Welcome Guest Blogger Nicola Marsh!

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Thu, 2007-07-12 19:09.

(Side note: Nicola is down under, so her days are our nights here above the equator, so I am posting her blog a day early to make up for the time difference...Sam :)

Hi everyone, great to be here!
And thanks to Sam for the reminder, considering I’ve been stumbling around blindly for the last 8 weeks following the birth of my second little hero. I adore being a mum, I really, really do, but the lack of sleep is a killer!

Okay, slipping out of comfy ‘mum wear’ and into something suitably slinky as befitting a romance author…think figure-hugging satin evening dress, sparkly stilettos and gorgeous make-up.
Wait, hang on a minute, I’m confusing myself with my latest heroine, Natasha Telford in my current release Princess Australia (Harlequin Romance)! I love being an author. Even when I’m feeling and looking my grungiest, I can live vicariously through my heroines. Gotta love that!

In Princess Australia, Natasha is a hotelier filling in for her concierge for a week, only to find those seven days turned upside down by the arrival of a Harley-riding bad boy prince. It’s great to envisage myself on the back of a speed machine while my car is filled with kiddie car seats, prams and other such paraphernalia!

Or when I’m not fantasizing about being a princess for the day, I can slip into the shoes of my other heroine this month, Tahnee Lewis, a children’s book illustrator who gets to live-in with a sexy author in his Sydney mansion for a few weeks in Two-Week Mistress (Harlequin Modern Extra Sensual). Nothing like a twilight picnic alongside Sydney Harbour followed by fabulous sex with a dream guy…

Hmm…right…where were we?

Heroines and getting swept away into their lives.
For me, I love a book where I can identify with the heroine, if not her lifestyle then her faults/fears/expectations. I love a heroine who is real, who leaps off the page and has me cheering for her all the way.

When I write, I fall in love with every hero just a little (okay, a lot!) and creating a woman worthy of these heroes can sometimes be tough. In my books to date, I’ve had a wide variety of women capturing the hearts of my heroes: from an aromatherapist theme park operator to a butler, from a web designer to a fairy shop owner, from a horse strapper to a patisserie chef to name a few.
Each of these women had one thing in common: an inner strength which I think is vital to a real heroine.

So what do you think makes a great heroine? Any stand-out favourites?
I’m giving away a signed copy of Princess Australia to a registered user here at Cigars, (chosen at random) so please share your fave heroine here!

To find out more about fab heroes and the heroines who love them, drop by my website and blog.

Now, before I get swept into the life of my latest heroine, I must go. I hear a baby crying…

Welcome Nicola!

Submitted by goddessani on Thu, 2007-07-12 20:19.

Both of your books look really yummy! It looks as if The Two Week Mistress isn't available in the US yet but I'll definitely be picking up Princess Australia. My favourite heroines: I like someone who works (not someone who's a rich debutante type) but isn't necessarily hard or embittered. I like them to still have that "sweet" core that allows them to be thankful for kindnesses. A sense of humour and someone who seems like a real pal are good traits, too. I'm currently loving Karen Kendall's heroine in Men at Work. She's rich but gives a lot back and she's one of the funniest heroines I've read in a long time! I admire Brianna Concannon in Nora Roberts's Born in Ice. She owns a B&B in Ireland and I loved how she made me appreciate the small things, like dusting, that I usually grumble about. Sam's own Miranda in About Last Night is another. I loved how involved she was with animals. That love and joy in caring for our furry friends really shone through. I'm sure there are many others but those are all standouts for me. ani

brunettes

Submitted by euripides on Thu, 2007-07-12 21:05.

especially when they carry a few extra pounds and have two left feet... like me! I just can't relate to lithe, elegant blondes! (now, ya'll are going to have to start giving your heroines grey hair .... premature greys, right...) I really admire some of the nursing heroines in Medicals - so capable and cool under pressure. Totally unlike me. That's the aspirational bit, I guess? I got two of the 'White Star' Blaze books for Christmas (was that six months ago already?) and both of the heroines are pretty funky - I like educated women who go after what they want and don't make any apologies for enjoying themselves. Hey Nicola, I've been living under a rock and didn't know you'd had a new addition to the family, congratulations! I hope you get some sleep soon. Sleep deprivation really does mess you up so take care of yourself! Euri

Great heroines

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Thu, 2007-07-12 22:02.

