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Books
BOOKS The Art of Fanfiction
by Izzy Millen
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I’ve been a fanfiction devotee since I was a teenager. After a friend introduced me to this magical, world-expanding universe, I’ve been obsessed. I’d consume as much as possible on the bus to and from college every day (easy to read loads if your bus ride is an hour) and when I got a bit braver, started uploading my own oneshots onto popular sites, interacting with other writers, and obsessing over their work.
Fanfiction gets unfairly dunked on and always has been. I remember being told it wasn’t a “proper” form of literature, it didn’t allow itself for creativity, it was lazy because you’re “stealing” authors’ original characters and settings to make something of your own.
Although I think these concerns do have an element of validity to them, it’s near impossible for any writer to develop without dabbling in fanfiction at some point. Afterall, isn’t Paradise Lost just a fanfiction of The Fall of Man from the Bible in poetical form? And The Faerie Queene a retelling of the end of Virgil’s Aeneid?
If I hadn’t had fanfiction, I definitely wouldn’t have been as skilled at writing as I am today. I know I am no bestselling writer, and I won’t make a career out of writing my silly little drabbles. But fanfiction, with its preconstructed elements and characters that already exist, create the perfect ground for writers to practise. It is not lazy, you are creating new scenarios, moving aspects of characters and coming up with original scenarios. You fill out missing scenes, letting your imagination guide you into forming something creative which requires just as much work as writing. Because isn’t creating anything valuable
Sapphic Book Recommendations
by Amy Crawford
It gave me the groundwork to write, but also helped me spot lazy tropes and learn not to use them. It helped me think about alternative endings and how to fill in the gaps. It helped me develop my imagination and my skills in a space of community. Fanfiction is its own artform – inherently valuable, requiring skill, and bringing people together.
Photo: Unsplash
As someone looking to read about queer women, it’s easy to assume there is a lack of sapphic books on the market. Even worse, you may be convinced the books that are out there are poorly written, depressing or a horrible, soul-crushing combination of the two. Don’t allow yourself to be swept up in this discourse and miss out on the incredible - often own voice - wlw literature out there because of misconceptions about sapphic literature as a whole. Here are three recommendations of brilliantly written books by queer women about queer women.
1. The Color Purple
Fair warning- this book covers extremely disturbing content, particularly in terms of sexual violence and racism. Alice Walker’s award-winning epistolary novel immerses us in the life of Celie, an African American teenager living in rural Georgia in the early 1900s who is surrounded by men who abuse her. We watch her world shift as she finds women who refuse to submit to this abuse and fight for their happiness. One of these women is Shug, whose love for Celie is central to the development of Celie’s own self-worth as she becomes a queer Black woman in a world which seeks only to erase her.
2. Disobedience
Disobedience focusses jointly on Jewish doctrine and the lives of the two women navigating life in a close-knit Orthodox Jewish community after the death of their Rabbi. The two women have very differing relationships with the doctrine and how it impacts on expression or concealment of their sexualities. Ronit is disobedience personified, itching to provoke, while Esti chooses a path of compromise and continued sacrifice. Both are valid and insightful approaches to life that Naomi Alderman navigates with sensitivity.
3. Fingersmith
If you are looking for a mind-blowing book, Fingersmith by Sarah Waters certainly fits the bill. It’s Dickensian in style and is full of plot twists without coming across as contrived. This dark and twisting narrative about orphans and thieves, gentlewomen and deception, is underlined by the budding romance between Sue and Maud which, despite the richly imagined chaos around them, seems unshakeable.
Romance Books and Sex Representation
By Libby Hargreaves
Sex: defined for so long, by most, as a penetrative act between a man and woman. Books push the boundaries of this restrictive, reductive definition, and open reader’s minds to a wide range of sexual experiences- both healthy and unhealthy. Books have the power to educate and misinform, so the representation of sex within them is important- especially in romance novels, which many read for the steamy action.
Hoang’s The Kiss Quotient strikes the perfect balance between tension and smut. Stella Lane’s autism can make sex difficult in a world designed by and for neurotypicals, so when a handsome male escort takes the time to listen, learn and fulfil her needs (in more ways than one) she (and Hoang’s neurodivergent readers) feels seen. The importance of breaking convention in terms of sexual representation is extended to those who do not feel sexual attraction in Oseman’s Loveless, a journey of self-exploration for a “fanfic-obsessed romantic” who had never experienced a non-fictional crush. Both these novels, though on opposite ends of the spice scale, convey the same message through their representation of sex: the importance of communication.
