A Grimm Look at Writers’ Impact on Rape Culture

 

As a writer, I am painfully aware of what I am doing at every stage in writing conflict between characters. I am aware of the symbolic meaning of their actions, so whenever I am striding into allegorical rape territory (behavior mimicking aggression, dominance, or positioning, though there is no actual sexual contact), I am intentionally choosing to write it that way for a specific reason, to make a statement about that character, and to increase a sense of anxiety in the reader.

So, whenever other writers use rape symbolism in their work, I tend to think they too are aware of what they are doing; yet, at times, I wonder why they choose to do it, particularly if it reflects negatively on their “hero.” Maybe in some instances, it is purely unintentional and they are oblivious to the broader connotations, but I doubt it. Most of the time, this kind of behavior is bound to the antagonist, or the villain, and used as a way to make us hate, fear, and distrust that person even more. And, it works.

So why on earth did Grimm have Nick do it?

Wanted: Writers for Femnista March / April – Ancient Times Issue

Hello, dear readers! I’m still looking for writers for upcoming issues of Femnista, including our March and April issue. The theme is “Ancient Times,” which I think is an incredible topic because it opens it up for submissions revolving around everything from Rome to Greece to Bible times. I would love more submissions! Our only claimed topics are Pompeii, Gladiator, Ben Hur, The Ninth Legion, Clash of the Titans, the Maccabees, and the Biblical figures of Esther and Ruth. There’s still room for 300, Spartacus, Troy, Noah, Exodus, The Passion of the Christ, The Bible miniseries, and a host of historical figure / mythology-based / Bible-related articles. (I’d like to see some material that isn’t based on films, but has a more serious tone, if that’s your writing cup of tea.)

To sign up, e-mail me at femnista at charitysplace dot com or drop me a note here so I can get you on the list. Thanks!

Reminders will be sent out March 1, 2015. All articles are due on March 17, 2015.

Christian Reflections on Grimm: The Inner Hexenbiest

Lately, I’ve been watching Grimm, and contemplating Juliette’s plight. After a Hexenbiest (sort of a witch-like creature, known for violence and vindictiveness) robbed Nick of his Grimm abilities, Juliette had to temporarily become one in order to restore them. Now, the Hexenbiest part is sticking and she is freaking out, because every time she gets irritated, or afraid, or upset, her face morphs into a hideous zombie-like creature and she … um … causes things to explode. Like car engines. And sometimes the back of someone’s head. In short, she transforms into what Monroe likes to call a Hexenbitch. Oops.

I’m never quite sure in life if I go through things because entertainment tugs at my spiritual connection or if God maneuvers me into a place where I am emotionally ready to hear what He has to say when I encounter myself in entertainment, but … I feel for Juliette.

It’s no fun being a Hexenbiest.

Femnista: Jan / Feb 2015 – Swashbucklers

Batten down the hatches for a swashbuckling adventure. Includes… Blackbeard, Robin Hood, The Princess Bride, The Three Musketeers, Zorro, Shipwrecked, The Scarlet Pimpernel, and our favorite “why is the rum gone?” daring doer, Jack Sparrow .

Read it online or download it.

Want to contribute to future issues? Click here.

Sex & the Christian Writer

Let’s talk about writing sex.

Specifically, let’s talk about writing sex … from a Christian perspective.

Don’t pretend, as a writer, this isn’t something you struggle with, or think about, because it is. Writers write stories about human beings and their emotions, which means inevitably, sex is going to come up.

Some authors choose not to deal with it at all, and some readers prefer not to read it at all. Some writers choose to deal with it a lot, and some readers want to read it. Christians tend to fall in-between. I have read Christian novels without a whiff if intimacy even between a married couple, and a few that made me blush and stow the book under my pillow, in case my mother wandered in and wanted to read it. In terms of gratuitousness and in comparison to what we can see on primetime television now, that book was “tame” but for a thirteen year old, it was extremely racy.

Sex and the Christian Woman

Charity:

Something I have been thinking about lately that I feel needs addressed.

Originally posted on :

I’ve begun, deleted, walked away, and come back to this post for weeks. I’ve changed the title, purpose, and even audience for this post more times than I can count. I can never figure out where to start. And maybe there isn’t really any good or easy place to begin such a topic. I was talking yesterday with my sister about what I was going to write on for my next post.

“I’m going to write about sex,” I finally decided.

“You can’t write about sex,” my sister says. “You’ve never had sex, so there isn’t much you can say about it.”

Thought 1: Challenge accepted.

Thought 2: If only that were true.

She’s right, I have never had sex. I am, after all, the good Christian girl. As such, I’m not supposed to think about sex, want sex, imagine sex, crave sex, or exude sex. Sex is off…

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Anne of the Thousand Ways: The many faces of Anne Boleyn in popular culture

Charity:

I thought about writing up something along these lines, but it looks as if I do not have to! Hope you have all enjoyed Tudor Week!

Originally posted on Headmaster Rituals or Barbarisms Began at Home?:

Claire Foy as Anne Boleyn in BBC’s Wolf Hall (2015)

Anne Boleyn has completely beguiled me since I was four years old. I remember vividly in the late 1980’s leaving a birthday party early with my mother to watch Anne of the Thousand Days on TV. I was as entranced with the film as she had been at my age. Living so close to Hever Castle, Anne’s ancestral home, used extensively in the film, bought history to life for me. I have visited Hever more times than I would care to confess in writing, and yet it still holds me in its grip, encouraging me to listen for conversations long past, hints of the events that happened between then and now. My idea of Anne was undoubtedly shaped by both this initial cultural representation of Anne, and my visits to this site. But the Anne that Genevieve Bujold played varies vastly…

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