Let’s talk about spicy content

Spicy books have been having a moment on social media right now. And if you don’t know what I mean by that, ask your parent.

It’s been everywhere. People talk about the spice level of books, comparing scenes, and giving suggestions based on how much of that sort of content is in there. And all I can say about it is that I’m glad people are having fun.

Readers of my books will notice that spice isn’t something I include. This is for several reasons. One, I don’t enjoy romantic stories. I might enjoy a romantic subplot, especially in fantasy. There are certainly a few in Woven. But by and large, I am not here for the lovey stuff. I’m here for the dragons, spaceships and ghosts. I want a haunted house, not a house of love.

One exception to this is Laini Taylor’s Strange The Dreamer series. That was largely fantasy but with a really strong romantic subplot and I ate up every word. And of course, there’s a love triangle in Hunger Games. But these are exceptions.

I think in my career, I’ve written one spicy scene. And the point was not to be sexy or hot. It was to have a terrifying and visceral reaction from any male reader. If you read Nova, you know exactly what scene I’m talking about.

Sorry, guys.

The point is, spicy content isn’t my thing. That’s fine. A lot of readers do like it, which is also fine.

What I want to talk about today is not this ‘sudden increase in spicy books’. It’s how some people are reacting to it. Because while I don’t enjoy it myself, I will be damned if I’m going to let anyone feel bad for reading it.

Adult content is for adults. It’s okay to be an adult.

I have always hated the argument that censorship protects children. First of all, because it doesn’t. Secondly, we can protect children without expecting all of us to adhere to puritanical standards.

Most of the people reading spicy books are, after all, not children. They are adults, enjoying an adult story. The same can be said for the horror content that I enjoy. And that’s alright. Healthy, even.

We should let kids be kids. But we should also let adults be adults and make their own decisions about the type of content they want to experience. Being an adult is freaking hard enough. If I’m going to have to pay bills, keep my house clean and go to work, let me enjoy a book where people have pins pushed through their eyes by a demonic doll. (Shout out in the comments if you know what book I’m talking about.)

There are places and times where adult content is perfectly fine. Stop telling people it’s something to be ashamed of.

Spicy content in books is nothing new

Something that amuses me about this recent moral panic is the suggestion that spicy books are something new.

My dude, have you never read Shakespeare?

There has been spicy content for as long as there has been content. The first printed book might have been the Guttenberg bible. But I bet the second was a detailed sexual romp romcom. All of us millennials found at least one bodice ripper sitting on our mom’s bedside table from time to time.

This is nothing new, and society has gotten along just fine with its existence forever. We aren’t going to see a rise in sexual deviancy because of Sarah J. Maas.

Any form of censorship is a no from me

I am not down for telling people what they can or cannot read. Especially once they’ve reached the age of adulthood. Especially during a time when fascism seems to be making a comeback. Because morality is a sliding scale. What one person finds perfectly vanilla, another considers criminal.

And, of course, we cannot talk about this without talking about the LGBTQ+ community. Because for some reason, any romantic act from a same-sex couple seems to count double in the eyes of censors. A kiss between two women is treated with more outrage than a handjob by a straight couple. Often a gay couple simply existing is enough for something to be marked as adult content.

Censorship grows like a weed. Don’t let it get its roots in.

I’m a little sick of anything popular with women being demonized

Something I’ve noticed about people speaking against spicy content is that they all seem to be focused on the ladies’ reading habits.

Funny, no one is complaining about men playing sexually suggestive video games.

It seems like anything women enjoy is seen, by some, as rather frivolous. Rather silly. Starbucks, Ugg boots, that sort of thing. It’s a silly little thing that silly women enjoy, but serious people (men) don’t have time for.

And that’s not okay. Just because something is popular doesn’t mean that it’s somehow foolish or that the people who enjoy that thing are somehow less than the people who don’t. This never seems to happen with things men enjoy. Have you ever heard of a football fan called Basic? So let’s maybe consider this before we start making fun of the girls for their little hobbies.

Reading books is the damned goal.

Finally, I’d like to remind everyone that I want people to read books. I don’t care what sort of books they read.

Reading is supposed to be fun. It’s not supposed to be this very serious thing. It’s not another task to check off our neverending list of things we’re supposed to do. It’s fun. And if a spicy book is the one that makes someone realize that reading is fun, that’s awesome.

Once someone’s a reader, they’re going to keep on reading. When people stop seeing reading as something you’re forced to do, then judged by how well you understood the material, it’s a good thing. I want more people to read for pleasure. Even if it starts as reading for that specific sort of pleasure.

I guess what I’m saying is this. Don’t judge other people for what they read. Leave them alone, let them enjoy life. You don’t have to understand it or approve of it. And if the people on social media gushing about spicy books bother you, maybe you’re spending too much time on social media and need to go read a book yourself.

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