Thursday, October 31, 2013

Hard Truth

One of my Facebook friends, fellow indie writer Sarah Daltry, wrote a post on her blog today that I simply had to read, despite my seeming inability to keep up with all the blogs I follow. It was about the portrayal of abuse and rape in novels as "romantic" if the "bad boy hero" has a change of heart. She said, perhaps not in so many words, that the entire notion was bullshit, and I wholeheartedly agree. You can find the entirety of her post on her blog by going here.

Now you're going to get my opinion on the subject... 

If an author chooses to write that his or her character has been a victim of rape, incest, or abuse, then by all means, let them -- especially if the plan is to showcase how that character rises out of the ashes of the horror they endured like the phoenix of legend. Or how, if the abuse victim is killed, the people left behind who cared about them seek justice. That makes for a compelling story. But do not, for the love of all that is decent, depict rape as sexy. Do not depict abuse -- be it physical, emotional, or mental -- as sexy. Do not depict incest as sexy.

BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT.

I don't care if the bad boy hero of your story, who rapes your heroine, ends up regretting his actions and the two fall in love and have a wonderful life together (do the names Luke and Laura ring a bell to anyone?). I don't care if he hits his girl once and regrets it, or beats the shit out of her and regrets it, and the two live happily ever after. I don't care if the mommy who sleeps with her son, or the daddy who sleeps with his daughter, or the brother who sleeps with his sister, has fallen in love with him/her. It's NOT sexy. It's not romantic. It's trash. I don't know any person in my life who would find a novel with this kind of "plot" (to use the term very loosely) an enjoyable read. Most would find it sickening and all would find it highly disturbing. I would never read such material (and I don't care if the parent/child or sibling/sibling relationship is a step-relation, it's still incest), and frankly feel that anyone who does enjoy reading it is a disturbed individual who should seek help from a qualified psychotherapist.

If a man and woman (or two women, or two men, or a combination thereof) are in a committed, consensual sexual relationship involving a little bondage or spanking, or genuine BDSM... more power to 'em. Because it's different, vastly so. In such relationships, the partners involved know exactly what to expect. What the receiver (submissive) is and is not willing to endure is always discussed and agreed upon ahead of time, and the limits are always adhered to, unless trying something new or going further is discussed and agreed upon prior to engaging in play. And even then, the submissive can (and should) use the agreed upon safe word to let the giver (Dominant) know that he or she has reached the limit of their tolerance -- and the Dominant always stops immediately upon hearing this word if he or she truly values his or her sub. 

Those that don't are not true Dominants, they're deviants using the BDSM lifestyle as a cover for acting out their perverted fantasies. Anyone who gets any kind of pleasure out of beating another person within an inch of their life is a sick, twisted individual who probably needs to be locked up for the safety of the public.

But I digress...

I've written a character who was raped. I've written two who were sexually abused. All of these situations ended with the characters becoming stronger, better people. My stories showed them suffering, but also struggling with the trauma and healing. This is okay to write. But writing a man or woman being raped as romantic? Writing a man, woman, or child being beaten as fun and enjoyable? I would never do that, and I refuse to read it. Because it is not good literature in any way, shape, or form.

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Post #100!

I should probably have many more posts than this, but hey -- one hundred posts is still something to celebrate. What's even better to celebrate are two very lovely, nee' AWESOME, 5-star reviews that Two Evils has received! Check them out by clicking the links below:

One badass chick, with a soft side...

Read This! 

Monday, October 21, 2013

New Release: Two Evils

Yes, I am plugging my own book today: Two Evils went live on Amazon! 



Help me celebrate by grabbing a copy for yourself and spreading the word to all your friends who love to read about a kick-butt heroine who starts out broken... but like all the greatest women in history, manages to come out on top!

Click on one of the links below to grab yourself a new adrenaline-filled read today!

Amazon US: www.amazon.com/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon CA: www.amazon.ca/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon DE: www.amazon.de/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon FR: www.amazon.fr/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon JP: www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon IN: www.amazon.in/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon IT: www.amazon.it/dp/B00G1Y2FJI
Amazon MX: www.amazon.com.mx/dp/B00G1Y2FJI

Thursday, October 17, 2013

Blog hopping!

Hello! I was invited by an author friend, Mina J. Moore , to participate in a “blog hop interview.” So let's get started!
_____

Blog Hop: What are you working on right now?
I am doing the edits for my fourth novel, Two Evils, and have started my fifth novel, Fire Loved, which is the second book in the Firehouse 343 series.

Blog Hop: How does it differ from other works in its genre? 

I don't know if it does, lol. Fire Loved centers on a firefighter whose fiancée left him just weeks before they married, and the ex-fiancée who is caught up in a mystery. They both still have deep feelings for each other, but the secret she's been keeping about why she left is what is keeping them apart.

Blog Hop: Why do you write what you do?
I believe the biggest reason I write romance (be it paranormal, suspense, etc.) and fan fiction (yep, I still do on occasion, though not so much since I started writing professionally) is because I enjoy reading these genres so much. I love to read them. I'm sure you've heard the saying "Write what you know." In my case
—and quite possibly the case of most of the writers I know, it's really "Write what you love."

Blog Hop: How does your writing process work?
I'm not sure I have an actual "process" per se. A lot of times I get an idea in my head and I just go with it. If it really grabs hold of me, then I'll make notes on the characters and plot and get started writing. If I'm in the midst of a project (like I am now!) and a new idea comes to me, I make sure to jot it down so I can come back to it later.

Thursday, October 3, 2013

Once in a lifetime in a century.

I had originally planned to get Two Evils published around October 10th, because I wanted to have new material available for a planned giveaway at the end of the month. But there are indications that the giveaway may not be happening (such as the organizer not having said a word about it), so there's no longer a need for urgency. Plus, none of my beta readers are even close to being done with the book even though they've had it for nearly two weeks. Don't you hate it when things like work get in the way of doing something you enjoy, like reading?

As I no longer need to have the book published by the end of the month, I've given the betas another two weeks to read the book; they now have until October 15th to get back to me with their notes. My first real foray into the beta process has proven to be a little more frustrating than I thought it would be. Being that I'm not entirely fond of having to wait (I've been itching to start revisions on TE but have been doing my best to stay away from the file), I'm beginning to feel like this is simply not the way to go for me. I'm just not patient enough to have to wait weeks or a month for someone to get back to me with what they think about the story and what could possibly be made better. Don't get me wrong—I'm not putting down the use of beta readers by any means. I'm sure it works out most successfully for many writers. It just isn't for me. I think I'll stick with simply sharing scenes with a critique partner. That's worked out much better for me in the past.

So when is Two Evils going to be published? I've picked a date that I've been hoping to use for a long time—though I'd envisioned using the date for another book, extending the deadline for the betas made me realize I could use it for TE. I'm hoping that publishing on this date will be good luck for me and the book. What's the date?

11/12/13

You read that right, November 12, 2013 is the date that Two Evils will be available to the public. It's a date that comes along not only once in a lifetime, but once in a century! Not having to be published by the end of October not only gives the beta readers more time to read and make notes, it's also giving me more time to revise and format the book for e-book and print. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it also means I'll be able to make it available in both formats at the same time!

Next year, I plan to take advantage of another once-in-a-century date: 12/13/14. I have no idea what kind of book will be published, but the fun will be in finding out!