It's All About Puppy Love!

Happy National Puppy Day! What do puppies with wiggly butts have to do with Romance writing? EVERYTHING! Dogs have factored into so many of my favorite love stories. There is Stuntman Mike from The Friend Zone, Newton from The Viscount Who Loved Me, Cupcake and Muffin from Behind the Scenes, and so on.

Why are dogs such a big part of Romance novels? Well, besides the obvious that they are ADORABLE, dogs add so much to a story. They can be a plot device, their own character, and add texture to our leads.

Let’s first explore them as a plot device. How often have we seen a Meet/Cute where the leads meet after a rogue puppy dashed away from their owner to barrel into the chest of their soon-to-be love interest or through someone’s car’s sunroof like in The Happy Ever After Playlist? A pet can help drive a plot aiding in the characters meeting and, often, bonding them as a couple.

A canine can also be its very own character in the novel with a clear personality, motive, and relationship with the leads. As a fully developed character the dog can help drive the action, texturize our leads, and heighten their relationship. They can even be the narrator of our story like in Pug, Actually. Where Doug, a charming plump pug, helps his owner find love.

As well, a dog can add context to our lead characters. Through the interaction with a loveable canine authors show us our leads’ character traits, behaviors, desires, and even flaws. Take the example of The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy. Our male lead, Hart, appears to just be you average grumpy Demigod zombie hunter (YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK), but his interaction with our female lead Mercy’s dog shows us the tenderness and kindness hidden within his grumpy cat exterior. The Author doesn’t say, “Oh, Hart has a soft nugget filling within his hard shell,” but shows us through the scenes with Mercy’s dog.

Dogs and any animal, even a cat, can be a wonderful tool for authors to help move stories forward, shape the couple’s relationship, and deepen our understanding of who a character is. Whether it is a bowtie wearing rooster like in Witches get Stitches or a pug named Fitz from my first manuscript Finding Home (currently being edited) animals are a wonderful tool for the writer and a smile-inducing addition for the reader!

So, on this National Puppy Day I salute all the literary dogs that have scampered through some of my favorite stories. As well, I raise my teacup to my three pugs Milo, Coco, and Marvin, my ever-present writing partners that have inspired canine characters in my writing.

Pinkies up!