Character Mimicry

Sometimes, after I create a new heroine, I find myself mimicking her world—often without realizing I’m doing it. For example, Delaney is a rock-climber (no, un-uh, I’m afraid of heights) who has a gray tabby Maine Coon cat with attitude. When my cat of sixteen years passed away a while ago, I began visiting the local shelters looking for a replacement.

Petzl

After several weeks and multiple trips I found the one that was destined to be mine. Until I named her I hadn’t realized subconsciously this was Delaney’s cat. Part Maine Coon, my Petzl (named for a climber/climbing equipment manufacturer) has an uncanny resemblance to that fictional cat I had created four years earlier.

 

In my new series, Caitlyn is a lieutenant in the US Coast Guard. Her “office” is a Jayhawk helicopter (I bet I could get a lesson in a helicopter…) and her ground transportation is a sexy black sport bike. When I started this story I had a Honda Blackhawk (trust me, the only thing in common was the color). But after researching sport bikes I found myself becoming more and more intrigued with the idea.

My Ninja

Yep, when the opportunity presented itself, I became the proud owner of a Ninja 500 (while it lacks the horsepower of Caitlyn’s monster, I prefer mine red with black trim).

Kelly, my female USCG rescue swimmer, gets to live one of my fantasies too. (No, jumping out of a helicopter is not my idea of fun!) She lives on a cabin cruiser in a Florida marina. While my 36 foot Sea Ray was the inspiration for her abode, I never spent longer than a week on the water. But oh, how I would love to do that full time (well, not when a hurricane is bearing down on Florida—it was bad enough hunkered down in a concrete-block home—imaging what that would be like on a boat is the stuff of nightmares).

Hmm, I wonder how my new Steampunk heroine is going to influence my future….