Shame On You

A few days ago, I'm on Facebook, scrolling through my feed, when I see a book recommendation request from a m/m reader. After watching Game of Thrones, the reader was in the mood for some twin action, as in twin brothers getting it on.

I came pretty close to doing a little self-promotion. My book, Triple Play, has a set of twins who share some sexual experiences though they never actually go full anal. I ultimately decided not to throw my hat in the consideration ring. My story is actually about a woman who pursues a relationship with both men, and some m/m readers don't want any m/f intimacy in their books.

A day or so later, I'm scrolling through my Facebook feed once again, and I see a lengthy rant from a fellow m/m author. This author stood on her soap box and went on and on about how disgusting it is for readers to enjoy twincest (yep, it's popular enough to have its own trope name) and it's no wonder the m/m romance writing community can't be taken seriously. As if it wasn't enough for her to disparage other peoples' tastes, she took a screen shot of the original reader's query to further shame her.

My first reaction after reading her post was to feel shame. I didn't feel shame for her. I was ashamed of myself for having written a book with some twincest action. For a few moments, I gave serious though to rewriting the entire book and taking out all of those scenes to make it more palatable.

That feeling was short lived. Once I got over my shame, I was outraged. First of all, how dare she try to publicly shame anyone's reading pleasure? Second, how dare she try to make other authors feel lesser for writing tropes she doesn't approve of? Third, and worst of all, who does she think she is trying to make it seem as though all m/m authors share her feelings? That bitch is giving us a bad name.

Even if I hadn't written Triple Play, I would never condone shaming someone else's tastes because they don't align with mine. If I don't like something, and you do, I'm probably not going to read the book you're recommending. And I am definitely not going to make you feel like shit by publicly shaming you. That is not cool.

I made the choice to stop following the author and to remove her and her spouse from my friends list. I also decided I will no longer buy or promote her books, no matter how much I enjoyed them in the past. Satisfied with my decision, I was ready to move on, but then something amazing happened.

I learned I wasn't alone in my outrage. You know how social media is. Things spread like wildfire there, especially if they're controversial.  It started with the moderators of the m/m book reccomendations group posting an apology to the original twincest reader and reminding all group members it was never acceptable to publicly trash another member's preferences. Many group members chimed in to offer their support to the reader who'd made the original post. Even those who didn't enjoy twincest were encouraging, taking an attitude of to each his own and you do you.

And it didn't stop there. A number of m/m authors took to their social media pages to say it's not okay to publicly shame someone's reading taste. Many removed the offending author from their groups and have pledged to no longer support her.

I am thrilled to see so many people getting behind the original reader. I'm sure this author didn't realize the shit storm she was going to stir up, but it's unfortunate. With the amount of readers she's alienated, it's likely she'll see an impact to her sales. There were countless people vowing never to buy another of her books or never to buy them at all. That's going to hurt, but I have two things to say about that.

Always think before you speak, and shame on you for trying to make others feel ashamed. That's going to be an expensive lesson to learn. 

Don't Leave Me Hanging

Last week, I read a book by a new author. It was a shifter romance with an interesting take on the cultural hierarchy, and yes, before you say it, shifter culture is a thing in fiction novels. Not the point. The point is that I was happily reading this book and being drawn into the story when the unthinkable happened.

The author ended the book with a cliffhanger, leaving me to wait for the next book to wonder what’s going to happen.  And let me tell you, I was pissed.

Now, I knew going in that the book was the first in a series. That’s fine. When I’m emotionally invested in characters and the story, I’m excited by the prospect of more books. Sure, I get impatient waiting for the next book, especially when I’m quick to devour the one before, but I understand writing takes time.

As for the cliffhanger, I had no idea it was coming. Not only was I pissed off when I realized the book was over, and we were left wondering what would happen to our beloved alpha and the mate he was so desperately hoping for, but I was also left unfulfilled. I felt like I’d been cheated.

I know what the author was doing. Creating the suspense and hoping the cliffhanger would leave readers so excited to know what was going to happen that they would be sure to come back for more. The funny thing is I’ve done this before. It’s been a long time. I’ve done it before, but I don’t do it anymore.

I would never tell another author how to write her book, unless she asked for my advice. I will say that I’ve become spoiled. Very few of the authors I read these days are using cliffhangers as a means to entice readers. Most, myself included, are writing each book in their series so that it could be read as a standalone but is more enjoyable when all preceding books are read in order.

On the rare occasions that I read books that have cliffhangers, I usually do it knowingly. Most authors are kind enough to realize readers don’t like to be left in the lurch. They typically include a disclaimer at the beginning of the book that warns readers the story ends on a cliffhanger. Some even go as far as to include the release date for the next book so readers can decide if they want to take the risk.

Believe it or not, reading a book with a cliffhanger is a risk, especially when the book is written by a new author. I can’t tell you how often writers come and go. There are quite a few with staying power but just as many who stop writing. Some not only stop writing but also seem to fall off the face of the earth, never to be heard from again. It’s disappointing when an author I like stops writing, but it’s frustrating when an author I like stops writing after leaving their last book on a cliffhanger. Then I never know what happened, and that sucks.

It sounds petty, but as a reader, I’m begging all authors. Don’t leave me hanging if you can help it. If you’re going to do it, at least warn me before I open the book. Give me the ability to make an informed decision about whether or not I want to read the book yet.