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Re: question for Julie or others
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From: Julie Halpern <juliehalpern114_at_yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 08:03:14 -0700 (PDT)
Hi KT,
To respond to your concern: while I feel a lot of responsibility to portray positive messages to teens, I can't possibly incorporate everything into one book without it feeling like I'm writing a public service message on how to tear open a condom wrapper or bullet point the signs of an abusive relationship vs a healthy one. A story must unfold in a natural, readable manner that makes sense with the characters. I hope, and so far it feels that I have, been successful in portraying a loving, consensual, positive relationship between a teenaged girl and boy. It would not make sense or feel organic in this book for a discussion on penetration vs oral [Although, if you read my novel Into the Wild Nerd Yonder, you will find I have visited that territory before]. My hope was to to get across the idea that sexual activity can and should be enjoyed by two people who care about each other without feeling ashamed or pressured into doing things one is not
comfortable with. Every reader will get something different out of a book based on their own experiences, and since a lot of teens haven't had many sexual experiences (because they haven't lived long enough to do so), the hope with The F-It List is to encourage young women, and those who are with them, to realize their bodies deserve pleasure, too.
"Would you please talk a bit more about Becca as a character, and
about the friendship between her and Alex?" I don't feel like I know Becca as well as I know Alex. Becca is a very positive person, and, truthfully, it us harder to write someone these days who is optimistic vs. a bit jaded and sarcastic. I love how she and Alex balance each other's personalities. It was really wonderful and fun writing their scenes because they were so comfortable with each other which made them comfortable to write. One of my favorite things to write, in any of my books, are private jokes and old stories shared by characters. Some of them come from my own life, and some of them I make up. But I think it's those little things that only two best friends would notice and retain that create realistic-sounding, long term relationships. At least I hope they do!
Thank you for your questions! Julie
www.juliehalpern.com
________________________________
From: K.T. Horning <horning_at_education.wisc.edu> To: "ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu" <ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu> Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2014 9:16 AM Subject: Re: [ccbc-net] question for Julie or others
Thanks for your reply, Julie. I so appreciate this aspect of your book, and thank you for showing that. My concern is that the characters didn't seem to consider what they were doing as "having sex," and that sex only happens with penetration. I know this is the way many straight teens define sex, so it seemed true to the characters who, although they are sexually active, are really still so sexually inexperienced. (As I recall, this definition of sex was also held by President Clinton, as we learned during his impeachment hearings.)
But for people who haven't yet read your book, I don't want them to
think it's only about sex, because it is about so much more. It's a
romance without romance, if that makes sense. It's so, so funny,
too.
One of the things I also appreciated about your book was the
friendship between Becca and Alex. It is such a deep and wonderfully
realistic relationship. Often times, I think, when girls and boys
get together in books, the female friends -- if they were there at
all -- fade far into the background. But I think what you depict
with both of them is so true to girls (and women).
Would you please talk a bit more about Becca as a character, and
about the friendship between her and Alex?
Thank you so much for joining our discussion!
--KT
On 3/26/2014 8:23 AM, Julie Halpern wrote:
KT,
>
>
>It was more about readers learning that there are
more ways to experience sexual pleasure besides just
intercourse. I wanted to show female readers that
they deserve to enjoy sexual experiences as much as
males do, and I wanted male readers to recognize
that there is pleasure in giving, which I think is
something not stressed in teen life as much as it is
in adulthood.
>
>Julie
>
>www.juliehalpern.com
>
>
>
>________________________________
>
Date: Thu, 27 Mar 2014 08:03:14 -0700 (PDT)
Hi KT,
To respond to your concern: while I feel a lot of responsibility to portray positive messages to teens, I can't possibly incorporate everything into one book without it feeling like I'm writing a public service message on how to tear open a condom wrapper or bullet point the signs of an abusive relationship vs a healthy one. A story must unfold in a natural, readable manner that makes sense with the characters. I hope, and so far it feels that I have, been successful in portraying a loving, consensual, positive relationship between a teenaged girl and boy. It would not make sense or feel organic in this book for a discussion on penetration vs oral [Although, if you read my novel Into the Wild Nerd Yonder, you will find I have visited that territory before]. My hope was to to get across the idea that sexual activity can and should be enjoyed by two people who care about each other without feeling ashamed or pressured into doing things one is not
comfortable with. Every reader will get something different out of a book based on their own experiences, and since a lot of teens haven't had many sexual experiences (because they haven't lived long enough to do so), the hope with The F-It List is to encourage young women, and those who are with them, to realize their bodies deserve pleasure, too.