Authors don’t always get it right, with the likes of Call Me By Your Name having a reputation (especially with the rise of BookTok) for queer representation: “I began to feel we were not even two men, just two beings”. Though a sentiment many readers who’ve had difficulty coming to terms with their queer identity could empathise with, it felt hollow in its contribution to the romanticising of criminal activity in ‘subversive’ sexual representation: “it seemed there was absolutely no difference in age between us, just two men kissing”. The paedophilic, predatorial nature of the relationship is completely overlooked by many, who cling to the rare shameless gay sexual representation. Understandably so, as most LGBTQ+ representation in romance novels takes a modest approach- it is a rarity to find a healthy dose of queer smut, especially between two women or non-binary folks.
Romance books reveal the ordinarily veiled indulgence of sexual connection: women orgasm without shame, disabled folks are sexy, queer people find love. There is more than a sexual fantasy between the pages of a great romance novel: there is truth.
Sex Representation in Romance Books
By Robyn Johnson
Sex representation in novels may feel like a modern addition to literature. However, there’s plenty of examples of classics in which sex scenes feature, or even where sex plays a dominant role in the plot line.
The earliest example in English literature is Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, published in 1748 by John Cleland. A fictional tale of fifteen-year-old Fanny Hill, the two-part novel is an autobiographical tale of Fanny’s experiences as a sex worker. Whilst not a traditional romantic novel, it can certainly be argued that Cleland romanticises prostitution. Cleland doesn’t downplay these experiences - Fanny’s sexual encounters are described in vivid detail, which may come as a surprise for its early publication date. The novel is without a doubt vulgar yet adds a crucial insight into sex work and life in the 16th century.
Delta of Venus by Anais Nin features a collection of fifteen short erotica stories, published in 1977 (although mostly written in the 1940’s for a private erotica collector). The novel could be described as the classic to E. L. James’ Fifty Shades of Grey. Nin has been described as creating her own ‘language of the senses’ through her depictions of sexual experiences and encounters within the novel. It presents a progressive take on sex representation, placing female pleasure and desire at the centre, Nin’s focus was orientated around
“women’s language, seeing sexual experience from a woman’s point of view”. In these examples, sex representation in literature certainly holds importance for its progressivity, and plot development.
More recent examples of sex representation in novels include the popular series Fifty Shades of Grey. The plot revolves around sex without much focus on any accompanying narrative. Within the series, sex feels like it holds too much influence, to the point where the novel has been criticized for being shallow and poorly written. In this example sex representation doesn’t add depth. The same can be said for Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton, with a focus on sexual representation across the series. Although both novel series should be celebrated for their representation of sexual experiences and diversity within these experiences, it can feel that overt and constant references to sex diminish the plot, often seeming unnecessary.
Photo: Unsplash
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
by sienna norris
I’m sure you’ve heard of The Bell Jar, or Sylvia Plath. If you haven’t then I highly recommend you get Googling. The Bell Jar was originally published under a pseudonym in 1963, the same year Plath unfortunately ended her life, but the novel and her legacy lives on.
Without giving too much away, The Bell Jar chronicles the mental health battle protagonist, Esther Greenwood, experiences. It’s a very intimate look into depression and suicide as readers follow the chronicles of Esther’s mental breakdown. Being published in the early sixties, the topics were very taboo, but there are so many people that struggle with mental illness, including me.
I suffer from Generalised Anxiety Disorder which can sometimes be accompanied with depression. I first began to read the book when I started struggling mentally, and I couldn’t handle how relatable it was. A few years later, after experiencing somewhat of a mental breakdown myself, I returned to it, falling in love with the novel and Plath’s work as a whole. Many people read The Bell Jar as a critique of society’s treatment towards women, more specifically mentally ill women, during the 1950s.
You may know Sylvia Plath as Ted Hughes’ first wife, or as the writer who put her head in an oven, but she’s so much more. A lot of the events that take place in The Bell Jar seem to reflect some of Plath’s life, perhaps explaining why it’s such a classic - Plath wrote what she knew and that reflected onto her readers. Plath suffered with depression most of her life, attempting suicide numerous times, before tragically succeeding after she separated from Ted Hughes. She died at the age of 30, leaving two young children. I feel that knowing the author’s story is so crucial to understanding the concept of the book.
The Bell Jar’s opening line is, “I was supposed to be having the time of my life”, which I’m sure many of us can relate to, especially those in their twenties. I know this is a clichè, but it truly is ahead of its time, and so was Plath, very subtly. This isn’t a review of The Bell Jar but a strong recommendation.
