Answering uncomfortable questions?

[Ireth]

What are some of the more "uncomfortable" (potential squick, touchy subjects, etc.) questions you've asked yourself or been asked about your stories and the worlds they inhabit, and what are the answers?

Q: Do your vampires drink human menstrual blood?
A: No. While it may smell appetizing to them, much like a good cup of coffee or tea would smell to someone who enjoys them, the blood itself is disgusting to them, for the same reason the aforesaid tea or coffee would lose its appeal if someone spat in it. There's more stuff in menstrual blood than just blood. (This provides a handy escape to why vampires who spend a lot of time around humans don't go crazy around the women bleeding, each on their own cycle.)

 

[Feo Takahari]

One of my stories involves the social aftereffects of the accidental usage of a pheromone bomb on a civilian population. I briefly mentioned that children weren't affected, so my beta reader asked what happened to kindergarten teachers and other adults who were around children at the time of the bombing. That is not a question I will ever answer in any stories in that setting.

Edit @Steerpike: I approached it as pan, or at least pan-human--for instance, asexuals were affected, as were heterosexuals who were only in the presence of the same sex. (I could probably come up with some excuse for why people who were only around animals weren't affected, but I'm not sure the same logic would fly for those who were around children.)

 

[Steerpike]

Ireth - you could make a separate creature for that. But what to call them....?

Feo - Would one expect the pheromones to make people attracted to children sexually if they weren't already?

I haven't had any uncomfortable question...

 

[Ankari]

Any sexually* related topic is a tough thing to write about. I have a few such relationships, far from romantic, in my book. The worst one will deal with the raping* of a young female (aged 14 or 15, unsure as of now), how she will deal with it, and what will become of her afterwards. This will be even more difficult because it will occur over an extended period of time, not just one episode.

A. Not sure, going to ask a lot of women for their input. I don't want this to be so obviously a male author writing about a sexually abused girl.

Wish me luck.

* The asterisks are there to bypass the filter.

 

[The Din]

Q: What sort of book are you writing?

A: Fantasy... Somehow that doesn't impress the blokes at work, nor girls at the bar. Usually ends up 'Fiction' or a mumble, which sucks, cause writing a whole bloody book should be an awesome pick-up line.

 

[T.Allen.Smith]

Q: What sort of book are you writing?

A: Fantasy... Somehow that doesn't impress the blokes at work, nor girls at the bar. Usually ends up 'Fiction' or a mumble, which sucks, cause writing a whole bloody book should be an awesome pick-up line.

I'd say having "written" a book is a better line.

 

[Caged Maiden]

@ Ireth. I would think the fact that menstrual blood is a small amount would be enough of an excuse. It's like being hungry and knowing you could eat a bug for nourishment... sure you could do it, but is it worth the effort?

@ Ankari, `I don't know what it says about me as a writer, but I have written several rape scenes. You can ask me anything you want to know, but be prepared for an honest answer from a female with an atypical view of the world.

My last difficult question was regarding the sexual abuse of boys on a ship, which Fluffypoodel graciously helped with on the ship thread. I don't add those sorts of scenes for dramatic effect if I don't see them as likely, but I wondered in an all male setting whether such things were natural. I mean, how do men feel about being alone without women for long periods of time? Do boys start looking good or does everyone sort of see to their own needs? I still need to sort out the exact scenario, but I feel weird asking those sorts of questions. Fact is, though, sometimes you have to for authenticity's sake.

BTW thanks for starting this thread. I am going to keep checking back and see what other people have run into... it's interesting to see what challenges other people have had.

 

[Ireth]

@ Ireth. I would think the fact that menstrual blood is a small amount would be enough of an excuse. It's like being hungry and knowing you could eat a bug for nourishment... sure you could do it, but is it worth the effort?

I'd call it more like a few mouthfuls of food rather than a bug, but I see your point. A vampire who was so inclined might see it as an appetizer of sorts (oh jeeze, why did I just give myself that image?) to tide himself over before he could find a larger meal, if the other stuff didn't turn him off. But then, if he's going to drink that, he might as well just kill the woman. Unless he got his hands on whatever she was using to soak up the blood and just sucked on that (ewewew), if the woman wasn't around to provide a larger meal. But again, it'd be like eating chocolate made with dog poo.

