I figured I deserved a couple days off after the last few weeks, so my to-be-read stack is now a little smaller… 6 books in 2 days… which doesn’t really even make a dent in the to-be-read stack, but at least it’s some progress.

I’d be happier about it if I hadn’t been so disappointed in a couple of the books. It seems to me that if I have so little time to read nowadays, that I should be reading good books, so I’m only reading authors that I know and trust. But two of them really disappointed me this time.

I really wish I could figure out what I didn’t like about one of the books… the only thing I can figure is that it ran too long and I just didn’t connect with the characters. But, it seems to be a fluke with this author so I’ll probably pick up her next book.

The other book was just too much of what has been going on with this author in the last couple books, the book was basically one long chase scene with too much gratuitous violence, so I’ll probably drop this author from my buy-list. Which is kinda sad, I really liked her early books… but **shaking head in mystification** these are romances… what in the world makes these authors/agents/editors think that gross and gratuitous violence is what I want in my romance?

There are several authors that I love their writing style, but I refuse to buy another of their books because of the unnecessary violence. Which of course begs the question of the difference between violence necessary to the plot and unnecessary violence. Which really isn’t where I was going with this blog, but let’s go with it (and change the title).

What’s the difference between necessary violence and unnecessary violence in a novel?

Short answer: It depends on genre expectations.

Horror and thrillers have a different set of expectations than cozy mysteries and, I thought, romances, but this current rash of gross violence in romances is baffling me.

So, narrower question: In romance, what the difference between necessary an unnecessary violence?

Bad things happen to good people all the time, that’s just part of life, so if the genre is to be even the least little bit realistic, bad things need to happen to people, hence the necessary violence aspect of the question.

When does that necessary violence turn into unnecessary violence?

Short answer: When it’s violence for the sake of violence and not for the sake of the story or the plot.

Example: One science fiction book I read, that left me swearing to never read the author again, began the book with an extremely graphically descriptive rape scene in a very close 3rd person from the victim’s perspective. Whereas, the remainder of the violence in the book was told in a much more distant 3rd person, even when it was told from the victim’s perspective. The styles in which the author handled the first violent scene and the rest of the violence in the book made it very clear that the author thought “sexual violence is a great way to sell books” rather than “this level of violence is the norm for the way this story needs to be told".

Example: A series of romances, where a nasty vampire lady has been running around for several hundred years sadistically sexually abusing many, many people and the series is about a bunch of her victims who have gotten away and are trying to rebuild their lives and find real love. I’m fine with the concept, bad things happen to good people and all that, and the romances themselves are excellent. The problem is that sprinkled throughout the romance plot are long sections of very close 3rd person flashbacks from the victim’s perspective of the violence that was heaped upon them… which really has no relevance to the plot of the book. Again, it’s clear that the author thinks “sexual violence is a great way to sell books” rather than “this level of violence is the norm for the way this story needs to be told". I’ve quit buying this author’s books, because of the level of gross violence. Which is really, really sad, because she had one of the best takes on what would happen to the world if everybody got telepathy that I’ve ever read… except it was spoiled by a gruesome scene of surgery with no anesthesia. This scene is told in moment by moment very close 3rd from both the victim and the person the victim was telepathically linked to… and is totally out of context of level of violence in the rest of the book.

And there, in that last line, I have my answer… “totally out of context of level of violence in the rest of the book.”

Necessary violence is the violence that happens consistent with the way the majority of the story is being told.

Unnecessary violence is the violence that is totally out of context with the level of violence in the rest of the book.

Example: If I’m writing a story and I’m going along with a nice 3rd person where a bunch of violent things happen that are described in a fairly distant 3rd, then WHAM! all of a sudden I have one scene where the violence is in moment-by-moment very close 3rd from the victim’s perspective. I, as author, need to step back and ask “why?". Why is this scene so different than the rest of the book? If I’m out to gross-out my audience, why don’t I have this level of violence in the rest of the book? If I’m not out to gross-out my audience, why do I have this level of violence in this scene of the book?

The same goes for sub-plot… the majority of the book is told in one level of violence, but one sub-plot is told at a completely different level. The author needs to ask “why?”

I’m sure there may be a valid answer to that “why?” that necessitates keeping that scene or sub-plot in the book, but be careful, because I have yet to read a book where a scene or sub-plot that was drastically more violent than the rest of the book actually added to the story, usually it only convinces me to never read the author again.

So there! I answered a question that I didn’t even know I had and gave myself a good guideline for not making this mistake with my own stories.

Now, if only I could convince a couple authors out there to read this. **sigh** But if by chance they are reading this: I’d buy every book you write because I love your writing style and your stories, but before that happens, you gotta get rid of the unnecessary violence… it ruins my entire reading experience.