Who Are Our Heroes? The View of a Romance Writer

Who are our heroes? As a romance writer, I want happy endings. As I work, I strive to create characters who are heroic and provide happy endings for my readers. Although most characters start out a little flawed, they grow and become better heroes as the story develops.

When I first started writing romance, one of the rules for category was no sports heroes.  I wondered why. I also wondered why the big New York houses frowned upon heroes and heroines from the art world which was where I often wanted to go with some of my characters.

Of course, with the coming of age of e-books, everything has changed. There are fewer rules; the lines are grayer for what a writer can and cannot do. Perhaps there are no lines at all.

As I ponder about my experiences as a writer and as an observer of people, I believe the heroes in our world today are the teachers. They are the ones guiding and instructing for the future. The profession is not filled with the glamour and glitz some other jobs might hold. Teachers are not paid $48 a minutes even when they are sleeping. Yet, they are the unsung heroes.

One of my next books will feature a teacher as the heroine.

Who do you consider the heroes in today's world? I would like to know.

Heroes can be musicians who share their gifts with us. Petersburg Regional Art Center Open House 12/9/11