The Prince of Charm

posted by Loucinda McGary aka Aunty Cindy

I LURVE my heroes! Can't help myself. Must be because they are all (at least thus far) Irish hunks. And like all true Celts, they are dark haired and blue-eyed, but there the similarities end.

Donovan O'Shea, my hero of The Wild Sight is a man who tried to escape his painful past. But basically he has a dual nature, and near the climax of the story he actually recognizes this in himself. One side of him is a healer. Though he himself may be wounded (not nearly as much as the hero of my current Work In Progress, but that's a blog for another day), he seeks to fix things that are broken, soothe hurts, and generally set things right. But the other side of him is a warrior. When threatened, he doesn't hesitate to fight back, especially in defense of someone he cares about. Cross him at your peril!

The same can be said for my hero of The Treasures of Venice, Keirnan Fitzgerald. When necessary, this man can be dangerous. In fact, he even tells the heroine fairly early in the story that he is dangerous. She doesn't exactly believe him, of course, because Keirnan Fitzgerald is a typical Irish charmer.

I saw this first hand all over Ireland (in the North and the Republic). From wee little lads to dottering grandpas, Irish men are unparallelled when it comes to charm. Matter of fact, the legend of kissing the Blarney stone to imbue oneself with elequence has a basis in history. The 16th century Earl of Blarney, Cormac McCarthy managed to talk his way out of swearing fealty and surrendering his castle to Queen Elizabeth I.

Talk about a charmer!

I couldn't resist creating a character with some of those same endearing qualities... Or more accurately, as often happens with my characters, Keirnan Fitzgerald appeared on the scene with a charming swagger and a twinkle in his sapphire blue eyes. I'll admit it, I couldn't resist him!

Like his ancestors before him, when faced with the ancient conundrum of "fight or flight," Keirnan picks neither option. First, and foremost, he will try to talk himself out of a situation. Failing that... well, he really can be a warrior. But early in life he learned that old adage about honey and vinegar and he took it to heart, especially with the ladies. However, he's not the only one in the family who can turn on the charm, but again, that's another blog topic.

As I've mentioned before, I like to have physical models in mind when I write my characters. Luckily, fate and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno delivered me the perfect proto-type for Keirnan.

I'd seen the film version of Phantom of the Opera, and it just couldn't compare to my experiences seeing the live performance. I was also one of the few women on the planet who did not understand all the fuss over Gerard Butler. I know, I know... Then one night I saw him promoting his film 300 and Oh. My. Gosh! I truly believe that (like my hero, Keirnan Fitzgerald) that man could charm paint off the wall!

He might have been born and raised in Scotland, but Butler is an Irish name sure as I'm a McGary! And be honest now, ladies... If this man asked you to run away with him to Venice, would you say no?!?!?

What are some of your favorite types of heroes? Warriors? Professors? Any charmers in the bunch? And which celebrities do you find the most charming?