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Choose from one of the topics below and join in the discussion, or email to request a new discussion.The ’s’ word and teens
There’s been a bit of commentary in the media here recently about young people and sex, and some of that commentary has been by YA authors, so we thought we’d talk about it here.
First, a little light reading.
Here’s 17 year old The Shadow Thief author Alexandra Adornetto in The Age on the weekend.
Now here’s 16 year old Steph Bowe, 2009 Inkys judge and just-signed author with Text Publishing, on her blog.
And finally here’s Gayle Forman, author of 2009 Inkys Longlisted book If I Stay, talking about sex in YA - specifically the lack of it in (most of) Twilight, and why she includes sex in her own books.
So what do you think? Should there be sex in YA books? Is it something that’s appropriate for teenagers to be talking/thinking about? Should more books be promoting abstinence, or should they just be honest about the sexual experiences of teenagers - whether they’re good or bad.
(Oh, and this is going to be a fully moderated discussion. You are encouraged to share your thoughts and ideas, but if your comment in any way shows intolerance or disrespect to anyone else, it will be deleted.)
20 Responses to “The ’s’ word and teens”
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I say no to sex in YA books.
idk.
I think maybe you could add some sex into YA books but you couldn’t go too graphical and detailed. Sex shouldn’t be the first thing a teenager thinks about. They shouldn’t be thinking about sex AT ALL. Not yet, anyway.
For example, I is a teenager and I wouldn’t want to read a sex scene. The Twilight sex scene was good; it was basically like, “WHY AM I COVERED IN FEATHERS?” and I lol’d.
Good times.
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Laura XD reply:
Wow, I realised I put “Twilight” and “good” in the same sentence. Umm… that’s awkward. :/.
REPLYING TO MY OWN COMMENT, WOOOO!
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Laura XD reply:
YAY, REPLYING TO ANOTHER COMMENT.
Come on, delete this comment. I dare you.
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Are you gonna delete this one, huh huh huh?
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Dana :) reply:
Hahaha you dag
I’m completely greaved to say, I o have put those two words in the same sentence in the past… On numerous acasions (embarassed face)…
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what I say is, well, sex happens despite the fact people may or may not like it. if you’re in a happy long term relationship, then i dont see a promblem. i think the real problem is casual sex, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be written about. again, it happens. and i think ya novels should be honest and about life, all of it, the good and the bad.
thats what i think.
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Parents who buy my books say they like the fact that my main characters don’t have sex. I talk about sex in my books in a way that’s not preachy, but shows teens the consequences of pre-maritial sex via my secondary characters. I do not write any sex scenes in my YA books though and doubt if I ever will.
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I LIKE POTATOES!
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Laura XD reply:
WOO, POTATOES. Epic win.
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does sex happen in real life? yes. thus it should appear in books. It’s not a crazily difficult concept.
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i think i feel a blog post coming on. once i stop laughing about gayle forman’s mother litmus test. she’s hilarious!
books in which the characters had sex were very popular with me when i was a teenager. i think it was really important for me to read about all kinds of people doing all kinds of things. it made my own choices and life easier and better. bring it on, it’s necessary.
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cassie reply:
agreed.
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I think that sex in books is a good way to explore the consequences safely before attempting to make your own choices.
Having said that, I’ve read a lot of books for young adults where I don’t think the subject has been treated well. I think if you are going to write about it, it should be done properly.
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kate.o.d reply:
oh yes, that’s definitely true!
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I think today’s day and age is to knowledgeable about sex to scrap the entire thing from books. And YA should leave it in them. We here about it everywhere, at school (uck, disgusting terms) at work, just in the streets. you walk past someone and catch them talking about sex. I still feel embarrased :S hehe
Its good to know some of the stuff that goes on so that we are prepared..
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authors should be allowed to put what they want into their books, its their book.
i think sex in YA books is a good way to further understand the whole concept of it.
sex happens, we all came from somewhere lol and people shouldn’t feel embarrassed about talking about sex etc.
after all, its just a natural human thing.
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I liked YA books more than adult books specifically because they didn’t have sex in them. I’m not saying it has to be banned from all YA books, but let some of them still be subtle or sex-free.
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i say yes to sex in YA books because teens and children will hear about if not do it anyway so why not get them an insight of maybe the dangers or precautions to take. also sex causes alot of drama between people so it would make a good book to read to keep the readers on their toes.
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I don’t think it’s a case of whether or not sex should or shouldn’t be included in YA books. In my opinion it depends entirely on the book. Authors should be able to write what they want to write, if the characters in their book have sex, then that’s fine. If an author doesn’t want to include sex in it, then thats fine too.
In my opinion a book is all about the story, and if that story includes sex, then so be it. It’s an issue teens think about, and it’s something that occurs in the real world. There’s no reason to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t exist.
Also, a book can include sex in it without there being some graphic sex scene, just sayin’. Sex in YA fiction doesn’t necessarily mean “pr0n” in YA fiction.
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In my opinion it’s alright to like mention it and stuff but i dont really read books with actual wrting about like people having it. but its about the story and if its important then so be it
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