When asked if I'd like a depiction of my hero, Hagen, on the cover of Invisible, my latest release, I responded with a fervent 'hell no!' You see, Hagen is an ugly man. His face wouldn't sell books. Just the opposite. Readers are likely to run away, screaming.
Maeve, the heroine, describes him this way…
"His nose looked like it had been broken more than once, the type of nose a boxer would have. Yeah, it wasn’t a pretty face, not like his cousin Dag’s, but all strength and bluntness."
And that's being kind.
I've always had a weakness for the homely hero. Gideon in Amanda Quick's Ravished and Dain in Loretta Chase's Lord Of Scoundrels are two of my favorites. My thinking is that any woman would be attracted to a handsome man but it takes a special kind of woman to lust after an untraditional visage. She would have to look past his face to lust after his soul.
The ugly hero has his own personality. He can't rely on his chiseled profile to get what he wants. He compensates with intelligence or charm or simple willpower. Hagen, my hero, works all three. He has to, to get the skittish Maeve to give him a second look.
A lasting happily ever after is more convincing with the homely hero. I worry when a heroine drools over a hero's handsome face. We all know looks fade. Will she still love him then?
The ugly hero doesn’t have that concern. He isn't good looking to start with. The heroine's attraction to him is more than skin deep.
What are your thoughts? Do you fantasize about a handsome face or are your dream men more… interesting? (Is that a kind way of saying it?)
BTW… Ironically, my hubby is a handsome man. I love him despite his good looks, not because of them.
Kimber Chin writes contemporary romances set in the sexy world of business. Why? Because she has a weakness for broad shoulders clothed in navy blue suits. Every week, she features a photo of a man in a great fitting suit on her site http://businessromance.com/ Every month, she gives away her favorite romance eRead.
10 comments:
Thank you Danny and Love Romances & More for letting me hang out here today!
I'm hoping to hook up with more fans of the 'ugly' hero!
Hey there Kimber...Wonderful to see you here. :)
Great post!
Dawn
Owner-LRC
Thanks Dawn!
It is wonderful to be here.
Love Romances & More is always so supportive of new authors.
It means so much
not only to me as a new author
(Breach Of Trust being named Runner Up for LRC's Best Contemporary Romance of 2008 is a moment I will never forget)
but
to me as a reader who loves discovering new authors.
It's a great feeling
to be one of an author's first readers.
Like being there for a toddler's first steps.
(And there ARE some stumbles and falls along the way for both)
Hi Kimber,
Congrats on the new release. I love Hagen even though he's not pretty. I'd rather have an ugly hero who's a great person than a handsome one who's a jerk.
I'm one of those people who think what is inside is more important than outside. Looks can change in a heartbeat -- witness that we have now had our second face transplant. What is inside you have to think about changing.
That said, when I fall asleep I do visualize a nice pair of pecs to rest my weary head on!
Invisible sounds great!
Wow, thanks Jane!
I love Hagen too.
He's one of those men
you KNOW would make a wonderful husband
and a great dad (even with the cussing).
And I'm thinking his face will get more interesting over time.
LR&M (is that you, Danny?),
I SO agree (especially about the pecs - LOL)!
I also think that what is on the inside eventually shows on the outside.
If you go into any seniors residence, you can immediately tell the happy people from the grumpsters.
It is written all over their faces.
Amy S,
thank you SO much!
I love Invisible.
It was one of those gift novels
(it still took a long time to write and an entire team to edit but...)
Kimber, I love your description of your ugly hero, and the fact that you wrote him as one. He still sounds attractive, even if not on the outside.
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