March 30, 2026
Do you include your character’s family in your stories?
How much do they affect the storyline?
In the Harmony Duprie stories, I wrote Harmony as having lost her parents as a young adult. Their absence had a lasting impression on her life, shaping many aspects of her daily activities. Here’s the reader’s introduction to them:
My mother was a hippie—I learned from her you don’t need to spend money to be happy, but my father was an investment banker, and made a lot of it. I inherited a goodly sum when they died in a freak mountain climbing accident. I also inherited Dad’s financial adviser, and Keith knows what he is doing.
The Marquesa’s Necklace
They show up throughout the series. It became a game for me to include a reference to John Denver songs and African violets in every book. (Both a legacy from her mother.) From her father, she learned how to read people.
But readers also discover how the trauma of their deaths comes back to haunt Harmony in unexpected ways. Her fear of flying. The loss of the woman who helped anchor Harmony through the grief process.
Family becomes the background for many of my stories.
The relationship between Jake Hennessey and Eli Hennessey — they are cousins — and one is the good guy while the other is the bad boy was fun to explore, but it went further. (Although sometimes I think it worked the other way around — that Jake protected Eli in hidden ways. Perhaps those are stories I didn’t explore and need to remain unwritten.)
But I can’t leave out the Free Wolves books. Because, after all, a pack is a form of an extended family, with the alpha in a patriarchal role. But the stories deal with those bonds being tested, broken, and reformed in new ways. And what is lost and what is gained in the process?
“It is time for you to retire. You can either pass leadership of the pack and the business to me now, or I will call challenge in front of the pack and we can fight for it. The decision is yours.” Gavin had practiced the speech many times in his head, and thought it came out well.
Henry laughed and said, “This is foolishness on your part.” Still, he detected a note of desperation in the sound. “You really think you can pull this off?”
“For the good of the pack, I have to.” Gavin examined his father closely, and realized how old he was. “I’ve not been in a hurry to take over your position, but perhaps I’ve waited too long.” He stared at his father, and hoped the coldness of his heart would chill his father’s spirit. Henry blinked first.
“The Elders will never back you up. The pack will never accept you.”
“Empty threats. As always, the Elders will do what is best for the pack as a whole, even if they are your friends. That is their responsibility. A growing faction of the pack has urged me to do this for several years. No, your time is past. It’s my time now.”
“And what happens if I decide to fight?”
“Do you think you can beat me in a one-on-one battle? It’s not going to happen. I’m too strong, and have fought many battles recently. You haven’t fought one for years.” Gavin tensed so the muscles in his arms and chest rippled in a subtle threat. “You still hold a good reputation with most packs. If you fight, you damage the pack and I’ll be forced to hurt you more than I already have. Retire now, keep your reputation, and let me keep my love for you.”
Henry slumped into the nearest chair and glanced up at his son. “You don’t give me much of a choice, do you?”
Wolves’ Pawn
I didn’t plan it that way, but families have become an important part of my writing.
Find out how other authors include families in their writing by following the links below.
And, as always, please stay safe until the next time.
Goal Update: I made it to 47000 words, adding over 2000. But I did more revisions on earlier chapters, so I lost words too. I’m headed towards the big finish.
March 30, 2026
Do you include your character’s family in your stories?
