HANK
PHILLIPPI RYAN: So here’s an easy question. And I say that
because it isn’t. First, let me preface
by saying my new book, SAY NO MORE, tackles, as one of the story threads, campus
sexual assault. And to the end of my days, I will be thrilled that Publishers
Weekly calls it not only thrilling and gratifying, but “Unflinching.”
And
I have told many audiences, if I can write a great story—one that allows you to
see the world in a new way , through a new point of view, and think about an intensely
important social issue—then hurray, that’s a good thing. But—and here’s where
the debate is about to begin—I think my first task is to wrap that in entertainment.
But
there’s another way—an opposite but equally compelling way—to tackle that
balance.
Alex Sokoloff is one of the heroes of my life. An inspiration and a joy. If you know
her, or have read (and studied) her books, or have heard her teach, you understand why.
If you don’t know her—hurray. I am delighted
to make the introduction.
And
now—how Alex answers the question:
Is Crime Fiction Entertainment?
BITTER MOON, Book 4 of my
Huntress Moon thrillers, is out this week, so thanks to the Reds for hosting
this episode of my blog tour!
Here’s my discussion question
for the day.
Is Crime Fiction entertainment?
I
belong to several online readers groups and it’s a question that has been
coming up frequently, lately.
A
thorny issue, right? But I’m glad to see it being discussed. For me – no. I
DON’T read crime fiction for entertainment. When I pick up a crime novel as a
reader, I want to see intelligent treatment of societal evils that focuses on
bringing awareness to problems and proposing activist solutions.
That’s
my goal as an author, too.
My Huntress Moon series is intense, page-turning psychological and
procedural suspense. I worked as a
Hollywood screenwriter for ten years before I wrote my first novel. I’m well
aware that I need to deliver a satisfying genre experience to my readers. If
they’re not biting their nails and staying up way past their bedtimes, I’m not
doing my job.
But within the context of a
ripping thriller, I am writing about issues I care passionately about and want
to eradicate for good – meaning the good of everyone on the planet. Violence
against women. Child sexual abuse. Human trafficking.
The last thing I want to do
is show these scenes in a way that anyone could get pleasure out of. The few
times I show anything on the page, it’s very brief and absolutely not there for
entertainment. And I am very suspicious of any book that starts with a
beautiful woman obviously being set up to be raped and tortured. Sexualizing
rape and torture is not solving any problem – it’s actually contributing to the
atrocity of sexual abuse. Personally I
won’t support any book or author, film or filmmaker, that sexualizes scenes of
abuse.
But I used to teach in
the Los Angeles County prison system. I want to explore the roots of crime, not
soft-pedal it. For better or worse, my core theme as a writer is “What can good
people do about the evil in the world?”
So my choice is to confront
the issue head on.
The fact is, one reason crime
novels and film and TV so often depict women as victims is because it’s
reality. Since the beginning of time, women haven’t been the predators – we’re
the prey. Personally, I’m not going to pretend otherwise.
But after all those years
(centuries, millennia) of women being victims of the most heinous crimes out
there… wouldn’t you think that someone
would finally say – “Enough”?
And maybe even strike back?
Well, that’s a story, isn’t
it?
So my Huntress Moon series is about just that.
The books take the reader on
an interstate manhunt with a haunted FBI agent on the track of what he thinks may
be that most rare of criminals – a female serial killer.
And here’s what’s really
interesting. Arguably there’s never been any such thing as a female serial
killer in real life. The women that the media holds up as serial killers
operate from a completely different psychology from the men who commit what the
FBI calls “sexual homicide”.
So what’s that about? Why do
men do it and women don’t? Women rarely kill, compared to men — but when it
happens, what does make a woman kill?
Because
another pet peeve I have about crime fiction is the way so many authors
presents serial killers for entertainment. So many authors seem to have no clue
what a serial killer actually does. What we see on the page and on
screen is criminal masterminds who stage their murders like artistic
masterpieces or leave poetic clues in a cat-and-mouse game they're playing with
the cops or FBI.
Well,
bullshit. What serial killers do is rape, torture and kill for their own
gratification. They are not
masterminds. There is no art or
poetry to their sadism.
Yes,
two of my favorite books are Thomas Harris's Red Dragon and The
Silence of the Lambs, both of which deal with mythic versions of serial
killers. But Harris was writing horror novels
in which he created mythological monsters within the frame of very accurate
police procedurals. And authors who don't really understand the complexity of
what he did have been ripping him off - almost always badly - ever since.
Silence and Red Dragon are entertaining, no doubt. But they're also
brilliant, passionate explorations of the nature of evil and the quest of
good people to fight evil.
As
an author, you can settle for writing entertainment, and make a living at it.
But is that really all we're here for?
I
hope not.
Within the context of my Huntress series I can explore those psychological and sociological questions,
and invite my readers to ask – Why? I
can realistically bring light to crimes that I consider pretty much the essence
of evil – and turn the tables on the perpetrators.
And I’ve created a female
character who breaks the mold – but in a way that makes psychological sense for
the overwhelming majority of people who read the books.
Whoever she is, whatever she
is, the Huntress is like no killer Agent Roarke – or the reader – has ever seen
before. And you may find yourself as conflicted about her as Roarke is.
Because as one of the profilers says in the book: “I’ve
always wondered why we don’t see more women acting out this way. God knows
enough of them have reason.”
So what do you think?
Readers, do you read crime fiction for entertainment?
Are you looking for something that goes farther and examines the root of crime,
and maybe even solutions? Are you concerned about scenes of violence against
women being presented as sexualized entertainment?
Authors/writers: is this an issue you grapple with? Have
you found ways of exploring real-life issues of violence against women and
children that both fulfill the conventions of the thriller genre and avoid
brutalization for entertainment?
I’m always interesting in hearing!
- Alex
HANK: Told you she was fabulous! So--what do you all think? And see below--you can get a huge bargain, and maybe a FREE BOOK!
Alex says:
"I
strongly recommend that you read the Huntress/FBI thrillers in order. So…"
SALE ALERT: The first three books in the
HUNTRESS series are currently on sale on Amazon US for just $1.99 each (and
Amazon Prime members can currently read Book 1, HUNTRESS MOON, for free! http://hyperurl.co/xtajck)
Alex
is a California native and a graduate of U.C. Berkeley, where she majored in
theater and minored in everything Berkeley has a reputation for. She lives in
Los Angeles and in Scotland, with Scottish crime author Craig Robertson. www.Alexandrasokoloff.com
Blog
URL: http://www.screenwritingtricks.com
Facebook
URL: http://www.facebook.com/alexandra.sokoloff
Twitter:
http://twitter.com/AlexSokoloff
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/AlexandraSokoloff
Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/axsokoloff/
Amazon:
The FBI Thriller Series: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011M9AOBM?keywords=huntress%20moon&qid=1451693113&ref_=sr_1_1_ha&s=digital-text&sr=1-1
