Non-con poll

[estepheia]

Poll concerning non-con fics and perspective. Because I'm curious and because *gasp* I am writing AU and the story is hurtling that way.
I find it difficult to discuss the whole subject, which is why I decided to screen all replies. If you don't want/need your reply to be screened, just tell me. :-)

[Poll #402995]

Comments

[bedawyn.livejournal.com]

0I chose "always the victim" above, but I will allow the possibility of a rare exception. I read fanfic to identify with the character, and I can't imagine -- wouldn't want to imagine -- identifying with a rapist. It's takes both a seriously skilled author and a seriously fucked-in-the-head character to make a rapist sympathetic. I think I might have run into one or two Krycek stories years ago that might have succeeded there, and of course, now "Seeing Red" requires me to at least consider the possibility, but still, my automatic reaction is to just not read anything from the rapist's POV -- or anything that has either Spike or Xander as a rapist.

I used to read noncon regularly, but don't often these days, unless either a) it's an author I really like or b) I'm desperate for h/c and angst is all I can find. Partly this is a decision on my part to avoid darkfic, but I think it's also a reaction to having read too much badly done noncon. I think the biggest problem was authors confusing their goals with the rape scene. Are you doing it for the kink? ("You" being the general author, not you in particular.) Then that's the time to concentrate on the sensual, graphic physical description and on whatever emotions are appropriate for that particular kink. Is it supposed to demonstrate just how screwed up the rapist is so that we're sympathetic? Then the focus needs to be on the rapist's headspace (which may or may not be done through their POV). If it's to make us sympathize with the victim, then focus on the victim's headspace and spare us the graphic description except as the victim would be perceiving it. Don't go mixing a kinky, sensual, description with a scene that the character isn't experiencing as kinky and sensual; if it's supposed to be angst, there's no need to include every graphic detail right up front. Likewise, if it _is_ supposed to be kink, then it needs the same sort of sensual writing and tension in pacing that a consensual sex scene would have, and the characters we sympathize most with need to enjoy it on at least some level, or else it's just painful to read instead of kinky. It all boils down to the author knowing why she's choosing to write this --both the rape as plot point and the scene as scene -- and exactly what effect she's going for.

[estepheia.livejournal.com]

Please please, may I unscreen your reply? Or do you consider it to be too personal?
I think what you say is very useful for writers of all coleur. :-)