Let’s talk about sex

A set of famous lyrics popped into my head when I wrote the title of this post; however, it’s probably not appropriate for me just to launch into song right now, and shake my booty around my blog post.

But I do want to talk about sex, and in particular, within YA books. I know! This is such a taboo subject, but the more and more I read on it, I’m finding that sex is creeping into a lot these days. Let’s also think about the other side of things. Sex sells. It sells everywhere, whether we realise it or not. So what exactly is the problem?

Is it acceptable that teenagers are reading what should be classed as x-rated literature, or are parents just happy that their teens are reading at all? Hell – Judy Blume was talking about sex back in 1975, and it even sold back then.

Fifty Shades of Grey has a lot to answer for in the common literature world at the moment. I can find teenagers reading that series of books on the bus as I make my way to work…. I cringe. Seriously cringe. Not because of the dominant sex themes within the books, but because I hated the style of writing and the characters. (But that’s my personal opinion, based on 100 pages of reading.) So if teenagers are already reading about sex, BDSM… and all sorts of other experiences and techniques, then why is it such a taboo subject to include sex themes within YA books?

We all know sex happens. Hell, I know 8 years olds who can tell you what sex is, and how it all works. At twelve, it was common for girls to be married back in the day, and yes, even then, the sexual act was performed. Not so very long ago, it was common for 15 years olds to marry. So why are we so damn protective, cautious and ‘politically correct’ about the subject when it comes to teenagers? They ALL know what it is, how it works, and I can guarantee that most of them even know the risks associated with it. Even Jane Austen wrote about it, (as well as a myriad of other things).

I have sex in my YA book that I am currently revising. There are a few places where it is mentioned, and a couple of places where it is implied. But never is the actual act described down to detail. I’m more about the physical and mental tension between two characters. Some of it is manipulative, some emotive. I have two leading protagonists in this series, and one of them could almost be described as a teenage sexual deviant. She’s no angel, that’s for sure… but that doesn’t make her a bad or unlikeable character. She just likes men, and using them to achieve her goals. Because she is a strong independent character with a strong desire for men, does that really mean that my book isn’t appropriate for the teenage market? Or does it just mean that I might have to stamp a ‘Mature’ rating on it before I release? I’m not going to lie about it – my character generally has unhealthy relationships – but answer me this: What teenager doesn’t?

Okay… I better admit that I also have a few swear words. Perhaps the ‘Mature YA’ stamp is becoming a bit more evident. But I only drop the F-bomb a couple of times, it’s not like it’s on every freaking page… Show me a teenager who doesn’t swear, and I’ll show you a teenager who doesn’t know what sex is. Yeah… it’s probably not going to happen.

Most television and movies these days give a lot more exposure to sexual themes than we would like to openly admit, and yet our teenagers are watching it all, and soaking it up. According to The Telegraph – it’s a Rising Trend. And apparently we are also at risk of releasing 50 Shades for YA.

So. What are your thoughts? What is it really that makes sex so frowned upon in YA books?

 

 

BOOK REVIEW: Unknown by Melissa Pearl

SYNOPSIS: Darkness is covering the land. As the city of Mezrah grows with power and greed, the rest of the world can only stand by and wait for their inevitable destruction. The only hope against this growing power is an ancient prophecy that people have stopped believing in.

Then a star begins to fall.

Princess Kyla of Taramon stopped believing in the power of light the day her father died. Trapped in a city she does not care for, under the watchful glare of her mother, the queen, she struggles to accept her fate.

Then a star begins to fall.

Jethro has loved Kyla for as long as he can remember. Learning that she was to marry his cousin drove a wedge between him and the feisty princess. Watching her from a distance is a torture he is unable to free himself from.

Then a star begins to fall, sparking an ember of hope and sending two seekers on a treacherous journey into the unknown.

MY THOUGHTS: Epic fantasy is a tough genre to write in, and Melissa Pearl launches into it with a flying leap with this series. When I was send an advanced reading copy of this book, I was interested in the fact that Melissa had leapt out of the Urban Fantasy / Paranormal, and into the Epic realm, and I was pleasantly surprised.

I’m a total sucker for ass-kicking heroines, and Kyla meets my expectations in every possible way. Kyla is stubborn, lovable, and has a few flaws to boot. She’s engaged to be married to Athra, but is thrown into a life-threatening quest in order to save the world from imminent darkness – with a gorgeous man who is in love with her.

Wow. If that’s not a recipe for disaster, I don’t know what is.

The first book of this trilogy focuses on the first part of the quest to find the Elements in order to help Jethro and Kyla defeat the darkness. No one knows how this prophecy is going to play out, or even what Jethro and Kyla are supposed to be doing. So while they have a little guidance, most of their journey is about themselves discovering more and more about who they are, each other, and the path that they have been thrown on.

It’s a great fast read, and even if you’re not an avid fantasy reader – pick it up. There is so many parallels in this book that we all face in humanity. You won’t be disappointed.

I’m going to rate the first book of this series as 4 stars… because I can’t wait to get my nose into book two and three to find out what happens in the rest of the story. I have no doubt that on balance, this trilogy is probably going to be a five star read.

If you want to purchase a copy of this book – you can find it on Amazon or Smashwords.

***I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review***

 

The power of feedback

I have discovered over the years that feedback on your creative outlet can either make you or break you.

I’m talking about the feedback you get on your drafts, and in this post, I’m talking mainly about writers. If you seek feedback too early or if you’re not quite ready to have your work criticized, (whether or not it may be constructive) this sort of feedback can cause some major creative disruption to your masterpiece.

I’m lucky to have an extremely supportive team around me, and not all of the team are writers. Some are just readers of my drafts who give me their ‘reader’s perspective’. And while they are not qualified as writer (i.e. they haven’t written fictional works of notable length), they do have a unique perspective that I don’t have. They see my work from the outside in.

There are times when I am trying to convey emotions of my characters, but I can’t actually tell if I am or not, because I am so heavily immersed within that character, that I can no longer see the forest through the trees… So to speak. I guess I lose my own critical eye. This is when having other readers can come in awfully handy. But you have to find straight up and honest people, and you have to be thick skinned enough to take on their feedback, and pay attention.

Last week I got a new ‘reader’ for my Urban Fantasy trilogy. This reader is rather particular, and critiques professional historian’s work, so I knew that I had my work cut out for me if I wanted to impress her. And this is exactly the reason why I threw my work under her nose. I knew that either she was going to flatten me like a bus and tell me it was crap, or she was going to give her honest opinion.

I was lucky enough to get her honest opinion. And her honest opinion was that she loved it. She even professed that she is now ‘my biggest fan’. Whoa. I know, right? That’s amazing feedback. The buzz motivated me. The thrill of it! Suddenly I wanted to delve straight in and revise, revise, revise! I knew I could do this.

And it was hilarious, because the next minute, I’m internally freaking out, wondering how the rest of my book could possibly live up to her great expectations.

Silly, isn’t it? What us Creatives do to ourselves. The doubt we can cast on ourselves is astounding. Sometimes we actually need to have a little faith in our ability. We also need to realise that there will be readers who just don’t like our story.

And if we can accept that, then what do we, as Writers or Creatives, need to be afraid of?

I was talking to a friend yesterday who is an amazing sculptural artist, and in a month, he is having his first major exhibit. Needless to say, it’s a logistical nightmare, and what is he freaking out about?

It’s not the fact that he hasn’t finished all the pieces yet.

Not the fact that some of the pieces may not even fit through the doors of the gallery.

Not even the fact that he hasn’t worked out a way to transport sixty odd pieces of artwork there.

No. He is worried about what the people will think of his sculptures and how his pieces make them feel.

Fear is an emotion that we all have. Fear can be a driving force behind our actions. But we will never progress and advance if we constantly fear the path we intend to tread.

If I let go of being worried about what people say and feel about my work, then that will enable me to be freer with my writing. Feedback is super important. But letting go of fear is even more so.

 

 

Book Review: Invisible Prison – Mary Buckham

SYNOPSIS:

Magic is the last gift Alex Noziak wants but she must embrace it to gain her freedom.

Alex Noziak, part-witch, part-shaman is dumped into the middle of four hostile non-human females and expected to train as a team to protect humans from preternatural threats. Prison never looked so good in comparison.

MY THOUGHTS:

Alex rocks. Like seriously rocks. Alex has some incredibly amusing thought processes that really made me laugh. She’s got a hell of an attitude, and comes out with some pretty witty quips.

She’s strong, with a multitude of weaknesses – first and foremost? She doesn’t want to use her magic… unfortunately she’s being forced to, as she tried to protect and fight off the threats surrounds her.

The characterisation developed in this novella is a hell of a set up for the rest of the Invisible Recruit Series, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the other books. The characters are richly described, they all have their own secrets, and they are all there for one reason or another. You realise that this book becomes a fight for their survival as they try and understand that someone else is pulling the strings.

There is a lot of back story built into this book, that allows the reader to really get a feel for the world building that Mary Buckham has developed, and she pulls it off seamlessly. There are broken relationships, death, bizarre happenings, and of course bonds that are made to be broken. This is a fast paced book, and a fast read. If you’re anything like me, you’ll devour the book pretty damn quickly. This is a definite must read for anyone who enjoys a bit of a thrill, a good laugh, and great characters with attitude.

It was fun, witty, gripping, and the characters were great. With these types of dynamics woven with the myths and unknown, it was a great plotline.

This book was read as an Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for an honest review.

 

Book Review: Betwixt – Melissa Pearl

SYNOPSIS:

Beautiful, wild-child Nicole Tepper is hit by a car and left for dead. But when she wakes the next morning, Nicole finds herself in bed without a scratch. Perhaps she was more intoxicated than usual, as her mother is giving her the silent treatment and her friends are ignoring her as well.

Things take a turn for the weird when Nicole soon discovers she is actually hovering between life and death. Her body is lying in the forest while her spirit is searching for anyone who can hear her. Unfortunately the only person who can is Dale Finnigan, the guy she publicly humiliated with a sharp-tongued insult that has left him branded.

Desperate, Nicole has no choice but to haunt Dale and convince the freaked-out senior to help her. Will he find her body before it’s too late? Or will the guy who tried to kill her with his car, beat him there and finish her off before anyone finds out?

MY THOUGHTS:

Book Review: Betwixt – Melissa Pearl What a fantastic story. I was impressed from the outset of this book with the characterisations that Melissa Pearl weaves.

While Nicole starts out as rather self-centred (as most teenagers are!), and she develops into something completely different, discovering so much about herself, and her so called friends around her. It’s a great realisation for a teenager. The world is not all about them, and sometimes there is something more going on. Nicole is far from perfect – and this is one of the story drivers. The reader really does wonder if Nicole will actually get her head together.

And as for Dale – he is not your usual ‘YA Read Pretty-Boy’. But he does have a seriously loveable personality, which one cannot help but become attune to. Dale is a recluse – and he doesn’t want any drama in his life. Initially I felt sorry for him being entangled with Nicole to begin with, because she is very dramatic – but then as their friendship grows, the situations becomes more dire by the hour. In the end, it’s a lovely bond they develop.

I actually couldn’t stop reading this book. With a compelling plot, and well written prose, it’s an absolute must-read for anyone who loves YA with a bit of a twist.

This is a five-star read, and I seriously can’t wait to see more of Melissa Pearl’s work. It just gets better and better!

Life is never as it seems – even when you’re dying.

To purchase a copy of this book – please visit Amazon or Smashwords.
Happy reading!

 

 

Book Review: Skin Deep – TG. Ayer

Synopsis:

Panther Shape-shifter Kailin Odel just wants to be normal. Leaving her clan, and her Alpha responsibilities, to live with her grandmother in Chicago had been the best thing for her. Only then did she discover her ability to track and kill the soul sucking undead creatures called Wraiths. Now she protected the humans, and had something to be proud of.

But, when she discovers the body of a murdered shape shifter, Kailin has to come to terms with the reality that her own kind are just as vulnerable as the humans.

The closer Kailin gets to the killer the more she has to face the intricacies of her people. When the time comes can she accept who and what her real purpose is?

