DISCONTINUED A Court of Blood and Night Rewritten

Coming Clean (I Guess)

Okay, this has been delayed for an incredibly long time, but here we are. I have to tell you guys the reason I struggle so much with this story, because it's not the plot. It's fairly simple to create a new path for these characters. I've thought of many ways I could take this story, and where I could go with it. I've considered heists, wars, deaths, and plenty of other avenues to kick the plot back into gear.

The truth is, I loved SJM's books as a teen. I read them all through middle and high school, and revisited them even in the past few years afterward. The writing is fun, the protagonists are easy to root for, and the villains are fun to hate. Every time I got a new book I was so excited to read it. I loved the male leads and how they only had eyes for the main character. The books were sexy, and let's be honest, it's basically brain-candy (which is not a bad thing, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise)!

But the truth is, as much as SJM tries to promote her male leads as unproblematic, they are horrifyingly abusive, both to the female leads and the people around them. It is glorified in these books, along with many other YA stories. Teens and young adults look at these relationships and want the same for themselves, not knowing that these examples are horrible. The authors cover the awfulness with good sex scenes and excuses about why what they did was fine. Here's the thing: if they were villains, I could get behind them easily. They are great foundations for villains. Hell, the Darkling in Shadow and Bone is a good example. Old, almost immortal, sexy, powerful, and very, very manipulative. They would have done an incredible job in that role. But they never should have been male leads.

I can't get behind writing this fanfic anymore because I can't bring myself to continue to feed into the but-this-isn't-abuse-because-he-loves-her rhetoric. This story has been discontinued for a long time and will not be picked back up. I've also moved entirely off of Wattpad and onto Inkitt, where I write my own YA stories with male leads that I hope can one day set a far better example of healthy relationships-- romantic and otherwise. I love every single person who has supported this story, and my profile, all these years, and I appreciate you more than you can know. Your appreciation and feedback is what gave me the confidence to continue writing my own stories!

I imagine very few are going to be interested in following me to Inkitt, which is absolutely fair; you came here for SJM characters, and I am not planning to touch them in the future. But if anyone is interested, and wants to read more of my writing, you can find me at Rubywings on Inkitt.com.

Thank you for all the love and joy you have brought me all these years, friends!

Isabella