BTW thanks for starting this thread. I am going to keep checking back and see what other people have run into... it's interesting to see what challenges other people have had.

Heheh, you're welcome. XD It's something I've been wondering for some time now, and seeing people's responses is always interesting.

 

[DameiThiessen]

Any sexually* related topic is a tough thing to write about. I have a few such relationships, far from romantic, in my book. The worst one will deal with the raping* of a young female (aged 14 or 15, unsure as of now), how she will deal with it, and what will become of her afterwards. This will be even more difficult because it will occur over an extended period of time, not just one episode.

A. Not sure, going to ask a lot of women for their input. I don't want this to be so obviously a male author writing about a sexually abused girl.

Wish me luck.

* The asterisks are there to bypass the filter.

I too need to write about something of that nature for a story of mine for how I want my character to develop and what I want her to symbolize. I think I'll just describe it in brief and let the reader's mind fill in the blanks. :/

I'm a terrible author because I want my plot to involve horrible things but I don't have the heart to write them.

 

[Lorna]

Nothing 'touchy' yet. I had one humorous one. The fashions in the capital city change colours with the seasons and cycles.

So in fire season there's yellow, orange, red, crimson, maroon. Not a problem.

Then water season begins with clear, goes teal, blue, turquoise, aqua. In clear cycle I'm going to be faced with all the city's people wearing see through clothing...

 

[Zophos]

@ All, why is it that rape seems to be making its way into everything more often? I'm personally a fan of never reading about it and certainly not ever seeing it on the screen. There is a great deal you can insinuate about it without ever really facing it head-on and I've never seen a compelling case for employing it. I've never seen a story advanced by its direct explicit inclusion.

...but I wondered in an all male setting whether such things were natural. I mean, (1) how do men feel about being alone without women for long periods of time? (2) Do boys start looking good or (3) does everyone sort of see to their own needs?...

I'm male. I work in a profession that often leads to all male settings for long periods of time. The answers are (1) you'll live though you do spend a good deal of time talking about women in very explicit terms, (2) No, (3) Yes and they don't hide behind much more than a sheet or a dark room when they do.

It doesn't even take an all male setting for those changes in decorum to take place. It only takes a scarcity of females, or in some cases, a simple male majority. It's part of being male.

 

[Ankari]

To add to what Zophos wrote, I would imagine that ship life is like prison life. The difference, of course, is that ships dock! But you have to consider that the sailors are from the lower stock of society. They are poor, uneducated, governed by the threat of violence and are accustomed to taking, rather than earning.

So extended time on the sea would, like prison, devolve into a pecking order. Those considered weak and/or effeminate will be taken. The denial of women, I'm sure many agree, make men angry. Anger breeds violence. Violence and sex. are intricately linked. I would further imagine the captain either turning a blind eye or promoting the behavior to keep the crew's anger off him.

But a wise captain, one knowing how long the journey to be, would hire a few prostitutes to keep the men happy. Of course, then you have to consider disease and sexual abuse towards the prostitute.

 

[RedMorningSky]

Langston Hughes gives a good account of ship life in his memoir The Big Sea because he was a sailor for a while.

 

[Amanita]

The most uncomfortable questions I've been asked so far were "Why don't you continue?" and "Why do you keep changing your story?"
The things happening in there didn't bother anyone so far though it might change if I start showing it to people with different interests.

 

[Zophos]

...They are poor, uneducated, governed by the threat of violence and are accustomed to taking, rather than earning.
...
But a wise captain, one knowing how long the journey to be, would hire a few prostitutes to keep the men happy. Of course, then you have to consider disease and sexual abuse towards the prostitute.

To your first point: important distinction. Social mores have a great deal to do with social conduct, even in small groups.

To your second: That or bring a few along who weren't exactly "willing". There is a "good order and discipline" end to that discussion. You are likely to lose a few sailors in knife fights or unexpected "swims".

 

[Ireth]

I approached it as pan, or at least pan-human--for instance, asexuals were affected, as were heterosexuals who were only in the presence of the same sex. (I could probably come up with some excuse for why people who were only around animals weren't affected, but I'm not sure the same logic would fly for those who were around children.)