My thoughts:

Wow. This book is mesmerizing, spine-chilling, and riveting. T G. Ayer did an unbelievable job at melding all these different aspects together into a well-rounded novel. The main character, Kailin Odel, has a bit of an issue with Wraiths, and so she has taken it upon herself to hunt them down, and protect the humans.

I absolutely loved Kailin’s character. She knows right from wrong, she trusts her instincts, and she knows her limits – sometimes, and she has an attitude to boot. I could really relate to this character, because she is so passionate about what she does.

When she discovers that people of her own ilk are dying and being abducted, it cuts pretty close to home.

Kailin develops a connection to Logan, the cop investigating the murders that Kailin is inadvertently involved in. The majority of women can definitely relate to how it feels when you meet someone new, and wanting to know everything about them. The fact that Logan is involved in the investigation and obviously has his own secrets, should slap a big ‘Do NOT get involved’ sticker across his forehead, but as Kailin becomes even more involved in the investigation, with him things get nice and heated. (I secretly nicknamed his Mr. Sexypants, whenever he walked into the room. Shhh.)

Each character in this book has their secrets and stories to tell, and I loved the way that T G. Ayer interrelated and weaved everything seamlessly together. The romantic notions could have been seriously banked on throughout this book, but I was more than impressed that the author didn’t do that. She stuck to the script, and fulfilled my expectations of a wonderful story. But now that I have read the book, I know there is much more to this story, and to be honest – I did not want this to end.

I can’t wait for the next book to come out!

I highly recommend this book, whether you like thrillers, paranormal, or even romance. This is a 5 star read, and personally, I can’t wait to buy a hard copy, and place it proudly on my bookshelf.

_______________________________________

If you would like to purchase this book – then please visit Skin Deep on Amazon

 

I’m an addict

All sorts of exciting things have been happening in my life lately.

In the past few weeks, I have managed to read through the first two books of my YA trilogy, and take a good serious look at them. Now I am in the process of launching into the revisions and editing of the first book. Eeeep! I would totally love to say that its ready to go out to the world, but there are so many gaps to fill in this manuscript, and much to add to strengthen it. What is good about it though, is that the bones are there. It’s a good start to the trilogy, and a great introduction to a huge cast of complex characters. So because I have been thinking a lot about new scenes, and delving deeper – I have also been writing! Like, actually writing. Not just talking about it. And I’m loving it. New scenes keep turning over in my head, and then suddenly I want to spit them out. I’m seeing my thoughts come to fictional life again, and I have to say – I’m totally addicted to writing. It’s a buzz. A fix to my mental dependency of creativity. I just guess I forgot how much I was craving it. Now I really know that I need to keep getting my fix.

Book II has some seriously awesome moments in it too. I read through it with completely fresh eyes, thinking that I would need to figure out the ending to this book. But once I got there, I sat back and thought, ‘Why am I trying to figure out the ending, when it’s already finished?’ Isn’t that bizarre? For the past two years I have been thinking and mulling this book over in my mind, when subconsciously, I already knew that I had finished it. Interesting, huh?

Book III is going to get its plan reworked once I finish the editing of these books, and then if it’s really lucky, I’ll try and write it this year. If it’s lucky.

But it’s actually really exciting rereading over some of my stuff. Some of it was utter rubbish – don’t get me wrong. And it was funny, because some of the really seriously rubbishy parts was some of the bulk prose I was writing during NaNoWriMo a few years back. I must have been seriously floundering around during that November to spit out the amount of ‘internalising’ rubbish that I did. Ah well – the good thing about Nano is that it means getting words out on the page. Some are crap – that’s just the reality.

In other news, I gave my library a good makeover the other day. A friend of mine wrote a blog post about the Benefits of a Standing Desk, and so I thought that it would be a great option to have a Standing Desk in my workspace at home too. You should all go and read her blog post, as she raises some pretty important points for us – not just as writers, but for a bunch of humans who now lead a relatively sedentary lifestyle. In amongst the makeover, I threw a load of stuff out. And I feel so much better for clearing it too. Environmental harmony creates good mental feng shui, which in turn, will hopefully help me produce some good books. Well… that’s the theory I’m sticking to.