Wet as in dreary; weak; feeble; namby-pamby; wishy-washy; or just plain pathetic...
I have this problem with one of mine - actually he's my protagonist. He's not a real butch guy. He couldn't stand up for himself if he found himself surrounded by huge, ripped bruisers. I kept him realistic. Let's face it, many characters in fantasy can be big, have the ideal bodybuilder physique, can kill 12 burly orcs with their bare hands, down three bottles of whisky, and still ride a unicycle in a straight line all the way home to a big-breasted, devoted woman that may or may not be their wife.
My character? Rowen Mcgregor? Okay, he may not be all of the above, but he IS a Captain of a galleon ship. He has the authority to command his minions, and it's his rank and his connections that make him revered and respected. I have no problem with this area of his life. He's strong enough and more than capable of commanding his men.
But the one issue I have is, for a man in this position, how in touch can they be with their emotions?
He's a family man, a man who loves his wife and the child they're about to have, but when something happens to her and he has to play hero, he does give in to his grief.
This made me think. There are many many fantasy books out there with male protagonists, and I confess that I'm not overly read in this section of the library. Would having a male protagonist in touch with his emotions like this devalue my novel to the male market? Because he has this little breakdown, I don't want him to appear too wet in the eyes of readers who are expecting the stereotypical hero who laughs in the face of all things dangerous and tragic. I do like the fact that he is realistic and not a bolshy, unbelievable character, so tell me...
...if you read a book and the male character gives off a 'few' tears, would this bother you? Or am I too in-touch with my own emotions and need to take a step back? I confess, I'd cry in his situation, but then it doesn't take much to set me off... :)
My view is two-fold: Dont have him emote. It is a turn-off. What you can have, however, is have him transpose his emotions to another activity. When I first went off to university all those years ago, my dad who was the strong and silent type, painted every room in the house. It told me more than tears that he was upset.
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DeleteYeah...he gets angrey when he's upset - which he has done up until this point. Maybe I should just man him up a little...lol
DeleteNo it doesn't bother me at all. One of my favorite male characters is Tyrion Lannister from A Game of Thrones. He's a half-man, a dwarf, and has no battle skill whatsoever. But he's smart...really, really smart.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I like characters that are like this :)
DeleteI'd rather have a character that seemed to be human, than a cardboard cut-out. I don't really know what the state of play is in current fantasy either, but I do know your MC sounds like someone I could relate to.
ReplyDeleteThanks Nick. I do wonder whether or not some of my emotions and how I would deal with certain situations have come across in my character...lol. But no doubt I'll see this when the time comes and change it if it needs be.
DeleteJust left you an award on my blog!
ReplyDeleteYay!!! Thanks Ilima xx
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