HERO SHOPPING
I’m a very visual person. I always thought everyone had their own personal “TV” in their heads that they could watch.
This works well for me as a writer, because I often see (and hear!) my scenes play out on that personal TV set.
But, the disadvantage is, if I can’t see it clearly, I can’t describe it clearly for my readers so they can tune in their sets. Sometimes I have to find visuals to help.
One thing I love to do is go hero shopping.
Where does one shop for heroes? Why, the Internet, of course. (How did we ever manage without the Internet?) Most of the time I use modeling websites. A lot of writers I know use celebrities as the model for their heroes/heroines, but I tend to gravitate more toward models who aren’t that well-recognized. Usually I know some of the characteristics I want, like blue eyes, or dark hair. I’ll know if I’m looking for someone younger looking, or a little older looking. What’s fascinating to me is how certain faces pop out for the different characters. I generally create an “audition pool” of potential candidates, and then I carefully choose between them. It’s mostly instinct at that point.
I do the same thing for my heroines, and any significant secondary characters.
Then I create a page with their pictures on it, and print it out. Right now my current hero and heroine are taped to the shade right next to my computer. This way, when I need to describe a certain physical characteristic, or a particular body movement or expression, I can glance over, get a really solid look at them, and put that onto the paper.
In my new book, A KID TO THE RESCUE, I’m 
introducing readers to the Hawkins Family. This family had a total of twelve children. The hero in KID is “child” number seven. So I needed images of the entire family. When I went “shopping” for the Hawkins characters, I tried to select people who shared similar characteristics. It turned out there’s a very distinctive jawline that runs in the family, particularly in the men. Also, to my surprise as I’ve learned more about the individuals, I can see those traits in their pictures—traits I didn’t know about when I picked out my models. For example, it turns out brother Hayden is a real flirt, a real lady’s man—and you can clearly see that in his pictures. (To see the whole Hawkins Family as I envision them, with a little help from a modeling website, go here. Please note that Kasey’s name has been changed to Kara, and some of my characters have developed back story that would make me now list them as divorced instead of just “single”—and these ages are based on the book A KID TO THE RESCUE. Now I just have to keep them all straight as I try to write more stories for these fine, fun, people.)
I send these pictures along with my manuscript, and my editor passes them on to the art department. The art department, also being made up of very visual folks, appreciates the fact that I give them something besides words to describe my characters. (Pictures being worth a thousand words, yada, yada…) My covers have always been fantastic, so I think submitting the pictures is helpful.
I also shop for furniture pictures, vehicles, and home layouts. Whatever I need in order to envision things clearly so my readers can also see things clearly.
Do you have a personal TV set in your head? When you write or read, do you actually “see” the scenes in your head? Does it irritate you when the pictures on the cover don’t precisely match the descriptions of the characters inside the book? Where would you go hero shopping?
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To learn more about Susan and her books, please have a look at yesterday’s promo post and visit her website.
Hi, everyone! Cindy, thanks for having me. I’m really glad to be here, and I look forwrd to chatting with everyone!
Hi, Susan!
Your book sounds wonderful — and congrats on the Top Pick from RT!
I admit I’ve never gone shopping for actual photos to go with my characters, but you make it sound like a really good idea — good for picturing a scene. I think I’m going to give it a shot. Thanks for the idea:). Any sites you’d recommend?
Natale
I’m with Natale – I want sites. I’ve tried hero shopping on modeling sites before, and I don’t think I found the right sites. It became a lesson in frustration.
Susan, if you post links, the post will probably go to moderation, but I’ll approve it. 😉 (That is, if you’re willing to release your search secrets).
I think it’s a wonderful idea, and I love how you built the family page on your site. The matriarch and patriarch…I wanna look like that when I get, um, more mature.
Okay, my favorite modeling website is:
http://www.maxtalent.com/models/all
They have a lot of really great faces there. I wish I could get Harlequin to hire these folks for my covers, since that’s pretty much my main character shopping place.
