Love and Other Drugs

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As I mentioned in a previous blog, I don't like it when characters get twitterpated before you get to know them. (Twitterpated being a scientific term, originating in a very famous academic study of the habits of woodland creatures.)

One of the things I really like about my book (not to toot my own horn here, well, okay, toot toot) is the fact that while Lyssa has men all around her, her focus in life is not to be in love, it's not to be married. It's to be the best at what she does (of course, she takes that a little far by shunning everybody). Still, I like that my audience gets to know her as she is, and not when she's all goofy and in love.

Don't get me wrong, she does get a bit flustered with one, ridiculously attractive guy mid-to-end of the book. But that's a fleeting moment, and she is able to get past it. In fact, her inability to let anyone in is an asset in this case...but I digress.

I wanted to make sure that before I allowed Lyssa to fall in love that she had her own issues of self-worth under control. That she had experienced her growth without the need for a "soulmate" to "fix" her (although I do think that a big part of her journey is allowing herself to trust others).

I think that's a different kind of message, and one that has a lot of meaning for me personally. There's all these songs about how "You healed me" or "I was incomplete without you" or all that crap. My message is - you don't need anyone but yourself (and perhaps a good therapist) to heal yourself and be complete. Anyone else is icing on the cake.

And as for Lyssa, you'll have to find out if she ever gets to a point where she can allow herself to be loved, and love in return.