So I joined this writing group. [Wait for mocking] I’ve gone
to one event and critiqued pages for two events, but I was sick so I couldn’t
go the second time. We’ve only read pages from three authors, which was for
four different sections. There is a lot of genre fiction, which isn’t my jam,
but I enjoy once in a while too. For example, one of the women in the group is
slamming out pages before her maternity leave, and her story is great. It is
fast paced, and despite what might be an unnecessary rape scene (the villain
was well established without traumatizing the protagonist, but the scene is a
believable course of action) the author is hitting all the right notes in
respect to survivors of trauma.
But that leads me to the novel pages we were warned about at
the end of the first meeting, which is essentially, this is erotic fiction so
ladies be warned. Well, as it turns out I’ve read erotic fiction, and real
erotic fiction not Twilight fanfiction,
which leads me off on a tangent. MEYERS’ REWROTE TWILIGHT GENDER SWAPPING THE MAIN CHARACTERS. And done. Though that
gives me so much joy. C, get on this. I’m like well it has to be pretty substantial
to warrant a warning since the graphic and frightening rape scene didn’t. Right?
Well that’s the thing it isn’t an erotic novel. It is a
first person narrative that includes graphic sex—which is subject to
interpretation too—, but it is a, well not really a coming of age tale, but
more a coming to terms with who you are when who you are might not be who you
want to be, of course I’ve only read 30 pages. Yes, there are two graphic sex scenes,
but they aren’t frivolous by any means. All that said, it was hard to read
because the narrator doesn’t like women. I’m in no way equating the author and
the narrator, but the narrator just doesn’t have any respect for women. The
first sex scene is between the narrator and the sister of the woman he is
trying to sleep with because women are interchangeable. This is of course after
dismissing all the sex partner’s thoughts, which are meant to be flattering to
the narrator. Later on, the narrator tells a story about his friend’s
involvement with a manipulative bitch. I was like wow, sure she’s cheating on
her husband, but he’s ok with it, and he seems to be the one making this worse
than it needs to be. Which is to say, that none of the women characters are
afforded much by way of the narrator, they are all a little crazy, silly,
stupid, slutty, etc. I suggested the author introduce a character to be a foil
for his narrator, one beyond reproach to let the read know when the narrator is
being unreliable. Just someone there to disagree with the narrator and be taken
seriously.
Sometimes I think I go overboard. I did note through the
entire thing I hadn’t read the story from the beginning because I got 30 pages
in the middle somewhere. How come men have
such trouble writing women? Regardless, we’ll see how all this went over. Like
I said I couldn’t go to the last meeting, but I did send my comments. I’d
rather people be honest and direct than not and hope for the best. Still, I may
have overstepped. This is literally what happens when I join things.
