farmwifetwo: I like my character to stay true to her upbringing and her circumstance. I am reading one right now where she had a good upbrining – different, but good – and she’s an uptight, self-righteous…. you get the jist. Just to give her “character”….. ummmm….no.I also dislike how women aren’t allowed to be “sexual” in many books. She can’t have had more than one partner… he can be a….. you get the jist there too.Another spot is the TSTL one… when you are in danger, do what you’re told by those that know better than you. Tell people what is going on. Believe what you are told and act accordingly.Lastly, is this crap about how some guy or girl dumps you in highschool and you are forever damaged from having a relationship. Excuse me???? Get over it… get over yourself and move on.And I agree with Carrie’s SAHM comments. I too had only planned to be home a short time and go back to work… I didn’t plan on 2 boys that required fulltime supports and someone to be here to supply them. A reasonable choice given the circumstances not just because everyone should do the same.
Oh…. I have many issues with “character” in books. For me “character” is the story, not the plot. So it’s a “button”.

Lately I have hit a couple of books where the heroine is just a B*tch to the hero from the get go and he immediately falls in lust. I can understand men wanting a challenge, but being attracted immediately to a witch on wheels? It just doesn’t make sense to me.

Carrie:
You wrote: “Character growth is another element that adds depth and richness to the story. However, for me character growth doesn’t mean a change in characterization.”This is very well said. I want characters to grow and change in organic ways, not in one sudden, dizzying leap. I’m fed up with bad-boy and/or tortured heroes being instantly changed/healed by the love of a good woman. Now he suddenly wants roots and children and has a sunny disposition. Or the strong motivated career woman who drops her thriving law practice to be a stay at home mom. Don’t get me wrong, I left my career to be a SAH mom, but if someone had written about me (which would be very boring) at least my decision would have been in character. I made no bones about wanting to get married and have a family. Working was always secondary. If there is going to be a change of heart, readers need to see it happening gradually and in a way that makes sense.

Completely agree with you. As a reader I need to see the transformation.

willaful: Mel is a character who never worked for me because I couldn’t get past how indifferent she was to the fertilized eggs (IIRC — maybe it was just frozen sperm) she and her husband had produced. If my husband died and I had some of his genetic material around… well, I certainly might choose not to use it but I would be seriously conflicted, to say the least.So I guess my big thing is a character who acts in a way that I can’t believe any thinking, feeling person would ever act.Also retconning. Reform your villain all you want, just don’t retcon him to do it!

You know I say that she is the heart of the community because she has her finger -along with Jack with almost everything that happens in the community. I will admit that her book is not my favorite.

AAR Lynn: For me, it all boils down to the writing.If someone seems to change personalities at the drop of a hat with no real reason, it’s hard for me to find them believable.For example, I’ve read some romantic suspense where the heroine(often in law or law enforcement) is smart, professional and capable, but then at a crucial scene, she suddenly morphs into someone completely dependent.However, if the author writes the character change well, then I am more willing to follow it and believe that this character really would change in that way.Tortured heroes and heroines don’t generally bother me because I’ve read some good ones.I thought the hero in Beau Crusoe was a good one and so was the hero in The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie, and then of course there’s Flowers from the Storm.

You are absolutely right in that it does boil down to the writing. Still tortured heroes or heroine can be problematic for me. Sometimes I feel like that are drawn from the profiles of men and women who snap, and go off and kill their co-workers. And everyone then says oh they were a loner – so quiet. He/She didn’t socialize and kept to himself. A hero that won’t let a woman in the house and has sex in his car has some serious issues.

Tortured heroes and heroines don’t generally bother me because I’ve read some good ones. I thought the hero in Beau Crusoe was a good one and so was the hero in The Madness of Lord Ian MacKenzie, and then of course there’s Flowers from the Storm.

So I guess my big thing is a character who acts in a way that I can’t believe any thinking, feeling person would ever act.

Also retconning. Reform your villain all you want, just don’t retcon him to do it!

The only thing I really don’t expect is a perfectly straight character growth arc–maybe it’s possible but I doubt it since it’s the nature of life to throw curve balls when least expected. Since I don’t expect it in life, I don’t expect it in romance. I’ve known plenty of real people to act seemingly out of character so why can’t fictional people? Perfectly intelligent people routinely make mistakes or fall for the wrong people or decide to take a left turn when a right turn is the smarter choice.

Early Classics? Sure. That’s a different ball of wax before the late middle ages until the beginning of novel writing when authors no long felt they had to follow the literary canon for what was acceptable as art.

But these days? I don’t expect consistent characters any more than I do unrelentingly consistent people in my life. A happy ending is a must in a romance for me but discovering the varying facets of a character’s life is a good deal for me.

I also dislike how women aren’t allowed to be “sexual” in many books. She can’t have had more than one partner… he can be a….. you get the jist there too.

Another spot is the TSTL one… when you are in danger, do what you’re told by those that know better than you. Tell people what is going on. Believe what you are told and act accordingly.

Lastly, is this crap about how some guy or girl dumps you in highschool and you are forever damaged from having a relationship. Excuse me???? Get over it… get over yourself and move on.

And I agree with Carrie’s SAHM comments. I too had only planned to be home a short time and go back to work… I didn’t plan on 2 boys that required fulltime supports and someone to be here to supply them. A reasonable choice given the circumstances not just because everyone should do the same.

Oh…. I have many issues with “character” in books. For me “character” is the story, not the plot. So it’s a “button”.

Character growth, though, where I can see the character changing and developing is exactly what a good book is all about. I love to watch this happen.