(no subject)
Dec. 6th, 2014 07:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shadowkat1. Somewhat interesting discussion on smartbitches.com about "trigger warnings" for "rape and sexual violence" in novel descriptions. Or whether there should be trigger warnings and if they should create a database detailing which books in the romance genre contain rape (sexual violence) and which don't.
I prefer the term sexual violence mainly because a lot of people inacurrately use the word rape.
The problem with trigger warnings is a)spoilers (which don't necessarily bother me all that much but do bother others), and b) what do you consider a trigger? And what you consider a trigger, I might not see as a trigger.
For example? I don't consider rough sex - rape. Both are consenting. What's the problem? Nor does seduction = rape, she consents or he consents eventually. But for a lot of people it does. Some people may consider the sex scenes in Courtney Milan's novel Unvieled as triggery...but I don't. So, how to warn? Do you?
On the other hand - you can have consent - yet it can come across as rape. See Judith McNaught's Whitney My Love - so do you include a warning for that?
I've managed to find five go-to writers who don't have rape in their stories:
* Courtney Milan (just avoid The Governess Affair)
* Meredith Duran
* Eloisa James
* Elizabeth Hoyt
* Loretta Chase
Not sure yet about Laura Kinsale or Lori Brighton or Sara McLean, will let you know.
One's to avoid at all costs - if sexual violence is a trigger?
* Rosemary Rodgers
* Kathleen Woodwiss
* Judith McNaught, Jude Devereaux
* Pretty much anyone writing between 1970s -1990s. (aka The Boddice Rippers)
* Dark Erotica, BDSM, and New Adult
2. Made Butternut Squash Soup today, utilizing a recipe on the back of the farmer's market can of organic pureed butternut squash. I have it, but I hate roasting it.
It was a rainy, yucky day, so stayed in for most of it - watching television and making soup.
3. Dear television writers stop killing off or using male and female black characters to bolster white male or female characters storylines, it is annoying and continues to push a perspective that we need to change. It happened with three of the shows I watched this week in three separate genres.
* Sleepy Hollow - they killed off one of my favorite characters. Dang it. I knew they were going to...when it was revealed that they were killing off a beloved characters, also let's face it the character in question was ahem, missing in action for most of the season. Clearly the writers had written themselves into a corner regarding the character and wham, dead. But here's the thing - it would have been far more interesting if they'd killed off...another character. I understand why they didn't kill off either of these characters sort of messes with the big parental love arc that is a huge story kink for many tv show writers (do all tv show writers have mommy and daddy issues? is this a perquisite for becoming a tv show writer?) but I'm rather tired of Icabode Crane and Henry Crane's white male angst. I'm thisclose to giving up on you show.
That was the problem with Sleepy Hollow this season and the difference between this season and last season. Last season the Crane family angst was sort of in the background more or they were shown as the problem. While the Mills family and Irving's family was more up front and center. There were also more stand-alones focusing on Mills and Crane's relationship, and their relationship with others.
Plus more episodes focusing on Jenny and Abby. This season is mainly Katrina, Abraham (bram/headless - who was far more interesting and creepier as simply headless), Henry, and Icabode..with Moloch as their nasty nemesis. Abby, Jenny, and Irving might as well not be present. But - the vast majority of the audience did not sign on to watch the Crane show. We can see that on Contantine, Grim, and various other shows.
White Male Angst is sort of prevalent on the tv landscape. Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Affair, NCIS, Bones, Castle, Game of Thrones, the list goes on and on and on and on...it's far more interesting when the focus is not on HIM. Icabode is far more entertaining when he is reacting to Abby or playing off of Abby. He's dull as toast when he is interacting with his "family". I like him better as an anachronism, or fish out of water, with no one like him. Keep going down this road and I'm going to cancel your show from my DVR recording list.
This is why Shondra Rhimes is doing so well with her three series - they aren't about white male angst.
* Marvel Agents of Shield - sigh, see above. Instead of developing the new black characters - you shoot them or kick them down a hole. While the male lead, who looks like your typical white guy, runs the show and tries to save them or sacrifices them for the greater good. It's annoying. Do something interesting and flip it. OR I'm gone.
Actually, I'm admittedly just watching the show for Kyle McLachlan at the moment, and Bobby Morse and Hunter.
