OK, we haven’t had a hot button topic in awhile – we try to limit them to about one a month, because they often do stir emotions.
So a four ground rules:
–Please be civil
–This is not a discussion about sex with minors – we are talking about adults here
–Please be civil
–Please be civil
So here it goes – do depictions of MM non-consensual sex have a place in sci fi and fantasy? If so, have you used it, and why (writers) and have you read it, and did it forward the story (readers)? If not, why?
I’d also add these thoughts – there are several ways to include non-con content:
It can be used in the background, to describe an event that happened to a character that is a part of who the character is/becomes – a passive use.
It can be more active – as in an erotic storyline where one character takes advantage of the other, often with a wink and a nod that it’s non-consensual when it may actually be more of a power exchange.
Then there’s the full-on rape fantasy, and I think there’s pretty broad agreement that it crosses the line.
I’d also like to remind folks that there may be some among the group who have gone through a trauma like this in real life, and that this discussion may provoke some strong emotions.
So discuss. Oh, and one more thing:
Please be civil!!!!!
Yes, I do think there is a place for non-con in M/m scif-fi. I think, at least for me, the fun of Non-con is in the dark ride. In fiction (writing or reading) I get to be the sadist or masochist and do the things I would never do in real life. Safe, Sane and Consensual is the rule for real life, but in fiction we can be victim or victimizer. That should be a thrilling enough ride to make it worthwhile, and a scary enough ride to make it uncomfortable. It doesn’t have to be repulsive -some of the best stuff is so very subtle it’s chilling. But if it didn’t stir something in us, I don’t think it would be worth reading, do you?