Monday, October 22, 2012

The Wrong Bed ... Always So Right

This weekend I let the latest issue of Time sit, untouched, on my night table in order to finish Katee Robert’s super-hot Brazen Wrong Bed, Right Guy.  (Okay, nitpickers, maybe it was Us Weekly, but whatever.  The point being, it sat, untouched). Why?  Because I’m a sucker for a good wrong bed story.

 In case you’re unfamiliar with the trope, I’ll give you my summary.  I consider a “wrong bed” story as, basically, mistaken identity, sexified by sticking the clueless couple in the sack.  And yes, in my mind, at least one of ‘em has got to be clueless as to who they’re actually hooking up with, or it doesn’t count as WB.   It’s one of those situations that almost never happens in real life – if it does, someone’s probably pressing charges – but occurs all the time in fiction.   Although some folks may take issue with my narrow definition.  Harlequin Blaze publishes a long-running wrong bed series, and applies the label to a wide range of fling-y, WTF I’m gonna do him just this once scenarios.

I like a good fling story as much as the next girl, but when it comes to wrong bed, I’m a fundamentalist.  I want more than a little bad judgment or a weak moment.  I want the “oops” factor.  Maybe there’s alcohol involved, maybe identical twins, or maybe, as in Wrong Bed, Right Guy, a fun, sexy, farcical combination of mistake and happenstance.  To me, that’s the key.  I see the set-up in a contemporary novel and I know the author aims to make me laugh. And I hope she succeeds.  I’ll read the friggin’ Time magazine if I want to think real hard.
Since I enjoy this particular device so much, it stands to reason I’d try to write one of my own.  Not easy.  I grappled with the right scenario, and ended up eschewing a bed in favor of a Santa costume, a supply closet and a racy impulse on my heroine’s part that promises to land her on the naughty list for life.  Fun, and funny, I hope, but the real challenge came in taking the action out of the closet, so to speak.   For me, the wrong bed, as a storyline, didn’t exactly write itself – it’s more of a hook than a full-blown plot.  

As hooks go, I found this one surprisingly tricky. I mean, the mistake has to be plausible, or the lead character comes across as a hopeless bonehead, and the reader can’t invest in him or her.  Paint no character as a victim or you’ve turned the other participant, (the one who is supposed to be your hero or heroine), into a bad guy.  And it is dang hard to get to happily-ever-after when your hero, for instance, is serving time for trespassing, stalking, etc.
After all the effort spent setting up and navigating the wrong bed situation, I still had to come up with novel-sustaining conflict, both internal and external.  Next time I’ll simplify my life and write a marriage of convenience story.  Yeah, yeah … those are big right now!  Or secret baby.  Or, I know, how about … Fifty Shades of Santa?

Do you have a favorite storyline … some back-cover buzzword that always sucks you in?  I’ve shown you mine.  Share one of yours, if you dare!  And if you’ve gone so far as to use the trope in a story, give me the deets.

18 comments:

  1. I don't have a story to share, but I loved your defintion. And Fifty Shades Of Santa, could be quite funny!

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    1. I loved your blog about your gold tourney, so we're even!

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  2. LOL over the Fifty Shades of Santa. But why stop there? Fifty Shades of The Easter Bunny, or Fifty Shades of Bugs Bunny...oh my, now I can't stop laughing.

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    1. Oh Roben, I need a writing partner to adequately mine all the possibilities!

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  3. I LOVE Fifty Shades of Santa! Write it!

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    1. If I can clear it, I'll write it, but something tells me it's taken ...

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  4. Ditto! Great title and think of the equipment he could bring out of his big sack of 'toys!'

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    1. Oooh, sack o' toys ... I know it's not your genre, but now I'm thinking YOU should write it!

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  5. Love that trope and can't wait to read your book! And I think after Kathy's comment, you have no choice but to write Fifty Shades of Santa. :)

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    1. Thanks, Robin! After all the contributions, I might need more like a hundred shades ...

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  6. Hi Sam,
    I have to admit, I'm a sucker for secret baby books. Oh, as far as wrong bed stories go, I recently read a Hqn Desire by a wonderful author we both know, Charlene Sands, called Worth the Risk. I recommend it for your wrong bed thing you've got goin on.
    P.S. Hubby and I are actually shopping around for a new bed - I hope we don't pick the wrong one!

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    1. As long as hubby is there, you'll get the right bed! I've got Charlene's WTR on my list (officially now, on Goodreads), but I'm 10% into TOO CLOSE FOR COMFORT and not about to put it down, because the other trope I'm a sucker for? Reunion stories. "That's all he needed, Lucy Ricardo back in town ..." LOVE IT!!

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  7. I'm a sucker for suspense. I'll take any kind as long its a page turner. My favorite word... (I'm sure you've guessed by now.) Danger (or some form there of. LOL.) The trope which has gained me the most notice is rock star bad boy falls for girl next door. (In Dangerously Close) I didn't even realize there were so many bad boy rock star fans out there. A nice surprise.

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    1. You know, I may have a thing for bad-boy rock stars too. I just watched "Queen of the Damned," last night for the billionth time. Just to be sure, I'm going to have to read "Dangerously Close."

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  8. 'On the naught list for life' lol. Put me on that one because that is where all the fun is to be had.

    I adore celebrity/everyday person interactions because I believe there is so much to trove there. Celebrity might seem glam, but at the end of the day the celeb probably knows not who to trust or who loves him for him. Wounded in a glitzy sort of way.

    The novel Soul In His Eyes explores this and is so yummy whilst doing so.(http://christinelondon.com/books/soul-in-his-eyes ) Nottinghill, Maid in Manhattan-esque kinda stuff--you know.

    I like the wrong bed idea. Nanowrimo is on the horizon. Hmmm....

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    1. Okay, I just want to point out one of the reviews of "Soul In His Eyes": “Pick up this read…don’t skip the sex scenes!” ~ Carol Langstroth of Mind Fog Reviews. (As if I would ever skip the sex scenes). C'mon Christine, give me a wrong bed ... and don't skip the sex scenes!

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  9. Sam,
    Nothin’ like a man in a Santa suit, that’s what I always say. Hmmm… I may have to hit Restoration Hardware this year, see if they still sell the red suit-you know, leave a little somethin’ extra under the tree for my sweet hubby. ;) Now, if I only had a supply closet (or a house, for that matter)
    Love a good WB story and yours is a great one. Terrific blog, too. Glad I finally got a chance to comment.

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    1. Hey, there you are, MK! Great picture too. Welcome to the Googleverse.

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