"Would you please talk a bit more about Becca as a character, and
about the friendship between her and Alex?" I don't feel like I know Becca as well as I know Alex. Becca is a very positive person, and, truthfully, it us harder to write someone these days who is optimistic vs. a bit jaded and sarcastic. I love how she and Alex balance each other's personalities. It was really wonderful and fun writing their scenes because they were so comfortable with each other which made them comfortable to write. One of my favorite things to write, in any of my books, are private jokes and old stories shared by characters. Some of them come from my own life, and some of them I make up. But I think it's those little things that only two best friends would notice and retain that create realistic-sounding, long term relationships. At least I hope they do!
Thank you for your questions! Julie
www.juliehalpern.com
________________________________
From: K.T. Horning <horning_at_education.wisc.edu> To: "ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu" <ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu> Sent: Wednesday, March 26, 2014 9:16 AM Subject: Re: [ccbc-net] question for Julie or others
Thanks for your reply, Julie. I so appreciate this aspect of your book, and thank you for showing that. My concern is that the characters didn't seem to consider what they were doing as "having sex," and that sex only happens with penetration. I know this is the way many straight teens define sex, so it seemed true to the characters who, although they are sexually active, are really still so sexually inexperienced. (As I recall, this definition of sex was also held by President Clinton, as we learned during his impeachment hearings.)
But for people who haven't yet read your book, I don't want them to
think it's only about sex, because it is about so much more. It's a
romance without romance, if that makes sense. It's so, so funny,
too.
One of the things I also appreciated about your book was the
friendship between Becca and Alex. It is such a deep and wonderfully
realistic relationship. Often times, I think, when girls and boys
get together in books, the female friends -- if they were there at
all -- fade far into the background. But I think what you depict
with both of them is so true to girls (and women).
Would you please talk a bit more about Becca as a character, and
about the friendship between her and Alex?
Thank you so much for joining our discussion!
--KT
On 3/26/2014 8:23 AM, Julie Halpern wrote:
KT,
>
>
>It was more about readers learning that there are
more ways to experience sexual pleasure besides just
intercourse. I wanted to show female readers that
they deserve to enjoy sexual experiences as much as
males do, and I wanted male readers to recognize
that there is pleasure in giving, which I think is
something not stressed in teen life as much as it is
in adulthood.
>
>Julie
>
>www.juliehalpern.com
>
>
>
>________________________________
>
-- Kathleen T. Horning Director Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) 4290 Helen C. White Hall 600 N. Park St Madison, WI 53706 http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc horning_at_education.wisc.edu 608-263-3721 (phone) 608-262-4933 (fax) ==== CCBC-Net Use ==== You are currently subscribed to ccbc-net as: juliehalpern114_at_yahoo.com. To post to the list, send message to... ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu To receive messages in digest format, send a blank message to... digest-ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu To unsubscribe, send a blank message to... leave-ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu ==== CCBC-Net Archives ==== The CCBC-Net archives are available to all CCBC-Net listserv members. The archives are organized by month and year. A list of discussion topics (including month/year) is available at... http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ccbcnet/archives.asp To access the archives, go to... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/ccbc-net ...and enter the following when prompted... username: ccbc-net password: Look4Posts ==== CCBC-Net Use ==== You are currently subscribed to ccbc-net as: ccbc-archive_at_post.education.wisc.edu. To post to the list, send message to... ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu To receive messages in digest format, send a blank message to... digest-ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu To unsubscribe, send a blank message to... leave-ccbc-net_at_lists.wisc.edu ==== CCBC-Net Archives ==== The CCBC-Net archives are available to all CCBC-Net listserv members. The archives are organized by month and year. A list of discussion topics (including month/year) is available at... http://www.education.wisc.edu/ccbc/ccbcnet/archives.asp To access the archives, go to... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/ccbc-net ...and enter the following when prompted... username: ccbc-net password: Look4PostsReceived on Thu 27 Mar 2014 10:03:44 AM CDT
