I'm sure many of you have already heard about a new app called Clean Reader. It was designed by a couple who didn't like the idea there wasn't an app out there to help their grade school aged daughter read books she liked and white out any "swear words". These same people have made back handed comments insinuating that authors can write well without having to "resort to using profanity." (Click HERE to see the site's blog article for yourself.)
As you can imagine, the idea this particular app exists has irked a few members of the author community but not more than finding out the site had been selling books with this app. While it's true the app didn't alter the actual book file, and the user could turn the app on or off at will, the fact remains they're altering the intended content...often to something that no longer resembles the original work of the author.
Because of all the uproar and authors demanding their books be removed from their site, Clean Reader has done exactly that. They've removed ALL books from their catalog. Kind of hard to have books available when their source of books had been cut off. Page Foundry was distributing books to them. Smashwords and Draft 2 Digital requested Page Foundry not distribute any of their books to Clean Reader or basically risk losing their partnership. When two of the most popular distribution sites for Indie books threatened to cut off your access to the very thing you need to stay in business, it would behoove you to listen!
You, as a consumer may feel that once someone purchases a book, they are free to do with it as they see fit. This is true for PRINT books. When it comes to e-books, the reader purchases a license to read the book, on ONE reading device. As the owner of that one license to read the book, you do not have the right to reproduce or alter the content in any way or distribute it to others in the altered or unaltered state without the written permission of the author and their publisher.
Because of all the uproar and authors demanding their books be removed from their site, Clean Reader has done exactly that. They've removed ALL books from their catalog. Kind of hard to have books available when their source of books had been cut off. Page Foundry was distributing books to them. Smashwords and Draft 2 Digital requested Page Foundry not distribute any of their books to Clean Reader or basically risk losing their partnership. When two of the most popular distribution sites for Indie books threatened to cut off your access to the very thing you need to stay in business, it would behoove you to listen!
You, as a consumer may feel that once someone purchases a book, they are free to do with it as they see fit. This is true for PRINT books. When it comes to e-books, the reader purchases a license to read the book, on ONE reading device. As the owner of that one license to read the book, you do not have the right to reproduce or alter the content in any way or distribute it to others in the altered or unaltered state without the written permission of the author and their publisher.
In principle, the Clean Reader app could be a good tool for adults to use on books written by authors who have given their permission for their work to be included in catalogs that offer this service. While I don't understand it, there are some readers who simply cannot read a book with specific words in it. They may even love the story right up until their trigger word pops up. One of those words for many women is CUNT. It jars them right out of the story and they are so sickened, they refuse to continue to read any further. While I don't have a problem with it, there are those who do. Those are the readers I don't want to read my books. They're not my target audience. Reading my stories will not bring them enjoyment no matter how clean they scrub the pages with that app. There are plenty of other books out there for them to choose to read—without the words that offend them and I'll gladly point them in the right direction.
It's true there are under-aged readers who do get their hands on explicit material. Let's go back to the example mentioned in the introduction. The daughter of the creators of this app read a book in her school library that she loved, but made her sad because it had swear words in it. Instead of questioning why their daughter had such a book available, they immediately jumped to looking for an app to clean it up.
It's true there are under-aged readers who do get their hands on explicit material. Let's go back to the example mentioned in the introduction. The daughter of the creators of this app read a book in her school library that she loved, but made her sad because it had swear words in it. Instead of questioning why their daughter had such a book available, they immediately jumped to looking for an app to clean it up.
Where was the discussion with the school librarian? Where was the discussion about those words with their daughter? More importantly, where were the warnings on the book itself about the content? How can parents make the right choices as to what is age appropriate if there aren't any ratings offered or at least some sort of warning on the cover or in the blurbs?