Hey Euri and Ani, you've both mentioned some great heroine traits! Euri, I totally hear you about the premature greying bit, which is why my heroines are the antithesis of me :) You've raised a valid point though; writing realistic heroines. Must admit, I tend to make mine glam but with realistic jobs and faults and dreams. Maybe a touch of grey wouldn't go astray? Actually, I have an older heroine in an upcoming plot and that would go perfectly with her!! Ani, I'll look out for some of those books. I like a good heroine, as you can probably tell. Also, TWO-WEEK MISTRESS is available on Amazon through the US. (When my editor gets back from RWA, I should know when it's out in the US.) It's currently on the shelves here in OZ and at eharlequin.com.au so I'll be giving away copies at my website next month (and my blog shortly!) Nicola http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

Feisty...

Submitted by Sarah Mayberry on Thu, 2007-07-12 22:50.

Hi Nicola, congrats on your new little person. And kudos to you for being back in the writing seat so quickly. So, it really is possible to juggle motherhood and writing...?

On the heroine front, I like feisty, flawed, self-aware characters. Stephanie Plum (more in the early books) is great - funny, a bit clumsy, feisty, kind of bumbling her way through life the best she can. I love heroines who have to deal with embarrassing situations - there's something about showing them at their most human that's very endearing. I'm not so hot on wealthy and priveledged ladies, especially if it means they're a bit snobby. Although it doesn't mean I'm not going to go there sometime as an author! Maybe I'm just worried I wouldn't know how to get into that headspace, being a state-educated, outer suburban girl at heart...

Flawed is good

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Thu, 2007-07-12 23:29.

Hi Sarah! Yes, it is possible to juggle being a mum and writing, as long as you don't plan on sleeping for the first few years ;) My eldest is 3 and I only wrote at night after having him (started my 'day' around 8.30pm)because I could nap with him during the day. Now, with 2nd bub in the house, I'm ready to fall into bed at that time, so in the process of getting used to juggling limited time! But it's the best :) I'm with you on the flawed heroines front. If the heroine is too perfect, it's difficult to identify or empathise with her. Actually, I can't think of the last time I read about a wealthy heroine...oh, I know! Francesca Day in SEP's 'Fancy Pants'. Though boy, did she have a fall and it made her all the more likeable :) http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

Heroines

Submitted by queenbee6 on Thu, 2007-07-12 23:34.

One of my favorite heroines is Eve Dallas. She is so strong yet she has a real vunerible side. Another one of my favorite is Ripley Todd from the Three Sisters Trilogy.

Favorite heroines

Submitted by Samantha Hunter on Fri, 2007-07-13 00:10.

How come this is a little harder than favorite heroes? ;)

Lately, my favorite is Mercy, from Patricia Briggs's books, because she's just so smart. I like that.

I enjoyed Sarah's daytime divas, probably Claudia the best, she was a mass of contrasts. I like complex, emotional, smart, funny, and even slightly messed up heroines who have to get things straight, usually with the help of a good man willing to put up with them. Stephanie Plum is definitely up there, as is Sookie Stackhouse, at least for the first 4 books, then she's just kind of slutty.

Love Buffy, Lara Croft, and Sydney Bristow, from TV land, of course.

My very favorite TV heroine at the moment though is Brenda Lee Johnson, from The Closer (Kyra Sedgewick). She fullfills all of my requirements, she may be the perfect heroine.

I know we were talking books, but I draw a lot of ideas and inspiration from these characters I see come to life on TV. :)

Sam

This is great!

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 00:30.

You're right, Sam, this IS much harder than fave heroes! A great discussion... I'm a Sydney Bristow fan (the final series has just started here a few weeks ago). Eve Dallas is cool too. Has anyone read any of Adele Parks books? She's an English chick-lit author and her heroines are so real, complete with big bums and foibles, that you can't help but love them. http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

My Fave

Submitted by jibby2 on Fri, 2007-07-13 01:36.

I am a fellow Stephanie Plum fan, but she is kind of bull headed. I don't like the richies either, but rather woman who are more everyday, like most of us reading the books. I especially like when they are flawed and not some size two barbie. I LOVE when they are plus size and the man still finds them attractive and they still sizzle in the bedroom lol;-) Almost makes me want to start a series for us fluffy gals. I know there are some out there, but we always need more hehe:) Funny and kind of sarcastic is a plus too. No wimpy woman for me!! Any couple that can make me lol and have great bedroom scenes, is a winner to me!!

Hi

Submitted by AshsHeroine on Fri, 2007-07-13 01:57.