* Nashville - did you have to push Zoe and the new black male singer to the curb? They were interesting. And to bolster Scarlett's and Gunner's story? Really?
Ugh. [Although, at least they aren't dead - so that's something. And does admittedly rise this series slightly above the other two...but considering Nashville isn't in the habit of randomly killing off characters for plot purposes, it's not that big a win.]
Other than that, I actually did enjoy Nashville. Well, if you ignore the on-going Deacon/Rayna/Luke drama. Really, Deacon - she's not that into you or that interesting, move on!
4. In the stupid Marketing Promo category: Revenge - I love the marketing promos..."Nobody does death like Revenge! This week someone dear will die...who?" - obviously the marketing people don't watch that much tv. Because, sorry, yes other shows do kill people off like Revenge, and some far better. Shocking character deaths is rather typical right now on television - to the point that it is no longer shocking. Well unless of course they decide to kill off one of the leads - which to date only one series has done, The Good Wife and that was because the lead was leaving the series. So that series actually beats Revenge hands down, mainly because it's not in the habit of shocking character gifts well not until last year at any rate.
Also, please, we all know you aren't going to kill off Emily or Victoria (seriously we should be so lucky, I'd be over the moon if they killed off Victoria), or for that matter Daniel, Jack or Nolan (if they killed off Nolan they'd lose the other half of their audience, including me and my mother. Not that it matters since I think Revenge is dead in the water anyhow.) So that leaves Margo (most likely) or Charlotte (only if she's returned, and we should be so lucky), David (no he just showed up...too soon.) So, most likely Margo. Possibly Daniel. Wouldn't mind Jack or Daniel (but again, we should be so lucky.)
These marketing promos crack me up. They are filled with hyperbole to the extent that you can't help but wonder what they are smoking in the marketing department. Either that or they clearly don't watch much tv or their own tv shows for that matter.
I prefer the term sexual violence mainly because a lot of people inacurrately use the word rape.
The problem with trigger warnings is a)spoilers (which don't necessarily bother me all that much but do bother others), and b) what do you consider a trigger? And what you consider a trigger, I might not see as a trigger.
For example? I don't consider rough sex - rape. Both are consenting. What's the problem? Nor does seduction = rape, she consents or he consents eventually. But for a lot of people it does. Some people may consider the sex scenes in Courtney Milan's novel Unvieled as triggery...but I don't. So, how to warn? Do you?
On the other hand - you can have consent - yet it can come across as rape. See Judith McNaught's Whitney My Love - so do you include a warning for that?
I've managed to find five go-to writers who don't have rape in their stories:
* Courtney Milan (just avoid The Governess Affair)
* Meredith Duran
* Eloisa James
* Elizabeth Hoyt
* Loretta Chase
Not sure yet about Laura Kinsale or Lori Brighton or Sara McLean, will let you know.
One's to avoid at all costs - if sexual violence is a trigger?
* Rosemary Rodgers
* Kathleen Woodwiss
* Judith McNaught, Jude Devereaux
* Pretty much anyone writing between 1970s -1990s. (aka The Boddice Rippers)
* Dark Erotica, BDSM, and New Adult
2. Made Butternut Squash Soup today, utilizing a recipe on the back of the farmer's market can of organic pureed butternut squash. I have it, but I hate roasting it.
It was a rainy, yucky day, so stayed in for most of it - watching television and making soup.
3. Dear television writers stop killing off or using male and female black characters to bolster white male or female characters storylines, it is annoying and continues to push a perspective that we need to change. It happened with three of the shows I watched this week in three separate genres.
* Sleepy Hollow - they killed off one of my favorite characters. Dang it. I knew they were going to...when it was revealed that they were killing off a beloved characters, also let's face it the character in question was ahem, missing in action for most of the season. Clearly the writers had written themselves into a corner regarding the character and wham, dead. But here's the thing - it would have been far more interesting if they'd killed off...another character. I understand why they didn't kill off either of these characters sort of messes with the big parental love arc that is a huge story kink for many tv show writers (do all tv show writers have mommy and daddy issues? is this a perquisite for becoming a tv show writer?) but I'm rather tired of Icabode Crane and Henry Crane's white male angst. I'm thisclose to giving up on you show.