This very thing happened when I was in middle school. Judy Blume books were quite popular and parents had no problem with the books being in our school library...until FOREVER was released. Based on the cover back when I read it, you would never have guessed it was a sexually explicit book. It's a Judy Blume book for heaven's sake! The second cover in the photo is what it looks like today. Based on comments as late as 2014, people are STILL upset this book is not for kids like Judy's other books (except WIFEY. That one is ADULTS ONLY). I'm in my late forties so why is it this book STILL doesn't have the appropriate warnings?
This very thing happened when I was in middle school. Judy Blume books were quite popular and parents had no problem with the books being in our school library...until FOREVER was released. Based on the cover back when I read it, you would never have guessed it was a sexually explicit book. It's a Judy Blume book for heaven's sake! The second cover in the photo is what it looks like today. Based on comments as late as 2014, people are STILL upset this book is not for kids like Judy's other books (except WIFEY. That one is ADULTS ONLY). I'm in my late forties so why is it this book STILL doesn't have the appropriate warnings?
This is the main reason I write under more than one pen name. I don't want readers of my sweet romances and YA and children's books to pick up one of my erotic romances or erotica books. I put adult content warnings on the explicit stuff. I have warnings on my websites and blogs. While it's not up to me to police everything children do online, I do my best to warn readers. Restrictions on where they go online, what books they can check out from libraries and what movies they can see are all up to their parents. I will not allow my explicit books scrubbed clean in order for these kids to read them or to make them more appealing for folks who are offended by profanity or what they consider vulgar words.
It's bad enough to have to fight within the romance community about the heat levels of books and what is erotic and what is merely steamy. There's a group of publishers, authors and readers who what to "clean up" the erotic romance genre. There's no need to clean it up. All they have to do is stick with their own genres and heat levels and leave ours alone. Unfortunately, this dissension has lead to confused readers—just like those who pick up the Judy Blume books. They're expecting one thing and get another. If I'm promised hot sex scenes, I sure as hell better have them and not some watered down version. Same goes for those readers who wish to have more behind closed doors. They're also entitled to get what they expect and not have to use an app to get it.
It's bad enough to have to fight within the romance community about the heat levels of books and what is erotic and what is merely steamy. There's a group of publishers, authors and readers who what to "clean up" the erotic romance genre. There's no need to clean it up. All they have to do is stick with their own genres and heat levels and leave ours alone. Unfortunately, this dissension has lead to confused readers—just like those who pick up the Judy Blume books. They're expecting one thing and get another. If I'm promised hot sex scenes, I sure as hell better have them and not some watered down version. Same goes for those readers who wish to have more behind closed doors. They're also entitled to get what they expect and not have to use an app to get it.
You can't have your cake and eat it too. Just because you don't like profanity, substance abuse, blood and gore, etc doesn't mean that you have the right to filter out that content just so you can say you were able to enjoy the most popular books and movies out today. What would Fifty Shades of Grey be without the sex scenes? Is it the need to claim they've been able to enjoy movies and books like this but not feel the guilt the motivating factor for them? Why not simply choose movies, books, music and other art that already fall into the criteria they've set for themselves? Why force others to conform to their standards?
Authors of explicit material or even those who use a swear word here and there within their books are not forcing anyone to read their work. Each writes for themselves and to appeal to specific audiences. Their blurbs, covers and content warnings are there to help readers choose appropriately. if we didn't care who read our work, we wouldn't bother to provide the warnings and simply allow apps like Clean Reader mangle up our words in any way the person using the program desires.
My stance on this is quite simple. There are enough books out there to appeal to your tastes. Choose the ones with the content you desire, whatever heat level, whatever horror level, however dark or twisted they may be or not. Use your brain to make the choices and you won't need to rely on an app that your child can simply turn off if he or she wishes to read the "naughty" words.
Food for thought...
~The Vixen
My stance on this is quite simple. There are enough books out there to appeal to your tastes. Choose the ones with the content you desire, whatever heat level, whatever horror level, however dark or twisted they may be or not. Use your brain to make the choices and you won't need to rely on an app that your child can simply turn off if he or she wishes to read the "naughty" words.
Food for thought...
~The Vixen
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