No Consent Can Affect Anyone
The me-too movement from a few years ago didn’t fade like many social issues do. Instead, the call for change morphed into a broader message about a woman’s right to say “no”—regardless of circumstances. Such as the way a woman dresses, the provocative subjects she might write about, or how she makes a living, even if it includes something sexual.
When my longtime friend, Teresa Burrell, and I decided to co-author a novel, we wanted to focus on a relevant social issue. I often lean into the inequities in our legal system, so a news story about a corrupt prosecutor caught my attention. That injustice concerned the rights of people accused of a crime and the DA’s planting of informants in jail cells to ensure convictions—a legal no-consent issue that affected mostly men.
But as we developed the story, we needed one of our main characters, a female district attorney, to be engaged in a compelling trial. About that same time, the social media site OnlyFans came to my attention. The platform—and the women who make a living there—intrigued me so much that I knew we had to write about them as well. Then Teresa, a defense lawyer, came up with a brilliant crime/trial that fit into our story and theme perfectly.
I’d love to share more details, but I hate to spoil the surprises. But again, the issue was lack of consent. So in the end, we crafted synergistic themes for our characters, Conner & Hitch, and plotted a story that brings it all together. In short: Just because a man has been accused of a crime, doesn’t mean his legal rights can be violated. And just because a woman posts sexy videos doesn’t mean it’s okay to sexually assault her.
But does the legal system actually protect either person? That depends on the prosecutors, judges, and juries involved. And humans are flawed, so the system often fails. So for writers, the joy of crime fiction is the opportunity to create our own endings and have justice be served. As readers, it helps us feel a little better about the world.
I don’t want to give away more—because we plotted some shocking twists—but early readers call the novel “scintillating,” “brilliant,” and “consuming.” Here’s a tagline that gives a hint about our characters: A stressed-out prosecutor needs help from a charming ex-con. What can possibly go wrong?
Readers are already asking what’s next, so we’re plotting a second adventure for Conner & Hitch. But we also intend to keep writing about our original series characters: Detective Jackson (by L.J. Sellers), and The Advocate (Teresa Burrell).
We hope you’ll check out NO CONSENT and find the story as intriguing and emotionally engaging as we did.
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