So tonight I went to the book launch party of Heather Brewer's new book, Soulbound. Now, I'll admit, I've never read a Heather Brewer book before.
I know. It's weird. Why would I go to a book signing for an author I've never read? Well, there were several reasons.
1) I LOVE author events. They have such great energy. As a writer, nothing gets me more motivated to write than to see another author talking about their work. And hearing someone read their own stuff? There's nothing like it. And lately, I've been running low on inspiration in the writing department, so I thought I might as well go to get myself inspired.
2) I'd heard good things about Heather Brewer's books in my Teen Library Materials class, and the last event she did at the library was apparently a great time had by all.
3) I have so very little in my life besides work. Sad but true.
4) Her new book totally sounds like something I'd read, so I was all over that. MOAR YA!!!
Now, the thing about going to a book signing for a YA and/or children's author when you're my age is that you have to be prepared to be the only person from your generation there. No really. The last two YA events I've gone to, I was the oldest person there who didn't have kids. It's basically a bunch of 10-15 year olds, ME, and then all the moms. Yes, I DID feel like a huge creeper, thanks for asking! It doesn't bother me enough to stop going, obviously, but still.
Anyways, I am so glad that I went. I've been to a few author events before and I've always enjoyed them greatly. But Heather Brewer...she's good. She writes YA, but she skews a little young (11-14). And any YA author, when they're talking to kids, won't talk down to them. They talk to kids like their feelings, opinions, and dreams are just as valid and important as any adults'. Which they are, but a lot of times teens aren't given a lot of credit for the depth they can possess.
But I don't know, something about the way she spoke was just...so utterly sincere. Like she really, honestly cared deeply for each and every person who came out to see her. And she was honest (particularly when she revealed her true feelings about Twilight. Haha). She was just so genuine, and I was really touched by that. Not that the other authors I've seen haven't been genuine, but none have been as....earnest as Heather Brewer. It was like she had this deep-seated respect for her readers, and that respect was something she cherished.
So I know I'm heading into sappy territory here, but the whole thing was such a positive experience for me. And of course, it did motivate me to write. What about, I don't know, but as Heather said, butt+chair=book.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Strong vs. Strong Female
I think a lot of people think Katniss Everdeen is a strong female character when in fact she's just a strong character.
"What's so important about the word female?" you ask. Well, a lot.
I think a lot of people are confusing being a "strong female character" with denying ALL aspects of the female sex. Think Lady MacBeth. But Lady MacBeth is huge bitch. The fact that she denies her sex is NOT A GOOD THING. I mean, going around and saying "out, damn spot" is not exactly healthy behavior.
And that's where Katniss comes in. She's a FEMALE and a TEENAGER and she doesn't act like it. I understand that she's compartmentalizing and she's been through a trauma and blah blah blah, but that's simply unrealistic. Look, I've met more than a few refugees. People who have witnessed and lived through unspeakable trauma. And you know what? Yes, they are more aware of the gravity of society than most people. But they still act their age.
Which is something Katniss does not do.
I feel like Katniss's characterization relies heavily on "well, she's been through trauma." Which sure, is a good way to START characterizing someone, but to completely center someone's personality on trauma? It's just as flat as characterizing someone based on their relationship to another person (I think we all know what book I'm talking about here).
What does it say that we think a strong female character has to not act like a girl? In the same way I wouldn't want anyone to emulate Bella Swan, I wouldn't want anybody emulating Katniss, because she's too detached from her emotions.
I want my strong female characters to act like strong females. Not genderless or emotionless, which Katniss is. People value connection, and Katniss doesn't. I don't think we should extoll the virtue of someone who doesn't care about others out of anything other than obligation.
I guess my point here is that I feel that Katniss could have been a boy and it would have been the same story. And that's not a strong female character. It's just a strong character--which is fine, and it is something we need in literature (especially for teenage boys, who often feel alienated from female-protagonist YA lit because it "doesn't relate to them.") But I feel that in the steps people take to avoid gender stereotypes, they forget that it's okay to be proud of your gender. You don't have to create gender neutrality in order to have a strong character.
