Almost Real

It all started out innocently enough. My husband Tom and I were in our small group at church and taking part in a discussion about workdays. It turned out that quite a few of us worked from home, and while weighing the pros and cons of this, a few people mentioned feeling isolated. Someone asked how I felt-after all, I’m home by myself most every day since my husband travels and my kids are in school.

Before actually thinking about how it would sound I said, “Well, see, I spend most of my days writing. And by the time I’m about 50 or 60 pages into a book, I really feel like I know all my characters. So, I’m rarely by myself-I’m with a whole group of people who I really like because, well, I made them up.”

Dead silence. Warily, I looked to Tom who shook his head slightly. It was the same kind of look he gives me when I have food or something on my chin.

Oops.

Suddenly, I realized what I'd just said. Not only do I make up people and pretend they’re real, but I um, actually prefer their company to most others.

No doubt about it, I sounded weird.

That conversation got me thinking about characters so great that you wish you did actually know them. I read Debbie Macomber’s Twenty Wishes this week and cried while reading the last ten pages. I loved those women! (Come on, Debbie…you don’t need to sleep! Write what happens next! :)

As for my books, one of my favorite characters is Claire Grant. She’s the heroine of The Mommy Bride, and was a secondary character in Simple Gifts. I’ve been with her through homelessness, pneumonia, her first interviews, and now…falling in love. She made a lot of days in my basement seem like the absolutely BEST place to be in the world. I’m going to miss Claire.

Until I get busy with another Harlequin, I think I’m going to concentrate on real, live people for a bit. Wish me luck. : )
Anyone else have a character in a book or movie that they’ve really liked?

PS. If you have time, take a visit to Brenda Novak's website. She's hosting an amazing auction! All the proceeds go to help research for children's diabetes! I have a set of books up for auction there...all five of my Harlequin Americans! There's also books by other American authors, and even meetings with Harlequin editors!

Shelley