My Take

Much ado has been made about Lisa Valdez's remarks on Sybil's blog about Patience. If you want to read it, click here. Sybil dropped me a note and asked for my input, but I decided not to join the fray, and for good reason--if you've read the thread at AAR. If you've been living under a rock, Patience is the sequel to Lisa's first book, Passion. I gotta say, I loved Passion. It had lots of hot, heavy sex and it was peppered with graphic words. Shocking? Not to me. I enjoyed it! Passion was unique in the way that it brought out strong reactions from readers. There were those who loved it (like me) and those who hated it. It's par for the course.

As expected, Lisa's response generated a lot of hoopla. Mainly from people who took it to mean that she couldn't handle criticism and let it get it to her. Some questioned why Lisa let it affect her that much. As a professional, she should be used to criticism and hate mail. If you put your work out there, then you better be prepared to hear stuff you won't like, right? My opinion (and I'm entitled to one *g*) is that Lisa merely explained what happened to her and why Patience was delayed.

To some extent, I agree that an author should be used to criticism. What I don't agree with is saying you shouldn't let it affect you. Sort of like brush it off your shoulders and move on. Authors are told early on that it's imperative to develop a thick skin. Easier said than done, I tell ya. When you've sweated endless hours over your book, spending late nights honing and perfecting your story for publication, you're emotionally invested. It will affect you, no matter what you say. You can swear to high heavens that sticks and stones and all that stuff, but in the end, it'll sting. A little or a lot, but it will. Sure, it's easy to say, you should be prepared for criticism from the outset. Put yourself in Lisa's place. Let's say you work for an ad agency. You conceptualize what you think is a brilliant ad campaign for a product, you pitch it and hear someone say, your work is shitty, slutty, trashy and reflects your moral values. How would you feel?

Lisa let hate mail and criticism bog her down, even admitting that she changed Patience's story because of that. Drastic, isn't it? But I totally understand. Really. I'm just glad to hear that she bounced back and went back to her original plan and included (even added on) to the spanking scene she'd originally written. Kudos to her. The triumph is in the recovery. In getting up after you've been down.

When my book Jed's Revenge was reviewed on RT and was given a 1 star rating, I was devastated. The reviewer made reference to a rape scene and had nothing good to say about it. I was flabbergasted. Rape scene? Did she read the same book I wrote? I will admit, I let it get to me. I cried. I didn't--couldn't write anything for some time after that. I received emails from fellow author friends cheering me up, saying they disagreed with the reviewer and to please not to let it get to me. I even got hugs in person. For that, I will be eternally grateful. My husband, that dear, dear man, took me to Rodeo Drive, marched me into the Louis Vuitton store and paid for the (smallish) purse without batting an eyelash. Great retail therapy--works all the time. After that, he took me to the movies, wined and dined me, and told me I was still the most beautiful woman in the world for him and that it would be a mistake to stop writing. Was I weak and unprofessional in letting it get to me? Maybe. Maybe not. Was I too sensitive? Sure. I'm a Cancer, for heaven's sake. The moon rules my moods and let me tell ya, it swings a lot. In general, I believe that creative types are sensitive. Romance authors write with emotions, creating love stories with complicated twists and turns. See the connection?

As for the hate mail Lisa received, there will always be people out there with too much time on their hands and never hesitate to share their opinion. Lisa wrote a romance, people. Get a grip. She didn't write about politics or religion. She didn't drastically change the moral climate in the whole country.

Me? I read for entertainment. For escape. In my reading material, I'm not too concerned with historical accuracies or whatever little details that others pick on. If I read a book and it draws me into the story, whether the sex is hot and graphic words are used, hey, it's no skin off my nose. It's a couple of hours of escape. Fantasy. Daydreams. The scene in Lisa's Passion where Mark and Passion had sex while she was breastfeeding also got some comments. To me, what's the big deal? Once you've had a baby, trust me, you're lucky to find time to have sex. When the opportunity arises, grab it with both hands. Kids have a way of altering your lives, and if it offends other people's sensibilities that the characters had sex while breastfeeding, well, to each his own, right? It certainly didn't offend me. Let me put it this way. If my husband wanted to have sex with me after I've had a baby (with all the accompanying weight gain, loss of sleep and lack of interest in primping) well and good. Let's have it. It would make me feel sexy, wanted, and LOVED. As for assuming an author's morals, values and world views are based on the characters she writes, well, I'd have to disagree. Again, it's creativity at it's best. CREATIVITY. We create characters in our heads, not live their lives. There's a difference. There are some out there who incorporate their lives into their books, but that's the exception, not the rule.

I'm sure there will be those who disagree with me. I've probably ruffled some feathers. Such is the way of life, I'm afraid. We can't agree with everybody all the time, just like we can't please everybody all the time. I just don't think people should come down on Lisa Valdez for being human. I commend her for her honesty in relaying what happened and most of all, congratulations for bouncing back. I'm eagerly awaiting Patience and will no doubt devour it as soon as I get it in my hot little hands.