The Trouble with Book Boyfriends & a giveaway

I keep seeing things on Facebook about Book Boyfriends. Now, as anyone who has read for more than a week knows, this is nothing new. The fabled book boyfriend has always been around. 

And that's because:

No shock there, right?

What does surprise me is that so many readers seem solidly locked on one or two book boyfriends. How is that even possible?? To me, book boyfriends are like potato chips; you can't stop at one.

For example: Karen Marie Moning's series. I've been reading KMM from the start and am head over heals with...well, several characters. From the Highlanders, hello! Dageus. 

Or Adam.

But that's not to discount any of the others. And then, I met the 9.

Holy Hell is all I can say there.

Or, if paranormal/urban fantasy isn't your thing, how about the Stephanie Plum series?

People are still bitter over the casting of Joe in the  movie. And the age old argument of Morelli vs. Ranger is nowhere close to being settled.

And since I live with small children, can I introduce you to the latest round of super heroes?  

Umm....I may need to be saved. Quickly.  I sure don't remember super heroes looking like that when I was a kid.

But, maybe you're like me and can't decide. Maybe it's a matter of whatever/whomever is right in front of you. Or, maybe you want a specific thing.

Like a Cowboy:

or someone to cook for you:

Seriously. How can anyone settle for just one? And why would you want to??

Luckily, with so many amazing authors, you don't have to. Just sit back and let the...um, riches, come to you.

But, I do have to say...mmmmmm.

So tell me. Do you have a single, solo book boyfriend? Or are you more like me, hoarding them all?  Tell me who your favorites are and why. Anyone I need to meet?

And, just to round out a discussion of book boyfriends, I'm offering up a copy of Pamela Clare's STRIKING DISTANCE (hello Javi!) to one lucky person. I'll pick next Friday (the 9th) so be sure to check back!

Worldbuilding; Not just for SciFi or Paranormal books

I've been thinking a lot about worldbuilding lately. According to wikipedia: Worldbuilding is the process of constructing an imaginary world, sometimes associated with a whole fictional universe.^[1] (Click on the link for the full wikidefinition).

I love being so wrapped up in a book, in the world that the author has created that I lose myself for that brief moment in time. There are no dishes that need to be done. No children to feed, no laundry to fold. All I want to do is curl up in that little bubble and read.

In romance, we most often see worldbuiling in paranormal works: Karen Marie Moning's Fever world is Dublin, after the walls separating Faery and the Human realm collapse. Donna Grant's Warriors live in a Scotland, after a dark druid (she has another term for it in her books) releases the "Warriors" in a group of Scotsmen. JR Ward, Lara Adrian....the list goes on and on of very recognizable worldbuilding.

But what about the other genres? Certainly every book/story/series develops a world to some degree, but they aren't always as recognizable as those in the paranormals. Pamela Clare's I-Team is set in Denver and follows a group of top notch journalists in dangerous stories and events. Tara Janzen's Steele Street is also set in Denver, but it's a very different Denver than the I-Team.

Why is that? The setting is the same...mostly. The locals that are mentioned are the same, sometimes even described similarly.

The short answer that I've been able to come up with is: Character. The characters respond to their surroundings in a certain way. The way that they respond makes the world take on certain characteristics, which lay the foundation for the world to be built. This doesn't have to be a city, like my example, it can be anything. A homelife. A workplace. Whatever their environment is, the characters are reacting to it and building their own world.
Our jobs as authors, is to suck the readers into these worlds with us.





What about you? What are some of your favorite worlds? Or do you have any tips on worldbuilding?