I know that this sounds like a dumb question but I wondered if most of the people on this web site are Christian or spiritual. If so, does that affect your reading choice? Do many people here boycott material that is rated R? Just curious.

Sigrid

PS. Good thing I'm not paranoid.I have started three threads on the message board and no one has replied to any of them! I know that my posts are always really long and I apologize for that. The reason is that I use a voice dictation program and I just get carried away. Sorry!

Okay, I'll try to answer.

I am a Christian, but I read all kinds of material. I always choose to read the best "story" that is the most well written.
I am unafraid of naughty words, but if they are out of character or thrown into every line for no reason except to get the R rating, the book is soon history.
Same for sex scenes. If they're there just for the R, leave it out. Who needs it? And the more graphic they are, the less likely I am to like them. I hate authors who confuse sex "scenes" with sex "manuals." Yuk.
Unnecessary violence is a waste of my reading time too. A plethora of Blood and guts without very good reason do not excite me. They're just silly.
If being R rated means it is all four letter words, graphic sex, and needless violence, then I would not be a reader.
Some of all of the above if well told and in a great story though and I'd read and re-read. In fact, "All of the above in a great story" pretty well describes the Bible, A christian favorite.
smile

Sigrid, I consider myself very spiritual. I'm not Christian at all so that's not my framework.

I will read R or X-rated if it's written well, but that's also my criteria for G. I'm OK with sexual content that's intrinsic to a story, but like smilinize, I'm not interested in the sex manual stuff -- actually because it's dull and didactic. I don't care to read explicit violence because I don't want my stomach churned. There's too much violence in the world as it is, and I don't need to read (or see it on TV or movies) in graphic detail.

I boycott material that is boring, preachy, politically correct, religiously empirical, saccharine, written poorly, written for someone with the IQ of a beercan, formulaic, didactic, simplistic, condescending, preachy, overblown, and poorly written. Also preachy-that-pretends-it-isn't-preachy, and poorly written.

Controversial? Bring it on! -- provided you know how to write.

Sigrid,
I'm Christian, but wasn't always.
I agree with what smile has already said. I read a lot of different things, not just Christian writers.

I'm not happy with a lot of graphic violence and will not watch that. I'm just too sensitive.

I don't mind sex scenes in a novel or movie, if they are well written and, again, not overly graphic. My preference, is to have some things left to my imagination - which I think is highly creative enough on its own

If a writer is just throwing a bunch of sex and violence into a novel because they feel that is what is going to "sell" it and it has nothing to do with the story line, than to me it's just trashy writing.

A good writer will engage the reader's imagination into the story and does not need to spell everything out for them.

Maybe, I'm just old fashioned but I feel there's just way too much sex and violence in our movies and far too little good stories or plots....

BTW, these were my views before becoming a Christian and have nothing to do with religious preference so much as personal values.

I dropped out of a book club because most of the members were Christian and every book they chose was like a page out of the Bible. If I had wanted a Bible Study, I would have joined one.

I call myself a Spiritual Christian. Raised in the church but grew tired of being told every single thing was a sin. I have found love in God by reading the Bible myself, praying and meditating.

I like true crime books. Weird. Don't know why but I do. I don't like to read violence and I don't care about reading about sex. I'm interested in how the police put facts together to catch the killer.

Whoa Dianne, me too! I read a lot of Ann Rule. Anyway, I agree with what the other ladies have said as well. If it's well written, it isn't just "trash." There's a reason for the words, scenes, etc. (that others might call R-rated), and they fit so well into the story line. A book that can bring out the best of my senses, FEAR, LAUGHTER, SENSUAL, etc...is a good book and worth the read if you ask me. I don't like blood and guts. I can watch the nightly news for that.

JJ

Well, I've opened up a whole can of worms here! I agree with almost everyone except that I'm not religious or spiritual. I will not watch movies with gratuitous violence. Recently, I rented Kill Bill because I loved Pulp Fiction. But I turned off Bill after about 10 or 15 minutes. It was unwatchable.

Strong language does not affect me when it is realistic and placed in a proper context. For example, I'm a big fan of The Sopranos and Six Feet Under. However, I just read I am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe and I found the language to be quite offensive and unnecessary.

Totally agree regarding Ann Rule :-) I've read at least six or seven of her books -- she's the best!

Sigrid

Sigrid, you've gotten a lot of great answers to your question. I read lots of authors, with various ratings, sexual content, and even violence. I consider myself a spiritual person with a foundation in Christianity.

I too, don't like reading sex scenes just for the sake of tossing one or two in. They're easy to spot. The same for movies. If the story continues to move on without the scene, it wasn't necessary.

I'm sorry you didn't have any response to your other threads. I'll try to be more observant and watch for your topics.

I'm like several of the other girls who's responded to your question here in that I consider myself a spiritual person with a strong Christian foundation and background. I went through a very short period in my youth when I was less selective in my chosen reading material but pretty much settled down into what I would call "easy reading"...no heavy violence, blood/guts/sex.

Frankly, that's why when I decided to write a mystery series I went in that same direction. I know there are a lot of people who DON'T particularly want to read the blood/guts/gore type of mystery - just something fun with a touch of romance. Hopefully that's what I'm doing with my series.

I too am sorry I missed your other posts! I've just GOT to pay more attention when I stop in to see what's cookin' on the Forum!!!

Vicki -

Oh, don't worry about missing my other posts! I was joking. Because I use this voice dictation program, it's so easy to write that I end up hogging the forum :-)

Yes, I completely agree that there is no point in graphic sex that smacks of commercialism, or does not relate to the plot. However, I find certain authors like Nicholas Spark to be a little too "careful" for my liking.

I was just wondering how I should rate my own book because it does contain some profanity -- nothing that Stephen King wouldn't say, and every word was well chosen for a particular scene. But it is not squeaky clean by any means.
Some of my characters are drug addicts and I felt that it would be completely unrealistic to have them talking in wholesome sentences.

TTYA, Sigrid