Content warning vs. spoilers?

[AmysGames]

This is something I've been thinking about recently, and wanted to see some other people's thoughts on it!

So a lot of us like to write some pretty dark stuff. Can't have a good story without conflict, after all. However, sometimes that conflict can get into some pretty heavy territories, with stuff like abusive relationships or thoughts of suicide. These days, it's generally polite to warn if your story contains that kind of stuff. Which is understandable; some people don't feel ready to approach those kinds of topics in fiction, due to real life trauma or otherwise.

However, usually these themes tie pretty heavily into the plot. And sometimes having a giant content warning at the top of your chapter is... kind of a massive spoiler for what's about to happen.

There's a few different ways to get around this. One I've heard is to have a general content warning up front, and then provide a more detailed content warning per request (hidden behind a spoiler tag or something similar). It's not a perfect solution, because then people worried about one topic may find themselves spoiled about other upcoming events. Also, sometimes the mere presence of the content warning is kind of a dead giveaway that Stuff is About to Go Down.

So what are your thoughts? Is there a way around this problem, or is it just something that we have to accept? Is it bad to have plot twists that require content warnings in the first place? I'd love to hear some opinions! (But please keep it civil.)

[KRWright]

I've never had a complaint about a content warning, but I've had the reverse happen. Which tells me all I need to know. People want to be forewarned about potentially difficult content more than they care about the slight spoiler of being warned that it will occur. There is also a question about authorial intent, and the way we use traumatic content in fiction as well. If the surprise of it is so important, does it imply that we are aiming for pure shock value to sell said content? And if that is the case, is the author ready to deal with the maturity involved in handling said topic sensitively at all? Has the author taken into full consideration the effect on character, but also on reader?

There aren't easy answers to this. I have used 'shock' horror in Freedom's Pyre on multiple occasions, but I have a fairly robust content warning on the work, and show the effects on the characters too where I can. But I still appreciate that the work isn't for everyone, for precisely those reasons.

[elyss]

I personally have a strong dislike for warnings. I understand their use, but I feel that they spoil content to the point of not being able to enjoy a story. I've also wondered about the point of these warnings if a reader so chooses to avoid the chapter, wouldn't they miss out on a potentially pivotal moment in the story itself?

I feel that a good workaround would be a basic overarching "heads up this story might seem light, but ___ and ___ will show up during the story, so be warned/prepared" at the beginning of the first chapter or placing it in the story description.

[Greetings]

I'd say if you don't want to let the audience know what chapter something is going to happen in, maybe put a general warning in the beginning of your story, then link to a page in the description that contains a detailed content warning for each chapter/the whole story.

You could also put a warning in the beginning of your chapter (e.g: violence, etc.) then let people know that the 'full' content warning is in the description below, but contains spoilers. This gives people the option to check it out if they need to, and those who don't want to be spoiled won't be.

I don't think it's bad to have plot twists that need content warnings, but it's probably a good idea to add those warnings, just as movies are rated 18+ for X reasons (that are usually given), it's probably better to have warnings whenever you can to avoid your work falling into the hands of the wrong audience.

[nostalgicroxas]

I'd suggest keeping it vague or specific depending on your needs.

The nightmare chapter Will has has a warning that is more specific and basically says to the reader it's okay to skip the update if they don't feel prepared.
A chapter that is scheduled has some sexual content in it, and at the top I specifically state that "this has sexual content."

You can also be vague by stating "this has content that those under 17 might find uncomfortable" or "this has content that those who are easily impressionable for nightmares and the like" so forth and so forth.

Another idea is if you're able, retro warn? Like NTN after a certain point just starts to including cussing and darker themes as it progresses, and I forget which chapter, and I put a line of text in the update that says this to the reader as a Headline in the novel's text. So it's not in the description and it's not in the title so there's no way they can "miss" it. If you're curious I can look up the exact phrasing.

Another idea is just flat out rate your chapters that have that content as Mature. If the reader gets to it and clicks through (or has their Mature reminder set to not appear) then it's ON THEM. Not you. The end of the day, people chose what content to expose themself to.

[nostalgicroxas]

That just reminded me or gave me the idea, that you could also put the warning of the previous update. "Hey peeps next chapter will be dark and contain this content as a warning!" and then at the start of the update that contains said censored content, you can do a line inside the update that is the generic "this update contains scenes that some might find uncomfortable for xyz reason".

[Greetings]

Not entirely relevant, but this video might help to better understand why content warnings should be applied (it has heavy themes of suicide and depression, etc., so if you're uncomfortable with that you probably shouldn't watch it):

[KRWright]

I did this on Freedom's Pyre. I put in MASSIVE warnings, repeatedly warning readers many chapters before the difficult content occured. It had two effects - firstly, it made people aware where the story was going, but secondly, it actually built reader anticipation because a lot of them were like "Uh OH!" about it.

[Jenny-Toons]

I kinda argue that mentioning warnings or possible triggers doesn't really spoil anything. If anything, it might make readers anticipate how you'll use said topics. For example, look at this warning:

The following chapter will have gun violence and mentions of gang warfare. Viewers' Discretion is advised.

I haven't been spoiled because this hasn't told me anything really major to the plot. I don't know who is going to be harmed, who the predator is, why there is gun violence, etc. I just know that certain topics will be covered in this chapter and I can choose to skip it or continue it. I also wonder "how will this author use these topics to move the story forward"

Having a warning hasn't spoiled how these topics will be used. That's the key thing -- how.

