tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post6230804059323612221..comments2024-03-29T03:17:15.473-04:00Comments on Romance Novels for Feminists: Thoughts on #metooJackie C. Hornehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04146684628443152376noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-37493946984709363882017-12-15T20:39:48.972-05:002017-12-15T20:39:48.972-05:00I’m in the process of dumping a lot of books I am ...I’m in the process of dumping a lot of books I am now calling #metoofuckingbooks. How many millions of dollars did these female authors make while denigrating our own? It’s complicated but we all need to move forward without judgment as best as we can. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-68527581335490597412017-12-10T11:53:06.607-05:002017-12-10T11:53:06.607-05:00Young men read romance novels too. They read them...Young men read romance novels too. They read them in an attempt to learn what women want. Unfortunately, what those young men may come to believe is that women want alpha males who don't ask for consent. They learn that women want to be taken. They learn that "no" doesn't necessarily mean no. Young men might also ready books like Nancy Friday's "My Secret Garden" in their quest to learn what pleases women. Women telling of their fantasies that in no way include a man seeking her consent. The MeToo movement should not only include a discussion about the need for men to change, it should include a discussion about how women should change not only in how they communicate their feelings and make it clear they do not consent when they do not, but also how men respectfully asking for consent is romantic and sexy. This is a problem that is deeply rooted in culture of both sexes as it is in the romance genre. Yes, this is a man writing. I got here by searching for things that have been written about the romance novel genre related to the MeToo movement and found this blog. I am doing that because I strongly suspect that some, not all, of those men who have been accused of inappropriate behavior did not at the time it happened know that it was inappropriate. They may have believed, as wrong as it is, that that behavior was what the women desired. They would have had reason to f they learned it from romance novels and books like Nancy Friday's that suggest that. I would like our sons and daughters to internalize that idea that asking for consent and respecting a woman's verbal response is what makes a man a hero in a romantic hero. I hope that becomes what women fantasize about. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-82617431135051984132017-11-24T20:29:29.827-05:002017-11-24T20:29:29.827-05:00Oh...so many books are on that list. For the last ...Oh...so many books are on that list. For the last couple years, I just cant do even a smidgen of sexual hassament or sexism, for that matter. Not even a hint of it. Which means finding a new author or a new book is like I'm disarming a bomb. I read the book, holding my breath, wondering if the hero will act like the heroine is a petulant child rather than a human being. I'm constantly flinching, waiting for the hero to be a jerk or the heroine to think that her goals are secondary to any man's, etc. So, yeah, it's a lot of stress, which why I now take regular breaks from reading romance, which is such a bummer because I love this genre so much. Redcoyotebluehttp://www.redljameson.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-74358506742027136122017-10-22T16:02:18.728-04:002017-10-22T16:02:18.728-04:00I liked later books in Meljean Brook's Iron Se...I liked later books in Meljean Brook's Iron Seas series - steampunk romance - but I read out of order and when I came to the first one, the hero was a major alphahole. He forcefully kissed her while she was stuck in an elevator with him and literally thought, 'how can I isolate this woman from her existing relationships so she'll just have to rely on/sleep with me.'<br /><br />Nope.Bonnie L/Romance MFAhttp://www.romancemfa.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-71951195189083789502017-10-18T11:13:51.189-04:002017-10-18T11:13:51.189-04:00It's an older book but Hidden Currents by Chri...It's an older book but Hidden Currents by Christine Feehan. I was so disturbed by that book that I wrote a letter to the author (something I never do) and have refused to read anything by her since. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09398802177166008567noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-52100258205246452912017-10-17T21:56:11.872-04:002017-10-17T21:56:11.872-04:00Keep us posted, Sue!Keep us posted, Sue!Jackie C. Hornehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04146684628443152376noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-630346294397505634.post-53494664307657508812017-10-17T20:03:40.705-04:002017-10-17T20:03:40.705-04:00I am currently reading Meghan March's Dirty Gi...I am currently reading Meghan March's Dirty Girl. The hero is an alpha who is beyond controlling. There has been consent so far, but he also says, (I'm paraphrasing) I'm going to have her whether she wants it or not. Awkkkkkk. I want her to run as fast as she can away from this guy.<br /><br />Maybe this will be part of his arc - he'll learn not to be such a controlling dick. I'm listening to it on Hoopla, and there have been a few places where I nearly bailed. We'll see how it goes.Sue Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17979126833939775233noreply@blogger.com