Each month, I focus on a well-written heroine who inspires and influences my own writing. What can I say, I'm addicted to awesome heroines. You can check out all of my Heroine Fixes to see some amazing characters. Warning: This post will contain spoilers.
This month, I went back to an old favourite, 2007's Music and Lyrics, starring Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore. It's a romantic comedy about a former eighties pop star and the dedicated, idealistic woman who helps to drag him away from dreaming about the past. It's got a sweet, well-written plot and a fantastic soundtrack of songs that I still listen to over a decade later.
I love stories that include music. My DVD library is full of musicals, and I grew up during the "soundtracks are just as important as the film" movies, like Footloose, Dirty Dancing, and Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. That's probably why the heroine for my latest novel is a singer-songwriter. But as I went back to watch Music and Lyrics, I was surprised to remember how strong Sophie's (Drew Barrymore's) character was. And frankly, how supportive Alex's (Hugh Grant's) character was.
Most romantic comedies seem to center around having the woman prove to the man that she is in fact capable at her job (like The Ugly Truth, for example), or having the woman decide that her career isn't as important as the man of her dreams (Kate and Leopold). It's something that bothers me and has made me skeptical of the genre. But it doesn't happen in Music and Lyrics.
Sophie is talented at putting together words into rhyme and meter (which is much harder than you think. Try coming up for new lyrics to fit Mary Had A Little Lamb and you'll see). But she's been creatively burned, so she is reluctant to try again. Alex is very persistent, going to visit her at work and inviting her to see him perform. Each time she doubts herself, he immediately tells her that she has impressive skills. He convinces her to give writing a song a try. He will provide the melody, and she will create the words.
The conflict arises between their approaches to the music industry (and life in general). Alex has been hired to write a song for a pop music superstar, Cora, called A Way Back Into Love (based on her tragic breakup with her boyfriend after **two** whole months of a relationship). He is focused on creating whatever Cora will want to record. He treats this as a job where the customer's requirements are more important than the promptings of his inner muse.
Sophie, on the other hand, is idealistic. She believes in making things "right" and things are either right or they're not. She argues with the superstar when Cora wants to add a faux-Indian hip-hop opening to their song. When Cora refuses, she demands that Alex change Cora's mind. He refuses and she accuses him of selling out, launching us into the black moment. (They reconcile before the end, I promise.)
The other part of Music and Lyrics that I find refreshing is the relationship between Sophie and her sister Rhonda. Rhonda was a huge fan of Alex's, back when he was a pop superstar in his own right. It would have been narratively easy to set up their relationship as one of competition, pitting them against each other. Instead, the two of them are friends. Rhonda genuinely cares about her little sister, and is excited for her when Sophie and Alex start dating. That kind of supportive female friendship is too rare in fiction, which is one of the reasons why I wanted to have a supportive pair of sisters in Deadly Potential.
When I first watched the movie, I didn't like that Sophie didn't successfully challenge the jerk of a professor who had a relationship with her while she was his student (not telling her about his fiancee), used their relationship as the basis for a novel, casting Sophie as a narcissistic villain, and undermined her creative confidence by claiming all of her work was a slavish copy of other great minds. She has an opportunity, but she stammers and flubs her way through it. It leaves her even more humiliated.
But watching it again, I realized that this is actually one of the movie's strengths. Because her strength doesn't depend on a flawless confrontation. She can be amazing and awesome without ever having to deal with a man who has hurt her over and over again (and who frankly wouldn't be changed by a confrontation anyway). Her moment comes from denying him any further power over her actions and choices. It's cutting him off that is the key to breaking his hold, and once she does that, she can be free to find her new place in the world and accept love.
Sophie doesn't have superpowers, or martial arts skills, or any of the bonuses that many of my Heroine Fixes do. She's facing a problem that most of us have dealt with, an ex who broke our spirits and confidence. And she succeeds in a way that any of us can follow, by giving herself a chance to pursue something that she enjoys and is good at. That's inspiring and is exactly the song that I'm ready to march to.