That was the problem with Sleepy Hollow this season and the difference between this season and last season. Last season the Crane family angst was sort of in the background more or they were shown as the problem. While the Mills family and Irving's family was more up front and center. There were also more stand-alones focusing on Mills and Crane's relationship, and their relationship with others.
Plus more episodes focusing on Jenny and Abby. This season is mainly Katrina, Abraham (bram/headless - who was far more interesting and creepier as simply headless), Henry, and Icabode..with Moloch as their nasty nemesis. Abby, Jenny, and Irving might as well not be present. But - the vast majority of the audience did not sign on to watch the Crane show. We can see that on Contantine, Grim, and various other shows.
White Male Angst is sort of prevalent on the tv landscape. Walking Dead, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Affair, NCIS, Bones, Castle, Game of Thrones, the list goes on and on and on and on...it's far more interesting when the focus is not on HIM. Icabode is far more entertaining when he is reacting to Abby or playing off of Abby. He's dull as toast when he is interacting with his "family". I like him better as an anachronism, or fish out of water, with no one like him. Keep going down this road and I'm going to cancel your show from my DVR recording list.
This is why Shondra Rhimes is doing so well with her three series - they aren't about white male angst.
* Marvel Agents of Shield - sigh, see above. Instead of developing the new black characters - you shoot them or kick them down a hole. While the male lead, who looks like your typical white guy, runs the show and tries to save them or sacrifices them for the greater good. It's annoying. Do something interesting and flip it. OR I'm gone.
Actually, I'm admittedly just watching the show for Kyle McLachlan at the moment, and Bobby Morse and Hunter.
* Nashville - did you have to push Zoe and the new black male singer to the curb? They were interesting. And to bolster Scarlett's and Gunner's story? Really?
Ugh. [Although, at least they aren't dead - so that's something. And does admittedly rise this series slightly above the other two...but considering Nashville isn't in the habit of randomly killing off characters for plot purposes, it's not that big a win.]
Other than that, I actually did enjoy Nashville. Well, if you ignore the on-going Deacon/Rayna/Luke drama. Really, Deacon - she's not that into you or that interesting, move on!
4. In the stupid Marketing Promo category: Revenge - I love the marketing promos..."Nobody does death like Revenge! This week someone dear will die...who?" - obviously the marketing people don't watch that much tv. Because, sorry, yes other shows do kill people off like Revenge, and some far better. Shocking character deaths is rather typical right now on television - to the point that it is no longer shocking. Well unless of course they decide to kill off one of the leads - which to date only one series has done, The Good Wife and that was because the lead was leaving the series. So that series actually beats Revenge hands down, mainly because it's not in the habit of shocking character gifts well not until last year at any rate.
Also, please, we all know you aren't going to kill off Emily or Victoria (seriously we should be so lucky, I'd be over the moon if they killed off Victoria), or for that matter Daniel, Jack or Nolan (if they killed off Nolan they'd lose the other half of their audience, including me and my mother. Not that it matters since I think Revenge is dead in the water anyhow.) So that leaves Margo (most likely) or Charlotte (only if she's returned, and we should be so lucky), David (no he just showed up...too soon.) So, most likely Margo. Possibly Daniel. Wouldn't mind Jack or Daniel (but again, we should be so lucky.)
These marketing promos crack me up. They are filled with hyperbole to the extent that you can't help but wonder what they are smoking in the marketing department. Either that or they clearly don't watch much tv or their own tv shows for that matter.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2014-12-07 02:04 am (UTC)While I get your point, MAOS has 2 black characters in the ensemble cast, plus 3 Asians (counting Raina). Plus, all the baddies are white males, so that ought to count for something. :)
no subject
Date: 2014-12-07 03:08 am (UTC)Unfortunately, that's how most of them are handling it. Sleepy Hollow is doing that as well. Oh, we'll make most of the villains white, have two or three token black guys, a few female Asians or blacks, with a white guy lead - who is the protagonist. (See Walking Dead as well.)
No one will notice.
Uhm, yes, we will.
Kill off Coulson. Have someone more like Samual L Jackson or Agent Mai take over. OR just demote Coulson to supporting.
Sold.