Pages

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Nicole Helm: The Allure of the Bad Boy

I tend to be a creature of habit, which makes me a writer of habit. I’m drawn to writing certain kinds of characters in certain kinds of situations. Uptight strong and silent (and a little grumpy) types, or laid back, easy-going types, usually hiding their scars with a joke.

After writing my tenth published book, I’d gotten to the point where I wanted to try something new. Something I’d never done before.

In my May release, Bride by Mistake, from Tule Publishing, part of the Montana Born Brides series, I decided to try my hand at a bad boy.

Of course, he’s not really bad. He made some bad choices as a teen, and in a small town, he can’t live them down even as he grows into a man who’s made some good choices. And it sometimes means he gets blamed for bad choices he didn’t even make, and to guard hurt feelings he sometimes accepts that blame.

This, of course, meant I knew his perfect match would be a good girl. The kind of girl who did what everyone wanted her to do, who followed the life plan that would make everyone else happy, only to find it had served her no purpose, and the bad boy might just. But more than that, I knew Beckett needed someone who would see through the bad boy facade he’s adopted to protect his heart. Kaitlin has known Beckett since she was a kid, since he’s her brother’s best friend, and she’s always been the one to see right through him—and call him out on his crap.


I love writing banter, and the banter between Bad Seed Beckett and Goody-Goody Kaitlin was no exception. I think more often than not banter is hiding a powerful attraction just waiting to be unleashed. And when that happens between Beckett and Kaitlin, their lives will never be the same.

Which do you prefer? Bad boys who are bad to the bone or ones hiding a secret heart of gold?

No comments: