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Today (October 6, 2016), fans of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight saga were ecstatic about her new book Life and Death. In it, she "gender swapped" the characters. Bella is now a guy named Beau. Edward is now a gal named Edythe, and Jacob (the Quileute character) is now a girl named Jules (Julia). Here's part of Meyer's interview with CNN:
Meyer said she was motivated to make the switch because of questions she received at signings about Bella being a "damsel in distress."
"It's always bothered me a little bit, because anyone surrounded by superheroes is going to be in distress," Meyers explained. "I thought, 'What if we switched it around a bit and see how a boy does,' and, you know, it's about the same."
I looked at specific passages in Twilight, comparing them to passages in Life and Death to see if Meyer made any changes to the Native content. In the passages I have below, I start each pair with Twilight first, because it was published first. Here they are:
Chapter 6: Scary Stories
This is the chapter where we meet Jacob/Jules, the Quileute character who is going to tell Bella/Beau scary stories about the werewolves and "the cold ones" (vampires).
Twilight (Kindle Location 7353-7355):
A few minutes after Angela left with the hikers, Jacob sauntered over to take her place by my side. He looked fourteen, maybe fifteen, and had long, glossy black hair pulled back with a rubber band at the nape of his neck. His skin was beautiful, silky and russet-colored; his eyes were dark, set deep above the high planes of his cheekbones.
Life and Death (Kindle Locations 1495-1497):
A few minutes after Allen left with the hikers, Julie came over to take his place by my side.
She looked fourteen, maybe fifteen, and had long, glossy black hair pulled back with a rubber band at the nape of her neck. Her skin was really beautiful, like coppery silk, her dark eyes were wide-set above her high cheekbones, and her lips were curved like a bow.
Debbie's thoughts: Jacob sauntering conveys attitude. Julie, on the other hand, walks without attitude. Because... why? I don't know. The descriptions of hair and skin and cheekbones are familiar ones. Not all Native people have long, glossy black hair or high cheekbones but that's generally how we're depicted in children's and young adult books. This is a problem for Native people who do not look that way. People say--without batting an eye--"you don't look Indian."
~~~~
Twilight, Jacob speaking to Bella (Kindle Locations 7408-7411):
“Well, there are lots of legends, some of them claiming to date back to the Flood— supposedly, the ancient Quileutes tied their canoes to the tops of the tallest trees on the mountain to survive like Noah and the ark.” He smiled, to show me how little stock he put in the histories. “Another legend claims that we descended from wolves— and that the wolves are our brothers still. It’s against tribal law to kill them.
Life and Death, Jules speaking to Beau (Kindle Locations 1569-1572):
“There are lots of legends, some of them claiming to date back to the Great Flood— supposedly, the ancient Quileutes tied their canoes to the tops of the tallest trees on the mountain to survive like Noah and the ark.” She smiled, to show me she wasn’t taking this seriously, either. “Another legend claims that we descended from wolves— and that the wolves are our sisters still. It’s against tribal law to kill them.
Debbie's thoughts: That "legend" that Jacob talks about is supposed to be a Quileute one, but it that marks "the Flood" as a touchstone event. If it said "a" great Flood, that would work, but that "the" in there ties this story to Christianity. I've not done any research to see if the Quileute people have a flood story where they tied their canoes to tall trees. Maybe they do. Or, maybe this is something that Meyer made up. Regular readers of AICL know that I find it sacrilegious to twist Native stories to make them fit a narrative that a not-Native writer is telling. Jacob has "little stock" in the stories; Jules doesn't "take this seriously." Is this dismissiveness on Jacob/Jules' part to throw Bella/Beau off track so that Bella/Beau don't know that these stories are real? The way Meyer presents this werewolf part of her story is not like the stories the Quileute's actually tell. As noted above, I think Meyer is twisting a Native story to fit her narrative, and I find that to be deeply disrespectful. (Updating to add this next line.) And as @travelingHeidi pointed out on Twitter, Noah isn't gender swapped!
~~~~
Twilight, Jacob speaking to Bella (Kindle Locations 7412-7416):
"There are stories of the cold ones as old as the wolf legends, and some much more recent. According to legend, my own great-grandfather knew some of them. He was the one who made the treaty that kept them off our land.” He rolled his eyes. “Your great-grandfather?” I encouraged. “He was a tribal elder, like my father. You see, the cold ones are the natural enemies of the wolf— well, not the wolf, really, but the wolves that turn into men, like our ancestors. You would call them werewolves.”
Life and Death, Jules speaking to Beau (Kindle Locations 1574-1578):
"There are stories of the cold ones as old as the wolf legends, and some much more recent. According to legend, my own great-grandmother knew some of them. She was the one who made the treaty that kept them off our land.” She rolled her eyes. “Your great-grandmother?” I encouraged. “She was a tribal elder, like my mother. You see, the cold ones are the natural enemies of the wolf— well, not the wolf, really, but the wolves that turn into women, like our ancestors. You could call them werewolves, I guess.”
Debbie's thoughts: That is another part of Meyer's book that I find especially problematic because of her use of the word treaty. Readers are asked to believe that Jacob/Jules' great grandfather/mother made a treaty with a coven of vampires. Treaties are made between heads of state. Are we to think of this group of Quileute's and this coven of vampires as nations?
Chapter 7: Nightmare
After hearing those "scary" stories, Bella/Beau has a nightmare.
Twilight (Kindle Locations 7477-7480):
But Jacob let go of my hand and yelped, suddenly shaking, falling to the dim forest floor. He twitched on the ground as I watched in horror. “Jacob!” I screamed. But he was gone. In his place was a large red-brown wolf with black eyes. The wolf faced away from me, pointing toward the shore, the hair on the back of his shoulders bristling, low growls issuing from between his exposed fangs.
Life and Death (Kindle Locations 1641-1643):
And then Jules dropped my hand— she let out a strange yelp and, suddenly shaking, she fell twitching to the ground. I watched in horror, unable to move. “Jules!” I yelled, but she was gone. In her place was a big, red-brown wolf with black eyes. The wolf faced away from me, pointing toward the shore, the hair on the back of her shoulders bristling, low growls issuing from between her exposed fangs.
Debbie's thoughts: Here, I direct you to an excellent series of tweets by Jeanne (I don't know her personally but she is one of the people I learn a lot from by reading her tweets and blog posts). One that is especially insightful is this one: "The supernatural world of Twilight is a construct that makes an abusive white man look like a hero and Native American men look like animals."
Chapter 11: Complications
Twilight (Kindle Locations 8589-8592):
Jacob was already climbing out, his wide grin visible even through the darkness. In the passenger seat was a much older man, a heavyset man with a memorable face— a face that overflowed, the cheeks resting against his shoulders, with creases running through the russet skin like an old leather jacket. And the surprisingly familiar eyes, black eyes that seemed at the same time both too young and too ancient for the broad face they were set in. Jacob’s father, Billy Black.
Life and Death (Kindle Locations 2926-2929)
Jules was already climbing out, her wide grin visible even through the darkness. In the passenger seat was a much older woman, an imposing woman with an unusual face— it was stern and stoic, with creases that ran through the russet skin like an old leather jacket. And the surprisingly familiar eyes, set deep under the heavy brows, black eyes that seemed at the same time both too young and too ancient to match the face. Jules’s mother, Bonnie Black.
Debbie's thoughts: More of that stereotypical descriptors, this time of elders. Note the word "ancient" in there? That's another word that gets overused.
~~~~
Some overall thoughts: In Life and Death, Meyer just switched a few letters here and there to make the Native characters fit her gender swapping narrative. It is more evidence that she is clueless regarding Native peoples and cultures. In fact, her gender swapping of Native content strikes me as similar to all the people--male or female--who put on a headdress that is generally used only by men. It is superficial and adds a new layer of disrespect to what she's already done with the Twilight saga prior to today's release of Life and Death.
I opened this post noting that people are very excited by Life and Death. Much of that excitement is because Twilight is credited with having launched young adult literature. That is something people who care about young adult literature can certainly applaud, but we must not lose sight of the problems in the series.
There are plenty of young adult books out there that can counter the misogyny in these books. We cannot say the same thing about books to counter the misrepresentation of Native people. Indeed, Meyer's book also launched a slew of books that do precisely what she did: stereotype, misrepresent, appropriate.
Meyer acknowledged concerns over the "damsel in distress" but the concerns over misrepresentation of Native peoples are just as important.
There are many film adaptations of Bram Stoker’s Dracula; many, of course, that are rubbish. If you need fresh blood and your faith restored that there is still life to be drained from the vampire trope, here are ten recommendations for films that rework Stoker’s vampire in innovative and inventive ways.
Recently I was talking to a younger colleague, a recent PhD, about what we and our peers read for pleasure. He noted that the only fiction that most of his friends read is young adult fiction: The Hunger Games, Twilight, that kind of thing. Although the subject matter of these series is often dark, the appeal, hypothesized my colleague, lies elsewhere: in the reassuringly formulaic and predictable narrative arc of the plots. If his friends have a taste for something genuinely edgy, he went on, then they’ll read non-fiction instead.
When did we develop this idea that fiction, to be enjoyable, must be comforting nursery food? I’d argue that it’s not only in our recreational reading but also, increasingly, in the classroom, that we shun what seems too chewy or bitter, or, rather; we tolerate bitterness only if it comes in a familiar form, like an over-cooked Brussels sprout. And yet, in protecting ourselves from anticipated frictions and discomforts, we also deprive ourselves of one of fiction’s richest rewards.
One of the ideas my research explores is the belief, in the eighteenth-century, that fiction commands attention by soliciting wonder. Wonder might sound like a nice, calm, placid emotion, but that was not how eighteenth-century century thinkers conceived it. In an essay published in 1795 but probably written in the 1750s, Adam Smith describes wonder as a sentiment induced by a novel object, a sentiment that may be recognized by the wonderstruck subject’s “staring, and sometimes that rolling of the eyes, that suspension of the breath, and that swelling of the heart” (‘The Principles Which Lead and Direct Philosophical Enquiries’). And that was just the beginning. As Smith describes:
“when the object is unexpected; the passion is then poured in all at once upon the heart which is thrown, if it is a strong passion, into the most violent and convulsive emotions, such as sometimes cause immediate death; sometimes, by the suddenness of the extacy, so entirely disjoint the whole frame of the imagination, that it never after returns to its former tone and composure, but falls either into a frenzy or habitual lunacy.” (‘The Principles Which Lead and Direct Philosophical Enquiries’)
It doesn’t sound very comfortable, does it? Eighteenth-century novels risked provoking such extreme reactions in their tales of people in extremis; cast out; marooned; kidnapped. Such tales were not gory, necessarily, in the manner of The Hunger Games, and the response they invited was not necessarily horror or terror. More radically, in shape and form as well as content, eighteenth-century writers related stories that were strange, unpredictable, unsettling, and, as such, productive of wonder. Why risk discomforting your reader so profoundly? Because, Henry Home, Lord Kames argued in his Elements of Criticism (1762), wonder also fixes the attention: in convulsing the reader, you also impress a representation deeply upon her mind.
One of the works I find particularly interesting to think about in relation to this idea of wonder is Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein. Frankenstein is a deeply pleasurable book to read, but I wouldn’t describe it as comfortable. Perhaps I felt this more acutely than some when I first read it, as a first year undergraduate. The year before I had witnessed my father experience a fatal heart attack. Ever since then, any description or representation that evoked the body’s motion in defibrillation would viscerally call up the memory of that night. One description that falls under that heading is the climactic moment in Shelley’s novel in which Victor Frankenstein brings his creature to life: “I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs.” If the unexpected, in Smith’s account, triggers convulsive motions, then it seems fitting that a newly created being’s experience of its own first breath would indeed be felt as a moment of wonder.
When I was a nineteen year-old reading Frankenstein, there was no discussion about the desirability of providing “trigger warnings” when teaching particular texts; and even if there had been, it seems unlikely that this particular text would have been flagged as potentially traumatic (a fact that speaks to the inherent difficulty of labeling certain texts as more likely to serve as triggers than others, given the variety of people’s experience). I found reading Shelley’s novel to be a deeply, uncomfortably, wonder-provoking experience, in Smith’s terms, but it did not, clearly, result in my “immediate death.” What it did produce, rather, was a deep and lasting impression. Indeed, perhaps that is why, more than twenty years later, I felt compelled to revisit this novel in my research, and why I found myself taking seriously Percy Shelley’s characterization of the experience of reading Frankenstein as one in which we feel our “heart suspend its pulsations with wonder” at its content, even as we “debate with ourselves in wonder,” as to how the work was produced. High affect can be all consuming, but we may also revisit and observe, in more serene moments, the workings of the mechanisms which wring such high affect from us.
In Minneapolis for a conference a few weeks ago, I mentioned to my panel’s chair that I had run around Lake Calhoun. He asked if I had stopped at the Bakken Museum (I had not), which is on the lake’s west shore. He proceeded to explain that it was a museum about Earl Bakken, developer of the pacemaker, whose invention was supposedly inspired by seeing the Boris Karloff 1931 film of Frankenstein, and in particular the scene in which the creature is brought to life with the convulsive electric charge.
As Bakken’s experience suggests, the images that disturb us can also inspire us. Mary Shelley affirms as much in her Introduction to the 1831 edition of the novel, which suggests that the novel had its source in a nightmarish reverie. Shelley assumes that Frankenstein’s power depends upon the reproducible nature of her affect: “What terrified me will terrify others,” she predicts. Haunting images, whether conjured by fantasies, novels, or films, can be generative, although certainly not always in such direct and instrumental ways. Most of us won’t develop a life-saving piece of technology, like Earl Bakken (my father, in fact, had a pacemaker, and, although it didn’t save his life, it did prolong it) or write an iconic novel, like Mary Shelley. But that is not to say that the impressions that fiction can etch into our minds are not generative. If comfort has its place and its pleasures, so too does discomfort: experiencing “bad feelings” enables us to notice, in our re-tracings of them, the unexpected connections that emerge between profoundly different experiences—death; life; reading—all of them heart-stopping in their own ways.
BUT that doesn’t mean that you’re never allowed to wonder who’s going to read your stories, and what those readers will get out of their experiences.
For my graduate lecture, I took a look at how feminist and post-feminist literary theory can help us look at YA literature and decide for ourselves what messages we want to send. Feminism is, at its core, the belief in equal rights for all genders, but of course there are many definitions and variations among those definitions. The question of choice (who gets to choose, and what they should choose) is sometimes a point of contention among critics.
I think that one of the reasons so many critics find fault with Twilight and novels like it is because Bella’s choices may be her own, but they are consistently at odds with the choices we want our girls to make. When we show characters who consistently choose dangerous, controlling partners, our fear is that young adult readers will also choose dangerous, controlling partners.
I don’t think this is an invalid concern, but my intention isn’t to debate or argue it. That’s for another time, another post. My intention is to say, that if you’re a YA writer and this is something you are thinking about, there are ways to develop a good feminist story without making it preachy or propaganda. I’ll share some methods that I found useful and talked about in my lecture.
1. What does your main character want? If it’s just a relationship, consider that in real life, a desire for a relationship is usually a symptom of a deeper desire for something else, like security or acknowledgment. Consider what other forces might be at work, and you’ll avoid creating shallow characters whose problems can be solved by a significant other.
2. Make sure your character stays active. Find places in the story that force her to act, that take away her safety net and test her. This is true of practically any story, but in YA romances, it’s especially important. She doesn’t need to be a hero, but she shouldn’t rely on her love interest too much.
3. Pay attention to your character’s love interest. Speaking of the love interest, don’t forget to pay attention to him! Or her. What does he want? Does he act in a way that harms the main character, and if so, are there negative consequences? If your character has to choose between two love interests (very common these days), is the choice made too easy (by having one character turn out to be a jerk)?
4. Romance novel vs. novel with romantic elements. A romance novel is a little different than a novel with romantic elements. A romance novel’s plot is dependent on the relationship between two characters, so if you want to write a story with feminist undertones, you might choose the other path.
5. Why do your characters get together? Think about the reasons your characters are together. Is it because they find each other so attractive? Or do they share a deep, mutual connection? The more you develop the relationship, and the reasons for it, the more likely you are to connect with readers.
6. The moral of the story. All of these factors combined puts you in a better position to control the final factor: the moral of the story. Once you’ve finished a draft, it might be a good idea to take a look around. What’s happened to the characters? Who’s alive? What have they had to sacrifice? Your character’s rewards and punishments reveal a lot about your story’s message. Is it the message you want?
There are, of course, many more factors than these six that you will need to pay attention to in order to write a great novel. But this is a place to start if your aim is to write a story with romantic elements that will both appeal to teen readers and give them characters and situations they can look up to.
Rachel Lieberman works in higher education and writes YA. Her short fiction has appeared in Opium, Awkward, Emprise Review, and others. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in Tampa.
Characters like Bella and Anastasia really upset me. It’s like teens of today don’t understand how women in the 50-80s had to fight for respect and equal job opportunities. They think it’s now their right to choose to not work and want a man take care of them. I know teens will learn the ugly truth about men and love as they get older, but I find myself repulsed by many heroines (and writers) of today’s YA for propagating the fantasy that being dependent on someone else is a good thing.
Melanie Fishbane said, on 3/22/2013 5:07:00 AM
Reblogged this on Wild About Words and commented:
Rachel’s take on post-feminism and writing strong female protagonists is a must read.
L. Marie said, on 3/22/2013 6:25:00 AM
Wow. Excellent post (and I plan to purchase your lecture). I gave serious consideration to this issue as I wrote my WIP. I wanted to include romance, but didn’t want the book to be all about that. I wanted my heroine to yearn to be strong and capable, something I want for my nieces and the other teens in my life. And I want my nieces to read this post!
ingridsundberg said, on 3/22/2013 11:10:00 AM
Rachel’s lecture on this topic was fabulous! I’ve been having a lot of discussions with writer friends about social responsibility and art. This post has aligned nicely with what’s been on my mind!
justincaynon said, on 3/24/2013 1:27:00 AM
I was trying to write a novel that might turn out to be YA with a female protagonist and one of the issues that I was running into was that people seemed to take issue with the fact that there was no love interest or love story. In fact they kept pegging male characters as the emerging love interest. Do you think that in today’s world YA pretty much has to have a love interest?
ingridsundberg said, on 3/24/2013 1:19:00 PM
Justin – I think you need to be true to your character. If your female protagonist isn’t interested in your side characters, she isn’t interested. You can’t force her to have a relationship! It will feel false and your reader will feel that. However, if she happens to take a liking to someone (and maybe she does, you’ve got to listen to her and what she wants), that’s different. Your readers might be picking up on signals that your character is dropping for you. It’s also possible your readers are projecting. Trust your writer instincts! You know your character better than anyone else.
KateBrauning said, on 3/25/2013 6:59:00 AM
Thanks so much for posting this! My thoughts exactly- especially #3!
Cynthia Leitich Smith said, on 3/25/2013 11:19:00 AM
Great topic & tips. Do you think it’s possible to write a feminist YA romance novel?
Peter said, on 3/25/2013 12:35:00 PM
I think so. Why can’t contemporary girls have it all?
rachellieberman said, on 3/25/2013 1:23:00 PM
Hi Cynthia! It’s actually been suggested to me that a romance cannot, by its definition, be a feminist text. But I don’t know that I necessarily agree, because “feminism” itself is such a loaded term, so to say that there is no such thing as a feminist romance is saying that there is a strict definition of feminism that everyone has agreed upon.
I think it’s entirely possible that a YA romance can be feminist, but I also understand why some might disagree, and I think it comes down to the audience, especially for YA. It’s an audience that may be questioning its position in society a lot more, and therefore the values behind the romance might have a more profound impact. So, say Twilight had been written for an older audience with older characters, but other than that it was the same (and no, I’m not talking 50 Shades of Grey). Would it have the same reaction from the public or its readers? I’d argue no. It resonates with teens because it speaks to something they want, and it gets a reaction from us older people because we’re worried about what they want. I think readers tend to see more feminist value in adult romances because they are marketed as an escape for readers, rather than as a potential “promise” that things might turn out a certain way. But I’m not comfortable saying that there is no such thing as a YA feminist romance novel, because I feel like that would be saying I have examined the subject from every possible angle, and since a 45 minute lecture and 600 word blog post can only contain so much theory, I can’t say that I have.
There’s a great quote by Peggy Orenstein from Cinderella Ate My Daughter that I used in my lecture, but not this post, where she talks about the fact that one of the reasons Bella as a character (and characters like her) appeals to so many readers is because she isn’t perfect or gorgeous, but she gets the guy everyone wants. She shows that you don’t have to be a long-legged beauty with flawless complexion to be desirable. In that sense, I’d say that Twilight could actually be a feminist romance novel, but in my lecture I moved it more towards the post-feminist side of things.
I hope that all makes sense!
rachellieberman said, on 3/25/2013 1:32:00 PM
Hi Justin! I would say definitely not. Yes, you’re going to see the vast majority of YA novels today have some sort of romance, but if you’re true to your character, the audience will respond. I will say I’ve met young readers who say, “If it doesn’t have a romance, I don’t want to read it,” but I’m willing to bet that if they read a good, solid YA with a well-developed female protagonist, they would be so absorbed in the story they wouldn’t even care if there was a love interest. Don’t feel that you have to cave to pressure. Your readers will probably react more negatively to a forced love story than they would to no love story at all.
BUUUUUUT, that’s not to say you won’t encounter agents and editors who say the opposite of me, so I don’t want to steer you in this direction of thinking my advice is the only advice. I’ve attempted, in the past, to write YA without romance, and I often find myself adding one. Not because I’m caving to pressure but because the characters you’re writing about are at ages where the hormones are flying, so it’s not crazy to think that some guy or girl might catch their eye.
As you can see, I have come to a not-at-all firm conclusion about this topic.
BUT that doesn’t mean that you’re never allowed to wonder who’s going to read your stories, and what those readers will get out of their experiences.
For my graduate lecture, I took a look at how feminist and post-feminist literary theory can help us look at YA literature and decide for ourselves what messages we want to send. Feminism is, at its core, the belief in equal rights for all genders, but of course there are many definitions and variations among those definitions. The question of choice (who gets to choose, and what they should choose) is sometimes a point of contention among critics.
I think that one of the reasons so many critics find fault with Twilight and novels like it is because Bella’s choices may be her own, but they are consistently at odds with the choices we want our girls to make. When we show characters who consistently choose dangerous, controlling partners, our fear is that young adult readers will also choose dangerous, controlling partners.
I don’t think this is an invalid concern, but my intention isn’t to debate or argue it. That’s for another time, another post. My intention is to say, that if you’re a YA writer and this is something you are thinking about, there are ways to develop a good feminist story without making it preachy or propaganda. I’ll share some methods that I found useful and talked about in my lecture.
1. What does your main character want? If it’s just a relationship, consider that in real life, a desire for a relationship is usually a symptom of a deeper desire for something else, like security or acknowledgment. Consider what other forces might be at work, and you’ll avoid creating shallow characters whose problems can be solved by a significant other.
2. Make sure your character stays active. Find places in the story that force her to act, that take away her safety net and test her. This is true of practically any story, but in YA romances, it’s especially important. She doesn’t need to be a hero, but she shouldn’t rely on her love interest too much.
3. Pay attention to your character’s love interest. Speaking of the love interest, don’t forget to pay attention to him! Or her. What does he want? Does he act in a way that harms the main character, and if so, are there negative consequences? If your character has to choose between two love interests (very common these days), is the choice made too easy (by having one character turn out to be a jerk)?
4. Romance novel vs. novel with romantic elements. A romance novel is a little different than a novel with romantic elements. A romance novel’s plot is dependent on the relationship between two characters, so if you want to write a story with feminist undertones, you might choose the other path.
5. Why do your characters get together? Think about the reasons your characters are together. Is it because they find each other so attractive? Or do they share a deep, mutual connection? The more you develop the relationship, and the reasons for it, the more likely you are to connect with readers.
6. The moral of the story. All of these factors combined puts you in a better position to control the final factor: the moral of the story. Once you’ve finished a draft, it might be a good idea to take a look around. What’s happened to the characters? Who’s alive? What have they had to sacrifice? Your character’s rewards and punishments reveal a lot about your story’s message. Is it the message you want?
There are, of course, many more factors than these six that you will need to pay attention to in order to write a great novel. But this is a place to start if your aim is to write a story with romantic elements that will both appeal to teen readers and give them characters and situations they can look up to.
Rachel Lieberman works in higher education and writes YA. Her short fiction has appeared in Opium, Awkward, Emprise Review, and others. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. She lives in Tampa.
I never thought I would be an author. I hear lavish tails from other authors about where they began their literary journey, like at age four writing plays and short stories. That was not me. I wasn’t a great student in high school, scraping by to get that diploma. I took a few years off after graduation, found myself, and gained perspective. I did return to college and actually worked my tail off to get the hardest degree I could find. I majored in biomedical engineering science at Washington University in St. Louis. After college graduation, I took a nice position with a local pharmaceutical company and continue to work there full time. I was the ”slacker” turned ”nerd” and loved it.
One day I took my son to see Twilight—he loved vampires and I was an avid Buffy fan. Wait, don’t stop reading! We all have strong feelings about the Twilight saga, and I am not debating them in this post. Seeing that movie changed my life, I know what you are thinking…really? But yes, it did.
I bought the book that night. That was the first time in my life I actually read for pleasure. I had read thousands of books, mainly text books and medical journals, but Twilight was different. I devoured the entire series in a week. Stayed up all night to read, was a zombie at work, ignored my husband. Like a junkie, I was hooked.
I finished the series, and I can’t believe I am going to admit this, but I actually hugged the books. I was so moved by words on a page. I thought, I want to do that. Not marry a vampire and have a half vamp/half human child, but write a book that moves people.
The big question was what would I write about? Did I have a story in me to tell? Two weeks went by. One day driving home, I was given the story. I knew the characters, the story arcs, and all the funny drama that would ensue. Maybe I was given THE KINDLING by accident? Maybe God meant to give it to the car in front of me and miscalculated his idea trajectory. But I got it, and I am forever grateful.
I believe we all have great ideas, and it’s the action or non-action that can change our destiny. I took action that day. I went home and wrote the first three chapters of THE KINDLING. By the way – they were terrible, like I said I wasn’t a writer.
Fast forward four years—yes, four years! I studied, learned, went to conferences, followed agent blogs, met other aspiring authors, got my own blog, and it was hard. I queried way too soon (that’s another funny story!). I made many mistakes along the way, but I learned from them and never gave up. And now my first novel, a paranormal romance titled THE KINDLING is releasing in March 2013 published by MuseItUp Publishing. I hope you find the time to read my accident; it’s a good one. * * * Brandi Schmidt lives outside St. Louis with her husband, three beautiful children, and one loveable Golden Retriever. She is in love with love and admittedly cries at anything sappy. You can follow her at www.BrandiSchmidt.com or Facebook at www.facebook/authorbrandischmidt. Her twitter handle is @BrandiSchmidt . You can purchase THE KINDLING at www.museituppublishing.com or any other ebook suppliers. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
12 Comments on Friday Speak Out!: The Accidental Author, guest post by Brandi Schmidt, last added: 2/25/2013
Go, Brandi, go! I, for one, am so happy that you took your son to see Twilight and then read the books and loved them. IF not for that, we wouldn't be in the same critique group! :) So proud of you, and can't wait for THE KINDLING to be officially out. :) Ladies, it's a clever, humorous romance--you're going to love the heroine in this one!
I love reading writer path stories-- we all do it so differently. Although I loved writing from an early age, I wasn't given much encouragement to pursue a "frivolous vocation". After 22 years working in higher ed, I finally decided, staring down the final years of my 40s, to give this dream a go. Yay us! Thanks for sharing, Brandi.
Love it! I don't know why people hate on Twilight so much; the books weren't bad, and I loved the movies (and soundtracks!). Good for you, and congratulations on your book :)
Hi Brandi *waving from MORWA land*. Thanks for sharing your journey. Hearing your process to publication is encouraging for writers to learn the craft and follow their hearts. Good luck with this book and with all your subsequent ones.
That's a great story, Brandi. I love that you kept learning until you could write a story to be proud of. God doesn't make mistakes so I'm guessing He hit the right car.
Hi, Brandi! I really enjoyed your post. That's great how you got your inspiration and the fact that you were determined to see it through is really terrific. Good luck!
I think the nicest thing about the internet, for me anyway, is that if you wait around long enough things that you’ve seen live will appear online and then you can let lots of people know about them. For example, this video of Daniel Handler/Lemony Snicket and Maira Kalman is not new. It does, however, contain the only known record (known to me) of them both talking about the photograph game they would play. The photo involving the catapult and the giant ice cream is a bit dangerous as it makes me giggle for long periods of time.
Next up, the only thing better than bad lip reading of Twilight? Bad lip reading of New Moon. True fact.
Read a really good independently published children’s book this week. Self-published and remarkably fun. It even has one top-notch book trailer to accompany it. Check it out, peoples.
If the author’s name sounds familiar, that would be Ms. Lynn Messina of Little Vampire Women fame. On an unrelated note, she also owns awesome boots.
Big time thanks to David Maybury for directing me to his link to this video of Laureate na nÓg Niamh Sharkey working with students from Griffeen Valley Educate Together on a Christmas Window for Hodges Figgis Bookstore in Dublin.
I’m now harboring fantasies of some store in New York doing something similar. Books of Wonder maybe, though Bank Street Bookstore would probably get more foot traffic watching. I mean, if Dublin can do it, we can too, can’t we?
And finally, for the off-topic video sometimes you just gotta give cred to the science/digital geeks. Serious cred.
Hello, friends! Today I am very excited to show you the Essence Breaking Dawn Part 2 nail polish swatches. I love nail polish and makeup and am a total sucker when movie and book theme collections come out. Essence came out with a whole line for Breaking Dawn Pt 2. I picked up all of the nail polishes and, because I love you guys, a few extra items for a blog giveaway. If you want more information on the collection, check out the Essence website here. Beware that this post is pretty pic heavy. And apologies if I go into too much nail polish speak, but I am sure you understand. :)
Alice Had A Vision
First up is Alice Had A Vision, a really pretty glass fleck glitter. It has a purple base with lots of pretty blue and purple glitter. This is two coats. It was a bit sheer and not pretty on the first coat but the second coat evened it out.
Jacob's Protection
Next up we have Jacob's Protection. Let me just say that these names really crack me up. Anyway, this one is similar to Alice Had A Vision except that it's a blue/black base with blue glitter. Again, it was bit murky and sheer on the first coat but the second made it all better.
Edward's Love
Edward's Love is another glass fleck glitter with a black base and grey/silver glitter. It also seems to have a little bit of a gold cast. Again, this is two coats.
A Piece Of Forever
The last polish in the collection is A Piece of Forever. I guess a piece of forever looks like a frosty gold. This was probably my least favorite out of all of them. It's a bit too warm for my liking and too frosty. On the right skin tone it might look good but it wasn't my cup of tea. This is two coats.
Overall I thought the polishes were worth the $2 each I spent on them. The glitters were a little thick but they were workable. A little thinner might make them easier to apply. I enjoyed the glitters. None of them are super unique though Alice Had A Vision is quite pretty and probably my favorite out of this collection. And I got a kick out of the Breaking Dawn factor. I think this collection was only available Ulta and I really doubt you'll be able to find it anymore. But we're going to hook you up with a giveaway very soon.
Thanks for meandering with me down nail polish lane. For more pics of these polishes, go to our Facebook album. Does anyone else love themed collections as much as me?
0 Comments on Essence Breaking Dawn Pt 2 Swatches as of 12/8/2012 8:59:00 AM
I've long maintained that although the e-book era favors people with existing audiences, freakish unexpected hits would come out of nowhere, including from authors without a major platform at all. Much like viral videos.
And make no mistake: This book came out of nowhere. It started as Twilight fanfiction, then was released as an e-book and POD paperback by Writers' Coffee Shop in Australia. From there it managed to attract so much word-of-mouth attention and sales it was acquired for a rumored near-million dollars by Vintage Books, part of Random House, and has gone on to aforementioned further massive success.
The publishing industry did not see this one coming. I think it's safe to say that virtually no one did. Even five years ago it's hard to see how this book would have rocketed to such success so quickly, if would have found its way to publication at all (I'm guessing it wouldn't have).
But note that Fifty Shades of Grey needed a publisher to get truly big. Publishers may not have seen it coming, but they caught up to it very quickly. I wouldn't use this as an opportunity to sneer at publishers. The industry's role as gatekeeper is changing quickly, it's likely evidence that they were missing books like this in the past and cared too much about writing quality, but they're still making money on this hand over fist.
3) It's not as bad people say it is
Given the howls have accompanied this book's success and the snarky takedowns, I was really expecting drivel.
It's not drivel. It's not Shakespeare, but from a prose perspective I would call it competently written.
Yes, there are writerly tics, yes there are elements that are implausible, yes yes OMG a helicopter called Charlie Tango, more on all that in a minute. But the end of the world for books this is not.
I've read worse.
4) That said...
I'm not exactly an expert, but I can see why some people have wondered aloud if this is one step back for feminism. Much of the book hinges on very confused 21-year-old virginal Anastasia, seemingly plucked straight out of the 1950s, wondering whether this 27-year-old experienced, troubled-but-heart-of-gold self-made billionaire industrialist likes her no I mean really likes her no I mean really really really likes her.
Their times apart consist mainly of Anastasia confusedly spurning the advances of other men who are interested in her, talking herself out of the notion that Christian Grey no I mean really likes her, and finding new reasons to feel jealous about his past, aided and impeded by both her subconscious and inner goddess (separate voices!), who alternately scold her and high five her for her adventurousness. Anastasia has few thoughts, feelings, emotions, or ambitions regarding anything other than how much Christian Grey actually truly no I mean really likes her and whether she can abide by the terms of the written contract and tortured legalese (in more ways than one) that governs their relationship.
Christian Grey is the type of person who will scare Anastasia to death then introduce her to his mom, leave her bruised and then soulfully play the piano, all the while being so stricken by his attraction for Anastasia (including, it can't be said enough times, the way she bites her lower lip) that he is willing to break all sorts of previously unbendable rules, such as being affectionate and sleeping in the same bed as her until, spoiler, whiting this part out, select it with your cursor if you want to read this: she concludes after a savage spanking that much as the great Meat Loaf sang, she would do anything for love but she won't do that.
Well. At least pending the sequels.
This, ladies and gentlemen, is one of the very most popular books of all time.
5) So, um, why is it so popular?
Needless to say, I am not exactly the target audience for this book.
But even I can see how Fifty Shades of Grey fits neatly into a very old archetype that continues to resonate in our culture. The aloof, successful, mysterious, wildly attractive rogue who shows interest in a woman despite her initial resistance and even after that man warns the woman about himself: It's not a new story. You can trace that archetype from Jane Eyre to Pride and Prejudiceto Twilight to Fifty Shades of Grey and countless other iterations. It's a new spin on a very old trope: romantic entanglement with a Byronic hero.
I also don't think it's only women who are prone to stories of an ardent and attractive suitor arriving to shake up their life, as the manic pixie dream girl movie genre can attest. Many heterosexual guys seemingly want a hot girl to come along and take care of everything as well, preferably when she's played by Natalie Portman or Zooey Deschanel.
Fifty Shades of Grey may not break new ground, but surely it benefited from being released in the Kindle/iPad era (where onlookers can't easily see/judge what you're reading), it gave an urbane veneer to a romance genre that very often skews rural/suburban, and if you'll excuse the metaphor, Twilight may well have primed the pump for a book that maintains the same archetypal romantic dynamic while allowing its protagonists to consummate their relationship.
Why now? Maybe as we sprint toward chartering new gender and relationship dynamics with more sensitive guys and greater equality there's some appetite to escape into a story with a less complicated and familiar throwback to a dominant man and submissive woman. Maybe we've become such a sexually open society people were ready for the needle of mainstream edginess to be moved a little farther over. Maybe Christian Grey and his dorkily named helicopter are just that hot.
Ha, I just typed the captcha as the comment then proceeded to be really confused for a moment.
Loved this post, Nathan. I have no idea why 50 Shades is so popular. I think it's just "new." A lot of girls I know that love it don't read a lot and were seemingly unaware that erotica existed.
The "book" (notice i use quotes) is only popular because when it was posted on Fanfiction(dot)net it had over 50,000 reviews. The Writers coffee shop solicits popular fanfic writers to publish their fics, then use their readers to make the fanfics sell and end up on the new york times.
Haven't read it, but from what I understand, it's mostly a book about dirty (in the best possible sense of the word) sex.
My two cents: Women were taught for a million years to suppress their sexuality. Men weren't. Now, generations of young women are finally realizing it's okay to embrace sex. And, in our world today, (especially young women) wear their sexuality as a badge of honor.
I'm a college professor. Many students follow me on Twitter, so I follow them back. These women aren't readers, but almost all of them read 50 Shades, posted pictures of them reading it at the pool, tweeted how much they loved it, etc.
In my opinion, it's not about the book itself. It's what the book represents. Older women may have been hiding it on their e-readers, but younger women were flaunting it.
Trust me, these young women talk about sex on Twitter WAY MORE than any of my male students. (One former student recently posted that her favorite flavor of popsicle was [slang for male genitalia]. We're living through a cultural shift, and books that tap into that will be wildly popular.
Because EL James already had an audience, she went from fan fiction to her own site and built on that. Also, she filled that gap for Twilight readers who wanted something saucier and were just a little in love with the MCs from the movie version. Kudos to EL for getting MOTU published under Fifty Shades. She worked hard for it. Let's not think this was an overnight sensation.
50 Shades did nothing for me. Nothing at all. But I know plenty of people for whom it has, and that's great for them.
My problem is that I can't walk through Target with my two young children without walking by a display for the trilogy, just a couple feet away from the coloring books.
I wonder if "random" bestsellers are made from books that people want to talk about. In order to talk about a book -- even if it's only to vent loudly with all your complaints about the absurdity -- you need other people to have read it, which means you need to convince your friends to read it. I haven't read Fifty Shades, but I know with both Twilight and Hunger Games, I read them because friends told me to and then I told friends to read them so we could talk about them. It wasn't that I loved Twilight -- I thought it was a horrible message for teenage girls, blah-blah-blah. But I still convinced at least two or three people to read it. And I did love Hunger Games, convinced at least that many people to read it, probably several more, so I could talk to them about what made Katniss a great heroine and why she was different and whether she was a new archetype in female characters, etc. Funny, thinking back, a friend sent me a UK book once that she'd picked up on a layover, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and I talked up that book to everyone I knew because I wanted to discuss the layers and the descriptions and sense of humor. Obviously, that's not the case for all bestsellers, but it might explain some of the more unusual ones.
I don't think we should ignore the brilliance of the cover design, which has changed the covers of erotica books forever. That understated symbol of male power, the simple necktie--in subtle shades of gray instead of screaming pink flesh tones--made the book LOOK respectable. It also appealed to what really turns women on, which is power, not little Magic Mike outfits. This cover made it clear this was erotica for women that understood women's fantasies.
When you call something “not that bad” and, again, “I’ve read worse” with the same breath as noting that it made a commercial splash in publishing the likes of which all the National Book Awards Finalists together will not make in a hundred years, you have affirmed that the dichotomy between art and commerce is getting ever larger.
I venture a guess that this is a case of people purchasing the book because of the hype, but not necessarily finding it to be their cup of tea. Harry Potter has 5951 customer reviews on Amazon, with an overall rating of 4.7 out of 5, while Fifty Shades has 13,840 reviews with an overall rating of 3.2. My quick analysis of those statistics tell me that people are obviously snatching it up left and right, not necessarily enjoying it. I've talked to many people who have bought/read the book and I have yet to meet one who thought it was a decent story and many didn't get past the first few chapters. So - POPULAR? I'd say a better word is notorious. I believe people are buying the book to see what the fuss is about and why people like us keep talking about it.
1) Its vast popularity made it "cool" to say you were reading it, whereas usual readers of erotica romance keep it to themselves — hence the widely popular genre for ebooks.
2) The books popularity attracted new readers to the genre who never knew they could read "porn" and like it. I had so many FB friends taking pictures of them reading the book by the pool or talking about reading it this past year. Then some would ask for similar books like it.
3) The book cover. The usual erotic romance novels have the embarrassing covers with the half naked man on the cover embracing a female.
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 10:31:00 AM
Honestly, I hated the book. I couldn't get over the immaturity of the main character. I don’t what anything to do with an erotica book whose main character reads like a 16 year old.
Why is it popular? 1. People read between the lines. I’ve had discussions with a friend who liked the book and her interpretation and mine are totally different. She saw romance, I saw domestic violence, and I don’t mean the physicality of the book, but the emotional.
2. One of the themes in the book was that she was willing to do things she didn’t fully want to do in hopes she could change him. I’m not sure where this came from, but many girls/women suffer from the idea that men show true love by changing for the woman. The bad guy starts of exciting, and then we try to change all the things that we were excited about. And when they give those up, it must be true love.
3. Sex sells
4. Popularity leads to more popularity. Either from curiosity or the assumption that if everyone is reading it then it must be good.
It's been interesting to follow the secretive reading (only your best friends whisperingly admit they've read it in all-female company) to seeing women read it at my gym and on airplanes. A male friend was on a flight where his entire ROW was reading it (all strangers) and he when asked what the big deal about it is, a multi-row conversation began where all the readers urged him to read it. Very interesting!
It didn't come out of nowhere. It didn't come out of close to nowhere.
The original fanfictions were so popular and had so many fans that they organized their own fan event and flew her from the UK to the US to attend. When the books went on sale, that fanbase responded in droves. The sudden spike by someone who had never had a novel for sale before caught the attention of Amazon's algorithms. The original fans shared the book with their friends who snapped up every hard copy they could find and happily downloaded the e-version for clandestine reading. They got to feel like they were doing something "naughty" (oh, how I hate that word when applied to adults in a serious manner...)
ELJames has basically the same story as every other success with a built-in fanbase. She gave those who already knew her what they expected and wanted, and in turn those people supported the writer they enjoy. They spread the word to people who likely had never heard of fanfiction, or might have hated Twilight, but might enjoy 50SoG.
Though, hopefully, none of them confused it with Between Shades of Grey (or vice versa). That could make for some awkward reading.
I didn't manage to read past the first 2 chapters which were offered as a the free preview on my Kobo - I didn't want to waste my time and money after that, despite Kobo trying to sell it to me on every page of their website. Opening with her looking in the mirror was enough to put my hackels up. But as my father was a pilot, your mention of the helicopter name makes absolute sense to me. Charlie Tango is the radio call signal so the helicopter would be CT followed by a number. My father's plane was Charlie Whiskey Foxtrot. Unlike ships and boats, flying beasts don't often get called romantic names.
@Josin I read an article about Ruta Septys' Between Shades of Grey tour this year, and she did have people come expecting the author for 50 Shades.
I agree with @Karen that lots of people are buying this book based on hype but I haven't heard much posistive on my end. One of my good friends who mainly reads non-fiction and self-help said she got the books because they were "something to read." That's pitiful to me. You can read a cereal box, too. But she said she wanted to see what the hype was about and none of the mysogyny bothered her. It bothers me. And the bad writing does too. I read a chapter and couldn't take it. For me, I have so many books on my list to read, I'm not looking for just anything to read because it's popular. If the reviews were stellar, yes, I would give it a chance.
I think it's popular because it is naughty. And because everyone is reading it (or at least every female it seems, including your grandma), it gives one permission to read it. So it becomes insanely popular. And because e-readers are perfect for naughty books.
And we want to see what all the fuss is about. That's why I read it. I wanted to know what I was missing.
Yet it's not really that naugthy, and at times the sex is downright awkward. I will admit the cover is awesome, and if this shabbily written book makes readers aware that erotica exists, I guess something positive comes out of its mere existence.
Maybe I'm way off, but I am seeing a huge correlation between Samuel Richardson's Pamela or Virtue Rewarded and Fifty Shades of Gray . Pamela was written in 1740 and some credit it as being the first English novel. It started as a sort of sermon about young women becoming too bold and the importance of innocence. Richardson was looking for a unique way to reach young people, and thus Pamela is born.
Take a look at Richardson's title: Pamela or Virtue Rewarded . With the view, by some, that fiction was just lies, and therefore not a good read for intellectuals, the title serves to do two things: 1. There's a story, and 2. There's a lesson to be learned. The lesson gives the story its purpose.
Fifty Shades of Gray does this, as well. As others have pointed out (and so I won't go into more detail), the title and cover give the impression that there is something more behind these characters than dirty sex. There's a lesson to be learned here. It justifies us in indulging in "mommy porn," as some call it.
In Pamela, the heroine is an innocent young woman who follows the rules and faithfully fulfills her roles. She is a maidservant. Mr. B is the rich man with power who becomes taken by Pamela. As he learns more about her, he falls for her because of her innocence. However, she resists him because she represents all that is moral and good. Mr. B kidnaps her, tries to seduce her, tries to rape her, etc. In the end, her virtue wins out, they fall in love, and he marries her.
I know Fifty Shades doesn't follow this plot exactly, but there is a correlation here, I think, between what these plots are trying to tell us. The idea that a "pure" young lady can change the rich and powerful (not to mention, sex-hungry) man, seemingly gives the female power over the male. It gives young women a sense of control, and also unity when they discuss the book together.
Both books have scandalous scenes (though neither, the dirtiest of their time), but our indulgence in wild and violent sex is validated by the fact that there is a moral in the end. Because these women have avoided the advances of past men, they must somehow be above the "fallen" women. The men who star in these novels see them as different and desirable because they, themselves, don't want to be seen in that way.
I think it a good point to note, too, that Richardson changed Pamela's writings in later editions of the book, because her speech was too low-class. In order to make the union between her and Mr. B more acceptable to society, she had to appear more intelligent.
I think we see the same thing with Fifty Shades. In order to make it more compatible with current views on feminism, the woman can't simply conform to purity and innocence. She has to be independent, career-oriented, and intelligent.
So, we have some dirty, violent sex scenes in both books that would be viewed as extremely anti-woman, except that the ideal woman who is intelligent and doesn't succumb to pressures of society is the one engaging in these acts. Suddenly, the sex isn't so taboo. We can happily read these books by the pool because our desires to indulge in violent sex and be persuaded with mental abuse--our desire to be overpowered--is validated by a woman we can look up to with pride (one that is intelligent and thinks for herself).
The danger I see here, is that both stories are unrealistic. No way in 1740 would a man as powerful as Mr. B marry someone of Pamela's status--no matter how innocent she was. As others have pointed out, how likely is it that a deep and fulfilling relationship could develop out out someone trying to change the other person? How likely is it that a young woman, even with all her intelligence, could change a powerful, rich man of his ways?
I also think that both books present the problem of perpetuating the idea that woman want to be overpowered. Even the intelligent ones.
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 2:21:00 PM
But the books don't have a tasteless cover so how would your kids even know what its about? Not a big deal!
I just realized that my comment rambled on way too long, so I deleted it. I tend to be in constant essay mode, so sorry about that long comment.
The heroine of Fifty Shades was portrayed as the intelligent virgin. She's career-oriented; a model we can look up to. There are more graphic sex novels out there, but we can feel validated in knowing that this isn't just sex--there's a moral to be learned.
The pure female character changes the rich, powerful man. In this way, it seems as though the female holds a special power over the male. We can feel united with this woman who is powerful and intelligent.
Her power is an illusion that the reader is happy to look right through because it validates our desire to indulge in a book where male dominates female--something that would usually be seen as anti-woman today.
I think this satisfaction one receives from watching an intelligent woman enjoy being dominated is where the intrigue of this book is rooted. We want the mental and physical dominance, and we want to justify it.
The danger in holding up such heroines as a role model, though, is that it perpetuates this idea that all women want to be dominated. They may resist at first, but deep down, they want it.
You really didn't think it was that badly written? Um, are you sure you read Fifty Shades of Grey? I read the first two (won't even bother with the third one) and wondered how something like that got could get published (and NOT re-edited!)As a woman who doesn't mind BDSM, that didn't bother me. The sentence structure and and poor editing bothered me. Tell me that you didn't find yourself editing it as you read it!
I believe that Fifty Shades is popular because the author has written most things well (sex scenes, descriptive details, lush language...) but she also did one thing very, very well... she made the readers totally relate to the protagonist. Anastasia would dismiss one thing after another (while biting her lower lip) only to work herself around to the idea as the pages flipped by (rather quickly) and I was right there with her... even if I am 3 times older! As you say, it is not Shakespeare but it is a GOOD read.
I have not read this book. However as the wife of a private pilot I know where the helicopters name came from and it makes perfect sense. When we call a tower we give our planes call letters which consist of numbers followed by letters. C=Charley and T=Tango at every tower where planes fly. That IS the name.
I got suckered into reading it because everyone else I know read it. My sister read the trilogy then shipped her copies to me. Got them for free... Of course I'm going to read them... then loan them out to every friend of mine who hasn't read them and wants to. They really aren't so great I would want to pay to read them. EVER. I couldn't even be bothered to sign up on the wait list at my local library to read them.
No, they aren't the worst books I've ever read. Yes, they are erotica, but definitely not the best I've ever read. Maybe if I'm REALLY bored sometime I'll read them again. (If my friends return them.)
And I do NOT understand why they are so insanely popular. Sure, they are based on Twilight fanfiction, but doesn't that fact alone sort of make it terrible that they've become so popular? The characters are rip-offs of someone else's work!
Yes, it is true, no matter what some women may say, many women like & want to be dominated, but more importantly, they want a man who knows this without having to ask & possibly embarrass them by making them admit it. They want the man to just take over & do what he wants & still feel like they are strong women who had no choice, when actually they did. Some women feel guilty or sleazy to have these desires, so if a man can satisfy their fantasy without them acknowledging it even IS their fantasy, then that's the perfect scenario. And 50SoG feeds into & satisfies that in women who know they'll never get it. And maybe, if they're lucky, their men will want to know why they like the book so much & they can admit without feeling bad about themselves.
I was blown away when I discovered that my super macho fireman lover was reading 50 Shades of Grey. (His sister-in-law gave it to him?) I was unwilling to pay for a book I'd heard so much negative criticism about, but when he gave me his copy (and pointed out some similarities between the characters' and our relationship), I couldn't help but devour the thing. It was mildly titillating, but annoying as heck, and I've resisted reading the sequels as a result (so many other books are, I believe more worthy of my precious time).
The point I'm trying to make in a rather round about way is that this book appealed to people you'd never guess would like it and it contained just enough "average female angst" with respect to relationship dynamics that I think many women could sympathize. The incorporation of email dialogue modernized the couple's interaction and was something I particularly connected with.
As far as the argument that this book is anti-feminist, well, yes, I suppose it is, but there has been so much dialogue surrounding its popularity that surely the less "enlightened" women reading it have had the concerns regarding that aspect of the work drummed into their tiny little heads so much so that the book has certainly served to open up dialogue that, as far as I know, hasn't been at the fore of social commentary for quite a long time. It got us talking. That's a good thing, right?
I was blown away when I discovered that my super macho fireman lover was reading 50 Shades of Grey. (His sister-in-law gave it to him?) I was unwilling to pay for a book I'd heard so much negative criticism about, but when he gave me his copy (and pointed out some similarities between the characters' and our relationship), I couldn't help but devour the thing. It was mildly titillating, but annoying as heck, and I've resisted reading the sequels as a result (so many other books are, I believe more worthy of my precious time).
The point I'm trying to make in a rather round about way is that this book appealed to people you'd never guess would like it and it contained just enough "average female angst" with respect to relationship dynamics that I think many women could sympathize. The incorporation of email dialogue modernized the couple's interaction and was something I particularly connected with.
As far as the argument that this book is anti-feminist, well, yes, I suppose it is, but there has been so much dialogue surrounding its popularity that surely the less "enlightened" women reading it have had the concerns regarding that aspect of the work drummed into their tiny little heads so much so that the book has certainly served to open up dialogue that, as far as I know, hasn't been at the fore of social commentary for quite a long time. It got us talking. That's a good thing, right?Nathan! I have been waiting and watching for this blog! I agree wholeheartedly with your insights and loved the method you used to hide the spoiler. Cool.
My own experience of 50 Shades began day when I discovered that my uber-macho, fireman lover was reading it. I was blown away and my curiosity was naturally piqued. I’d been unwilling to pay for a book I'd heard so much negative criticism about, but when he gave me his copy (and pointed out some similarities between the characters' and our relationship), I couldn't help but devour the thing. It was mildly titillating and admittedly great foreplay, but annoying as heck, and I've resisted reading the sequels as a result (so many books, so little time).
The point I'm trying to make is that this book appealed to people you'd never guess would like it and it contained more than enough “female angst" to make “average” women like myself sympathize with the protagonist. The incorporation of email dialogue contemporized the couple's interaction and the fact that Anastasia could express herself more fully in that medium than when faced with the knee-weakening Grey was something I related to in particular.
As far as the argument that this book is anti-feminist, well, yes, I suppose it is, but there has been so much dialogue surrounding its popularity that surely the less "enlightened" women reading it have had the concerns regarding that aspect of the work drummed into their tiny little heads so much so that the book has certainly served to reignite dialogue that, as far as I know, hasn't been at the fore of social commentary for quite some time. It got us talking. That's a good thing, right?
I think it was said already, but erotic romantic ebooks are a huge industry. I'm surprised that anyone is surprised by this. Many millions of dollars are made in the erotica genre. They used to call them bodice rippers, didn't they? This particular book is very accessible and, as you said, competently written. It isn't the best adult erotica I've ever read but it isn't at all the worst. It was also well publicized and the author knew how to put it together in a fairly polished manner.
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 4:19:00 PM
I read it and did not like it.
First, it was such a blatant rip-off of Twilight that I was offended on Stephenie Meyer's behalf. If someone did that with my work, I'd want royalties. I felt that it should have matured past fan-fiction before selling a bazillion copies.
In the same vein, the characters were flat as a pancake. Flatter even than Stephenie Meyer's, which is impressive. Anastasia's constant shock at Christian Grey's appetites, despite the fact that they were pretty clear from the outset, was exhausting, as was the endless lip biting and obsessing about the way Mr. Grey's pants hung off of him. (Did he need a smaller size?)
Finally, I just found it a bit, well, unbelievable. Perhaps I'm a prude, but I couldn't help but think that there would be chafing issues after a while.
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 4:32:00 PM
My answer is d) Bestsellers are largely random.
Everyone I know who has read it has done so because "everyone is reading it." None of my friends have admitted to liking it, but they all sought it out in the first place because of the peer pressure. There's a social component to bestsellerdom: once a book reaches the tipping point, everyone else reads it to see what the others are talking about. I saw this happen with The Da Vinci Code, too.
How does a book build to that tipping point in the first place? I'm not sure anyone really knows. Whatever 50 Shades has in terms of romantic and erotic elements, there are other books that have it too, but never sell as widely. Perhaps the fan base that others mentioned was critical in building the initial buzz.
I don't think it's anything new to publishing to have these huge sensations, to have a book that's The It Book. But because that can't be forced, and that kind of success can't be manufactured, writers and publishers just keep working at it, chasing the dream and hoping that the lightning strikes.
The only problem with the comparison of the Byronic romance with the Magic Pixie Dream Girl -- and I think you might be on to something there -- is that while in the Byronic fantasy, the woman is young and naive and sacrifices her own pursuit of happiness for her man, in the MPDG fantasy, the woman is young and naive and sacrifices her own pursuit of happiness for her man.
Ha - yeah, maybe. But in both cases I think they're about "unlocking" something inside of the woman/man. The heroine confronting the Byronic hero must give in to temptation, the man in the MPDG story must waken to the world anew.
In both archetypes the man is ostensibly giving something up too. The Byronic hero letting himself be tamed, the MPDG hero loses his powerful cynicism which allegedly weakens him -- one reason why he doesn't usually end up with the MPDG.
"Maybe, at the end of the day..." reading such an atrociously written pile of poo has you using clichés such as "at the end of the day", without even understanding what it's done to you. Really Nathan...
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 6:02:00 PM
I've never read it however, I can't help but feel a trifle irritated by the fact that everyone, from television to blogosphere, talks about this book endlessly. And didn't the book come out months ago? Enough, already. There are other well-deserving books out there that would like to be talked about too! However, I have to say, kudos to E.L. James for doing an amazing job of selling her own book :-) Yvette Carol
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 6:08:00 PM
It was just announced last week that another popular Twilight fanfic called "The Office," just scored a two-book deal with Gallery Books. And let's not forget "Gabriel's Inferno & Gabriel's Rapture" (in the fanfic world known as "The University of Edward Masen") was recently published by Penguin's Berkeley imprint. Both of these had a huge fan base in the Twilight fandom. As an author who has been trying to get published, I'm thinking of changing my MC names to Edward and Bella...LOL!
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 6:09:00 PM
It was just announced last week that another popular Twilight fanfic called "The Office," just scored a two-book deal with Gallery Books. And let's not forget "Gabriel's Inferno & Gabriel's Rapture" (in the fanfic world known as "The University of Edward Masen") was recently published by Penguin's Berkeley imprint. Both of these had a huge fan base in the Twilight fandom. As an author who has been trying to get published, I'm thinking of changing my MC names to Edward and Bella...LOL!
50 Shades of Sex, A short parody http://dailybrass.blogspot.com/2012/07/50-shades-of-sex-parody.html
Amanda said, on 11/12/2012 6:26:00 PM
I couldn't finish the series.
It's just, ughhh, such an abusive relationship. Having been in an emotionally abusive relationship, it triggered me really badly to read Christian's constant manipulation and Ana's constant self-doubt and weeping misery. It isn't romantic, it's a nightmare.
I was interested in reading it because it was supposedly a mainstream representation of BDSM. But the whole plot seemed to be that only damaged, abused people engage in BDSM, and the love of a good woman will cure them of their perversion. Yikes! Not to mention the fact that it wasn't even BDSM anyway-- BDSM is consensual, the Dom only does what the sub enjoys and nothing more. So Christian pressuring Ana to do things that make her cry all the time isn't him being dominant, it's him being a jerk.
@ Anne R. Allen - I agree that some women want to be dominated, but some studies have shown that an equal, or even greater, number of men want to be dominated, too. How's that for setting gender sterotypes on its ears. :)
So, great analysis, Nathan! Really interesting, thoughtful and perceptive. And funny.
So, she really wants him to really, really like her? While biting her lower lip? Really, really biting?
So, I agree with Jan Priddy, this seems like a paternalistic archtype.
It's the archtype of a girl who is abused/neglected and/or unloved by her father, earning his care, attention and love by having him finally see her 'goodness'.
The sexualization of a father/daughter relationship is, in part, about release of tension. When the abuse stops, it feels like a great relief. That gets sexualized.
I think specific books become popular for all the reasons that people are saying: word of mouth, the titillation, the water-cooler effect, etc.
But the archtype of an abused daughter finding paternal love, where her father figure transforms from a distant "monster" to a loving man, can be found all over and is extremely popular, starting, perhaps, with the Beauty and the Beast fairytale.
Twilight was definitely the same archtype. And you find it in tons of romance books, which are read by millions of women (and men).
There is a sad part to this, though. The intense popularity of this particular archtype speaks to how many people felt abused and/or neglected by their fathers. That's sad, and very real.
Why is it popular? Because it's entertaining! I read the whole series, and I have to say, I was entertained. Sure, the writing had some issues, but it was still a fun read.
By the way, I'm totally impressed that you read it!
Shelley Souza said, on 11/12/2012 9:02:00 PM
Fifty Shades has not outsold the Harry Potter SERIES: it has outsold Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows *in the U.K.*
From the Daily Telegraph:
"Global sales of the trilogy are said to be over 40 million - still a long way from the 450 million achieved by JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series."
I am wondering if you read the whole series or just the first book? Because if you have just read the first one then you are truly missing out ;)
I read the first book because I swear every girl in my office was reading it and telling me how great it was. Although, at first I did try to resist and be the conservative southern girl I was raised to be, but curiosity got the better of me and I gave in and read the first book. I read the second two because I had to know what happened and to be honest it was kind of fun to read something a little sexy.
It should not be shocking that I purchased them on my kindle, since I already admitted to being conservative. However, I think if there was no such thing as e-readers I would have still purchased the book. I just might have resisted for a little longer.
Needless to say I overlooked the perceptual lip biting, and enjoyed the books for what they were - Beauty and the Beast plus sex @Seeley.
@Two Flights Down - I am glad you are letting Nathan post your first comment. I read it earlier and really enjoyed your point-of-view. I also felt like I learned a lot from it. I was actually looking back to re-read it!
Haven't read it, although I tried to but couldn't get past the first page. I'm not sure why, perhaps it was because I knew something explicit and sexual was around the corner. Not a big fan of reading about it. I wonder if it is actually the dominant male women yearn for or is it the charming, understanding and fun-to-be-with, boyish male who has confidence in himself and isn't intimidated by the woman-as-goddess type of thing. Women love men who love and admire them and are, you know, interesting. But dominant, no, I think that would get wearing after awhile and result in tension, but not of the sexual kind. I think most women appreciate a male who is smarter than that.
Anonymous said, on 11/12/2012 9:20:00 PM
Nathan, I work in an independent bookstore, and I've been looking forward to this post ever since you announced that you were reading "that book." As a bookseller, I witnessed firsthand how this book went from an e-book that a lot of women asked about to the most popular book of the spring and summer, with a record 98 copies sold the day before Mother's Day. Practically everyone from ages 20 on up were asking about the book. I was surprised at how many of our longtime customers in their sixties and seventies were reading it. Sales have slacked off for the time being, but we're still selling at least three copies a week.
I tried to read it, but I couldn't get past chapter two. It killed me to even devote that much time to the book as there were so many other books I wanted to read. But as a bookseller, I felt like I had to find out what all the hype was about. In the end, I went to the customers and they said that "Fifty Shades of Grey" was a compelling story with fun characters, but the writing was mediocre. They also said books two and three were better than one. Most of them said that at first the books were about the sex parts, but then those parts got old, and they sped through the sex parts to get to the action parts.
I know it would have made less money for Random, but I wish they had combined all three books and edited the crap out of them to make one well-written book.
Today, we received the book, "Fifty Shades of Chicken." It's a cookbook with a humorous story about an inexperienced chicken being dominated by a chef. I'm not joking. We've already sold three copies. And we've sold a lot of other Fifty Shades parodies, too. But the best writing based on Fifty Shades has to be the Amazon reviews of the books. Those are hilarious. --Jen
@Mira--I did NOT say women want to be dominated. I said women are drawn to power. Look at that woman who got mixed up with David Petraeus. You think she'd have gone for it if he'd been a grocery clerk? Or that she fell for that cute receding hairline? She wasn't attracted to his power over HER--but his power in the world. She wanted that power to rub off on her. It's the primal appeal of the tribal chieftan.
Anne, I'm sorry! I got confused. The comment I was responding to was Nancy Thompson's. Sorry.
I agree with you, in that I think people are often attracted to someone who has what we don't have and want. I don't know about women in general being attracted to power, although, since they have been denied power for many centuries, that makes sense.
I have met men who are attracted to powerful women, though.
It's a fantasy. No one really wants to be dominated or hurt in real life but it is fun to read about it and imagine what you would do in the same situation, especially given that Christian, (and Edward) is so beautiful, dreamy, athletic, not to mention rich. Plus, he is vulnerable at heart so she can fix him. We all want to fix people.
I thoroughly enjoyed all three books and am prepared to forgo beautiful writing in favor of the occasional ripping yarn. I think excessive editing and tailoring a story to suit a publisher's idea of what's fun to read sometimes spoils the fun. Just saying . . .
Crystal Parney said, on 11/13/2012 7:39:00 AM
I haven't read 50 yet, but I think it's about fantasy, like other posts have said. I think often fantasy is much better than the real thing.
I read 50 Shades because I enjoyed a few of the Twilight books, plus, as a writer, whenever hoards of people are reading a book and telling how great it is, I have to see what the fuss is.
I think it's popular for a number of reasons: 1. The author is building off of her Twilight Fan Fiction base (as a few people have already mentioned.) 2. Far as I can tell, she's bringing something out into the open, mainstream life, that people rarely talk about. To tell you the truth, I'd never heard of a Dominant until I'd read this book! Of course, I knew about BDSM, but...I think she's bringing a "somewhat secret" lifestyle out into the open, almost saying it's "okay" to do this.
The writing was horrific, but, I was compelled to finish the first story, and then I felt compelled to read the second story.
Things started going flat for me after about the third or fourth chapter of the second story. I felt the second book had a VERY SAGGING MIDDLE! I was bored with 2nd book, almost did not finish it.
The 3rd book was not as entertaining as the first, but, not as SLOW as the second one.
@Mira Oh, good. I didn't want people to think I was into that sub stuff. I have a recurring character in my books who's a dominatrix, though. :-)
The lure of power does work both ways. The scullery maid who ends up with the prince is one archetype (Those Regency romances are always about the girl who falls for Rakish Duke, not the Rakish Stable Boy With Great Abs.) But another archetype is La Belle Dame Sans Merci--the unattainable high-born Lady of the troubadour poets. Both archetypes live on in our fantasies.
50 Shades works because it has tapped into an archetypal fantasy. It's the fantasy, not the prose that people are attracted to.
I think Fifty Shades, aside from the 'billionaire guy' fantasy many women have, hit precisely because it was raw and 'flawed' on so many levels.
It was simple. Something the average person...alright in parts... can relate it. It didn't pretend to be intellectual, or a writing masterpiece. It was just a story about a girl. Believable or not in some places was irrelevant.
Think 'Gangnam Style' which if I'm not mistaken, has taken the slot for most viewed Youtube Video ever. What makes this song great? It doesn't follow convention or rules... it's just an odd dude, doing odd things and not giving a toot what anything thinks.
I think most of us are pretty basic creatures. And for reasons we can't fathom, we relate to basic things. Primal things.
I think Fifty Shades gave that to many people. That's why, even people who don't read... could relate to it. E.L just told her story exactly how she envisioned it.
It's sexy. Point, blank and period. I read it and I was not impressed from a prose standpoint. But I have a slew of girlfriends who for months could not do anything but quote the book lines and wonder about who is going to play Christian in the movie. And I have to admit I will go see the movie. In the age of reality tv where someone named Snookie is rich and famous, are we really surprised that this book has been so popular?
Here's what I find weird: I have never heard an actual plot mentioned in relation to this book. I mean, is there a journey? A pivotal moment? What's at stake for the main character? I keep hearing about sex, sex, sex, but nothing ever happens.
Logline: Girl meets hot businessman; they go on a sexual journey.
Okay, I guess I can buy that. But still, I'm feeling mental pain over this. *hits head with Fifty Shades*
Adding: Maybe I just don't like the idea of my mom reading this thing. If she does, I'm moving to Pluto.
Mira said, on 11/15/2012 3:33:00 AM
When I read your comment that FSOG 'gave an urbane veneer to a romance genre that very often skews rural/suburban' I thought 'YES!'. For years now I've been a disenfranchised chicklit reader. From once being cool stories about smart, metropolis dwelling singletons meeting & falling in love, chicklit has descended into a twee genre about second time rounders, empty nesters & heroines knitting their own houses. They don't even focus on a relationship anymore - they're all to do with setting up a business, saving a shop or a building (insert as appropriate). Yawn. It's why I dumped chicklit, serendipitously found fanfic & never looked back. I'd hoped the publication of FSOG would give chicklit/romance the kick up the pants it needed, would make it flirtier, sexier, funnier and more relationship centred but alas, the sniffy, superior response of most chicklit authors suggest it'll be another twenty years of heroines baking cupcakes & knitting tea cosies.
No, you don't have to even write well to sell porn. Seen any porn flicks up for screenwriting at the Oscars lately?
Book opens with a mirror scene, terrible dialogue, an entriely unbelievable setup and then proceeds to write about bondage type relationships making it dreadfully plain not only the protagonsit is clueless, but the author didn't do a bit of research to lend any sort of believability to the scenario.
How is this "not bad?" Have literary standards REALLY sunk that low?
Porn, written by a woman, coattailing Twilight. If a man had written it, he'd be labeled a mysoginistic a$$hole, and it might still sell millions, cause it's porn.
I should point out, I don't have a problem with porn. I'll read/watch it like the next guy and get some thrills, but I won't sit back and try to rationalize it by saying it is well acted/written/directed. I'll openly admit I was looking to get stimulated by it, end of story. :)
What I read (no, I didn't finish) was AFTER the big publisher got a hold of it and presumably sent it to their editorial department. It was still atrocious.
Yes, it was poorly written.
Anonymous said, on 12/4/2012 4:54:00 PM
The book was so entertaining for some. However, the dominant and submissive aspects were on and off and interchangeable between the two main characters.
A non-fiction book about this dynamic is "Leading and Supportive Love: The Truth About Dominant and Submissive Relationships".
Who says you need to be Ed Emerley to make fingerprints dance? A canny bit of book promotion, this title is out this year but I certainly hadn’t heard of it until now (Laurence King Publishers, anyone?). Now I’ll need to see it for myself. It’s Let’s Make Some Great Fingerprint Art by Marion Deuchars. Thanks to Julian Hector for the link!
Altogether now . . . awwwwwwwwww.
Okay, book trailer time. Full discloser, Mr. Eliot Schrefer is in my writing group and I read this book, Endangered, in manuscript form. The man can write. I mean, really write. I don’t see much YA in a given year, but I saw this and it was glorious. But, in the words of the immortal LeVar Burton, you don’t have to take my word for it.
Then there’s Mr. Jarrett Krosoczka. Or, as I like to think of him, the hardest working man in show business. Now I only assume this, but surely he teaches other authors how to use social networking and technology to connect with fans, yes? I only wonder since he’s sort of really good at it. Example A: a recap of a webcast his did with kids recently. Theme song and all:
Example B: The comics that were made during the workshop. I rest my case.
Finally, my off-topic video that isn’t very off-topic. If I’m going to be honest, I almost opened the post today with this bad lip-reading of Twilight. What can I say? It made me laugh very very hard (on the second segment anyway). Forgive me if there’s a political ad before it.
0 Comments on Video Sunday: That cake’s my most bestest creation as of 10/7/2012 5:20:00 AM
Relatively quiet weeks in books as the dog days of summer are here, but I spotted a few good ones for you. As always, please share the best ones you saw in the comments section!
Colson Whitehead, who is spectacular on Twitter, is equally spectacular in the pages of the NY Times as he has 11 rules for writing, some of which are hilariously dubious. My favorite is #8.
The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy has now outsold the Harry Potter series on Amazon UK. Yes, really.
Probably not a coincidence that another self-published book that started as Twilight fan fiction just sold for seven figures.
Who says agents aren't embracing the future? Agent Ted Weinstein built a widget that allows you to sell books from multiple vendors on your blog or website. Check it out.
I am an American man, and I have decided to boycott American women. In a nutshell, American women are the most likely to cheat on you, to divorce you, to get fat, to steal half of your money in the divorce courts, don't know how to cook or clean, don't want to have children, etc. Therefore, what intelligent man would want to get involved with American women?
American women are generally immature, selfish, extremely arrogant and self-centered, mentally unstable, irresponsible, and highly unchaste. The behavior of most American women is utterly disgusting, to say the least.
This blog is my attempt to explain why I feel American women are inferior to foreign women (non-American women), and why American men should boycott American women, and date/marry only foreign (non-American) women.
Tens of millions of American men have had their lives completely destroyed by American women through the following crimes:
1. False rape accusations (it has been proven that up to 80 percent of rape accusations are FALSE)
2. False domestic violence (DV) charges (same as above)
3. Financial destruction of men in divorce courts through alimony and support payments (women get up to 95 percent of their ex-husband's income and savings, as well as the house, car, etc)
4. Emotional destruction of men by ex-wives who have stolen their children from them and forbidden the fathers from having custody or contact with their own children
5. Divorced dads who commit suicide as a result
Not one single American woman has EVER condemned their fellow American women for committing these crimes against men. Silence means consent. Therefore, American women support and enjoy destroying men's lives and causing men to commit suicide. Apparently, American women think it is okay to be a criminal, just as long as you are a woman. Therefore, is it any surprise that a huge percent of American men no longer want anything to do with American women, other than using them for easy sex and then throwing them away?
A few more reasons to stay away from American women?
-25 percent of American women take psychiatric drugs for mental illnesses. -25 percent of women under the age of 30 have at least one STD. -85 percent of divorces in America are INITIATED by women, thus women are responsible for the vast majority of divorces. -70 percent of criminals in America were raised by single mothers, thus feminism is responsible for most crime in America. -The majority of child molestation, child abuse, and child murder in America is done by WOMEN.
Over 50 percent of American women are single, without a boyfriend or husband; so the fact is most American men no longer want to marry American women. Let these worthless American women grow old living alone with their 10 cats.
I thought the Colson Whitehead article was hilarious. I liked the one about the land shark best. Funny.
So, I have a theory about why 50 Shades is selling so well. I think it's because you can read it on an e-book, and NO ONE WILL KNOW. Pair that with the current state of semi-legitimacy that its found, and you have a winner.
I think that widget from Ted Weinstein is awesome!
I liked that Shaskin addressed the question of value added by the publisher - I like that he is taking up author concerns!
I didn't like the book cover/bikini matching because there were no men in bikinis. Where are the bikini men? That's a link I would 'like'.
I thought the thread on the forums about how publishers are planning to re-write some classics (Pride and Prejudice, etc.) with an erotic slant was fascinating. So many interesting issues there.
So, I do have a link I want to share. I thought this was cool. It's book art, for example a castle made of books. You can't see it in the pictures, but they carefully selected the title and placement of the books to match the theme. Wouldn't it be cool to walk in the tower and read the titles?
I’m pretty much standing alone among writers in saying that the Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon is a good thing. The general stance is that it’s poorly written commercial drivel leading the reading (and non-reading) masses astray. Me? I think the issues and opportunities are—please excuse the pun—a little more grey.
First and foremost, there’s an element of ‘why her and not me?’ in some writers’ chagrin. Nobody likes a whinger. It’s admittedly got to bite a bit when E.L. James’ writing’s so guffaw-inducing bad (my friend and fellow editor Judi makes me giggle regularly by quoting the bit about Ana’s very own ‘Christian-flavoured popsicle’). It’s got to bite a bit more when you’ve been slaving away for years at your own writing with limited success.
But it ignores the fact that there’s a lot going for Fifty Shades, not least that its success has opened others’ doors. I’ve personally been offered a number of chances to review ‘the next’ Fifty Shades book and to interview its author. Ergo, opportunities for me and opportunities for erotic fiction authors who, it should be noted, were until recently low on the (little-discussed) writing hierarchy—they’re like romance writers but considered more snicker-worthy.
Surely those writers should be grateful that James’ trilogy has ratcheted up the chance of erotic fiction writers for obtaining publishing contracts and has driven eyes and sales to the genre? And beyond the genre, for that matter—James’ own husband has scored a book deal for his crime thriller (I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered trying to find and marry an up-and-coming writer who might be able to piggyback me across the bestselling line).
Mr James’ book is apparently in no way connected to Fifty Shades, but who are we kidding? Everyone’s going to be scouring the pages for hints of his and Mrs James’ sex life (and if I were him I wouldn’t care—a book sale’s a book sale and he might even gain some readers who otherwise didn’t know they enjoyed thrillers).
Because for all the ‘it’s so badly written’ grumbling, Fifty Shades has done for erotica what Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code and Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight and JK Rowling’s Harry Potter have done for their respective genres before—they’ve got people reading and they’ve got people talking about reading.
Whether readers and critics realise it or not (and it’s the ‘or not’ that’s arguably key in the same way that parents try to ensure that kids don’t realise they’re eating green vegies)
I picked up a copy of Fritz Leiber's Conjure Wife on Amazon. Yes, I went for the dead tree edition for six bucks rather than a $7.69 e-copy. I'm still that guy. If the price was $3.99 or less on Kindle, maybe... but that's beside the point.
I'm a good twenty pages in, and it's a fine book, but the cover troubles me:
This woman is not Tansy. Not in my imagination. Not from a book published in 1943, no matter how dark the fantasy. The hair, her dress, the gothed-out eyes... Not to mention the words at the bottom of the cover: "The Classic of Urban Fantasy". What? Urban Fantasy wasn't even a phrase one used in 1943. Was it?
This is marketing, sure, disguising a classic horror novel in trappings of the now to sucker new readers. Not unlike slapping a Twilighty cover on Romeo and Juliet, Wuthering Heights, and Pride and Prejudice:
Oh yes they did.
Does the cover effect my reading of the book? The jury is still out, but if I'm thinking about the cover instead of the content, I'd have to say all signs are pointing to YES. What about you?
Summit Entertainment has released the first teaser trailer for The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2. We’ve embedded the trailer above–what do you think?
The 15-second clip has drawn more than 116,800 “likes” on Facebook. The film comes out in November, and the full trailer will be available on the movie’s Facebook page on March 26th.
Stephenie Meyer‘s novel Breaking Dawn features an elaborate plot inspired by two William Shakespeare plays: A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Merchant of Venice.
Archer, the wildly successful animated show that surpasses even Mad Men in the number of drinks the characters consume in a single episodehas been renewed for a 4th Season. The Emmy and Annie Award nominated FX cartoon has been averaging about 2 million viewers per episode this season, up 32% from last season. And keerist, I hope I make it home in time tonight to be one of them. (via HuffPo)
The trailer for Morgan Spurlock’s retardedly titled Comicon Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope has debuted on the interwebs and is available for your viewing pleasure at the link (via The Hollywood Reporter)
SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!There are more Walking Dead production leaks floating around, this time on an IMDB message board. This one says the next episode is Shane, Rick and new soon to be half-legged survivor, Randall, centric. Spinoff Online also has a pretty neat behind the scenes clip of just what it takes to make everything look all zombie awesome on the show.
In this week’s John Carter ramp up news, Andrew Stanton will have you know, among other things, that there’s been no budget overage, damnit! (via Spinoff Online) Also, two of the film’s stars Taylor Kitsch and Willem DaFoe say they’re contractually obligated to do sequels (via /Film)
Bleach is getting the live action treatment from Warner Brothers (via The Beat)
7 Comments on Studio Coffee Run 2/23/12: Archer, True Blood, Kick Ass and RED sequel news, etc., last added: 2/24/2012
I still haven’t watched Archer yet because I’m sad Frisky Dingo never took off. God, I loved that show.
Marshall Khadaffi said, on 2/24/2012 10:39:00 AM
Johnny Bench called
Shannon OLeary said, on 2/24/2012 11:24:00 AM
@Chris Hero Why haven’t you watched Archer yet? That’s just wrong.
Shannon OLeary said, on 2/24/2012 11:28:00 AM
@Chris Hero by which I mean, you need to move past your frisky dingo depression. if i can move past my dollhouse related depression and go see the avengers, you can do this. i know you can.
akachris said, on 2/24/2012 12:04:00 PM
“In other sequel news, Red 2 is in the works, also courtesy of Warner Brothers (via Spinoff Online)”
- I’m pretty sure Red and it’s sequel were produced and distributed by another film company, Summit Entertainment. DC Entertainment was involved but not Warner Bros.
The interesting story behind this movie was Greg Noveck, the former DC SVP tried to get Warner to make the movie, but they passed. And the movie did better than the other Warner Bros-DC movies that year – The Losers and Jonah Hex.
Shannon OLeary said, on 2/24/2012 1:01:00 PM
Tx, for the correction and subsequent tale of WB/DCE machinations, @akachris.
There were few surprises at the Grammy Awards this year, including Adele taking home (six awards, winning in every category in which she was nominated. The Grammys tried to reach out to a young audience with a showcase of electronica music, which... Read the rest of this post
One of our fellow bloggers and dear friend Yara lost everything yesterday in a devastating house fire. She and her family are all safe, but they have lost everything.
If you want to help Yara and her family we suggest you do so through the Twilight Moms site. If you want to support Yara, please follow this link.
We totally trust that Lisa and the Twilight Moms will make sure every penny reaches Yara and her family. And every penny will help them rebuild the pieces of their world.
Sending positive thoughts your way, Yara! ~EFG Staff To help and/or donate, please click here.Add a Comment
Twihards around the world will watch The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 this weekend. In the latest installment of the blockbuster series, fans can expect to see a dramatic vampire wedding and eventful honeymoon.
We caught up with screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg to talk about writing scripts and the adaptation process. The highlights follow below…
Q: Describe the writing process when you are charged with adapting a book for a script versus writing an original script.
A: Each comes with its own challenges, but nothing is more difficult than starting with a blank page, as a writer does with an original project. I had the good fortune to start with an already fully fleshed out universe and mythology. But an adaptation comes with its own challenges: Honing a 500 page novel into a 110 page script. Externalizing very internal character arcs. Not pissing off the millions of fans around the world who don’t understand, or frankly care, that a book and a movie are very different animals, and that one can’t simply transfer the entire text into screenplay format and shoot it.
Happy Breaking Dawn release day! Love it or hate it, you probably have an opinion about Breaking Dawn. Personally, it was my least favorite book out of the four and I think it's ridiculous that they've broken it up into two films. However, it's a tradition among my friends to get a group together to see the movies when they're released. I don't think they're great movies but they're fun and I always have a good time seeing them with my friends. And no, I do not have midnight tickets. We are going Sunday afternoon and I am really looking forward to it.
So in the spirit of fun, we here at RNSL are hosting a Breaking Dawn Giveaway. One lucky winner will get the following goodies:
Breaking Dawn Hardcover
Twilight Deluxe CD soundtrack album
New Moon soundtrack album
Eclipse soundtrack album
Breaking Dawn soundtrack album
Another two winners will be picked to get Breaking Dawn CDs. That's 3 winners total. Following is not required though it's always appreciated. All you have to do is leave a comment with whether or not you love or hate Breaking Dawn and why. Sorry, only open to U.S. residents. Good luck!
Every time ‘Hunger Games’ content hits the Web, the Internet goes into a frenzy (which happened overnight when promo posters of the film’s stars were released. Fans may have been critical of the movie’s casting originally, but we doubt they... Read the rest of this post
We know Millennials have more relaxed views about online privacy (than do older generations, but even they might think Warner Bros. has crossed the line with its new online “social series” called “Aim High.” Starring Jackson... Read the rest of this post
This week is Banned Books Week, an annual event celebrating our freedom to read whatever we like. It’s not that we want to celebrate the banning of books, of course. What we celebrate is the power of books to convey ideas, even ideas that are shocking, controversial or unpopular.
Sponsored by the American Library Association and many others, Banned Books Week is an important way to shine a light on these books. Many of the books highlighted during Banned Books Week were only the target of attempted bans; a powerful reminder of the importance of staying vigilant about protecting our First Amendment right to read any books we like.
At First Book, we like to walk the walk, so we make a special effort to ensure that the schools and programs in our network have access to high-quality books – including many that have been banned, or the target of attempted bannings.
Check out these books (and more) on the First Book Marketplace, and make sure the kids you serve have the chance to read them all, and make up their own minds.
Disney debuted the TV movie ‘Phineas and Ferb: Across The 2nd Dimension’ on Friday (and the flick — based on the TV series of the same title — drew in an impressive 7.6 million viewers! It’s the top cable movie of the year so... Read the rest of this post
Writers Veronica Roth, Marie Lu and Erin Morgenstern all landed movie deals for their debut novels.
Roth released Divergent in May; Morgenstern’s book The Night Circus is due out in September and Lu’s title Legend will hit bookstores in late November. Lu sold her book’s movie rights to CBS Films. Summit Entertainment snatched up the rights to Roth and Morgenstern’s novels.
According to Variety, Harry Potter film producer David Heyman is interested in The Night Circus film. Deadline reported that Twilight film producers Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey are looking at Legend. All three authors made an appearance at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con.
Recently, I was invited to join the group Writers of the South (USA). It is a small, but enthusiastic group of authors in every type of genre. The group is aimed at supporting and promoting authors in Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and Tennessee.
As we grow, we plan to take several opportunities to showcase the varied and talented people in the group. We will hit it hard over the next couple of days, hopefully gaining some new exposure and introducing you to writings you might not have found otherwise. Looking at the group, there is something for everyone, so be sure to check these posts every day. The plan is to do this again in a few months.
Corine says, "Welcome To My Legend! I am an apiring author who loves to write YA in the supernatural/romance/thriller/humor. I welcome negative and postive feedback. It will be taken seriously and without prejudice. Thank you so much for your support!!!"
Sandy has been writing from personal experiences since she was a teen. More recently, her work has taken a turn with inspiration from Stephanie Meyers' Twilight Saga. Check out her YA supernatural writing at the link above!
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Twihards around the world will watch The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 this weekend. In the latest installment of the blockbuster series, fans can expect to see a dramatic vampire wedding and eventful honeymoon.
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Writers Veronica Roth, Marie Lu and Erin Morgenstern all landed movie deals for their debut novels.
. Check out her YA supernatural writing at the link above!
Characters like Bella and Anastasia really upset me. It’s like teens of today don’t understand how women in the 50-80s had to fight for respect and equal job opportunities. They think it’s now their right to choose to not work and want a man take care of them. I know teens will learn the ugly truth about men and love as they get older, but I find myself repulsed by many heroines (and writers) of today’s YA for propagating the fantasy that being dependent on someone else is a good thing.
Reblogged this on Wild About Words and commented:
Rachel’s take on post-feminism and writing strong female protagonists is a must read.
Wow. Excellent post (and I plan to purchase your lecture). I gave serious consideration to this issue as I wrote my WIP. I wanted to include romance, but didn’t want the book to be all about that. I wanted my heroine to yearn to be strong and capable, something I want for my nieces and the other teens in my life. And I want my nieces to read this post!
Rachel’s lecture on this topic was fabulous! I’ve been having a lot of discussions with writer friends about social responsibility and art. This post has aligned nicely with what’s been on my mind!
I was trying to write a novel that might turn out to be YA with a female protagonist and one of the issues that I was running into was that people seemed to take issue with the fact that there was no love interest or love story. In fact they kept pegging male characters as the emerging love interest. Do you think that in today’s world YA pretty much has to have a love interest?
Justin – I think you need to be true to your character. If your female protagonist isn’t interested in your side characters, she isn’t interested. You can’t force her to have a relationship! It will feel false and your reader will feel that. However, if she happens to take a liking to someone (and maybe she does, you’ve got to listen to her and what she wants), that’s different. Your readers might be picking up on signals that your character is dropping for you. It’s also possible your readers are projecting. Trust your writer instincts! You know your character better than anyone else.
Thanks so much for posting this! My thoughts exactly- especially #3!
Great topic & tips. Do you think it’s possible to write a feminist YA romance novel?
I think so. Why can’t contemporary girls have it all?
Hi Cynthia! It’s actually been suggested to me that a romance cannot, by its definition, be a feminist text. But I don’t know that I necessarily agree, because “feminism” itself is such a loaded term, so to say that there is no such thing as a feminist romance is saying that there is a strict definition of feminism that everyone has agreed upon.
I think it’s entirely possible that a YA romance can be feminist, but I also understand why some might disagree, and I think it comes down to the audience, especially for YA. It’s an audience that may be questioning its position in society a lot more, and therefore the values behind the romance might have a more profound impact. So, say Twilight had been written for an older audience with older characters, but other than that it was the same (and no, I’m not talking 50 Shades of Grey). Would it have the same reaction from the public or its readers? I’d argue no. It resonates with teens because it speaks to something they want, and it gets a reaction from us older people because we’re worried about what they want. I think readers tend to see more feminist value in adult romances because they are marketed as an escape for readers, rather than as a potential “promise” that things might turn out a certain way. But I’m not comfortable saying that there is no such thing as a YA feminist romance novel, because I feel like that would be saying I have examined the subject from every possible angle, and since a 45 minute lecture and 600 word blog post can only contain so much theory, I can’t say that I have.
There’s a great quote by Peggy Orenstein from Cinderella Ate My Daughter that I used in my lecture, but not this post, where she talks about the fact that one of the reasons Bella as a character (and characters like her) appeals to so many readers is because she isn’t perfect or gorgeous, but she gets the guy everyone wants. She shows that you don’t have to be a long-legged beauty with flawless complexion to be desirable. In that sense, I’d say that Twilight could actually be a feminist romance novel, but in my lecture I moved it more towards the post-feminist side of things.
I hope that all makes sense!
Hi Justin! I would say definitely not. Yes, you’re going to see the vast majority of YA novels today have some sort of romance, but if you’re true to your character, the audience will respond. I will say I’ve met young readers who say, “If it doesn’t have a romance, I don’t want to read it,” but I’m willing to bet that if they read a good, solid YA with a well-developed female protagonist, they would be so absorbed in the story they wouldn’t even care if there was a love interest. Don’t feel that you have to cave to pressure. Your readers will probably react more negatively to a forced love story than they would to no love story at all.
BUUUUUUT, that’s not to say you won’t encounter agents and editors who say the opposite of me, so I don’t want to steer you in this direction of thinking my advice is the only advice. I’ve attempted, in the past, to write YA without romance, and I often find myself adding one. Not because I’m caving to pressure but because the characters you’re writing about are at ages where the hormones are flying, so it’s not crazy to think that some guy or girl might catch their eye.
As you can see, I have come to a not-at-all firm conclusion about this topic.