Her Lilac Blouse Matched the Color of Her Eyes --- MY FOOT!

By Andrea Boeshaar

Ah, the male mind. What woman can truly comprehend its complexity? As an author of romance, I certainly try – quite a feat.

For instance, I would once describe, in great length, a woman’s attire as she strode into a room and the handsome, alpha hero got his first glimpse of her. I wrote from the male POV (point of view) and I’ve since learned that he wouldn’t likely notice how her lilac-colored blouse complimented the hue of her violet-blue eyes.

Some men might, yes. But most men – particularly alpha heroes – would not.

To illustrate this point, I conducted my own personal survey. That’s right. I emailed my grown sons. I asked them if, the first time they saw their significant others, they noticed the outfits the young women wore (color of shirt, slacks/jeans, etc). My sons’ replies are as follows:

“Mom, are you kidding me?”

“Mom, is this for one of your books?”

After I replied that yes, it was, a second reply was not forthcoming.

“You don’t want to know what we noticed, Mom. We’re dudes, ok?”

Ok! So much for the lilac-colored blouse…

Of course, I recall what my sons’ girlfriends wore when I first met them. One gal was in Army fatigues as she and my son had just come from their 1 weekend a month duty. Another was casual, wearing jeans and a tee shirt. Another had on a cute jumper and had her hair all curled.

But, realize this: I was “the mom” checking them out – and I’m a writer who is trained to notice details.

The average guy is not.

Regardless,
I went ahead with my survey anyway and asked my husband.

“I noticed your smile,” he said.

At last! A more sensitive guy.

“And those cute, white painter’s pants you used to wear, remember?”

I did.

“But it was your smile I noticed first. Definitely your smile.”

My husband went on to add that he would never describe a lady’s blouse as “lilac.” To him it would be either blue or purple. And he probably wouldn’t even notice a woman’s attire at all, unless it was outrageous or, at least, out of the ordinary.

My survey now complete, I scanned my results and decided that when writing from the male hero’s point of view, it’s best not to overly describe women’s wear and their accessories. A man may very well notice a woman’s tight-fitting jeans or that her sweater looks two sizes too small. But he most likely wouldn’t be aware of colors or whether the sweater had a lovely lace inset around the neckline.

I’m sure you get my point. When we, as authors, have to create a hero and write from his POV, then we  have to step over the line and cross into the dark side – into the male mind!