There’s a lot of talk about bad boys in romance, even in Christian romance. Women love to read about bad boys and rebels, especially ones that turn good. But what about bad girls?
From a Christian fiction author’s standpoint, bad girls are both tricky and a joy to write for many of the same reasons. It can be difficult to create a character readers will connect with and feel compassion and even affinity toward when she’s walked a road our readers might perceive negatively.
As readers we want to see ourselves in the story, don’t we?
For a woman out there in the real world who has been redeemed, these characters are a blessing. This reader feels seen and immediately recognizes herself in the heroine. I will concede that sometimes that “bad” girl’s path may hit a little too close to home and said reader may prefer to DNF the book. Like I said, it’s tricky!
Then you have the reader of lesser-blemished past, and that’s where things can get even trickier.
Let’s say a book opens with our heroine fresh out of a stranger’s bed after a night of hedonistic choices (i.e. Jobie from my novel What Makes a Home). Right off the bat, we’ve got a lot of readers who will flip the cover to make sure they’ve got the right genre or outright DNF. I’ve even read reviews left by readers who only made it to page four then reviewed it glorifies sin then questioning the author’s salvation (none on my books, but still not ok).
You may be like me, saying, “what? They didn’t even give the author a chance to redeem her!” And yet, this still happens. Now do you understand why I say tricky?
But it’s a risk we’ll often take because redemption matters. Understanding just how far our Shepherd is willing to go for one lost sheep matters. Even in fiction.
So how do authors like me write a likable heroine with a “bad girl” past with whom readers will connect, especially if her story starts out more colorfully than more conservative readers may prefer to read or if they don’t want to read about her past at all? And how do we create a realistic portrayal of the side characters in her life, both the loving and the not-so-loving ones without offending readers?
The answer is mindfully and with a lot of prayer. LOL! Sorry, I don’t have a wittier or more insightful answer. I don’t have a magical one-size-fits-all answer because what one reader considers likable is unlikable to another, and that’s true even with the sweetest, most innocent of heroines.
What I do have, however, is a nice list of books from some of our InspyRomance authors featuring “bad girls” if you’re interested in reading their stories.
And in the comments, I’d love to hear your perspective on reading about “bad girls,” specifically in CCR and inspirational fiction. What makes you choose a book with a “bad girl” heroine or put it back on the shelf? What keeps you turning pages and cheering her on?
Here’s that list I promised you:
Jobie in What Makes a Home from yours truly—a free-living artist whose past catches up to her as God brings her home.
Haven in Aspen Crossroads by Janine Rosche—her small town has more than its fair share of small-minded folk, but Haven knows firsthand the value of a second chance, so she’ll do anything to give newcomers a chance at theirs.
Dixie in Valerie Comer’s Dancing at Daybreak—thought she found love with her third child’s father until he found Jesus, now everything’s changed and she’s determined not to.
Mindy in Regaining Mercy from Carolyn Miller—the girl from the “wrong side of the tracks” endures plenty of judgment from her island townsfolk, but will she trust in a love that sees more than who she was?
Deb Kastner’s Angelica in And Cowboy Makes Three—she left him at the altar, and now she’s back, unwed with a baby in tow, willing to withstand the gossip to honor her grandmother’s memory.
Jade in Valerie M. Bodden’s Not Until Us—any girl in town would make a better pastor’s wife than Jade, whose bad-girl past is no secret, but will they listen to gossip or their Father’s voice?
Elizabeth Maddrey has at least three “bad girl” heroines, but my favorite is Lydia in Wisdom to Know. She’s a rebellious pastor’s daughter on a self-destructive path with a best friend who knows she’s the One… but is there a sin love can’t cover? Don’t miss Sara in A Tidbit of Trust or Serena from Cookies & Candlelight!
I’m sure there are more, so let’s stick with contemporary Christian romance titles if you make suggestions in the comments! Thanks for hanging out with me today!
I don’t think this is a trope I purposefully search for, but I trust the CCR authors to have written a story that honors God while not sugar-coating the heroine’s past. I have some of the books you mentioned on my TBR list and I’d add Jessie Gussman’s “Dreaming of Her Secret Santa’s Kiss”.
I am late and hope you are doing better.
I wonder why is it ok to have a bad boy hero but not a bad girl heroine. Do the same readers who will write a bad review of a bad girl after only reading a few pages do the same if its a bad boy or do they accept a bad boy as ok. To me that wouldn’t be fair or make sense.
