Authors, academics and almost anyone who puts pen to paper have been thinking about trigger warnings for a while now. University courses carry trigger warnings. Television, streaming services, movies and books carry trigger warnings. I recently entered a writing competition and was asked to list trigger warnings.
People see trigger warnings as important content warnings to assist readers to choose or reject your novel based on topics they do or don’t want to read about, in particular, because a topic or experience might trigger traumatic memories.
Opinions are divided on whether or not they’re helpful.
In December 2022, The Conversation, published Proceed with caution: the trouble with trigger warnings, written by Jessica Gildersleeve, India Bryce and Kate Cantrell. They reviewed 20 peer-reviewed studies, published between 2010 and 2020. They found trigger warnings can be harmful to students, however their overall finding is that “when embedded as part of such a broader approach, trigger warnings can be a valuable tool for assisting with the management and reduction of trauma exposure.” The broader approach includes “a holistic, trauma-informed framework, across all disciplines, that promotes resilience and recovery through a skills-based approach to coping and capacity building”. So this is not a simple question, and there is no single or simple answer.
Trigger warnings in romance novels are also a hot topic.
Romance Rehab discussed trigger warnings and disclaimers in 2020, concluding that if a topic was included in a romance it should include a warning, for example: rape, domestic abuse, child abuse (all forms), self-harm, suicide, extreme drug abuse/overdose, animal abuse. The article added the no-brainer that “if the hero or heroine dies at the end of a book and there’s no HEA, I don’t need a disclaimer or trigger warning. I’ll need the author to reclassify the book because IT’S NOT A ROMANCE.”
Romances are by definition about emotions. Mine are about adults, with lived experiences, people we come to believe are real. As such, they have real experiences, so it’s impossible for them not to have experienced, viewed or heard about traumatic experiences.
I don’t write on the page trauma, but I do refer to past incidents that have shaped my lead characters. I use those experiences to show why people might be hesitant to trust, or to open themselves up to further hurt. I look for hope and a happily-ever-after, so my writing goals are about healing and moving forward.
Recently, a few books have made me think about my personal triggers, although these are not necessarily books that trigger traumatic memories. They are books I don’t want to read, or don’t particularly enjoy, not because of the quality of the writing, but because I instantly reject characters exhibiting certain behaviours as romantic leads. These same characteristics and characters clearly resonate with other readers, who write glowing reviews. Have I said before that romance readers are a broad church? Well, they are.
So—stuff I don’t particularly want to read‑includes:
- Love triangles—walk away is my mantra. You either choose me or you don’t. I don’t care about the gender of the protagonist, but if one person is playing two people off each other it’s a turnoff for me. It’s a common trope in rom coms, and I’ve read some excellent examples, including by Australian authors. Scottish born author Mhairi McFarlane’s If I Never Met You has a twist where the female protagonist was dumped by her long-term partner. Devastated, she meets someone new, then her old partner decides he made a mistake and reappears. It’s a quirky take on the trope and almost won me over.
- Characters who will do anything for their love interest, including break the law, often violently—Nah! Vigilante justice has never worked for me, although it’s huge in popular culture. The entire notion that I, or my lover, can look at a situation and be the best combined cop, judge and jury is something I find increasingly insidious and disturbing. Having it peddled to me through romance freaks me out. I’m a bit of the view that a seriously bad boy will remain a bad boy, but hey, it’s not my role to diss with someone else’s fantasy.
- A lover who lies—this is my absolute biggie. Lying, especially when it’s critical to your lover’s sense of self is a turn off for me. Taking someone to bed with a big lie between you is not, to my mind, heroic. Having said that, lots of great books play with secrets, lies and white lies, and I’ve used the seesaw of secrets and lies in some of my work. It’s a fine line.
Do you have strong views on trigger warnings or any tropes, themes or book characters that are always last on your to-be-read (TBR) list?
A Romantic Rendezvous—March 2025—Christmas giveaway
The Australian Romance Readers Association (ARRA) will again host A Romantic Rendezvous in Brisbane (22 March) Sydney (23 March) Melbourne (29 March) and Perth (30 March). Special guests will be Nalini Singh & Julie Ann Walker There will be panels, an author luncheon and a signing in each city. You can nominate the sessions you’d like to attend.
This Christmas, one lucky ARR2025 attendee will win a special treat—a $30 book voucher that they can spend at the signing.
To enter, readers need to take a selfie with one of their favourite books (ebooks count!) from one of the attending authors, then post it in the ARR2025 Attendees group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/arr2025attendees). Be sure to include the following in your post:
I’m looking forward to ARR2025 in <insert name of city> in March, and meeting <insert name of author/s>. Maybe I’ll see you there! #arr2025comp
(For an extra entry, tag a friend in the comments of your post.)
The winner will be drawn randomly on Christmas day from all entries.
Finally I’d like to wish everyone a happy and peaceful festive season with lots of good books to read. Links to mine are on the Books pages.
Find me on:
- Instagram https://www.instagram.com/romanceauthorjen/
- Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/jenniferrainesauthor
- Goodreads—https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22577889.Jennifer_Raines
- Bookbub – https://www.bookbub.com/authors/jennifer-raines
- Diana Kathryn Penn’s Indie Reads Aloud podcast has recordings of me reading the opening 20 mins of my books:
- Masquerade—Choosing Family Book 1 (episode 188)
- Lela’s Choice (episode 143)
- Planting Hope (episode 101)
- The Anderson Sisters (episode 54 Taylor’s Law and 80 Grace Under Fire) http://www.dkpwriter.com/indie-reads-aloud-podcast.html
You can also meet me in Sydney – 23 March 2025 at A Romantic Rendezvous, contact me directly via the contact page on my website if you have any other questions.
Jennifer Raines 