Keep reading to learn more about Deadly Potential and find out some of the other awesome things that you can find on my website.
When Katie first began receiving the letters, she thought they were just odd fan mail. That sort of thing happens when your sister is the Princess of Pop. But Ben recognizes the notes as the signature of The Director, a stalker-serial killer who is suspected of having psychic abilities that have helped him to evade capture for a decade. He'll need all of his skills as a Special Investigator to keep Katie alive, but it's going to be difficult when he's distracted by falling in love with her.
Deadly Potential, available for pre-order now and releasing on October 23!
You can also look at last month's Heroine Fix: the brilliant and brave Dr. Ellie Arroway from Contact. Or join me next month on October 10th for next month's fix.
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I've talked a lot about the idea that sparked the Director for Deadly Potential, the creepy idea of a stalker who is able to hide in plain sight. But there was another idea behind my story, a twist on Cinderella.
First off, I'll recuse myself by sharing that I am a huge fairy tale fan. I read them exhaustively as a child, collecting the variations like other children collected stickers or cards. I can sing and recite most of the Disney versions (and do, given half an opportunity).
That doesn't mean I'm blind to the flaws in many of the stories.
Any story reflects the time it is created. The classic Hans Christian Andersen and Brothers Grimm stories come from the 19th century and reflect many of the Victorian values. Cinderella is from Charles Perrault's collection, which was assembled in the second half of the 17th century. It's a bloodier version than those familiar with Disney's will expect, but it has what are considered the key elements:
- it's a rags to riches story where the heroine goes from poverty to plenty
- the heroine is blocked by her stepmother and, to a lesser extent, her stepsisters
- the heroine meets her prince at a ball (or series of balls) and he is entranced by her beauty
- there is a magical being (fairy godmother) who grants the heroine beautiful clothes and transportation
- the prince is able to see through any attempts at deception to identify the heroine, despite not knowing her name or status
While I do enjoy stories of women being elevated out of difficult circumstances, there are aspects of the Cinderella story which bother me. The biggest one is her passivity. She is singled out for aid because she is quiet, patient, and virtuous. She is singled out as the ideal bride because she is beautiful. Personally, that bothers me on both sides of the relationship, because physical attraction is one heck of a poor qualification for choosing someone who will eventually be a co-ruler of your kingdom. But I digress.
The other aspect which troubles me is how Cinderella is set up as being different from the other women in her life, and as being in competition with them. They are coarse and vulgar, she is noble and graceful. It's a theme that I see reflected in a lot of modern stories, that the heroine is somehow better than all those other girls (be they co-workers, ex-girlfriends, or rivals for the hero's affection).
Many of Perrault's stories focus on a character's inherent nobility and the message that their goodness will be rewarded. But the idea that people should suffer in silence and wait to be rescued isn't one I can get behind. I much prefer when characters are active participants in their own rescue, though they usually do need help (which is why I also love stories where characters realize they can't do everything on their own).
Women who are set up as "the good one" in fiction are isolated. In reality, female friendships are incredibly important. I would never want to be without my girlfriends, yet it's actually surprisingly rare for a story to have two or more women with a close and supportive friendship.
I've always written stories with independent heroines, but this time, I also wanted to write a story where there was a strong female friendship. And I started thinking about Cinderella, and what it would be like if the stepsister teamed up with Cinderella to overthrow her abusive mother.
And because I'm never happy with just one twist, I wanted to explore another idea, too. What if the fairy godmother was evil, what if she was pushing Cinderella into a world that she didn't want? What if Cinderella just wanted to restore her family home and live peacefully there and it was the fairy godmother who had the whole dream of her charge becoming royalty?
So I made sure that my heroine, Katie, had a strong and healthy relationship with her stepsister, Aggi, one where they faced down Aggi's narcissistic mother together. And I made the Director into a dark version of the fairy godmother, one who only makes his own wishes come true.
I hope that people will enjoy the story as much as I do. Deadly Potential is available for pre-order now and will be released on October 23rd!
Previous post: Heroine Fix: The Brave and Brilliant Dr. Ellie Arroway from Contact.
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