What do I write and why do I write it?
I wanted to take an opportunity to talk about why I write
what I write. Sometimes my themes are dark, they hurt, or disgust, or they make
readers sad. There’s joy, fun, embarrassment, love, desire, and everything in
between as well, but I don’t shy away from pain because life is painful. I’m
writing creatures of darkness and so I want to explore their darkness. I wouldn’t
have vampire heroes if I wanted them to walk in sunlight.
I know that isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Some people prefer
their reading material to be brighter and we should all accept that, but I like
having a book or series break my heart and put it back together again. I grew
up with Catherine Cookson, Watership Down, The Animals of Farthing Wood,
Handmaid’s Tale, To Kill a Mockingbird… Oppression, murder, death, grief, rape
are all themes I grew up with alongside vampire novels and fantasy books. I
found value in those stories because they are emotive and they teach us
something about humanity, and maybe about ourselves too.
Fertility, miscarriage, and children...
When I write about infertility, miscarriage, and still
birth, I write about it from the perspective of someone who thought she’d never
have children. When my husband and I started trying for a baby, we discovered I’m
sub-fertile. We spent several years seeing fertility doctors, being told there
was nothing we could do, and we might not have children. It made seeing babies
and pregnant women difficult for me, and there was a constant sense of loss
because something I’d always wanted and expected to have had been taken from
me. I’m lucky in that I did eventually fall pregnant and now have a wonderful
daughter and son, but I remember that grief and pain.
I want to raise awareness that both men and women can suffer
because of infertility and pregnancy loss. It’s not something we should brush
under the carpet. We should be open about it. Normalise talking about it so
those going through it know they aren’t alone and can find support. If my
writing creates an empathy for those struggling with infertility or the loss of
a child, then I’ve achieved something.
Rape and assault...
When I write a rape or sexual assault, I don’t do it to
glorify it. I do it to show how harmful it is, and to deal with the PTSD that
follows. I write the constant ongoing shame because a peer did something to me as
a child, and I lived with constant shame for years because of it. I was in my
thirties before I even admitted what had happened to my mam and my therapist. I
was assaulted in my late teens too, just like many people are, and we need to
understand how damaging that culture of entitlement is and how long-lasting the
trauma can be.
I want to raise awareness, to say this happens and people
don’t just get over it. These events become a constant background anxiety, but
that doesn’t mean victims aren’t also strong. Victims of rape and assault
deserve to be the heroes of their story just as much as bad-ass martial artists.
It’s another perspective on what makes a strong MC, and we all benefit from
visiting other perspectives from time to time.
With what’s happening in America over abortion laws and female
access to medicine, it’s more important than ever that we look at the autonomy
of women and how some men feel they have the right to use or control women’s bodies
as though we’re back in the early 1900s. We lose our jobs for having babies,
but some want to ban options that prevent it. Women standing up for their right
to decide for themselves whether they want sex, or to have a child, is hugely
important. To understand why we need to fight, it helps to understand the ways
in which women can be oppressed, objectified, and victimised.
Abuse and mental health...
When I write about abuse, both verbal and physical, I do so
because between the ages of six and fourteen I was horrifically bullied. The
peer abuse I went through was almost daily, and it led to illness and mental
health problems before my age even reached double figures. It was so severe
that it left me with a personality disorder. I was called, accused, belittled,
attacked with metal posts, wooden slats, stones, fists, feet, all on top of the
daily emotional abuse that meant I felt too afraid to go outside most days. I
retreated into reading and writing because the world outside my front door was
lonely and painful. I was lucky to have a family who loved me, but the world
outside did damage that I’ve never managed to repair.
When I write the pain of someone who has been victimised, I
do it to explain how trauma carries on even after an attack is over. I tell
that story because it’s hard to stand after that type of trauma. I want to
world to understand that not all scars are visible, but that it’s OK to have
scars. Wouldn’t it be better if we vilified abusers but gave victims compassion
and understand, allowing them to live with their pain without feeling they need
to be ashamed by it or hide it? People who survive abuse of any kind deserve to
have their voices heard, without fear or shame, so yes, I ask my readers to go
on that journey and empathise with it.
Sexuality...
When I write about struggling to come to terms with
sexuality or have bi/gay/pan characters, it’s because I’m bi and I’ve lived
with the secrecy and shame of not coming out because I was afraid of how people
might react. Many of my main characters are bi, or they’re gay, or polyamorous,
or they’re into kinks and fetishes. It isn’t always obvious or outspoken, but
it’s there because that’s life and we shouldn’t be ashamed or afraid of
sexuality. I’ve had people DM me to say I should warn people about LGBTQ+
themes in advance because they don’t want to see it, but LGBTQ+ people don’t
need a warning label. We are part of the world and we don’t come with trigger
warnings. If you are offended by LGBTQ+ representation in books then you are
the problem, not the books.
For the journey...
Some of my stories are dark. They’re meant to make you
uncomfortable. They’re meant to show that even when I person has suffered and
has cracks in their emotional armour, they can still be strong, they can still
hope, and dream, and they don’t need to be ashamed of what was done to them. I
want my readers to feel the highest highs and the lowest lows because that is
life. I try to weave that tale using vampires, werewolves, gods, elves, fae,
and a dose of nerdiness and pop culture, but the journey is bigger than some
people imagine when I say I write vampire books.
I’m not ashamed of what I’ve survived, and I’m not ashamed
of exploring it through my writing. That means I’m not everyone’s cup of tea,
and that’s OK. If you want a happy ending in every book, I’m probably not for
you. One of the most grief-filled books I’ve written was penned whilst my dad
had cancer and shortly after he died. There’s reality in my writing even while
my books are fantastical. I put my heart and soul into my work, my pain and my
joy, to narrate an adventure. I hope that comes across in my books. For those
who don’t like that, I can only say I’m sorry.
If you’re willing to put your heart in my hands, trusting
that I’ll get it to the end of the series, then I’ll try to take you on a
journey. Although I categorise my work as urban fantasy, I’d also call it epic
romance. What do I mean by that? Well, the end of any individual book might not
get to the HEA resolution most romances need, but the series will tell an epic
story of overcoming overwhelming odds to finally get where the characters need
to be. Let me break your heart because I promise I will put it back together
again. I’ll do that because it’s how we live. We struggle, we fall, but we keep
going in the hope that we find contentment. That’s the sort of story I enjoy
being told, and the type of tale I enjoy telling.
Useful links...
UK
Mental Health
Samaritans - phone 116 123, SMS text SHOUT to 85258, web samaritans.org
CALM - phone 0800 58 58 58, web thecalmzone.net
C.A.L.L. (Wales) - phone 0800 132 737, SMS text HELP to 81066, web callhelpline.org.uk
MindOut (LGBTQ+) - web mindout.org.uk
Papyrus HopelineUK (Under 35s) - phone 0800 068 41 41, SMS 07860039967, web papyrus-uk.org
Sexual Violence
Safeline - phone 01926 402 498, phone (Male Survivor Helpline) 0808 800 5005, web safeline.org.uk
Survivors UK (Male survivors of sexual violence) - SMS 020 3322 1860, web survivorsuk.org
The Survivors Trust - phone 08088 010 818, web thesurvivorstrust.org
Rape Crisis UK (16+) - phone 0808 802 9999, web rapecrisis.org.uk
USA
Mental Health
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - phone or text 988, web 988lifeline.org
Crisis Text Line - SMS text TALK to 741-741
Veterans Crisis Line - SMS 838255
Sexual Violence
RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline - phone 1-800-656-HOPE (4673)
National Teen Dating Abuse Helpline - phone 1-866-331-9474
