Ryder
Army Ranger Romance, #4
I’m back with Good Grief, Bree, and this week it’s Ryder. I love Ryder. With his story being the fourth book, he came across as happy-go-lucky when he was dealing with some serious PTSD.
We’re also introduced to Rufus. I took a page out of those stories you hear about animals that just show up out of the blue and it’s exactly when a person needs them.
That’s how I approached this relationship between Ryder and Rufus. Ryder didn’t know he needed a dog until Rufus showed up. I loved that relationship, too. Rufus knew when Ryder needed him, or when it was all bluster.
I didn’t want counseling to be easy, either. Too often I think we see this, for lack of a better word, romanticized version of it and it’s never that easy. I wanted his resistance to be authentic. Just because you want help, doesn’t mean you know how to ask for it or accept it.
Kennedy was already a little unorthodox in her approach to therapy, and it went further with Ryder. People aren’t blankets. What works for one person doesn’t work for the next. That’s why I wrote her character the way I did.
I wanted her to need help, too. Too often, I think people don’t see doctors, pastors, therapists as regular people. I see society putting them on a pedestal and thinking they have to be perfect. They’re not. They have problems and issues and strife the same way everyone else does.
Her ex-husband had changed significantly in their marriage. In that situation, she’d married the person she thought she’d be with forever. Then tragedy struck, and he changed. It got to where she was enabling him, and her life was in danger because of his associates.
I won’t spoil the end. The only thing I’ll say about it is that I loved how the guys came together to take care of Noah. I wanted there to be a bond there. They’d served together, and they were more than just a group of guys who’d been in the military.
Overall, I loved the story that came together. My editor did a good job pushing me to make the story better. I appreciate her for that.
We’re also introduced to Rufus. I took a page out of those stories you hear about animals that just show up out of the blue and it’s exactly when a person needs them.
That’s how I approached this relationship between Ryder and Rufus. Ryder didn’t know he needed a dog until Rufus showed up. I loved that relationship, too. Rufus knew when Ryder needed him, or when it was all bluster.
I didn’t want counseling to be easy, either. Too often I think we see this, for lack of a better word, romanticized version of it and it’s never that easy. I wanted his resistance to be authentic. Just because you want help, doesn’t mean you know how to ask for it or accept it.
Kennedy was already a little unorthodox in her approach to therapy, and it went further with Ryder. People aren’t blankets. What works for one person doesn’t work for the next. That’s why I wrote her character the way I did.
I wanted her to need help, too. Too often, I think people don’t see doctors, pastors, therapists as regular people. I see society putting them on a pedestal and thinking they have to be perfect. They’re not. They have problems and issues and strife the same way everyone else does.
Her ex-husband had changed significantly in their marriage. In that situation, she’d married the person she thought she’d be with forever. Then tragedy struck, and he changed. It got to where she was enabling him, and her life was in danger because of his associates.
I won’t spoil the end. The only thing I’ll say about it is that I loved how the guys came together to take care of Noah. I wanted there to be a bond there. They’d served together, and they were more than just a group of guys who’d been in the military.
Overall, I loved the story that came together. My editor did a good job pushing me to make the story better. I appreciate her for that.
