forum Things You Want LESS Of In Books
Started by @HighPockets group
tune

people_alt 109 followers

Deleted user

It's rape honey. Damn. That's how you know adult authors had a weird ass teenage life.

@HighPockets group

Yeah, or the whole "I'm 1,000 but I like 20 so it's totally okay for be to be with a 17 year old". To get around that in my story, I have it so Fae take decades to develop and do so much slower than humans, so Cedar looks and acts only 2 years older than Giana.

Deleted user

Meaning the power dynamic within the relationship. He can't be a controlling, manipulative asshole (Edward Cullen) and she can't be an idiotic, subservient imbecile. (Bella Swan)

It's got to be a healthy relationship. I don't mind if there's a huge age different between some of my characters, as long as it is a proper relationship between two people of like and sound mind. Not two characters where one is and Adult™ and one is a Child™.

Deleted user

Or 1000-year-old dragon lady who looks (and acts) like she’s 12, but it’s okay because she’s 1000. Disgusting.

ALSO WTF????

@Becfromthedead group

That seems fairly close to balanced. The thing is, someone with the emotional maturity of an older teen, but hundreds of years of experience? It makes things kind of strange, in a way. But then she's 18, and he's sort of like a 16-year-old, which could pose other problems.
I feel like with your case, it definitely helps that the relationship is not sexual.
It's really a hard line to walk when it comes to immortals/beings that live for a very long time, so I think the best question to ask would be: "Would this make people feel weird/uncomfortable?" If the answer is yes, you might want to make some tweaks to it.
"Power imbalance" is hard to define. I usually take it like this: Does one have way more life experience than the other? Is one currently in a position of power over the other (like the conversation we had about teacher/student romances)? Do they both seem like they can give consent to each other without pressure? That sort of stuff.

@Becfromthedead group

Or 1000-year-old dragon lady who looks (and acts) like she’s 12, but it’s okay because she’s 1000. Disgusting.

ALSO WTF????

It's in my favorite game series and I'm mad.

Deleted user

ahem sexual experience doesn't really bother me anymore just because it's such a normal thing in life these days you know? For partners to have varying degrees in 'experience'.

maybe this is an adult way of thinking.

Nevermind me.

Deleted user

ALTHOUGH

Maybe that means we should stop having protags that are 17 and under, because it just doesn't work.

@Becfromthedead group

Oh, I meant life experience, if that's what you were referring to. The only time differing levels of sexual experience bothers me is if there's a woman who's super inexperienced and a dude who prides himself in being super experienced. Makes me want to roll my eyes. Bad trope.
(Also this is why we should bring back the New Adult genre!)

Deleted user

OH! my b. I misinterpreted.
But I totally agree with virgin girl/hoe boy trope.

@Althalosian-is-the-father book

He is honestly a mix of grown up cynicism and innocent childishness mixed with a more that healthy dose of angst. And he really could not manipulate her at all. She is way more in control of her emotions than he is. It has a little bit of growing up in the story and discovery for him. But he is not exactly the leader in the relationship. It honestly has traces of a first crush to it.

@Becfromthedead group

I mean he seems ~16. She's legally an adult. As long as you don't make him practically a child (you said more of a child, which, at that age, I assume you meant less mature emotionally), it seems like it would work out.