In lines like Blaze, you might expect to find glamorous models and rich playboys who have nothing to do but party all night and spend all day in bed, but one of my favorite things about our line is the vast expanse of professions and work that our characters do for a living. You find everything here, from characters who work to start their own retail shops, to those who run corporations. I have written dog trainers, lawyers, computer experts and hackers, shop owners, restaurant reviewers, Texas Rangers (and a host of other law enforcement officials), and when I pick up a Blaze, one of the first things I look for is what the characters do for a living. For me, that is part of the fun of the book, and it all serves to make our characters more real.

In my books this year, I have had a tabloid reporter, a heroine who runs a bakery and her hero who is a professor and scientific consultant, and upcoming in my Christmas book, the hero is a race car driver, and the heroine runs a vineyard (here in Central New York, actually — my first locally set book). After that, I have a soap shop owner and a bodyguard (June 2011), and a line up of other interesting heroes and heroines with their unique ways of making a living.

Part of the fun for me is choosing my character’s profession, and in many cases, researching it, as I am not a professional in all of these areas, obviously. I do research in a number of ways, both on the internet, reading, and contacting people who can answer questions or explain to me the finer points of what they do.

For instance, I have never been to a professional car race, so I had to do a lot of research there, reading a lot on the internet, but also asking friends, family, and a lot of folks on FaceBook and Twitter specific questions. Television can even help (Dirty Jobs had a great episode on Coopers, barrel-makers, that was very helpful in my Christmas book.)

I learn a lot! A year ago, I had no idea even what the difference was between NASCAR and F1, but now I know enough that I was able to hold a conversation about it on vacation with someone we met at our inn. For my soap shop heroine, I employed the expertise of a woman who makes her own soaps and lotions here in CNY, and she has been so helpful in sharing her love for her work, which really helped me show how much my heroine loves what she does, as well. I have to admit, I enjoy writing and researching law enforcement officers; any excuse to talk to them is a rush for me.

In general, I have always found people to be very generous when asked to share their expertise so that I can make my characters’ worlds as real as possible. For that, I am very thankful.

What are some professions we don’t see in Blaze, or other romances? Are some more preferred than others? Why, do you think? What are some of your favorites?

This entry was posted on Saturday, August 21st, 2010 at 6:00 am and is filed under Samantha Hunter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.