Hi everyone, this is my first time here. Congrats on the new baby Nicola! I'm (im)patiently waiting for my nephew to be born. Hopefully any day now. For a heroine, I am very picky. My favorite heroine is one who is confident but not to the point where she thinks she can do everything on her own. She doesn't have to be the most beautiful woman, but think she is a good person regardless of her looks. One of my absolute favs is Sascha from Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh. She felt real to me and I felt her emotions. I even cried for her. Ashley

Plum fans

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 02:10.

Looks like there are quite a few fellow Stephanie Plum fans here. I really liked her in the early books but in the last couple, her wavering between Joe and Ranger started to get to me. Choose one already! Does anyone else feel like that? Ashley, a new nephew is exciting! http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

oh yeah

Submitted by Sarah Mayberry on Fri, 2007-07-13 02:20.

I stopped reading after book ten, I think. Even then I was really only reading out of some kind of nostalgic desire to capture the original verve of the first few books. Realistically, I think most readers probably pick one of the heroes they're rooting for (so to speak!) and feel annoyed when Stephanie goes in the other direction, as she often does, moving back and forth between Morelli and Ranger. Me, I'm a Morelli gal, since I kind of fell in love with him first. Ranger is hot, but when Stephanie says she loves Morelli, I feel uncomfortable about the dalliance with Ranger.It feels like a betrayal. So. There's my thesis, for what it's worth. I do think Evanovich is a great writer, however. Book three, which I think is the one where she burns down the funeral parlour with her gran, is my all time favourite. Love it.

Interesting

Submitted by Samantha Hunter on Fri, 2007-07-13 13:11.

Ten was the last one for me, too -- I just sort of lost the itch for them, but I think I agree the wavering gets old, and I also agree that Morelli is the guy, Ranger is a kind of a caricature of a "type" but he's not a real guy, and if he was, he's not a real guy you want to get involved with. I thought the sex scene with him, I forget which book she gets together with him in, was way disappointing, but I also believe Evanovich did that on purpose, that Ranger is not a big romantic, etc.

I feel the same way with the Sookie Stackhouse books, though -- which I teasingly have referred to as Sookie's Slutty Adventures after book four, because she just couldn't seem to land on a man (she was landing on different ones in every book) and now she does seem to have settled with Quinn, but I have to say the last one is giving me the cookie cutter feel -- maybe the fate of all series? There's only so far you can go with anyone character, anyone world, before it becomes too familiar...

Sam

Morelli 4 me

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 02:26.

Sarah, I agree with you wholeheartedly. I love Janet's books, I really do, but the last few did feel like a betrayal when Stephanie kept dallying with Ranger when she's dating Morelli. (I'm a Morelli gal too!) Has anyone read her Metro Girl series? (Only 2 to date?) I recently read them and thoroughly enjoyed them. http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

Ranger vs. Morelli + violence...

Submitted by booklover1971 on Fri, 2007-07-13 02:43.

I stopped buying the Evanovich books after Nine or so...I can't remember exactly. I love the earlier ones, through Five, because the stories and characterizations are pretty rich, but they seem kind of cookie-cutter now. Plus, I'm also a Morelli gal, and I think the dalliance with Ranger is kind of silly. It just doesn't ring true for me. *shrugs* The other thing that really turned me off the books is the violence. Maybe I'm more sensitive to it than other people are, but after Eight, when Steph gets burned with a poker, and maybe Eleven(?) when there's the brutal climactic fight scene broken up by Sally in the bus with the Uzi (did I just write that sentence?), I just found myself wondering if Steph had crossed from great Jersey girl to a TSTL heroine. I'd get out of that job after finding myself in a circle getting beaten to death by a horde of gang members, but maybe I'm just a big chicken.

Not ringing true

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 02:55.

This is such a valid point. When something doesn't ring true in a story it can be a real turn-off. I think I missed number 11? I'm guessing I'd be leaving that job if faced with that scenario. Then again, I'm no heroine ;) Guess the adventure and the ballsy stand-up-in-your-face kind of thing is what keeps me going back. That and the hope she will choose Morelli once and for all and let Ranger go. http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

Hi Nicola

Submitted by Mads on Fri, 2007-07-13 03:23.