Cindy, yeah, I want to look like Lydia when I’m her age, too. I LOVE her hair! Isn’t it gorgeous? That family is just too damn goodlooking. lol.
The models generally also have multiple poses, too. So you can more than one shot of them.
Thanks, you’re a gem (yes, I had to approve that post with the link. Sometimes spam filters are aggravating, but usually I love ’em).
What a fascinating process, Susan! I’ve never tried to capture the looks of my characters (except for the occasional one who looked like a celebrity) but I definitely want to try this. And thanks for giving us the link. (Consider it bookmarked!)
I’ve loved your earlier books and I am so excited about reading this one!
Susan, your book sounds very interesting! Congrats on the great review!! I too have a TV playing in my head. Doesn’t everyone??? LOL. It’s been that way since I was a kid. It used to get on my nerves having such a vivid and wild imagination but now that I’ve harnessed it and put it down on paper, I love it.
Thanks for the link. Can’t wait to check it out.
Hey Susan:
I love “hero shopping!” I was having trouble with my characters until I went to an after-hours collaging workshop at a conference. Now I get people to save magazines for me and I create my own little world with my characters glued on a manilla file folder. Not sure why I haven’t tried the internet before, but I’ll definitely give it a shot!
Jennifer, I’m amazed to find out that some people DON’T have the tv set in their heads. Even some writers. Those poor, poor people. 😉
Debbie, I’ve done collaging, too, and it’s really fun. The thing I like about that is also the subconscious connection. I have chosen photos for my collage and not known WHY. The why usually shows up further into the story. Or a bit later, I will notice one tiny detail in the picture that fits for my story. It’s a great tool.
The internet works great for when you know what you’re looking for, a specific picture. The magazines work better when you’re just letting your subconsious do the work as you flip through pages.
I taught the NEORWA about collaging. It really is even more fun when you sit with some other writers and pour over magazines. It’s one of the few times that I’ve ever sat in a room full of writers that was fairly quiet. LOL.
Susan, when I write, yes, I have a *screen* running in my head. I’ve not used modeling sites before (and you’ve shared some lovely models with me, tyvm, lolol!) but I have searched for faces for some of my characters on the internet. It sounds like a great idea though. In my current WIP, I had a clear picture of my hero but the heroine has been a bit more difficult, but I found her. It helps, that’s for sure. I always have a cazillion catalogs around that I’ve used for clothes, furnishings, and cars.
I really like the idea of providing a visual for the art department. Great idea! Congratulations on the Top Pick from RT!
Great post! Congratulations on the super review, Susan! Cute cover! I enjoyed seeing your pics of the Hawkins family. I also have that “TV” in my head and find I’m a very visual person. I love finding pics of my characters online (especially heroes) but am not always able to. When I do, I post them on my Myspace page. 🙂
Susan, I DON’T have the TV in my head. I have little spurts, but definitely no TV. I think this is one of the reasons I’m a slow writer. It takes me a long time to work out a scene so that I *do* see it in my head. Then I have to take out all the extraneous stuff I put in there so I could “see” it, LOL.
Hi Susan,
Very nice to meet you. I enjoyed your blog. I’ve ‘shopped’ the internet a bit, but I tend to find pictures in magazines like Architectural Digest and other house design magazines. Not sure why I connect with them, but it works for me.
As for knowing the hero, heroine or other character when I see them, I’m with you. I’m not always sure of what story they’ll work with, but I cut them out and put them in my character file. I also do this with settings, homes and so on. I’m a huge tree picture collector. Don’t ask me why, but I’m totally drawn to them.
Did you have any favorite ‘shopping’ sites for your characters? I’d love to check them out. Thanks again for stopping by Cindy’s blog!
Diana Cosby
Interesting post! I do a lot of searching online for my characters too. Most recently I was developing a male character who was half Japanese and half Caucasian. I did all kinds of research online. I found literally hundreds of wonderful photos of all kinds of mixed Asian + whatever males and females. Gorgeous! And fascinating how the different mixes result in such different looks. Lots of info for characterization too. Now how gorgeous is this man: http://www.russellwong.com/gallery/gallery-publicity.html# ??
