I was thirteen. I ventured into the teen corner of our local library, my footsteps hushed on the gray carpet flecked with small green lines.
No one else was in the little corner alcove where the teen books resided, but the place seemed hushed. Subdued. Bathed in a warm glow from the display lights only in that section of the library.
It felt like approaching an altar.
Books were my haven, my escape from the constant fear attached to me like a ball and chain.
At thirteen, I learned that not all books were safe.
Giving up…
I was sixteen. I’d been homeschooled since first grade, and like most homeschool kids, I had friends who were much older and much younger than me.
I met her son first. I worked at the local pool, and this young kid came up to ask me what time it was. He stayed and talked for awhile.
After that, I met his mom and we became friends. She LOVED to read, but had given up on it because it took a lot of work to find books she was comfortable reading.
It stood out to me that she’d stopped doing something she loved, because she was sick of having her morals violated.
The balancing act…
I’m twenty-one now. The last eight years of my life were spent studying the craft of writing and the industry of publishing. I’ve read a lot of books, good and bad, and edited so many that I’ve lost track.
Some of my favorites were raw, messy testimonies.
What content you include in your books is a devisive topic in writing/reading circles.
I’ve published two, and they’re both clean.
What clean means to me:
- NO SPICE (i.e. no explicit sex scenes)
- NO LANGUAGE
- LIGHT > DARKNESS
Some people look down on me for what I don’t include in my books.
When I label myself a “clean fiction author,” I know some people (even Christians!) won’t pick up my book because they’re tired of the weak writing that’s associated with the label.
- I’m not hiding from real life.
- My stories aren’t lucky-go-lucky with no conflict.
- I’m not afraid of the darkness.
In fact, I’ve faced evil and pain and trauma. But I walked out of those places proclaiming the excellencies of him who brought me out of darkness into his marvelous LIGHT.
The simple answer for why I talk about it so much? There are people looking for clean fiction. I want them to find it.
How do you feel about clean fiction? Do you think other people look down on you for your reading choices? Leave your thoughts in a comment, I’d love to hear them!
