A scene from the movie adaptation of 50 Shades of Grey, a smut novel that depicts violence and rape scenes. Photo: supplied
"I started reading this stuff way too young."
I've covered the rise in popularity of erotic romance novels - known as smut - before and I've heard various versions of this statement from numerous smut readers.
It's something I can relate to thanks to a copy of the 1980s prehistoric classic Clan of the Cave Bear that I read in my mid-teens. It started out innocently enough but by the end, the story clocked up numerous rape scenes.
The two sequels I read were a parade of constant sex scenes that mostly focused on female pleasure (a positive that we will get to later). Today's reviews give the series a mid to high spice rating, which typically means graphic, open-door sex scenes not suitable for an under-18 audience.
It's too long ago for me to rule whether reading these books were helpful or harmful, but I do remember it felt like throwing kerosene on already volatile hormones. It was an introduction to the private life of adults, but drunk from a firehose.
So, I'm asking the question: how young is too young for smut? Unlike films and TV shows, books rarely attract a rating from New Zealand's Classification Office. Instead, the global smut community tends to rate itself with some books including trigger warnings for violent content. This is becoming more important as dark romance - known for glorifying rape, violence and iffy consent - is becoming more popular.
It's well documented that older Gen Z women are flocking to smut, but it's unclear how many of those under the age of 18 are reading the genre - especially books that hit high on the spice scale (Gen Z spans those who are currently 13 to 28 years old).
"...if I found out that somebody under 18 was reading that material, I would be extremely displeased but there would also be very little I could do about it," said Kelly Lyndon, the president of Romance Writers of New Zealand.
Kelly Lyndon, the president of Romance Writers of New Zealand. Photo: Ida Larsson
Lyndon classifies some of her romance books as sizzling, a five out of five in the unofficial smut rating system some authors use. A Jane Austen book would fall into level one, also known as the "sweet" category. Then there is level two, called warm, followed by sensual at level three and spicy at level four. Something like 50 Shades of Grey, which includes violence and rape, is considered sizzling or a level five.
"...it's adult material. It's what the Classification Office would classify as R 18 or X-rated if it were to be translated into a film and to me that's too much for young minds," said Lyndon, of books that are either spicy or sizzling.
One of the issues with feeding young minds a spicy romance novel, especially one with dark undertones, is a child's inability to "reality check," said Kirsty Ross, professor of clinical psychology at Massey University.
"If we were to think about middle childhood, sort of eight to 12, there's still a lot of difficulties separating reality from fantasy at that stage, which is why if you watched a horror movie or something scary, kids will have nightmares for ages afterwards because they find it difficult to know that isn't real. This is a story that people have put together for entertainment, and it feels very real."
A person's ability to reality check doesn't mature until around age 25, but it's unrealistic that a young person might stay away from smut until then, Ross said.
Adolescence is also a time when identities are solidifying. Young people begin to understand "who they are in relation to other people, who they are within the world around them and what the world expects of them, societal expectations," said Ross.
Reading darker smut novels could have a similar impact to porn, which is linked to the rise of rough sex young people are reporting. However, unlike porn, which is visual, reading similar material has less of an imprint on a young person, said Ross.
Kirsty Ross, professor of clinical psychology at Massey University. Photo: supplied
"When you're reading about it you can create an image in your mind, drawing on what you already know."
"Some of the images that they might draw on might be far less intense than if it was a film that they were watching and the images are kind of forced into your eyeballs at that point."
A romance novel that focuses on consent, healthy relationships and female pleasure could be helpful to a younger teen depending on individual development and knowledge, said sex and relationship therapist Jo Robertson.
"If I had a teenage daughter and she read Bridgerton and was learning about sex from there, I would feel really comfortable with that," she said of the book-series-turned-Netflix show that highlights female pleasure.
However, darker romance novels can mirror the message that Robertson hopes teenagers will steer away from.
"When they get a really consistent message about sex, which is that it's for men, which is that women come second, female pleasure comes second, that normalises it. Then [dark romance], whatever content it is, becomes even more powerful, because they are part of a really dominant message as opposed to being a one-off."
Amelia, a 21-year-old Auckland resident who has read smut since she was 17, found it helpful rather than harmful.
"Reading these books kind of makes you curious about different areas of sexual activities" such as kink or BDSM, Amelia said.
Smut allows readers to explore sex in an imaginary world before the real world, she said.
[picture id="4KLIGGV_hoover2_avif" crop="16x10" layout="full"] Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni star in the film adaptation of It Ends With Us, a romance novel that depicts an abusive relationship. Photo: Sony Pictures/Nicole Rivelli
She has seen some - but not tonnes - of younger teenagers diving into the smut trend. However, a book she has seen younger readers gravitate towards, It Ends With Us that is now a movie starring Blake Lively, should come with a content warning about abusive relationships, according to Amelia.
"I would say for kids around that age [of 16] start with books that are known to be more sweet and then slowly work your way up."
For parents, Ross, the psychologist, recommends engaging with the content kids and young people are consuming whether it is books or other. However, it is no longer possible to be in control of everything a child is exposed to.
"You might read the back of a book, you might look at some reviews, they might be pretty vague and there might be some scenes in there which are potentially distressing and shocking and unhelpful for a young person to read."
That's where open lines of communication between parent and child is crucial, said Ross.
"'No matter what you are reading, no matter what you are looking at online, no matter what TV shows or movies that you watch, if you see anything that raises questions for you... I will not judge you. I will not tell you off. You need to know you can talk to me about this.' "
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