Love. Hope. Passion. No life is happy without all three. No book, no matter what the genre, is complete without it. Even a mystery. It’s like humor, though. Depending on the genre, there needs to be less of it, more of it, some subtlety or none at all. It’s a delicate balance, and it’s obvious when a book misses the mark.
I made Lydia single in Posed for Murder, with no boyfriend on the horizon. I wanted her to be the kind of woman who stood on her own two feet. And I thought she would take more chances and be more committed to her job if she was on her own. But I also gave her a flirtation with a sexy stubborn cop named Daniel Romero.
Romero is Puerto Rican and raised in the neighborhood. He has a lot of depth and layers that Lydia doesn’t see at first. He reads War and Peace, he enjoys great music, and he is the loving parent to a small son (who lives with his ex-wife). He finds Lydia infuriating (as many lovers do when they first meet!) and thinks she’s interfering and blocking his investigation—which she is. The two of them spar, but never get beyond… well, that would be telling. You’ll have to read the book.
My second book is almost finished, and my agent commented that she wanted something more to happen between Romero and Lydia. She wanted the relationship to deepen. It makes sense that she would be dissatisfied. After all, don’t we all want love to work out whether in life or on the page? But there’s also good reasons to hold out on her, and make Lydia and Romero wait before finding true love with someone else or with each other. The friction makes the story so much more interesting and engaging, and I’m not ready to write “The End” on the series.
My live is nothing like Lydia’s. I’m not single, or in my twenties, or a photographer. I am a married mom who rarely goes to clubs and fantasizes more about 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep then fame and fortune. And this Valentine’s Day, I will reflect, as I always do, on how darn long my husband and I have been together (19 years this June—whoa!) and how thankful I am to have such a wonderful life partner. Happy Valentine’s Day everyone!
I love the Lydia/Romero dynamic in POSED FOR MURDER and that’s all I’m going to say for fear of spoiling anything.
I agree with you that romantic tension should be drawn out. Think of any long-running TV series with unspoken ardor between two characters, until finally, at last, the would-be lovers connect. Doesn’t the relationship nearly always get boring after that?
POSED FOR MURDER is the first book in a series?! Now that fact alone is something to love, Meredith.
I love that Lydia is a strong, independent woman! I think you have just the right dynamic with her and Romero.
Thanks everyone for stopping by! I’ll save up all your comments and show them to my editor if she pushes me to take the relationship too far too fast…
Hold out. It’s the possibility that is more intriguing than the fact.
Woo, you have no idea how happy I am to read this post! I just finished Posed for Murder yesterday and in my review (scheduled to post on the release date), I said that I really hoped it was the first book in a series. I’m so excited that you’re writing a sequel!
I think it’s a good idea for Romero and Lydia to move slowly. Not so slowly as to frustrate the reader, but I don’t think there’s any need for them to get hot and heavy in the second book.