Categories: HumorWriting

The yearning for emotional constipation.

The last few days were a rollercoaster. We participated in ‘Stuff Your Kindle Day’ and got 15k downloads and sales for the rest of the series. That gives me the hope that maybe between those thousands of people who downloaded the book, we will get a little luck and be noticed by the mainstream audience.

To unwind, I insisted on watching a classic, and that’s how we ended up with Mark spending half an hour searching for and then us binging on my favourite, often re-watched, Pride and Prejudice from 1995. The one with Colin Firth.

I wish I could create characters like this in my books, but I think it is just excellent acting skills that make it impossible to re-create the moments of emotional constipation when he tries to hide the passion that simmers beneath the surface. I think Mr Darcy, as he is played by Colin, is my favourite male character in any historical romance.

I think you can find traces of it in my books. The man who feels deeply but struggles to express his emotions, expressing his feelings in action rather than words. Seeing him actively helping Lizzy solve the family problem rather than shower her with platitudes and flowery words epitomises manliness for me.

Hopefully, one day I will be a writer that can express the depths of masculine emotional constipation in a way that gives my readers Mr Darcy wet pants moments (Seeing that torso emerge from the pond is a moment that forever lives in my dreams, but don’t mention that to my partner).

Now I’m curious. Do you have a favourite character that you feel is the pinnacle of manliness? If so, let me know. I’m curious about what rocks your boat.

Olena Nikitin

Olena Nikitin is the pen name of a writing power couple, Olga and Mark, who share a love of fantasy, paranormal romance, rich vivid worlds and exciting storylines. In their books and out, they love down-to-earth humour, a visceral approach to life, striving to write realistic romances filled with the passion and steam people always dream of experiencing.