On alpha...girls
by Sophie Jordan

The subject often comes up regarding alpha heroes, and it has led me to ponder. As much as we love them, I'm not sure whether these men would work in real life. I sometimes think all their dark, tortured, powerful (i.e., controlling) ways would result in a restraining order, if not a jail cell.

But that's what's so wonderful about fiction...specifically romance. The darkest of all alpha heroes can be reformed! Our heroines are just the women to do it. They're incredible women (the women we have always wanted to be!), who manage to tame the beast.

Alas, after writing three books about tortured dark heroes, I began to ponder some more. What about an alpha...girl?  What about (for a change) a “tough nut” heroine? And a hero who has to work hard to crack the shell surrounding her wounded heart?

In SURRENDER TO ME, my heroine is the historical alpha-girl. Astrid is dark, jaded, and misunderstood (she was actually the pseudo-villainess for my previous book, TOO WICKED TO TAME). Halfway through STM, I realized what I was doing. I was writing her like a man, like one of my heroes. But she's a woman! A different experience, to be sure.

To shake this heroine's world up a bit, I removed her from her familiar world. Thus, the story's Scottish setting. No ballrooms or titled lords in sight.

Her hero? Well, aside from still having all those great sexy, hero qualities (hey, that's how I write my guys, no matter the heroine!), he needed a truckload of patience. He needed to be the opposite of everything Astrid's ever known, in particular, the type of men she's had to deal with. Thus, his rough ways and Texas origins.

So, what is your take on alpha heroes? Or alpha girls, for that matter? Do share.

Is anyone else seeing Elizabeth Taylor clashing with Richard Burton in THE TAMING OF THE SHREW in their head? But isn't alpha girl a more flattering term than shrew?