I had an image of a specific physical type for a woman, too, because her appearance was a part of the storyline. I was able by searching online to find several women I pieced together to get her “look” – and she came alive.
I also collect visuals in other ways. I subscribed to Architectural Digest for a while specifically to build up a library of the kinds of crazy amazing homes that I will likely never even visit. I have several books of house plans so I can “build” houses for my characters and envision paths through them. I get actual maps of areas similar to what I’m using, and merge them into my fictional world. It’s fabulous fun. And it gives a lot of information to my “TV in my head”.
Whew! And I thought “seeing” the story meant “mentally deranged” so I didn’t say anything. LOL Guess I’m not the only head case running around. I’ve never thought to shop for photos, however. My heroes are always step onstage fully formed in my mind’s eye. Then comes the big reveal–the quirky sense of humor, the touch of darkness, the little insecurity. I do so love my heroes.
Great post. Maybe I’ll try some window shopping. Doesn’t cost to look in the window!
I too have a little TV playing in my head, but sometimes the players faces aren’t as clear as I’d like them to be. I’ve used celebrity pictures occasionally but the problem is that sometimes the celebrity’s personality takes over my character! Every hero can’t be like Brad Pitt! Using your model site means that I can make these characters my own.
Jana Richards
Jana, that’s exactly my problem. They faces are never that clear for me. It’s like a have bodies walking around in my head, and talking, but I can’t ever see their faces clearly, which is why I resort to Hero Shopping.
Pat, LOL! I’m so glad I’ve reassured you that you’re normal. Well..normal for a writer, anyway. LOL. Cindy, I’m so sorry you don’t have the tv set. Actually, sometimes I don’t get the next scene that easily, either. It might take a while for me to “tune in” to the next scene.
Susan magazines are great. The hero for my WIP is a chef, so I’m tempted to grab some cooking magazines, culinary magazines, etc. (I’m already addicted to Food Network. )
Yes, yes, yes, to the headset TV! I’m totally visual. I can’t write a word until I know exactly what my characters look like. I’ve gone so far as to cut out pictures of their houses inside and out, their wardrobes, jewelry…heck, even their dishes!
For BULLETPROOF BRIDE when I couldn’t find the “right” photo of a loft apartment, I actually got out my colored pencils and drew one. *perfectionist much?* *G*
The biggest problem about having this vice…er…habit… is the towering stacks of magazines in every corner of my office. They’re taking over!
I’m a magazine junkie for visuals: fashion, design, travel, you name it. That’s great for the superficial layers, but then I dig deeper. I create astrological charts for all my characters. First I decide on some basic character traits and the sun sign to best illustrate them. Then, I generate an actual chart which determines the details. It’s all there, just as it would be for a real person. Their physical appearance, their preferences, motivations, their past, present and future are all mapped out. Sometimes I use tarot readings for plot development. It helps that I am an intuitive counselor 😉
I do have to know what my hero & heroine look like – so I search the net for pictures of them, I don’t print them out as I have a b&w printer. I’ve never gone internet shopping for furniture and architecture before. I think I might try that. I’m going have to make sure that it doesn’t turn into a another way to procrastinate!
A note for commenters…
Please link to your blogs and websites using the appropriate spaces on the comment form. Please don’t duplicate/sign off with more links within your blog post, or it goes to moderation and I might not get to it in a timely manner, plus then I have to edit out the links to discourage more links from appearing.
If you’re posting sites that have to do with Susan’s topic (like modeling sites) within your blog posts, that’s fine, however.
Thanks!
Cindy
I loved this book! The whole Hawkins clan is beyond fantastic and I can’t wait to read more of them. Once again, Susan, you’ve crafted a book full of poignant, funny, sexy and absolutely likable characters. It also has one of the most emotional scenes I’ve read in a book in a long time. Great, great job!!
