reader but also for the
characters.
And, of course,
the Happily Ever After required of all great tales.
My Beyond Fairy
Tales story, Do You Want Me, is
based on the Grimm Brothers tale, The Devil’s Sooty Brother. More macabre
than romantic, it’s the tale of a soldier who returns from war to find he’s
lost everything he’d left behind.
In order to make a
new life for himself, he agrees to work for the devil and earn the money he
needs to begin again. The idea of creating a ‘devil’ gave me the perfect
protagonist for my story. The original tale also contains a king who has two
daughters. While not a huge part of the original story, the idea of sisters
fueled my naughty imagination.
So, how does an
author of modern-day romances take a fairy tale written hundreds of years ago
and make it current?
I started by
outlining my hero...it had to be the soldier from the fairy tale...complete
with memories and scars. In most cases, the next character I’d work on would be
the heroine. However, since in the original, there are no female characters
present until the very end, I decided to flesh out other aspects of the story
first before getting a handle on who would steal my hero’s heart.
As with any
series, there were also certain requirements set forth by the publisher. The
biggest challenge among those was the inclusion of a narrator. Nicodemus, the
storyteller, is a must for every book. I admit, I fretted over how to include
this ‘outsider’. Then, two glasses of Baileys-over-ice later, I had it! (I do
some of my best plotting under the influence of Bailey’s and crushed ice.)
I don’t want to
give too much away other than to say, I have a sexy, battle-weary hero, a
feisty tease of a heroine, a devil of a protagonist, and a father who holds an
important position of influence (a king of sorts).
I’ve also done
something I’d never attempted before. I wrote the entire story in the hero’s
point of view...even the steamy love scenes.
About the Book...
Decorated war hero
Reece Michaels agrees to go undercover in order to bring down the Irish Mob. In
return, the civilian life he’s coveted for the past six years will be returned
to him.
Hired by mob boss
Sean O’Malley to protect his youngest son, Reece soon discovers the young man
needs more protection from his own family than its enemies.
What Reece doesn’t
count on is his instant attraction to the police chief’s beautiful and willing daughter.
Abby Mackenzie is the younger sister of a woman with whom Reece once had a
torrid affair. He’s determined to not give in to Abby’s come-hither ways. After
all, one Mackenzie woman was more than enough.
Available
from Amazon and currently on sale for 99¢. Also in
audio book from Audible. Narrated by the incredible TG Burns. What that man
did with a love scene should be a sin!
~ ~ ~
One quick reminder...
Today is the last
day to enter our Rafflecopter drawing,
as well as your last chance to get in on this week's Comment and Win drawing!
Best of luck to
everyone. I'll be back on Saturday with an update on all the winners!
Nancy
