I think I prefer when charactes seek out the change, but I'm not against characters being blindsided either *g* As long as they're proactive in whatever their circumstances, I'm all for it (and them *g*)

I love Isabel's man plan in Does She Dare! She's a go getter, that's for sure, and the man she gets is super hot
;-) But the best part of Does She Dare is how both she and Dante change and grow and come to embrace those changes *g*

I like the suprise the heroine/hero have to learn to cope with and in doing so learn about themselves. Must come from being a control freak, eh?

However...one of the turning points in our lives was when my husband didn't get a job he was supposed to get. He'd been laid off, but had been guaranteed a job with the government in 6 weeks. Well, five weeks and most of his severance pay later, he was told that there was a government hiring freeze. No job for anyone not already employed by the government, even though he was top candidate. And there we were. Poor and frightened with no prospects. But that forced him to go back to school to get his teaching degree (in his forties). He got a job at the local rural school and taught our kids for 3 years each (the school is combined classroom). It made an incredible difference in the level of our kids' education--there was no getting out of homework--and he really knows his chldren--which wouldn't have happened if he'd gotten that good old government job. And now we teach in the same school two doors from each other. This is good because we like working together.

Jeannie

I never thought about what kind of change I put my characters through - it always seems to be some kind of combination of things. For instance, in Talking in Your Sleep, both characters were undergoing career crises which really were, to an extent beyond their control -- and yet we know that some of their problems arise because they were ready for change, and so their jobs not working out for them was just a symptom of something deeper going on inside of them.

In Pick Me Up, Lauren is taking the bull by the horns -- she really is inviting change into her life, she *wants* to change, but I don't think she fully envisions everything that will come her way. Brett, however, resists change, and I think his is more the kind that falls on him, like the rock on Wile E. Coyote. ;)

I have to think about my other books... this is a cool question. Risa, in Untouched, certainly didn't ask for the changes that were imposed on her life, changing everything, but it all worked out for the best.

I like when H/h chase down change, like Lauren, because I enjoy a character who wants to grow and is ready to take on life -- Miranda in About Last Night was like that, too. But I also like seeing how they can grow and learn from being in over their head. Hmmm.

Great question, Tawny!

As for me, I deal with change okay, have been through enough now that I know downsides will eventually turn up, and to enjoy the upside while we're there... Always thinking of the Wheel of Fortune card, things are always spinning. Sometimes you're up, sometimes down, but that means the wheel is moving and you're getting somewhere! ;)

I would have to say I blindside them. My poor characters!

M

Read in bed!
www.meganhart.com

I think I enjoy reading about those poor blindsided characters because those often those un-asked for changes really help develop their personalities and facets of their characters and their relationships, but in reality, those big changes are scary and hard to face! So, I prefer to choose, but often those can be hard to implement (especially when those focus inwardly--it's hard to change yourself, often even when you've got good reasons to do it).

And for now my biggest changes have been having kids--way bigger than getting married, at least for us :) And the biggest I think was going from pre-kids to having one. Adding kids after that hasn't been nearly as hard, although we're only at three (and I think we're done ;))

I'm a little late with this post. I have a good excuse though. I just started reading Does She Dare. It came yesterday and just like Double Dare, I can't seem to put it down. I think I told you before that I was going to love this book. So far it's a definite winner. I can't wait to finish it.

The one big change I've had in my life, was moving from a very large city, to a very small mountain town. I'm basically a city girl at heart, and this change was a bit difficult at first. We have to drive long distances for everything. I'm used to being able to walk everywhere. After 8 years of living here, I'm adjusting, but sometimes, I really do miss big city life. There is an upside to living here though. There is just about no crime, the air is fresh, the water is clean and clear and the nights are very quiet. I guess it was a good move after all. Mads:)

I'm not sure I prefer one over the other but how the change is dealt with. Both seeking change and being blindsided can lead to better things and certainly a really good read.
And sometimes it seems as if the two go hand in hand. A character can decide to make a change but be blindsided by how that change creates another change. Make sense?????

Hey, Tawny! Chiming in late here on this fun topic...I personally hate change. It completely throws me for a loop and I resist it like crazy, even if it's something as simple as changing the color of the living room walls. I have to be *ready* for change, or at least have sufficient time to really mull it over.

I think it's the same for my heroines; they tend to choose the changes in their lives, even if those changes turn out to be waydifferent than they envisioned!