I’ve been studying lately secrets to making my characters not only unique, but heroic – heroes and heroines that live on in our hearts, and will make readers cry over them! I’ve discovered three that hold the keys to great characterization. I’ll be revealing them over the next three weeks on Tuesdays “Notes” blog.

First – I’ve learned that If the character isn’t someone we would want to know, then won’t care about him, regardless of the fantastic things he does in a book. I have to want to know the hero to invest in his story, to put him in my heart, and I have to like him to be able to cry for him.

So, the first secret to making readers cry over our heroes is:

Compassion — in order to like a character…really like him, as a person, I need to see that he has a capacity for selfless compassion. What do I mean by that? Basically, I want my hero to be a nice guy, deep down under his handsome, even rogue exterior. Even if he’s a rough-edged drifter with bad haircut and a three day beard, he’s likeable if he, say, picks up a stray dog with sad eyes and gives him a home (maybe even going hungry himself).

It’s the moment in Fugitive, right at the beginning, where Dr. Kimball saves the life of his fellow convict, even though it slows him down. It’s the moment in Braveheart where he brings flowers to the girl he hasn’t forgotten.

In my book Taming Rafe, which comes out in January, we see Rafe, in the first chapter, signing the cowboy hat of one of his young fans. This gives us enough of a glimpse of him to know that he’s a nice guy.

Pick something small, but telling about your character. Don’t play it up, let it be part of the background, almost, but let’s see him do something selflessly compassionate. That will help us like him enough to give him a change, despite the first impression he makes on the heroine.

Next week, we’ll talk about Secret #2 to making readers cry over our heros! AND if you haven’t already — don’t forget to answer the poll on Monday’s blog, so we can create My Book Therapy to meet YOUR needs! Thank you!

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