[Maps]

I’ve always put warnings at the start of my chapter to avoid conflict. I don’t want someone to dive into my work and then get upset with me because I didn’t put a trigger warning about what type of content they’re about to read with a new chapter.
I do it out of repsect, since I’ve seen comments where people are upset about content not having a trigger warnings.
I don’t necessarily relate... since I can read stories with pretty much anything dark and I won’t be triggered by it even if it’s something I’ve experienced in my life. But since people do, I try to respect that.
But I get what you mean. Another solution is to put something like “If necessary, read trigger warning in the description below” and just have it at the authors note at the end of a chapter. (Just noticing that @Greetings suggested this. But yes, seems like a good solution)!

[nostalgicroxas]

I found the chapter I wrote and the warning. It's more vague than I thought and really it's just the first update of the chapter that deserves this bit, but the entire "chapter" is under the Mature tag.

[DokiDokiTsuna]

In general, I really think it's better to give some kind of warning. As an anime fan, I GREATLY prefer spoilers to extremely unpleasant surprises. =/

But then, I understand the artistic dilemma that comes with deciding just how badly you should ruin the surprise...like Madoka Magica, which contains probably one of the most famous tone-switches of the last decade, probably would not have worked quite as well if there was a giant banner over the first episode going 'WARNING: This story contains some graphic violence and psych-horror elements'.

Although I think it's important to note that regardless, PMMM was rather tame. ^^; There was no gore, no explicit abuse, no particularly realistic traumas or dialogue that might actually trigger someone. The most realistic character arc was Kyoko's, and the worst parts were in the past and merely described with the aid of symbolic imagery.
All that is to say, if you decided not to put up content warnings for a story of that caliber, you're probably justified. Honestly, the creepy imagery was enough of a warning that it was not a kids' show (those Anthonys tipped me off long before Mami got killed...).

But if you ARE regularly going into darker territory than just that...I would suggest either putting up a general warning at the beginning of the story/chapter or letting people know in the episode immediately before, when it's already clear that 'things are going down'.

But if you are going to warn, always describe what you're warning about to some extent. I hate it when authors just put up nondescript 'Mature' tags. Like, what am I walking into exactly?? Some girl saying she might want to kill herself or a straight-up rape scene?? Sometimes I just skip the chapter or leave the story entirely because it's not worth the risk.

[JeanGuillet]

I'm not a fan of content warnings. Honestly, whenever I see them, I think that perhaps it makes the topic feel more like a fetish. Serious subjects should be handled sensibly, advertising it always feels a bit ...icky.

If you've read Hemingway, there's a super example of dealing with stuff in a way that's likely to fly completely over some people's heads, Hills Like White Elephants being a famous example. I'm reading a Hugo right now that's dealing with horrific material, but does it with supreme compassion, and a judicious sprinkling of latin to obscure the specific details from the less educated. A good writer can handle any topic in a manner that protects their audience's sensibilities, it just takes some skill.

[burginlewis]

I struggle with this because a great deal of my potentially iffy content is either implied or it happens "off camera" and what I'm showing is the effect it's having on my characters. Examples: I have a character whose mother committed suicide (way before the book started). By the end of book 1 you can tell it seriously traumatized her, but no one will come out and discuss it. Do I need a suicide trigger warning for that? And when hard core violence happens to minor characters off the page and major characters react to it on the page, does that need a rape/murder trigger warning? I wonder if a lot of readers would feel like a warning was much ado about nothing in that case...

[nostalgicroxas]

I agree. Honestly, real books don't come with warnings. You just pick up a book and read it and usually you start to cross stuff that has will give you hints at what's to come for the mood of the book. Unless the writer tried out of left field to toss something suddenly dark at you, there's usually a mood warning that sets in.

[Maps]

Y’all are onto something. It does feel weird stepping out of the novel at some chapters to add one. I’ve never really “wanted” to add warnings because it does seem to distract from the flow of one chapter to the next... but I also wanted to save my ass.

[AmysGames]

Some great responses so far! I especially enjoyed that video, @Greetings—very interesting stuff.

Another thing I thought about that a couple people have touched on is the concept of over-warning. As @DokiDokiTsuna pointed out, there's a huge difference between talking about rape and showing an actual explicit rape scene. My stories are pretty darn tame as far as "mature" content goes, so sometimes I wonder if the scenes I worry about are even worth putting a warning on them. But maybe it's better to err on the side of caution?

[vothnthorvaldson]

I'm strongly against warnings for specific chapters/pages.

However, if really necessary, I'm not against warnings for a whole story. They generally can be kept vague enough to not spoil too much and still precise enough to be effective for whoever needs to be warned. If someone wants to avoid a specific theme, they can choose to not read the whole story; and for these who read, chances are that they will have forgotten about the warning after a while and won't be spoiled.

[KRWright]

real books don't come with warnings

Actually, they're starting to now, with little messages on the back or in the forewords written by authors.

And there's clear demand for it by younger readers. It's also a child protection issue for young adult books, and a safeguarding concern for teachers or librarians who stock those books and have legal and moral obligations towards young readers to provide an environment where they feel safe.

shrug No one is saying people can't write these books. In fact, one of the reasons why content warnings are being asked for is because young adult is trending towards darker and more mature topics these days. It's just that people want a little sticker on the back that just says: "This book is recommended for ages X and up. It contains... (mild violence/discussion of rape/fantasy racism/etc)." Just like films do.

[nostalgicroxas]

I go back and forth on what its "worth it". I warn for a few things, or put things as Mature on deviantart, but that section that I posted a clip of above in this thread is from a chapter that specifically was inspired by a nightmare of mine. That by nature is dark, creepy, and not comfortable. I recall even after writing it sending it to several friends and asking if this "is too dark?" and they all answered with "no, it fits the mood."

@KRWilliams really? I'm not sure if I had read WARLOCK by Wilbur Smith when I was 16 if it had "caution. creepy shit happens in here including creepy rape slash murder but that's Egypt so lolz" on the cover or somewhere. It's back sounded interesting, it's cover looked interesting, and the first five pages caught my interest.