My friend Laura claims she doesn’t have the writing gene, but I think she definitely has the plotting gene.Her response to my post on “fantasy men” follows:
“I have a romantic hero. He has always been completely unavailable to me… He is someone who is tough, muscular, dark and handsome… He has to be difficult, stand-offish, and hold me at arm’s length. We have history that neither one of us remembers. But we still know. He is a public servant, officer of the law, and a Republican. Which doesn’t work for me. I am a law breaker and a Democrat. Which doesn’t work for him.
How romantic is that?”

So let’s see. He’s “unavailable.” Which is perfect, since the most important element in any story is conflict. She wants him, she can’t have him. We still have to figure out why, but it’s a start.

He’s “tough, muscular, dark, and handsome.” Perfect. “Difficult, stand-offish, and holding her at arm’s length”? More conflict, and judging from the romances I’ve read recently, we all love our brooding heroes.

They have “a history that neither one of them remembers.” Okay, that’s a little weird, but intriguing. It adds an element of mystery. And while it sounds unlikely, it could happen. Maybe they met at such a traumatic point in their lives that they both repressed it…

“
“But we still know.” In other words, they’re drawn together by forces they don’t understand. Ahhh…that’s romantic.

But my favorite part is the ending. “He’s a public servant, officer of the law, and a Republican. I am a lawbreaker and a Democrat.””

Now that sounds like fun. A law-breaking Democrat. No wonder Laura and I are friends! I suppose that with all the election fatigue washing over the nation right now, a novel centering on political differences could be a tough sell.  But maybe someday…

At any rate, I think I’ve found Laura’s ideal romantic hero — see above.  Jack Webb, a.k.a. Sgt. Friday from Dragnet. He fits all the criteria, and he’s an upstanding, old-fashioned guy who wears a really cool hat. And I’m pretty sure he was a Republican.

I think he’s been dead for about twenty years, too, but we’ll ignore that.

After all, it’s our fantasy.  And he could have come back… as a vampire… 

Cue Dragnet theme — over and out.