Bullies and Blue Valentines

Things are a little bleak at Collins-Rideout headquarters right now as Yvonne and I are both mourning the recent loss of loved ones.

Luckily, writing can be a great distraction—especially when it’s romantic comedy. Happily-ever-afters are exactly what we need.

And so we offer you Shatterproof, our first novella, in time for Valentine’s Day.

Shatterproof marks our return to adult fiction after a string of teen novels, most recently a paranormal romance, Torch.

It was nice to create adult characters for a change, particularly our villain, the vain, conniving, Baxter Thorpe. It strikes me now that Baxter has a few traits in common with Margo, the villain in Speechless (available in e-format on February 15th).

Speechless has a special place in my heart, not just because it’s was our first novel, but because there was a real-life model for Margo, a bully who made my life miserable for the longest six months of my career.

Devious and scheming, “Real Margo” also happened to be quite good at her job. A skilled multi-tasker, she managed to keep her lips firmly attached to her superiors’ rumps, while constantly sabotaging her staff.

I moved on as soon as I could, but in the way of true bullies, Real Margo came with me, lurking around the dark corners of my mind. Through Speechless, I did my best to exorcise her, and it worked quite well.

Or so I thought, until a fellow survivor of Real Margo called last week to catch up. Memories of that period came rushing back as we relived the old stories. We agreed that while Margo had undermined our confidence terribly at the time, the experience had made us stronger in the end.

Does that mean I felt bad to hear she’d ultimately been fired by one of the powerful butts she’d kissed? Hell no! I was thrilled! Because in my experience, bullies don’t always get punished in real life. In fact, they usually get promoted.

Knowing Margo’s antics caught up with her probably won’t chase her out of the dark corners of my mind. But I’m not sure I want to lose her now, anyway. She’s a reliable source of inspiration—a gift that keeps on giving. Every one of my “bad guys” has a pinch of Margo.

How about you? Do you have bullies in your past that haunt or inspire you?