Today’s post is brought to you by the letter J -- J for Jungian Archetypes.

Several years ago, long before I dove head-first into writing romance, I wrote a 5-book, 500,000 word brain child affectionately referred to as my Magnum Opus -- the unnamed MO for short. My tome-to-be is heavy in more than just wordage. It's steeped in philosophy, theology, theosophy, physics/quantum physics, metaphysics, energy medicine, and above all, it's a timeless love story. The MO is filled with historical vignettes starting 38,000 years ago in what is now France to Philadelphia during the Revolutionary War. As with all of my novels, I also make a social statement with it. (I'm naturally compelled!). The story was one all authors wish for -- the kind where someone flips a switch inside your head and it  writes itself.

The concept came to me after reading Joseph Campbell’s The Hero With a Thousand Faces. His book discusses the journey of archetypal heroes found in world mythologies. Hero quests are the stuff of literature and we love them from Homer's Odyssey to Harry Potter.

It got me thinking...why do we love the hero quest? I suspect it's because we can so easily see ourselves in them. Be it Odysseus escaping Calypso's island or Harry Potter ridding the wizarding world of Voldemort, it's very appealing when heroes and heroines win the day. Campbell’s book got me interested in the notion of opposites -- good/evil, light/dark, right/wrong because these are recurring themes in humanity. I was unknowingly tapping into common hero and villain  traits when creating the characters for my stories. These traits are called Jungian Archetypes after Swiss psychotherapist and psychiatrist Carl Jung. Jung studied and named the personality traits we all know today – the outgoing extravert and the quiet introvert, for example.

After splitting from his colleague Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung founded analytical psychology. He discovered there were more facets to human personality than just being outgoing vs. reserved. Along with his study of prehistoric artworks, it was his interest in world folklore and literature spanning thousands of years that led him to categorize everyone. Jung created some of the best known psychological concepts of all time, one of which was the archetype. 

What are Archetypes exactly? To begin, the origin of the word archetype comes from the Greek archétypon, which means first-molded. In essence, this is the original model of a person – a prototype which others emulate. In psychology, an archetype is a model of personality or behavior universally recognizable by all. In works of fiction, these personality traits are the platform we build our heroes and heroines upon.

Here’s what Jung came up with. See how many make instant connections in your mind.

I'll start with the ego and its four functions: Sensation, Thinking, Feeling, and Intuition. From there we have:

• The Self: the regulating center of the psyche. The whole, unified consciousness and unconscious of a person.
• The Shadow: the opposite of the ego image. Contains qualities the ego does not identify with but still possesses. The part of the unconscious mind consisting of instincts, repressed weaknesses, and shortcomings.
• The Anima: the feminine image in a man's psyche, aka, the unconscious feminine qualities that a male possesses.
• The Animus: the masculine image in a woman's psyche, aka the unconscious masculine qualities that a woman possesses.
• The Persona: how we present ourselves to the world.

Within these, Jung determined the archetypes were limitless. Here are a few recurring ones:

• The Child: or innocent, is more likely to suffer at the hands of others
• The Hero: comes from a position of weakness, but in the face of danger or adversity will display courage and self-sacrifice for some greater good.
• The Great Mother: the bountiful embodiment of the Earth. Refers to any mothering goddess associated with motherhood, fertility, or creation.
• The Wise Old Man: usually a profound philosopher, who uses personal knowledge of the world to teach wisdom and sound judgment.
• The Trickster: intentionally breaks the rules but unintentionally gets positive effects out of it.
• The Devil: displays characteristics of pure evil. Typically self-centered and power-hungry, only interested in achieving personal goals.
• The Scarecrow: Mysteriously knows everything about the world, yet has had no interaction with the world to gain that knowledge.
• The Mentor: Are often imaginative people who are more intrigued by future possibilities than concerned with the here and now. A great source of inspiration to the people around them.

I've used most of these and I've also combined traits to add depth to the circumstances of my characters' personal histories. With them I create intelligent characters. The heroines in all of my stories are strong competent women. All of my equally sharp heroes walk through their world confident and unashamed to be tender and kind-hearted. Their anima/animus duality is what makes both interesting and loveable. The best thing about them is they both know how lucky they are to have the other person in their lives – twin flames, two halves of the one. 

Sample my archetypes for yourself with Amazon's Look Inside feature. http://www.amazon.com/Rose-Anderson/e/eBOO4XDGWL6/

Here's an intriguing clip to explain the Anima and Animus.

 

What's your type? Take the test and find out!
http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes1.htm

Rose is multi-published author and dilettante who loves great conversation and learning interesting things to weave into stories. She lives with her family and small menagerie amid oak groves and prairie in the rolling glacial hills of the upper mid-west.  
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How Close to Reality Should You Get in Fiction?

First, I must apologize in case I've used this blog before.  We have company coming, and I have been cleaning house all week.  Yes, it was that dirty, she says while shaking her head.

 

I write about real life, so I believe its okay to make your situations real, and have your characters act like genuine people.  We have heroes, heroine's, villains and people like you and me in our stories, so an author has to make them realistic.  A hero or heroine may not be heroic in there everyday life, but they can become courageous under certain situations.

 

For instance, a neighbor could pull you or a child from a burning house, or they see someone breaking into your house and run over with a gun or a ball bat to help fight off the robbers.  Is that a hero/heroine, or a stupid move on their part?  It all depends on what kind of capabilities you gave them.  Usually, there is something in their background that makes them capable of acting the way they do.

 

To make a story that your readers won't find fault with, you research the skills you give them.  Their skills should be accurate and as realistic as you can make them.  Some people can just have natural instincts to survive, but you must be in their head to show this. 

