Nope, he’s not perfect. Which is something every bride realizes about two weeks into her marriage, but hopefully something she’s figured out LONG before that (otherwise, well, it’s a rough first year!). We all know there are tell-tale signs to your hero’s imperfections…

Today we’re going to figure out HOW to build in imperfections or FLAWS into your perfect hero.

What are flaws in character? Well – we’d all be perfect if we could, and frankly, many fellas think they are (which is why we ladies come in handy). They don’t look at FLAWS like negative. They look at them as survival tools, or even power areas.

Of course, they aren’t conducive to healthy relationships. But your hero will learn that as the story goes along. Meanwhile…how do we find our hero’s flaw?

It all goes back to that Dark Moment we talked about last week when determining Noble Cause. Remember – what was it that your hero learned during that dark moment? We used it for good in determining his Noble Cause.

Now, we’re going to use it to build in his flaw in an easy 3 step process.

1. What is the Dark Moment that shaped him
2. What wound does he bear from this event?
3. How does he compensate, or hide this wound?

Let’s take our two heroes we talked about last week:

Firefighter – the guy who’s father died saving a life when our hero was a child. He learned that some lives are more important than his own, and his Noble Cause is to save lives.

However, deep inside is fear that he won’t be as courageous as his father.

So…to hide this, he rushes into danger without thinking – he’s very impulsive. It makes him reckless, and dangerous. This is flaw – impulsiveness.

How about Rafe – our bull rider? He was born with a hole in his heart…which made him sickly, and caused his father to leave him out of Ranch life, and made him feel weak, and less than a man. He learned that in order to earn his father’s respect, he had to be tough.

But he has a very dangerous job – bull riding. During which he gets wounded, and friends die.

To be tough, however, he can’t show his pain. Instead he hides it inside a number of “painkillers” – (mild) drinking, cute girls and fast living. His flaw is superficiality, and the inability to ask for help.

If you’re not sure what your hero’s flaw might be – ask him what he’d do if he FAILED his noble cause.

Firefighter might say: Next time, I wouldn’t wait for reinforcements – I’d get in sooner.
Rafe might say: Next time I’d hold on tighter. I won’t let the bull throw me, regardless of the cost.

Flaws stem directly from the things we want to hide. What is your hero hiding?

Because your heroine is going to find it.

Tommorrow we’ll be examining some flaws of well-known heroes, to see how they play out in the story. Don’t forget to send me your hero’s flaws to booktherapy@susanmaywarren.com.

Happy Hunting!