an important message before you continue
“Bad Angels” contains depictions of sexual assault and other potentially troubling themes. There will be clearly labeled warnings and links to skip past sensitive content before any of these scenes occur.
I’m aware these themes are a source of much criticism within the paranormal romance genre, and I go into further detail with my thoughts on this subject below if it’s something you care to hear more about. Otherwise, if you’re comfortable with this warning, feel free to proceed with your best interests in mind.
Every few years, a story from the humble genre of Romance seems to attract some amount of popularity and we have the same conversation about how romance stories appear to glamorize abusive relationships. It’s not a black and white conversation to be had; some critiques being rather valid while others are quite transparently reaching for any excuse to bad mouth media that just happens to be popular with teenage girls. -Consider such topics as: “glossing over the severity of r*pe” or “potentially dangerous misinformation about how to safely conduct BDSM” VERSUS “most vampires can’t date most humans because of the the half plus 7 rule.”
These publicly held conversations often become as popular (if not more) than the works they’re discussing, typically spilling over from the demographic of its fans to participants who haven’t experienced the media itself, or even inspiring people to consume the media out of spite. And those paths in themselves are acceptable ways to interact with media. We’re free to explore media out of morbid curiousity as much as we are free to rely on second-hand accounts to determine if a narrative is deserving of our moral approval, distain, or even ambivalence. The point is these conversations are held well enough within their own, indepent sources of popularity that we can be decently certain that those who enjoy the Romance genre are aware of them -they aren’t confined to a bubble. Even if their romantic tale of choice isn’t among the heavy hitters that the public is discussing, fans of Romance nonetheless have enough of a lens to apply these conversations to other stories within the Romance genre as well as romantic subplots.
Generally speaking, fans of Romance are aware that certain themes within are problematic. It’s a matter of knowing how to separate reality from fiction, something you’ve likely done if you’ve ever watched a slasher horror flick and then proceeded to not go out and murder someone after.
The exception, of course -and this applies across all genres- is maintaining that the appropriate age demographics are considered when including such themes. That said, Bad Angels is a mature story that is meant to be read by adults. I have enough confidence in its intended audience to know the difference between a healthy and unhealthy relationship, the latter of which Bad Angels explores. Its characters are deeply flawed individuals who don’t navigate their emotions with maturity and frequently end up hurting each other as a result. No doubt, I could avoid all these messy subjects if I had chosen to write a healthier, more wholesome romance; it’s not as if it’s something I haven’t enjoyed in the past. But the thing is, toxic romantic plots are really just my shit. -Like, remember the part in Labyrinth where Jareth is all, “I ask for so little. Just fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave,” and you think to yourself “Yeah, alright,” but then Sarah says “No” anyway, and it’s like, whatever, it’s her loss? -Yes? No? I just like the especially vile kind of romance. The more obsessive, bitter, wicked, and unhinged it is, the more invested I’m likely to be. Naturally, that’s the type of story that I’d want to write. Though they’re still plenty enjoyable, I wouldn’t get the same kind of satisfaction writing a story that’s happier, healthier, and more wholesome. Ultimately, I’m writing Bad Angels for myself. If anyone else happens to like it, that’s great, but I’m not interested in compromising on what I want in order to make it more palatable to others. Past that, it’s just my responsibilty to not present the relationship in the story as anything other than unhealthy through its narrative tone; I can only hope that my best effort to represent that truth is successful.
The final subject which I’d like to tackle here is that of sexual assault. It’s pretty well established that Romance has a complicated history with the portrayal of assault and there’s no doubt there is much to unpack, and for that reason I’m just going to focus on my own story for now. I can say right out that though Bad Angels doesn’t contain rape, there is still one scene depicting sexual assault that could have easily lead to something worse, and as stated at the top there will be clear warnings before that scene comes. I’ve come across statements wild on the internet expressing the opinion that there is never an excusable reason to include rape or sexual assault in a narrative, which is an idea I’ve given much consideration to but have ultimately come to disagree with (and naturally you’re entitled to come to your own conclusions, as I don’t have the final word on the subject). And even though I disagree with this particular view point, I still feel strongly that these elements don’t belong in a narrative without reason, and I deliberated a good deal how the story I was writting fit into all that. I decided that it was a necessary element that the story could not function without, but I also chose to revise the original draft to commit the scene in question with as little severity as possible while maintaining its intended effect. This is a topic of which I am open to criticism on, though I have tried to approach it with taste.
Anyhow, If you made it this far, thanks for taking the time to hear out my piece. If you choose to continue reading, I hope you enjoy. xo