 

Have a great Memorial Day everyone.  Remember our loved ones and those wonderful men and women who fight for us. 

 

I hope this makes sense, as I have rewritten a bit of this. 

 

Best,

Sandra K. Marshall

http://www.amazon.com/author/sandramarshall

Can A Hero Be TSTL?

We’ve all heard about the Too Stupid to Live heroine.

You know the one I’m talking about. The foot-stamping, thirty-something contemporary heroine who has no excuse to behave this way except that she’s always exhibited this behavior to get what she wants—and she never changes. Her character never sees the light and somewhere near the end of the book, the hero gives a knowing nod or some signal that basically conveys his acceptance of the situation because he wants her. My question is—why?

I ask the same question of a heroine who accepts being treated abominably through the entire book by a hero that doesn’t give any indication he sees a reason to change. There is a danger when writing a hero of making them over-the-top alpha's and so disagreeable that the reader will wonder what kind of “happily ever after” these people are actually going to get. And although it doesn’t speak well of the heroine for accepting or excusing his behavior, presumably for the same reason as above—because she wants him, I tend to lose respect for them both.

No, I’m not anti-alpha hero. I love them as characters and there’s an alpha male on practically every book cover on my shelves and in my e-reader. What can I say; I’m a sucker for a ruggedly handsome face and a muscular bare chest. Throw in a five o’clock shadow and some dark eyes and you’ll get me to the blurb and probably whatever excerpt is available. All of this may get me to buy the book but a TSTL hero/heroine between its covers will get said book deleted or thrown into the donation pile quicker than you can say, “five o’clock shadow”.

A very smart critique partner once told me that as long as my character’s actions were believably motivated the reader would sympathize and even identify with that character. If I had an alpha who was stoic and brusque, I’d better show him casting longing gazes at the heroine and give him a background that explained his churlish behavior (I was writing historical romance at the time). Then I’d better show him struggling to change/grow. In other words, I could make the hero as rough as I wanted, but if I didn’t show his vulnerability and connect it to why he behaved the way he did, the reader wouldn’t believe his actions when he finally revealed his true feelings for the heroine.

How about you? What do you think would make a hero TSTL?

Until next month,

Paris

http://parisbrandon.com

Cross My Heart-NOR Top Pick

Head Over Heels-2^nd Place –Passionate Plume-Novella

Assassin’s Kiss—4 Stars Romantic Times Review

When you're out of touch with your characters...

Stopping and restarting a work in progress is a challenge for me and not something I can do as easily as I once could. When I have to a WIP on hold to edit, or judge a contest or work on a time-sensitive story, when I return to it the momentum I had going on has faltered. Going back a chapter or two, or picking random chapters to read often sparks a, Oh yeah, NOW I remember where I was going with this, but not always. Then I pick up where I left off, generally at a slug's pace until I "feel" the book again.

Because retrieving this feeling or momentum isn't always a given, I've taken to answering a list of questions about my characters, just to get to know them again, reintroduce myself in a way. Doing this has become a valuable tool to reestablishing a connection with my heroes and heroines, and quite often I learn something brand new about them that I didn't know when we first met.

My vocation is........ My mother taught me....

I laugh about........ I wish I could.........

My father taught me........ My view of men came from....

My view of women came from.... My favorite memory from my childhood is....

My worst memory from childhood is.... My greatest fault is..........

Men usually............ Work is my............

The place I've always wanted to visit is....because....

When I look at myself in the mirror I see....

I sleep when I'm........ My favorite holiday is....because....

I'm afraid that someday I will....... The greatest influence in my life is....

My mother............ My father..........

Women usually........ No one knows better than I do that....

My greatest weakness is that........ My worst fear is that........

I am happiest when....

And the list could go on and on. If you don't already have one and encounter the same roadblocks I do when you have to step away from one project to work on another, maybe this list will help you easily revisit your story and cast of characters.

WHY CHOCOLATE IS BETTER THAN SEX

Love is in the air as Valentine's Day is only two weeks away. Are you ready for love and romance? Whether it's with flowers, candy or some other special treat, enjoy the day with the one you love!
Photo: Flickr: toephotophotostream

 Below are 12 Reasons Why CHOCOLATE Is Better Than SEX:
from http://www.flowgo.com/funny/2099_chocolate-sex.html

12 Reasons Why CHOCOLATE
Is Better Than SEX!

1. You can have chocolate in front of your parents.

2. Nobody starts rumors about who you shared chocolate with.

3. People of the same sex can share chocolate without being called names.

4. The word "commitment" doesn't scare off chocolate.

5. Chocolate is satisfying even if it's gone soft.

6. No matter what kind of chocolate you like, it's legal.

7. You can have chocolate with a whole group of friends without being obscene.

8. If you have to pay for your chocolate, it's not too expensive.

9. Chocolate is just as attractive when you're sober.

10. A big piece of chocolate lasts longer, but even a small piece is satisfying.

11. You can have chocolate in the office without upsetting your co-workers.

12. It's easy to GET chocolate any time you want!!!

Do you agree? Now, I love chocolate and maybe sometimes it's just a wonderful, satisfying treat, but could anything replace sex in your life?

My romance books are all about love and sex, and none of my heroines would ever trade their heroes for chocolate...having both at the same time maybe, but not just chocolate without their men!
Visit www.mariannestephens.net for information about my mainstream romances. "Gone to the Dogs" is now available in print! "Anything You Can Do" releases 19 February from http://www.breathlesspress.com/.
VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSho7Mus4zo
Visit http://www.aprilash.net/ for information about my erotic romances.