Basically: it's okay to love your vagina. They wrote a play about it.
A caveat here: A lot of the arguments I hear about Katniss being a strong female character rely heavily on the fact that "she's not interested in a romantic relationship." I want to be clear that I personally do not equate being a strong female character with having a romantic relationship. There are plenty of ways to express being a strong female, and most of them have nothing to do with romance. But in the following argument, I do talk a lot about romance simply because in the arguments about strong female characters, romance is cited quite a bit (eg, Bella is a weak character because she is too into Edward; Katniss is a strong character because she doesn't think about boys). And I think that there is a relationship component to the whole strong female character thing. That relationship is not necessarily romantic, but it often manifests as one.
So now I guess you're wondering: who do I consider a strong female character? There's a great book series called Across the Universe by Beth Revis. It's often used as a read-alike for The Hunger Games as well. Across the Universe tells the story of Amy and Elder, two residents on the ship Godspeed. Elder is one of the leaders of the ship; Amy is a passenger from Earth who has been in suspended animation for 300 years. The plot revolves around uncovering the secrets aboard Godspeed and making decisions about what is "best" for a society (it's also unique in that it's one of the few dystopias that really makes you understand why society got to such a point, and how leaders decide what to do next).
While the story itself is fascinating, Amy is what really makes the series for me. Amy acts like a teenage girl, which, in my opinion, is something you don't see in a lot of dystopias these days. Amy struggles with her emotions like a 17-year-old would. She thinks critically about her relationship with Elder: does she truly like him, or does she like him because he's the only thing available? I realize that it could be argued that Katniss has a similar struggle, but I feel like the closest Katniss gets to thinking about it is "Does he? Well, I'll think about that later." And even then, I don't feel any EMOTION there. But when Amy and Elder need to put aside their relationship so they can focus on the ship, they do. They can be serious, but they can also be teenagers.
And that's what makes Amy a strong female character. That's she's confident in herself, and she consider her own feelings. She acts like a girl, and is proud of being a girl. She recognizes the risks of being a woman on Godspeed (the society is, in theory, egalitarian, with a notable exception that makes Amy vulnerable), and addresses them without denying her sexuality. Which is something Katniss does not do.
Both Katniss and Amy have to compartmentalize in order to survive. Katniss does it to become dead inside, and I struggle to accept a protagonist who is so distanced from her emotions. Being strong doesn't mean denying your emotions.
I think the popularity of Katniss stems at least in part from the backlash against Bella Swan and Twilight. Bella is so ruled by emotions that she becomes weak. Some readers see Katniss and think: she's so good at controlling her emotions, she must be strong! She's so unlike Bella! Which is true, of course, but just because she isn't consumed by emotions doesn't make her better than Bella. If anything, Katniss is consumed by her lack of emotion.
This is why characters like Amy get lost in the mire. Like Katniss, Amy must compartmentalize, but instead of negating her emotions, Amy channels them into her cause. Her emotions are realistic, and sadly, in the world of YA, this is what causes her to become lost. She's not emotional enough for fans of Bella, but she's too emotional for fans of Katniss.
There needs to be a middle ground. It's the characters like Amy, the ones who forge and exist in that middle ground, that are the strongest female characters of all.
"What's so important about the word female?" you ask. Well, a lot.
I think a lot of people are confusing being a "strong female character" with denying ALL aspects of the female sex. Think Lady MacBeth. But Lady MacBeth is huge bitch. The fact that she denies her sex is NOT A GOOD THING. I mean, going around and saying "out, damn spot" is not exactly healthy behavior.
And that's where Katniss comes in. She's a FEMALE and a TEENAGER and she doesn't act like it. I understand that she's compartmentalizing and she's been through a trauma and blah blah blah, but that's simply unrealistic. Look, I've met more than a few refugees. People who have witnessed and lived through unspeakable trauma. And you know what? Yes, they are more aware of the gravity of society than most people. But they still act their age.
Which is something Katniss does not do.
I feel like Katniss's characterization relies heavily on "well, she's been through trauma." Which sure, is a good way to START characterizing someone, but to completely center someone's personality on trauma? It's just as flat as characterizing someone based on their relationship to another person (I think we all know what book I'm talking about here).
