Melanie Card Guest Post and Giveaway!

Thank you Melissa for inviting me to be your guest today. I'm thrilled to be here. I love all types of heroes and heroines: strong, sassy, kick-ass, and quirky. The hero, Ward de'Ath, in my fantasy novel WARD AGAINST DEATH is quirky. He's awkward and sweet, determined and honorable. He has lots of traits that make him fun to hang out with so today my post is about the top four reasons why I love a quirky hero.

1. Depth of Character: quirky characters often have interesting or unusual backgrounds to help the reader understand why the character is the way they are. By developing these details he reader really connects with the hero. 
2. Humor: quirky characters often take the sidekick role for the purpose of adding humor to lighten up dark stories. And let's face it, writing about death and murder (the main plot in WARD AGAINST DEATH) risks verging on dark. But I often find that I love the quirky sidekick as much as the action hero and I always wanted to see them win the day and get the girl, so I decided to make my hero quirky. 
3. Unusual Strength: quirky heroes have unusual strengths. When we think of a typical action hero (and don't get me wrong, I love a traditional action hero as well) as someone who's cool under pressure, who knows how to throw a punch and swing a sword. But sometimes it's fun to read about a hero who has different skills. Someone who's smart, or a linguist, or say a physician. And while they’re not Mr. Cool in a fight they have other ways of defeating the bad guys. 
4. The Misfit: I think at one time or another we've all felt like we didn't fit in, we weren't sure who we were, or what we wanted to do with our lives. I love writing and reading about characters who are still trying to figure themselves out, and sometimes that means finding them in situations they're not sure they can get out of. I relate to these kinds of characters and I root for them. I want them to succeed because if they can, we all can. 

And the thing that I love most about my quirk hero, Ward, is that he has the soul of a traditional action hero (if not the skills). He will go that extra length to do what needs to be done regardless of personal danger. He keeps his word, even if it might get him killed. And he cares about doing the right thing for the good of others, even if it might not be the right thing for him.

Thanks for joining me. The hero of my fantasy novel, WARD AGAINST DEATH, is definitely quirky. Do you have a favorite quirky hero (or sidekick)?

Connect with Melanie: Facebook / Twitter @melaniecard / Goodreads / MelanieCard.com

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks Melanie for coming on the blog today. Oh I love quirky! I love it when a hero or heroine snarks it up. I have so many faves, I don't think I can list them all! :)

Giveaway!

I have been given the honor to giveaway an ebook of Ward Against Death to one lucky commenter. Just answer Melanie's question and leave an e-mail addy if one is not in your profile. I'll end the giveaway on the 20th. Since this is an ebook, it's international! Good luck!
Giveaway is now closed.