Welcome, and thank you for taking the time to blog with us. Congratulations on the birth of your baby. Blessings, Love, Hugs and Luck are being sent your way. What I look for in a Heroine depends on the storyline of the book. Generally I like strong independent women. The kind of women who won't back down from anything and speak their minds. Sometimes, if the story fits, I like a woman who is kind and caring, as long as she still can remain true to herself. I have many favorite Heroines. Eve Dallas from the In Death books is right at the top of my list. All of the authors on this blog have strong female Heroines. Sarah did an amazing job with her Daytime Divas series. All 3 Heroines were strong independent women, working in a very competitive field. Jamie pushes the norm of typical female Heroines and makes you want to come back for more of her books. Karen pairs her Heroines with Heroes that are more like the typical men that you meet in real life, total idiots where relationships are concerned. She also has a very wicked sense of humor in her writing. Tawnys book Double Dare had a Heroine who took a dare that she didn't really want to do but did and came out a winner in the end. Very strong female Hero in my opinion.Sam does a great job with her Heroines. In her latest book, Pick Me Up, her Heroine is running away to start a new life. She is trying things that she never did before and finds not only a new life but love in the process. Very strong female Heroine. As you can see, I love reading the authors on this blogs books because they not only have strong female Heroines but, also write very good stories. I read so many books that to list all of the Heroines that I really liked would take forever. As long as the author writes a female character who is strong, independent and has just a bit of a soft side, I'll never complain. I really don't like reading about wimpy,weak or easily manipulated female characters. I'll put the book down and never come back to it again. Since I read quite a bit of Harlequins books, I'll look forward to reading your latest release. Best of luck with your new baby and thanks again for taking the time to blog with us. Have a great weekend. Mads:)

A good heroine is hard to define

Submitted by Cindyct on Fri, 2007-07-13 03:29.

I believe the reason it is so hard to define the perfect heroine is because we want to identify with her (and we are complex creatures, aren't we?). I enjoy most books (romance, mysteries, western, sci-fi if it isn't too sci, mystery), but primarily romances - both mild and racey. Currently I have been into the more contemporary ones or romantic mysteries. A happy ending in a book is almost a necessity for me, otherwise I am left feeling dissappointed. In school, I learned most of my history from historical romances, since it personalized and made the dry facts more real. I was also the abnormal high-school kid, who while skipping class like the rest, would be in the woods reading instead of smoking pot like everyone else. Enjoy the day! Cindy

Strong heroines

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 04:02.

Cindy, like you, I read widely but the bulk of my reading is romance. I've always been caught up in the complex route to happily-ever-after since I first started reading so it's no surprise I eventually began writing it too :) Mads, thanks for your good baby wishes! 3 yo has just gone down for nap, baby just fed and I'm about to head off for my afternoon nap shortly too. It's great when we get to co-ordinate rest times :) Strong heroines are a common theme here today. Thankfully, my editor thinks my heroines are my strength and I try to keep building on that. I like them smart, a little tough with an underlying vulnerability that makes the hero go 'awww....' and a quick-wit. Nothing like a sassy comeback to bring the most aloof hero to his knees :) http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

strong heroines

Submitted by Minna on Fri, 2007-07-13 06:57.

Strong heroines are definitely my favorites, like Eve Dallas from J.D. Robb's books.

A Good Heroine

Submitted by CrystalGB on Fri, 2007-07-13 13:50.

A Good Herione to me is one that is strong, confident and goes after what she wants. Keri Arthur's Riley Jensen and Colleen Gleason's Victoria Gardella Grantworth comes to mind when I think of a good heroine.

Great Heroines

Submitted by Maureen on Fri, 2007-07-13 17:58.

I like a heroine who thinks things through. Also I like to see a sense of humor and that she isn't perfect but uses lessons learned to her advantage. One of my favorite heroines is from Linda Howard's Open Season. He name is Daisy and she was great fun and also the type of person that you would like to meet.

Rachel Gibson

Submitted by Samantha Hunter on Fri, 2007-07-13 18:05.

I haven't read a book of hers for a while, but I read quite a few that I enjoyed a lot, she does some very different kind of stuff. Takes chances with heroines (and heroes for that matter) that makes her writing a lot of fun. I didn't like her online dating romance at all, but she's had several really wonderful books. She draws characters that are often very rough-edged and some might even think not very likable, but then you grow to like them, and see how they change in the book, which is really something I enjoy. When characters don't change or grow, it's not nearly as interesting.

Sam

So many books to read, so little time...

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Fri, 2007-07-13 22:12.

There's been mention of so many favourite heroines here, my TBR pile is going to grow to gargantuan proportions! http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

And the winner is...

Submitted by Nicola Marsh on Sat, 2007-07-14 09:33.

First up, thanks for having me here, I've had a ball! And thanks to everyone for sharing their favourite heroines. The winner of a signed copy of PRINCESS AUSTRALIA is...Ashley! If you could contact me at nicolamarsh@iprimus.com.au with your address, I'll pop a copy in the mail. Congrats :) http://www.nicolamarsh.com http://www.nicolamarsh.blogspot.com

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