Ready…set…steal a character!
Which character from a book by any other author, living or dead, would you secretly like to “steal” and put into one your own books…and why?
- Terry Ambrose:
Oh man, a character steal? There are so many great ones. But if I only get one, I’m going to snatch up Kinsey Millhone from Sue Grafton. I fell in love with Kinsey early on in the series. I always loved everything from her little quirks to her dogged persistence when she was solving a case.
- Nancy J. Cohen:
I can’t think of a single one that would fit into my series. I guess this means I’m happy with the characters in my books. Besides, my escapist reading includes scifi/fantasy or historical novels, and those don’t mesh with contemporary in my view.
- Debra H. Goldstein:
If I could steal any character from a book, it would be Perry Mason (the version played by Raymond Burr). His evolution from sleazy to polished lawyer, who still cleverly operates on the edge sometimes, is fun to read and would be a joy to write.
- Cheryl Hollon:
I would love for Detective Vera Stanhope from the Ann Cleeves Northumberland UK series to appear in downtown St. Petersburg in midsummer. I can hear her ‘luv’ and ‘my pet’ comments as pointedly directed to our local Florida Man antics.
- Diane A.S. Stuckart:
Well, I would love to steal my own Hamlet the cat from the Black Cat Bookshop Mystery series and put him in one of my future Tarot Cats books. And, you know, I might just do that someday!
- Maggie Toussaint:
I’ve always been fascinated by dragons and their people. As an adult, I read the entire Dragons of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey and love-love-loved it. And who can forget Daenerys Targaryen, the Mother of Dragons, in Game of Thrones? Dragon stories captivate my imagination. This year I’ve devoured several dragon series by Lindsay Buroker and find myself drawn to these powerful creatures anew. Most writers who use dragons in their work portray them as powerful, courageous, loyal, vindictive, and deadly. Those traits are magical when it comes to building a story world. If I live long enough, I’d love to write a dragon series.
- Lois Winston
Since Anastasia has been compared so favorably to Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum character (Kirkus Reviews called her, “North Jersey’s more mature answer to Stephanie Plum.”), I’d love to see what would happen if Anastasia and Stephanie met up some day. Would the two Jersey Girls bond? Or would South Jersey’s Stephanie butt heads with North Jersey’s Anastasia? This inquiring mind would love to know!
READERS, YOUR TURN…WHAT CHARACTER FROM ANOTHER BOOK WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE MAKE AN APPEARANCE IN ONE OF OUR BLB AUTHORS’ STORIES?
It was fun to read everyone’s character steals!
I agree, Maggie! It’s always fun to see who other authors would insert into their series if they could!
I think Maggie wins hands down for most unique character steal. I can’t wait to see how she inserts a dragon into a cozy mystery. 😉
So many possibilities! I would love for Mercy McKay to meet up with Lois Winston’s Anastasia Pollack,,because they are both crafters and could exchange tips and techniques. Cindy Sample’s Laurel McKay would be fun, too – I wonder if they are related by marriage somehow. A throwback would be Leslie Charteris’s Simon Templar, because I grew up on The Saint books and magazine thanks to my mother’s influence.
Mary Beth, now that’s an intriguing idea…