I am honoured to have Jane Eagland back here on the blog for Once Upon a Bookcase. Back in 2009, Jane wrote guest post for Sex in Teen Lit Month regarding sex in her debut novel Wildthorn (liked below) which I have reviewed earlier today. Today, she's back to write about something she mentioned in that post, how her editor wanted her to change the sexuality of a character in her next book, Whisper My Name.
In my first novel Wildthorn, set in 1876, the heroine, Louisa, falls in love with another girl. This is not the main thread of the plot—the story is centred on Louisa’s incarceration in a lunatic asylum and the question of who has done this and why. As I explained for Sex in Teen Lit Month, the decision about Louisa’s sexuality didn’t come from any desire to tackle an ‘issue’ or make a point, it just seemed to arise quite naturally from exploring Louisa’s character—it was who she was.
In my second novel, Whisper My Name, the main character, Meriel, has a close relationship with another girl. Again it seemed natural that this relationship might develop and become more than a friendship, but my editor wasn’t keen. The reason she gave was that it would make this story too similar to Wildthorn.
Continue reading Guest Post: Jane Eagland on Changing the Sexuality of Characters on Editor's Request
In my first novel Wildthorn, set in 1876, the heroine, Louisa, falls in love with another girl. This is not the main thread of the plot—the story is centred on Louisa’s incarceration in a lunatic asylum and the question of who has done this and why. As I explained for Sex in Teen Lit Month, the decision about Louisa’s sexuality didn’t come from any desire to tackle an ‘issue’ or make a point, it just seemed to arise quite naturally from exploring Louisa’s character—it was who she was.In my second novel, Whisper My Name, the main character, Meriel, has a close relationship with another girl. Again it seemed natural that this relationship might develop and become more than a friendship, but my editor wasn’t keen. The reason she gave was that it would make this story too similar to Wildthorn.
