My creative writing professor encouraged us to keep a journal of our more interesting ideas. One night, one of my friends commented that if he had to sleep with a member of the Greek pantheon, he'd choose Hera. This eyebrow-raising comment made me ponder my own Greek god of choice for a one-night stand, which of course seemed like the perfect sort of material for my writing journal (my professor thought so too, thankfully). It was a fun and enlightening process, making up this list, spawning many delightfully awkward and insightful conversations among my fellow English majors. So without further ado, here it is. My top ten choices for datable literary men.

10. Dracula. Ok, maybe not quite so much the original Count Dracula from Bram Stoker's novel, but definitely the romanticized re-invented version we have seen portrayed in more recent films and musicals. He was a force of male sexuality in the Victorian era; you have to respect that.

9. Aragorn. Yes, I got involved in the Lord of the Rings craze when the films came out a few years ago. This only reminded me of how much I loved the novels, and how much more the character of Aragorn appealed to me in print. Not that I dislike Viggo Mortensen's portrayal, mind you. He was absolutely wonderful. But the Aragorn of Tolkein's novels seems to be a perfectly poetic and cultured gentleman in the body of a hard-core ranger. And isn't that what we women have been looking for?

8. Hamlet. Alright- let me preface this by saying that I'm absolutely in love with Shakespeare. I'm an actor, and I think that naturally adds to my literary appreciation of his work. And Hamlet is my absolute favorite play in the world. While his story is the height of human tragedy, his mind and his passion is what leaves an impression on the readers. His poetic speeches and his depth of feeling are what moves us. And you know that a guy that passionate and intelligent would be a fantastic lover- you just know.

7. Mr. Darcy. How anyone could read or watch Pride and Prejudice and not be completely in love with Darcy is beyond me. Even though those of us who have read the novel know that he has a pretty crappy first name, it does not tarnish the fact that Darcy is pretty much the perfect man. Rich, honorable, loyal, the perfect gentleman, handsome, plus he saves her reputation...yep. Makes you want to slug Lizzy for snubbing him, doesn't it?

6. Westley (AKA Farm Boy or The Dread Pirate Roberts). This character was written to be the perfect leading man/action hero. In the book, which is a hundred times funnier than the movie if you can believe it, Buttercup has the title of The Most Beautiful Woman in the World- and she loves Westley. That's pretty huge. But on top of that, HE'S A PIRATE!! That's pretty sexy. And he loves her so much that he fights a Spanish fencing champion, wrestles the strongest man in the world, and outsmarts the too-clever Vizzini. SWOON! Seriously. The guy comes back from being mostly dead to rescue her. What's not to love? Plus Cary Elwes is hot.

5. Rhett Butler. Anti-hero of sorts from Gone with the Wind. He's pretty much the definition of hot. He's an unbashed scoundrel, but he loves so completely and unselfishly while he gets burned time and time again that you just have to cheer for him when he knocks Scarlet down a peg or two.

4. Lestat de Lioncourt. Ok, if Dracula didn't tip you off, I'm a huge vampire fan. It's my guilty pleasure. And while it is cliche to cite Lestat as the favorite of Anne Rice's vampires, I can't help but pick him. Honestly, I almost put Armand on my list instead, but having read the entire series The Vampire Chronicles, Lestat's philosophical journey reaches me the most. Yeah, he's an arrogant overgrown brat, but I love his sensitive artistic and utterly human soul that lies vulnerable beneath his supernatural body. The prologue to Queen of the Damned (the novel, not the god-awful movie) defines Lestat's character, displaying his cynicism, romanticism, and idealistic hope all at once. Besides, those he comes in contact with he loves passionately and completely.

3. Heathcliff. Wuthering Heights is one of my favorite novels. Even while Heathcliff becomes pure evil and tortures those around him meticulously I love him. Again, it's a passion thing. One of the quintessential anti-heroes (and I love me some anti-heroes you've probably noticed), Heathcliff re-invents the romantic lead in a terrifying yet fascinating way. He'd scare me, but I'd date him.

2. Mr. Rochester. His appeal is similar to Heathcliff's. The Byronic hero of Jane Eyre, Rochester woos me from his appearance with his amazing command of the language. His speeches are amazing; he's clearly very intelligent. I can just picture myself sitting next to him by a fire and arguing with him for hours just to hear him talk. And I know, his actions in the novel are kind of hard for a lot of people to get over, but I'll just say that Jane is a stronger woman than I would be under the circumstances. ;-) He breaks my heart every time (I've read the novel four times and seen various film versions countless times), and while I feel like I should hate him, I find myself wanting to hug him instead. Gotta respect that.

1. Erik, the phantom of the opera. Yeah, I'll bet you didn't see that coming. Let me explain. When I was only 8 years old, my mother bought me the soundtrack to the musical The Phantom of the Opera. It still remains the most moving piece of music to me, while other pieces are more musical and of superior quality. It's the story. It romances me and then rips my heart out every time. Having read the original novel by Gaston Leroux and the reincarnation of the story, Susan Kay's Phantom (go get a copy and read it now- it's amazing) several times apiece since then, the character reaches me in a way that is so deep, so profound. There's a paragraph in the epilogue of the original novel that says that Erik could have been the most accomplished man in the world, but he was not because he was too ugly. It's not just the sad version of Beauty and the Beast to me; the added element of music gets me everytime. My boyfriend always teases me, saying that I would never be able to get past the face behind the mask. I think that I could never turn away from somebody capable of producing the kind of music and the kind of voice he does. The innate sadness in him draws me as much as the subtle beauty does. His power of seduction despite the gaping hole in his skull puts him on the top of my list (as well as the sentimentality I attach to him).

So there you have it. I recommend that everyone make a similar list- at least top three. You learn a lot about yourself and your dating proclivities. I'd never have noticed the trend I have for darker male characters if i had not seen it in print!

Some men who did not make the cut, but deserve to be on the honorary list:

-Mr. Big from Sex and the City

-James Bond (purely physical attraction)

-Stanley Kowalski (one night stand only, and only if we're talking about Marlon Brando's performance)

-Hades, the Greek god (my answer to that whole Greek pantheon question)

-the Vampire Armand

-Faramir

-Der Tod from Elisabeth (random German musical reference, but I'm crossing my fingers that somebody will get it)