It's a topic that's been blogged about before. It's likely come up in your own writing; I know it has in mine. The nagging question:
"Can I write this in my book, even though the subject matter is totally against my moral or ethical code?"
Let's face it, the world is full of people with a hodge-podge of belief systems on what is right, wrong and entertaining. There's no way for us as writers to entertain everyone. We are bound to step on some toes along the way, because as I said above, there are so many variations of what is acceptable in entertainment. But what about our own toes? I've found myself writing a story that, in my opinion, has an amazing concept, but gnaws at the back of my mind because it touches on some spiritual issues that are blatantly against my own belief system. I try to reason: "it's just fiction," but when I see some people take certain fiction a bit too literally, as is the case with maybe Dan Brown's hit novel (no I'm not plugging it here) I find myself asking, "but what if people try to take my story too literally?" It begs the question, "Can I write this in my book, even through the subject matter is totally against my moral/ethical code?"
I can't determine whether you should or shouldn't bypass your conscience just to get a good book written, but in my case I will have to figure out what's best for me. So how about you guys? Have you written or would you write about something that is fundamentally against your belief system or ethical code?
"Can I write this in my book, even though the subject matter is totally against my moral or ethical code?"
Let's face it, the world is full of people with a hodge-podge of belief systems on what is right, wrong and entertaining. There's no way for us as writers to entertain everyone. We are bound to step on some toes along the way, because as I said above, there are so many variations of what is acceptable in entertainment. But what about our own toes? I've found myself writing a story that, in my opinion, has an amazing concept, but gnaws at the back of my mind because it touches on some spiritual issues that are blatantly against my own belief system. I try to reason: "it's just fiction," but when I see some people take certain fiction a bit too literally, as is the case with maybe Dan Brown's hit novel (no I'm not plugging it here) I find myself asking, "but what if people try to take my story too literally?" It begs the question, "Can I write this in my book, even through the subject matter is totally against my moral/ethical code?"
I can't determine whether you should or shouldn't bypass your conscience just to get a good book written, but in my case I will have to figure out what's best for me. So how about you guys? Have you written or would you write about something that is fundamentally against your belief system or ethical code?
