If there’s one character who’s kept me awake at night while writing Masque of Honor and, more recently, in the stories I continue to explore for my Fields of Honor series, it’s Jack McCarty.
Jack is… complicated. He’s charming, brave, fiercely loyal, but he has a flaw that makes him one of the hardest characters I’ve ever written: Jack hates losing and hates compromising almost as much.
No matter what life throws his way, Jack always believes he can bend the world to his will. And if he can’t? He fights. Sometimes literally. The dueling field became Jack’s second home because he couldn’t walk away, couldn’t accept that losing (even just once) might be the better path forward. For Jack, winning isn’t just a goal; it’s survival. It’s honor. And when you live in a world where reputation is everything, I suppose I understand his logic. Still, his refusal to bend becomes his greatest burden, and the source of his deepest pain.
Here’s the truth: Jack is so hard to write because… he’s a lot like me.
I don’t like compromise either. I’ll admit it, I like to win. (Ask anyone who worked with me on a government proposal!) But life, as I’ve learned, and as Jack stubbornly resists, runs on compromise. Marriage, friendships, business partnerships, even writing a book… all of it requires give and take. When we dig in—when we insist on getting everything we want—everything grinds to a halt.
And isn’t that what we see in the world around us? (Don’t worry—I’m not going to get political here!) But whether you’re talking about Congress, a boardroom, or your own kitchen table, nothing moves forward without compromise. No one gets everything they want, and that’s okay. That’s what allows us to coexist, progress, and grow.
Did Jack McCarty ever learn that lesson? Maybe that’s why he fascinates me so much and why he frustrates me, too. His determination to win at all costs drives the story, but it also drives him to ruin. If he could let go just a little—if he could find a way to bend— maybe we wouldn’t find him on the dueling field so often!
But then again, if Jack were the kind of man who compromised easily, would we still be talking about him 200 years later? Would I still be wrestling with his choices on the page? Probably not.
So here’s to Jack and to all of us who struggle with compromise. May we learn what he never did: sometimes the bravest thing we can do is bend.
Photo credit: Harpers Magazine 1858
