The Problem with New Adult
The problem with New Adult can pretty much be summed up by the covers: white, attractive, straight female almost kissing white, attractive, straight male.
The female main character always slut-shames. She's usually running away from her problems rather than dealing with them like a (new) adult.
The male main character is always misogynistic. He always puts the female character up on a pedestal. He has a Madonna/whore complex. He's usually running away from his problems too.
The two main characters use their lust--and it is lust, not love, I'm sorry to disillusion you--to solve their problems.
This is especially rage-worthy when the problem in question is psychiatric.
Last I checked, major depressive disorder was not curable by a roll in the sheets with some tatted asshole.
The book usually ends with marriage, which is, you know, totally what I want to do with my life. Throw my dreams aside and tie myself down to some asshole who thinks a girl is only as valuable as the number of guys she HASN'T slept with.
I write in new adult, but I try to write characters who aren't always white, who aren't always straight, and who at least suffer consequences when they make stupid-ass decisions.
It's hard, because as a straight, white female, I'm often most secure in writing what I know. But you know what? You'll never grow as a writer if you don't branch out.
The female main character always slut-shames. She's usually running away from her problems rather than dealing with them like a (new) adult.
The male main character is always misogynistic. He always puts the female character up on a pedestal. He has a Madonna/whore complex. He's usually running away from his problems too.
The two main characters use their lust--and it is lust, not love, I'm sorry to disillusion you--to solve their problems.
This is especially rage-worthy when the problem in question is psychiatric.
Last I checked, major depressive disorder was not curable by a roll in the sheets with some tatted asshole.
The book usually ends with marriage, which is, you know, totally what I want to do with my life. Throw my dreams aside and tie myself down to some asshole who thinks a girl is only as valuable as the number of guys she HASN'T slept with.
I write in new adult, but I try to write characters who aren't always white, who aren't always straight, and who at least suffer consequences when they make stupid-ass decisions.
It's hard, because as a straight, white female, I'm often most secure in writing what I know. But you know what? You'll never grow as a writer if you don't branch out.
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Mary - Buried Under Romance
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May 19, 2014 02:43AM
What you've said if precisely why I don't read the NA genre, and until the majority of this genre goes through a significant phrase change, I still won't. If someone asks me whether I'd prefer to read an entertaining romance novel that also has love and lust as themes, over young, teen angst and melodrama, I wouldn't hesitate to choose the first option.
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That's why I love bodice rippers. They have love and lust up the wazoo but at least you get some interesting historical tidbits. :/Thanks for stopping by!
I'm very unfamiliar with bodice rippers, actually. I've not yet had the inclination to read romance novels with rape or quasi-rape elements (and I started reading non-"classics" only two years ago - historical romance, mainly). But I could not get into the YA/NA boat...likely because I'm of similar age as the protagonists of this genre and the general tropes of those (angst, bad boy heroes hurt by love, loss someone, the innocent heroine inexplicably drawn to his dark aura, etc.) is so...out there for me. Regardless, it's a very popular genre so it's great that you're branching out in this rather narrow field. :) I'm fully in support of your writing, even though I likely won't ever be a fan of this genre. ^_^
That´s called "New adult"? I would call it "Faked Mary Sue" :/
There's nothing you really need to "know" about using other races unless include their culture background. Just write them like human beings. Or just write them how you write white characters.
I'm black, but write Asian, White, Indian, Hispanic, characters all the time. I really don't put too much thought into race and stereotypes. Just make them human.
I'm black, but write Asian, White, Indian, Hispanic, characters all the time. I really don't put too much thought into race and stereotypes. Just make them human.
From what I see in blurbs, the girl and the guy always fall in insta-love. But the genre is still new, I hope they'll add new elements and more diversity to it.
@Mary: Bodice rippers are fun, but as you say, can be very rapey.@Bookkitten: LOL. Touche, Kitten. Touche.
@Crimson: I get what you're saying. But at the same time, I feel like it isn't really that simple. Most of my friends are very in touch with their cultural roots--or, even if they aren't--experience the world through a different sort of lens, either because of racist assholes or because they were trying to break free from very traditional parents but still feel the rub, or because they speak English as a second language and still don't quite feel fully immersed in Western culture, etc. If you haven't experienced any of those things for yourself, it can be very difficult to capture that mindset.
@Savina: Only time will tell. :)
Nenia wrote: "@Mary: Bodice rippers are fun, but as you say, can be very rapey.
@Bookkitten: LOL. Touche, Kitten. Touche.
@Crimson: I get what you're saying. But at the same time, I feel like it isn't really t..."
Yes, I understand that as well. Why are some people ignorant morons?
@Bookkitten: LOL. Touche, Kitten. Touche.
@Crimson: I get what you're saying. But at the same time, I feel like it isn't really t..."
Yes, I understand that as well. Why are some people ignorant morons?
I'm not sure. Some are just hostile, angry people. But I think some of them probably think they're being funny.
Nenia wrote: "I'm not sure. Some are just hostile, angry people. But I think some of them probably think they're being funny."
It's really not.
It's really not.
Skyla Happy Go Lucky and Lost in Books wrote: "I'm always afraid I will fuck up other people's cultures when I write seeing as I like to have a cultural background for my characters and I don't know much about being saying Asian from a strict C..."
I know one too. She's black and made the token black-best friend ghetto as f*ck. This was her reason: because she was black.
I know one too. She's black and made the token black-best friend ghetto as f*ck. This was her reason: because she was black.
I think some authors don't go into other races, culture because they need to put extra details into it people might think I am being judgemental but I don't see any other reason. But what I find annoying is why do people generally assume that using a character which is not white will involve lots of work why ? . Not everyone from a different culture are so involved in their culture or are orthodox and I am saying some not all. What I mean is I am Indian Sikh girl but brought up in Britain my whole life whenever someone meets me and conversation go into the culture direction or something else entirely people assume oh Sonia might be religious in a orthodox way she does things entirely different. They make things so difficult in their own head she does this or that this and this is all because of my background funny thing is half the time they don't know anything about Sikhism and if I say no I do not do certain rituals that they have assumed I do then they stare at me as if its wrong. People make it difficult and make other people feel like their aliens I have felt that hundreds times that's why think maybe that is the reason I don't know. But in the end of the day we are all humans with the same body parts people forget equality and unconditional acceptance in lots of situations real life and fictional.