Hi, Susan ( and Cindy!)-
I hero and heroine shop too, but I often find it quite frustrating. I have pretty specific ideas in mind and finding just the right guy or gal to match the image in my head is tough! I’ve been known to find a picture and think…hmmm, I need to write a story with a guy like that- just so I could use a particular picture!
COngrats on your 4.5 top pick!!
Beth Cornelison
Thanks so much for the link to the models. Great resource. Now if I could just find one that fit my hero in all ways. As it is, I’ll have to combine two – one for the coloring and build and the other for the personality.
So far, I’ve totally struck out on my heroine. Interesting thing to notice. There don’t seem to be any redheads – male or female.
Question: What magazines are good for models? We only get news and literary ones. Obviously no good for pictures.
I take it back. There are a couple of redheads – just not the type I was looking for.
What a great idea. How about posting some of the websites you use. I would love to try this idea.
Also, your book sounds intriguing. I’d put my own imagination to work while reading it. And, I do have a TV in my head. Sometimes, unfortunately, there’s interruptions in the “program” and I don’t see what I need to see.
Joan
Joan and Diana, Susan did post one of the modeling sites she uses. Check out the 4th comment.
I’m not manic about it but do appreciate having the covers match the descriptions of the characters within the book. So thanks for sending along the photos to the art department so the odds are raised that the visual will match the characters description.
I agree with you Ann. To me it really adds to the story when the covers match the descriptions of the characters inside. I’ve read stories before when the heroine has blonde or red hair and the cover has brown just kinda ruins the illusion. Not to the point of me not finishing the story but it is disappointing. So thank you Susan for doing what you can to help the art dept get the cover right.
Wow, I so envy you being visual!!! I’m auditory and have to make a conscious effort to remember that other people are more visual than I am and want something to look at (or words to that effect!). I’m going to borrow some of your ideas to help me raise my V.Q. — Visual Quotient!
Cheers,
Meg
Wow, Susan! If I didn’t know better I’d think that was just a great procrastination tool. 🙂 I confess I’m not visual and never look up things or people in my books.
It’s good to see you! I’ve been away from eHarl. for a while. 🙂
I’m like Meg. I’m auditory, and I often describe the character’s voices much more than their looks. When I have a few minutes, I’ll check out the model websites. I’m sure it will help me, and it will probably be fun too.
And, no, I never procastinate. 😉
Susan, congrats on the wonderful RT rating! WTG! BTW, I love your idea about model auditions. And what a wonderful family page! Ooh, and there’s a model link I can check out and call research?! Very cool. 🙂 Well, you’ll have to excuse me. I have to do some research. 😉
I’m looking forward to A Kid to the Rescue hitting the shelves tomorrow.
All the best,
Gail Fuller
Nat, who me, procrastinate? Nah. Actually, I really do NEED the pictures. I can’t work well without them.
Some people are auditory, Meg. Hey, at least you can hear them talking, right? Dialogue should come easier that way.
My hero’s hair on the cover is a bit lighter than how I described him. I called his hair walnut, and to me, the guy onthe cover has chestnut hair. Oh, well.
Thanks to all of you for stopping by, and thanks for the cheers for my op Pick from RT. It’s been great being here today, and I hope some of you found a new fun tool to use when working. (Or at least when procrastinating. LOL!)
I’m a bit late to the party. I’m a visual writer, too, with all the same struggles. It was so beautiful when I saw it in my head….*sigh*
I must say the idea of hero shopping is just too fun. Think I’ll give it a whirle! 😀 Congrats, Susan on the kudos from RT and thanks for the great post.
Congratulations to Ann! The Random Number Generator declared you the winner of Susan’s book, A KID TO THE RESCUE.
Ann, I’ve sent you an email. Please be on the look-out for it. If you don’t see it in your box, please shoot me an email from the address on my Contact page.
Thank you to everyone who dropped by. My next guest blogger is funny paranormal romance author, Natale Stenzel. She’s blogging February 25th. Hope to see many of you back then.