When I first wrote Hidden, Ciaran wasn’t a part of the story and Tully had no romantic interest, but did desire to be loved. But like the other POV characters, it became evident that the story couldn’t be told from Tully’s perspective alone, so in walks Ciaran, a young Arelian raised in the Hidden Valley, who has his own story to tell.
When I considered Ciaran, his back story and the love interest with Tully, he needed to have an important part in the story but he also needed to be the one who’d bring love into Tully’s life. I created him to be a gentleman who’d intentionally treat Tully with kindness since there was such a huge void of it in her life. She would of course fall in love with him, but I wanted their love story to be more than ‘he’s handsome and she’s beautiful’.
In so many stories, that seems to be the depth of the love story and I wanted more for Tully and Ciaran. They felt special with a timeless kind of love that went deeper, so they had to value each other and see each other for more than the surface interest. One reviewer said there were ‘anti-sex before marriage’ themes in the story, which made me laugh. And this so wasn’t in any of my thoughts as I wrote the book or a part of Tully and Ciaran’s love story. (Though I do value the reviewer’s comment as it shares their perspective and will help me write better love stories in the future.)
So what are your thoughts on Ciaran and Tully. Please share your thoughts below.
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K. M. Wray 