HURT HER!!!!

I read a slew of suspense and romance novels. My addiction to reading is probably far worse that Donald Goins heroin addiction. (That was a low blow, I know).

In any case, I guess you're wondering why I titled my piece Hurt Her.

In all the books I've read, I rarely see the writer hurt the female in the book. Now there are some that have this tough female that "can take it just like any man," but I've really never seen a really gracious woman get really hurt.

Even though women can withstand pain far better than men.

So why is this?

Just like life, we (writers - male and female) tend to protect the fragile woman, but I don't think we should. If he can take a bullet, so can she in my opinion.

I'm not opposed to putting my female characters in great danger and hurting them even if they are pregnant, which the person trying to hurt them may or may not know.

A goal is a goal with the antagonist - hurt them. Not just him, them both of them (because usually I'm writing a romance and the couple comes together to defeat the foe).

In Stone's Revenge, I did receive angry letters at the way my hero treated my shero. William Stone was the son of a serial killer and affection to him was when his father slapped him around, beat him within an inch of his life and then locked him in a closet. I didn't see how I was going to get him to "be nice" now that he had met Abigail, the woman he was destine with, so how did the reader expect me to come up with a believable start to the relationship that had William coming out smelling like roses? It was in his nature to be mean, so I had to make their initial contact fit for William, not Abigail.

One reader said the partial forced sexed scene went a little bit too far and she could never understand how a woman could fall in love with a man after he did that.

I guess she's never had wrestle sex, LOL.

(I know that was crude.)

I stick to the nature of characters. I don't change just to make the reader happy.

Hurting my female protagonist is not some sick desire to make women suffer, (LOL) it's a desire to stay true to my story.

With this mixed with sticking to my character's nature has garnered me an unexpected success and a large following of readers that know when they open up my books, I will be true to the story til the end.