What does it say that we think a strong female character has to not act like a girl? In the same way I wouldn't want anyone to emulate Bella Swan, I wouldn't want anybody emulating Katniss, because she's too detached from her emotions.
I want my strong female characters to act like strong females. Not genderless or emotionless, which Katniss is. People value connection, and Katniss doesn't. I don't think we should extoll the virtue of someone who doesn't care about others out of anything other than obligation.
I guess my point here is that I feel that Katniss could have been a boy and it would have been the same story. And that's not a strong female character. It's just a strong character--which is fine, and it is something we need in literature (especially for teenage boys, who often feel alienated from female-protagonist YA lit because it "doesn't relate to them.") But I feel that in the steps people take to avoid gender stereotypes, they forget that it's okay to be proud of your gender. You don't have to create gender neutrality in order to have a strong character.
Basically: it's okay to love your vagina. They wrote a play about it.
A caveat here: A lot of the arguments I hear about Katniss being a strong female character rely heavily on the fact that "she's not interested in a romantic relationship." I want to be clear that I personally do not equate being a strong female character with having a romantic relationship. There are plenty of ways to express being a strong female, and most of them have nothing to do with romance. But in the following argument, I do talk a lot about romance simply because in the arguments about strong female characters, romance is cited quite a bit (eg, Bella is a weak character because she is too into Edward; Katniss is a strong character because she doesn't think about boys). And I think that there is a relationship component to the whole strong female character thing. That relationship is not necessarily romantic, but it often manifests as one.
So now I guess you're wondering: who do I consider a strong female character? There's a great book series called Across the Universe by Beth Revis. It's often used as a read-alike for The Hunger Games as well. Across the Universe tells the story of Amy and Elder, two residents on the ship Godspeed. Elder is one of the leaders of the ship; Amy is a passenger from Earth who has been in suspended animation for 300 years. The plot revolves around uncovering the secrets aboard Godspeed and making decisions about what is "best" for a society (it's also unique in that it's one of the few dystopias that really makes you understand why society got to such a point, and how leaders decide what to do next).
While the story itself is fascinating, Amy is what really makes the series for me. Amy acts like a teenage girl, which, in my opinion, is something you don't see in a lot of dystopias these days. Amy struggles with her emotions like a 17-year-old would. She thinks critically about her relationship with Elder: does she truly like him, or does she like him because he's the only thing available? I realize that it could be argued that Katniss has a similar struggle, but I feel like the closest Katniss gets to thinking about it is "Does he? Well, I'll think about that later." And even then, I don't feel any EMOTION there. But when Amy and Elder need to put aside their relationship so they can focus on the ship, they do. They can be serious, but they can also be teenagers.
And that's what makes Amy a strong female character. That's she's confident in herself, and she consider her own feelings. She acts like a girl, and is proud of being a girl. She recognizes the risks of being a woman on Godspeed (the society is, in theory, egalitarian, with a notable exception that makes Amy vulnerable), and addresses them without denying her sexuality. Which is something Katniss does not do.
Both Katniss and Amy have to compartmentalize in order to survive. Katniss does it to become dead inside, and I struggle to accept a protagonist who is so distanced from her emotions. Being strong doesn't mean denying your emotions.
I think the popularity of Katniss stems at least in part from the backlash against Bella Swan and Twilight. Bella is so ruled by emotions that she becomes weak. Some readers see Katniss and think: she's so good at controlling her emotions, she must be strong! She's so unlike Bella! Which is true, of course, but just because she isn't consumed by emotions doesn't make her better than Bella. If anything, Katniss is consumed by her lack of emotion.
This is why characters like Amy get lost in the mire. Like Katniss, Amy must compartmentalize, but instead of negating her emotions, Amy channels them into her cause. Her emotions are realistic, and sadly, in the world of YA, this is what causes her to become lost. She's not emotional enough for fans of Bella, but she's too emotional for fans of Katniss.
There needs to be a middle ground. It's the characters like Amy, the ones who forge and exist in that middle ground, that are the strongest female characters of all.
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