Thoughts on Writing an Ace Main Character

I went into writing Wraith and the Revolution with two objectives in mind. First, it was going to be a standalone, no matter how difficult it is for me to rein in my tendency for writing series. And second, the main character would be aro/ace.

A lot of my main characters over the years have found themselves in a romantic subplot of some kind, but for Wraith, I wanted to do something different. And after I built my outline for the book, I knew Kye’s story had no reason to include romance. I went into drafting with that firmly in mind.

That’s not to say Kye doesn’t form meaningful connections with other characters. He does. His best friend, Pablo, is a fixture in his life, even after…events…threaten to tear them apart. His mentor in ZIEG, Vee, also becomes one of his best friends. And even the wily merc, Zinn, who shamelessly flirts with him on occasion, becomes a great friend.

But for me, Kye’s identification as ace was somewhat freeing. I really enjoyed writing a character who wouldn’t have any messy romantic entanglements, who was comfortable as he was and didn’t require any sort of validation from a partner. That’s not to say Kye doesn’t rely on anyone for support—he has his sister and Pablo for that, and later, Vee and Zinn. Just like any human, he needs to feel connected; he just doesn’t want the intimacy.

While Kye as the main character and narrator of the tale doesn’t have a need for romance, that’s not true for some of the side characters. Pablo meets a certain someone early on (not mentioning names since they’re a prominent character), Kelsey rekindles an old flame later in the book, and Sorin has a long-term on-again, off-again partner who makes a brief appearance.

But all of that is seen through Kye’s vantage as an observer, and I really liked writing that way (which means I will probably do it again sometime.)

Wraith and the Revolution will release June 17, 2025. For more information about the book, check out my website, here. I’ll be updating the page as preorders start to become available (which should be sometime in March.)