If it is CCR you know by the end the girl or boy will be redeemed and its interesting to get to know how they will be redeemed. It also depends what makes her a bad girl. The same with a bad boy it really depends what makes him bad. I think everyone has a different idea of bad also. A bad girl/guy to me would be someone who breaks the law or pushes it to the limit, (Drinking, partying, probably also doing things like stealing or breaking into houses, assault, Bullying and harrassment and would think similar of a bad girl). Where as some think of bad as just not being a christian so I think the definition is different for all
Your points are excellent and you bring up some great questions I’ve also been considering. Double standards definitely aren’t okay though they certainly exist.
I like bad & good girl stories just like guys.
Just give me ALL the books, right?!
I enjoy books with all types of girls & boys
In every person, there is a part of us that is “bad”. We are human after all. If I am reading a book about a “bad” girl, it makes a connection in me . It brings home my connection of forgiveness in the Lord. Thank you for sharing. I am so glad you are here today. God bless you.
Amen! Thank you, I’m glad to be here as well. Blessings!
I think everybody deserves a second chance especially when it comes to redemption. God welcomes everyone back with open arms. If God forgives who are we not to forgive. I think books that have a character that turns their life around for the better is always good and always a good lesson to read about.
Amen! Absolutely. Redemption resonates with all of us deeply.
I love reading and writing bad girls, Jaycee. It’s been a while since I wrote one. I need to do that again. I love figuring out what made them the way they are and redeeming them. If only real people were as easy 🙂
Right?! No kidding!
God’s Grace is sufficient for everyone 🙂
🙌🏼 100% yes!
Julie Lessman also has some books with bad girl heroines. I enjoy reading about different hero/heroines. I think for me its all about the redemption arc of the story. I’ve read a few stories where I really didn’t care for the choices one of the characters made but at the same time those stories also helped me to understand how others see things and maybe why they made the choices they made. That doesn’t glorify their sin but it helps us to see that we all have different temptations and issues but we also all have the chance of redemption through Christ if we are willing to repent. Life is rarely black and white so I don’t think fiction has to be either.
Amen to all of this!
Ashley Baxter in Karen Kingsbury in Baxter series (she had a baby out of wedlock. Does that count?
Maybe, I guess I consider the “bad” boy/girl one who embodies the rebellious attitude that keeps them running hard from others, from change, from Christ, until they hit bottom and have no where else to go but to him. In a way, that’s all of us at some point, isn’t it? Some of us just run harder or fall farther than others.
Thinking about “bad” girls in CF, I don’t think I’ve read a lot of those. It’s mostly “bad” boys/men, probably because most romance stories are geared towards women readers. But I do agree with others, too graphic in their sin and I won’t even read and/or finish the story.
In my opinion alone, I think an author can sometimes have a hard time balancing a lot of things in a story that readers want to read. And each reader has their own “taste” in a story; some like a grittier story-line, some like a more gentle one, and any where in between. Maybe one reader will really enjoy a story, while another one won’t like it at all.
I do like a redeemable character. To me, character growth is the most important thing in a story. But a character unwilling to bend and change is not one I want to have anything to do with.
Absolutely. Especially in CF, a character—especially the hero or heroine—has to be willing to submit themselves to Christ, or redemption isn’t going to be genuine and they aren’t worthy of leading the story. They have to admit their sin and be willing to change, that’s what makes the story!
I love a good redemption story!! I don’t need all of the graphic details, though. There are very few books that I DNF. I like to see how they deal with the fallout from their past, and struggle with how the consequences of their actions still effect things in their present. We all make choices, and we all have to deal with the consequences of those choices, both the good and the bad. And, right now, I can’t come up with specific CCR books!!
I completely agree. Seeing where she’s at doesn’t require graphic details to be meaningful. It’s historical fiction, but Redeeming Love is a great example of shocking the reader with Angel’s way of life without being graphic.
I love a redemptive arc and the thing that usually make me DNF is if the author is too graphic in their sin. Otherwise, I give them a chance to redeem a character and cheer along the way.
That makes total sense!
Sometimes we try to ignore that “all have sinned.” Often we compare actions as BIG or LITTLE sins. But sin is sin and we must acknowledge that.
So true.
I enjoy reading about all types of people. A lot of us have a past that God has forgiven. It can be the same for any character in a book. It’s called redemption. 😊
Amen!
It really does depend how bad the girl is.
I can understand that!