You could make the excuse that it only affects adolescents and adults because their bodies are sexually mature and thus susceptible to the pheromones, whereas those of children aren't.

 

[Caged Maiden]

My world is pretty violent, not unlike our own. There is no point in writing a ship voyage if it's all too happy and easy, and I'm not sure a storm at sea was really what I was looking for, so I aimed toward the social aspects of sailing life. Thanks for the suggestions. I think a knife fight would be really good.

The whole reason I am writing the ship scene is to expound on my MC's character. He's a natural leader and has a difficult past he's running way from. But, right where this scene is happening, he's starting to accept who he is and when he's witnessing the lives of the sailors, he has some really critical revelations about himself.

So thanks for the help... if I need any other help with male-nature issues, I'll ask!

 

[JonSnow]

@ Ireth. I would think the fact that menstrual blood is a small amount would be enough of an excuse. It's like being hungry and knowing you could eat a bug for nourishment... sure you could do it, but is it worth the effort?

@ Ankari, `I don't know what it says about me as a writer, but I have written several rape scenes. You can ask me anything you want to know, but be prepared for an honest answer from a female with an atypical view of the world.

My last difficult question was regarding the sexual abuse of boys on a ship, which Fluffypoodel graciously helped with on the ship thread. I don't add those sorts of scenes for dramatic effect if I don't see them as likely, but I wondered in an all male setting whether such things were natural. I mean, how do men feel about being alone without women for long periods of time? Do boys start looking good or does everyone sort of see to their own needs? I still need to sort out the exact scenario, but I feel weird asking those sorts of questions. Fact is, though, sometimes you have to for authenticity's sake.

BTW thanks for starting this thread. I am going to keep checking back and see what other people have run into... it's interesting to see what challenges other people have had.

Caged Maiden, if you ever have the time, I would like to pick your brain about what you know about how a young girl (in the case of my novel, a 17 year old maiden/virgin) would react after being raped.

Here is the setting: she and her friend (the main character of the story) are taken into custody by a group of guards, who had been sent from the capital to occupy this little town. These men are angry, horny*, and don't have the honor/discipline of knights. Basically, they spend the bulk of their time harrassing the citizens, drinking, and going to brothels. Anyway, this girl is raped by one of them in her cell (I do not show the event. I was going to, but I decided to reveal it through the condition her rescuer found her in, and through fragments of her memory later).

But, I am not sure how to deal with this girl psychologically. She is very intelligent and savvy for her age, but her father was also executed, so she has literally lost everything. She will hide out for a while in an attic until things calm down, and I hope to bring her to a point mentally where she can plot revenge. But what kinds of emotions and thoughts is she going to have to overcome and accept before she can move on to the "revenge" part? I'm a 34 year old man... I have no idea what would really go through this girl's mind. Any insight would be much appreciated!

 

[SeverinR]

You could make the excuse that it only affects adolescents and adults because their bodies are sexually mature and thus susceptible to the pheromones, whereas those of children aren't.

Mature bodies produce pheromones to attract a mate, children or immature bodies don't, so normal adults would not be attracted to children nor animals. I think no matter how old, if the person has not reached puberty for what ever reason, they would not produce either. (biological problem, castrated prior to puberty etc)

 

[JonSnow]

@ All, why is it that rape seems to be making its way into everything more often? I'm personally a fan of never reading about it and certainly not ever seeing it on the screen. There is a great deal you can insinuate about it without ever really facing it head-on and I've never seen a compelling case for employing it. I've never seen a story advanced by its direct explicit inclusion.

I both agree and disagree with you on this one... here is my reasoning. While I agree that the plot doesn't directly benefit from showing the rape as it happens, it has a PROFOUND emotional effect on the reader/viewer. This emotional connection to the character will add all kinds of depth and investment by the readers, at the expense of alienating some of them.

In my novel, I chose not to show the rape itself, and am revealing the event in other ways. I really struggled with this decision... but ultimately, I want to write a book that my 14 year old son can read when its done. Granted, my novel will NOT be geared for children, and there is quite a bit of profanity and brutality that I will otherwise not compromise on. I just felt that I could have the rape (it is vital to this girl's development as a character) without actually showing the rape. Who knows, I might change my mind later on.