Beyond the Book: I Pick Elizabeth

“If you could be — even briefly — one of your OWN characters… which character would you be? Why? For how long?”

I always fall in love with all of my characters. When I’m writing I think that the ones I’m writing about are the best ones ever. However, there are a couple of heroines who stand out to me.

The first is Betsy McLaughlin, heroine of A New Leaf. Betsy had a charmed life and loved every minute of it, but then she fell in love with an ex-convict and found out how it felt to have everyone disapprove of her. Naturally she preserved and found happiness.

Second, I loved Violet Emerson of A New Dream. Violet was an inexperienced small town girl who fell in love with a more sophisticated man. She has a hard time dealing with his past, but she shows a lot of growth and they get their happy ending.

But my ultimate favorite is Elizabeth Lane of Return Engagement. Elizabeth had a very unhappy childhood with an alcoholic father who didn’t take care of his family. She eventually made her way to Hollywood where she became a big star. She also met Richard Lovinggood. Richard was the son of California senator Henry Lovinggood. Senator Lovinggood disapproved of Elizabeth and tried his best to break them up. He succeeded.

But then one night Richard and Elizabeth met by accident on a California beach and found that all their old feelings were still there. They vow that this time nothing will ever come between them, but of course it does, and in a way no one ever expected or saw coming.

I loved these characters so when the when the book ended I couldn’t bear to leave them behind. So I wrote a sequel titled Blue 52. I even named one of the characters Elaine. But ultimately, I wouldn’t want to be anyone but myself. Even though I’d enjoy a few weeks in their world I’d be happy to come home and just be myself.