Everyday Heroines Who Make Life Special... by Delsora Lowe

The world is filled with heroes and heroines, many famous, but most ordinary people like you and me. Those people who plod through daily life, working jobs, taking care of families, and volunteering in their community. The unsung heroes and heroines of the world. Every now and then, one does something extraordinary enough to be called out to the world as a heroic figure
.I have many personal heroines. Some I’ve mentioned, like my aunt who was an actress, WWII pilot, as well as a journalist and a ghost hunter, to name a few of her occupations that made her interesting. But her most heroic deed, was taking her nieces under her wing, as a second mother, since she had no children of her own. Every year I sent her a Mother’s Day card. I’ve talked about her in other blogs, so know that she will always be my heroine.

My heroine, Aunt Virginia. 

     But today I’m going to talk about fictional heroines.

As writers of romance, we write about heroines and heroes every day. We share their insecurities. Show their faults. Build their redeeming qualities so that those characters around them want to share a life with them. And we show all they go through to find and believe in love.
They might not be the people who make the front page or the evening news, but they are heroines to the people they love and those who love them.

The heroines I write about are superwomen in their own worlds. No, I don’t write paranormal or fantasy. I write contemporary. My heroines are ordinary mortals, who don’t do anything more than most of us do in daily life. But my goal as a writer is to make each heroine in my stories, someone readers can relate to. That someone who will mirror the heroine (or hero) within each reader.

Not only do I want readers to relate to my characters, but I want readers to see in themselves that the ordinary things they do in life are heroic.

Lynette Mercer, the heroine in The Rancher Needs a Wife, is an ordinary woman. She’s a widow of a war hero, a single mom, a business owner, a daughter, and a friend. I won’t give away her little acts of heroism, but I'll give you a few clues. Know they have to do with caring for her daughter and a family who has befriended her in her new town. She’s also a heroine to a woman who has drifted for the last few years and needs a friend and a job. She cares for each person she touches in different ways.

Cue in a frantic bride (hint: heroine from book one) in need of a dress and wedding planning.

Our heroine helping her new friend make a wedding dress.

            Cue in a serious and sometimes controlling (in that annoying, protective way) cowboy rancher, who, yes, is a hero.

Lynette gives poor Carter a run for his money, especially when he goes into protective mode.

           Cue in a new lingerie shop in a ranching town where ranching women are excited to have a bit of frill in their lives, and strong cowboys fear to tread.

A lingerie ladies night at Lynette’s shop, the Pink Petunia.

All of the above are the little, everyday ways my heroine helps others in her new home town.

To me, the qualities of a heroine are women who are true to themselves. As we all know, in true life and our stories, this is part of growth for every individual, and part of the story arc for each of our main characters. A heroine must face problems (and in our books, we tend to throw a lot of problems at our heroines.) The more problems, the more the story holds the attention of readers. And…the more fun we have developing a character.

As I’m writing this, I have a favorite Hallmark movie on in the background. Cooking with Love is full of character development. Watching movies and reading books, for both writers and readers, is a great way to not only be drawn into another world, but an opportunity to study what challenges can be thrown at characters to make them stronger.

In the scene of the movie where the hero goes over the heroine’s head at work, then gives a lofty and somewhat cavalier apology, the heroine responds with an absolutely-no-problem type of response. As a viewer, one has to wonder why she is buckling under, until the scene progresses, and she, without apology, proves she also has gone over his head to get him back on track. The look on the hero’s face and his actions are one of I’ve just been one-upped. And that look gives the heroine courage to find her own voice, gain respect, and become a success at work. And, of course, they fall sweetly in love.

In a scene in my new book (releasing on October 20), Lynette proves to Carter that she’s not just an overly feminine, “too pink,” kind of woman, but a woman who just might have the qualities of a rancher’s wife. Loyal. Hardworking. Cares about family and work. Knows how to show love.

Cue in plumbing is not woman’s work. Note: the hero comes to the rescue to fix a sink, but, ta-da, the heroine has everything under control.

Finding a photo or clip art of a female plumber turned into an impossible endeavor. The only females associated with plumbing were on ads for a school recruiting underrepresented women plumbers and one for a plumbing company which showed a woman sitting by a sink with her palm plastered against the side of her forehead in an “Oh, what will I do?” pose. Hence the need for heroines who can plumb.

Lynette might not be a heroine in the eyes of the world that is conditioned to look for overly heroic deeds, but she is a hero in the life of her daughter. And she will prove she can be a heroine to Carter with her words, actions, and good deeds.

Of course, as an author, all my heroine’s traits mimic those of the real-life, every day heroines who are part of my family, and my work and community life.

Who, like my aunt, is the real-life heroine in your world? And what words, actions, and good deeds does your heroine do to show her heroic side?

~ cottages to cabins ~ keep the home fires burning ~

Delsora Lowe writes small town sweet romances and contemporary westerns from the mountains of Colorado to the shores of Maine.

Author of the Starlight Grille series, Serenity Harbor Maine novellas, and the Cowboys of Mineral Springs series, Lowe has also authored short romances for Woman’s World magazine.

The Rancher Needs A Wife
preorder now or purchase on October 20

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Heroine in Pink:

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My Favorite Place(s)... Some of the Time

By Robin Weaver

When I first attempted to identify “my favorite place,” I sat on my couch, snuggled under a blanket watching the snow fall. For a brief moment—that was truly my favorite place.

Let me clarify.  I live in one of those Southern states where even the mention of snow sends us into a Chicken Little it’s-not-a-snowfall-it’s-a-falling-sky-panic. All was not dire, though.  All  falling sky events immediately prompt a cancellation of work. Yep. Favorite Place identified.

Only… What if the power went out? How could I have a favorite place with no internet? Ye, gods! And shouldn’t a favorite place include Bon Jovi music? Preferably a private concert? Now we’re talking.

Since my brain quickly leaped from an actual favorite place to the realms of fantasy, I decided my most-beloved location should include a hunky guy under my blanket? With big shoulders and... a sense of humor, and... mesmerizing eyes, and...

Then I came back to the reality. I had no groceries in case the sky really did fall! Yikes.  Thus I sent my darling daughter on a grocery run. Perhaps I should mention that my daughter’s favorite place is anywhere there’s an abundance of salsa.  See what she acquired for our "we’ll never be able to leave the house again, 'falling sky'" weekend.  

Sigh.  And I thought I’d been quite specific about needing bread. And  coffee.

My idea of a favorite place was rapidly disintegrating. Which made me realize how a favorite place is highly dependent upon your mood. And who you’re with. And a host of other factors. For example, I love the beach, but not in Charleston on a 102 degree day. Nor when the temperature hovers near freezing. I also love the mountains, but not if my motion-sickness soul has to travel there via a back seat, sans Dramamine.

But I’m sure I’m taking this theme of favorite place to the wrong—well, place. Thus I’ll attempt to rein in my renegade brain and focus on some actual favorites.  I loved Switzerland. And sitting in a deck chair watching the tide come in beneath a full moon was pretty terrific.  But the hospital where my daughter was born ranks as one of those magical places, too.

So my favorite place? Please don’t ask this schizo-writer a question like that.  At least not before I find some bread. And coffee.