Show some spirit ... even if it is fiction!
Bit of a departure for me … going to blog about my other ‘love’, writing. I tend to keep that fairly private, only a few people know about it and there is really only one person I can honestly, truly talk ‘book’ who takes it seriously & who is as interested in the process of approaching agents/publishers etc …
The stories I write are young adult fantasy and I’ve read my fair share of that genre (though not as much as I should, really!) And I’ve started to realise something – the female characters, usually the main characters, don’t tend to come across too well. I remember what it was like to be a teenager (just about!!) and yes, I remember being wishy-washy about certain things and drooling over guys, and falling in and out of love (supposedly – what did I know at that age??) fairly frequently, but I do not recall ever letting myself be defined by guys. My first serious boyfriend was when I was at college but when I found out he’d had a couple of one-night stands, it was ‘So long, C old boy!’ Give him his due, he did apologise like mad, over many days but, even then, I believed I deserved to be treated better.
To each his own, every person is entitled to their own opinion, but for me, the prevalence of seemingly ‘weak’ female characters in YA is nothing short of worrying. Generally speaking, it takes the notion of ‘damsel in distress’ and runs with it. Surely our young girls/women deserve to read about strong, independent women, who can still be feminine, but who aren’t defined by the object of their so-called love. And that’s the other thing – the sort of ‘love story/romance’ that’s at the heart of most of these stories is … not very believable. Never been a big believer of ‘love at first sight’ – more ‘attraction at first sight’ for surely ‘Love’ can only emerge when two people get to know one another…
I know the ‘Twilight’ series is loved and enjoyed by a huge number of people … I read the first book, intrigued by the premise as I enjoy vampire stories. Was willing to give the second book a try, but, barely a third of the way in, I was struggling. I hate to give up on a book but I couldn’t finish it … I read for enjoyment and pleasure but when I start muttering and growling at a book, and end up in a foul mood, that is not a good sign! I just wanted to reach in and shake some sense into Bella!! She only ever seemed to react to Edward, she didn’t seem to do anything for herself! And, to be honest, I found their ‘relationship’ sort of creepy … if he hadn’t been a vampire, his character would have been nothing more than an abusive boyfriend.
And that’s my other bugbear – yes, I can understand young people being drawn to the seemingly chaste relationship of Bella and Edward but … the books seemed to be saying it’s ok to want to be dead, to join the undead instead of living your life to the full.
Just finished another YA book, ‘The Forest of Hands and Teeth’ – what a fab title! The ‘hands and teeth’ belong to what the author calls the Unconsecrated … turns out to be a fancy name for zombies. Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t got anything against zombies (so long as they don’t try to eat me!), just would have appreciated a hint. Again, interesting premise and I was enjoying it … it’s in first person and the main character seemed appealing … until I couldn’t ignore her self-absorption! Could the girl decide what she wanted? Every time she ‘got’ what she was obsessing over, she’d tire of it/him and move on to the next thing, and that happened more than once!
(SPOILER ALERT) I did put forward a scenario from the book to my boys, just to test the teenage waters – your village has just been overrun by zombies, people you’ve known all your life are being killed, only a handful of you have managed to get away, a metal fence is all that separates you from the zombies who are trying to get to you, and the person you fancy is hugging and comforting someone else – would you be more worried about the dangerous situation you’re in OR would you be angsting over the fact that you’re not the one being hugged?? I’m glad to say both boys said they’d be more worried about the zombies!
Surely it’s possible to write female characters who, despite their foibles, can think and act for themselves … I think Nancy Lamb is spot-on when she talks about portraying vivid personalities (in her book ‘The Writer’s Guide to Crafting Stories for Children’): “Part of the secret of creating vivid personalities is to make characters courageous in their confrontations with their demons and determined in their drive to overcome the obstacles they encounter. This does not mean they are fearless. But it does mean they overcome that fear in order to step up to the plate and be counted.” Personally, I try and apply this to my main characters, so far all female, and I hope I’ve succeeded.
I could go on and on … or it could be that I’m just too demanding a reader ;o) But lately, when I’ve been surfing various blogs, I’ve been pleasantly surprised to find that I’m not alone …
YA romance ... or not -- there are even more fascinating links at the end of this article ...