As this is posted, it’s 81 years since Otto Preminger’s Laura was released in cinemas. The film is, of course, based on Vera Caspary’s novel of the same name, and it’s a solid example of a noir story. Of course, I’d like to make my blog posts as interesting as possible to people who are kind enough to visit, so I thought I’d talk with fellow blogger Sue Presse and get her opinion of the post. She was happy to take the time to look over my post and give me her ideas.

After I showed her the post, she sat for a few minutes reading it. Then, she said, ‘I don’t think this is going to work.’ She shook her head as she spoke and handed me the post.
I was curious as to what had gone so wrong. ‘What is it that’s not working?’
‘It’s just, I think people are going to be upset with some of the themes in this post. Well, not what you wrote so much as the film. The book, too, for that matter.’
I didn’t know what Sue thought would upset readers, so I asked her to go on. ‘There are things here that might bother people,’ she explained. ‘I mean, there’s a murder right there in both the book and the film.’
‘It is crime fiction,’ I gently reminded her. ‘A lot of crime novels and films have murders in them. And this one isn’t gory. Besides, a main point of the plot is that first, people think Laura’s been killed. But then, that turns out not to be true. It’s a brilliant twist.’
‘OK, not the best example, but let’s keep talking about Laura.’ Sue pointed at one of the paragraphs in the post. ‘Here, you talk about her – um – romantic history. That could make your readers uncomfortable, you know.’
‘But that’s an essential part of her character. She isn’t some innocent ingenue. She’s a successful and smart advertising executive who lives an independent life. And that includes her history with lovers. And it’s not as though the book or film is explicit about that.’
Sue blushed a bit at what I said. Then she continued. ‘Still. And anyway, there’s more. You know her fiancé – Shelby Carpenter? He isn’t exactly faithful. Do you really want to bring that up in a blog post?’
‘I don’t see why not. It’s who he is, and it shows that he’s not exactly a nice character. It could give him a motive for murder, too.’
‘Yeah, but some of your readers might find that whole adultery thing in poor taste. And that sort of weird love triangle between Laura, Shelby, and that other guy, Waldo Lydecker.’

I was beginning to regret talking to Sue about this post, but I didn’t want to be rude. So I asked her if she had any more input.
‘Now that you mention it, yes. You might not want to focus on the way Detective McPherson falls for Laura. It’s like falling in love with a ghost, and that’s a little like witchcraft or something. Do you really want to be talking about that?’
‘That’s another main point in the story. It’s about obsession. That’s part of what drives McPherson. You can’t really talk about the novel or film without mentioning that.’

Sue was silent for a moment as she thought. Then she had an idea. ‘Maybe it would be easier if you picked another film. This one has a lot of things that readers might find objectionable.’
‘If people don’t want to read Laura or see the film, they don’t have to. They don’t have to read this post, either, if they’d rather not. All I’m doing here is talking about some of the elements in the story.’
‘Well, I still think you’re better being more careful about what you put up on your blog. You don’t want to upset your readers.’
I was finding it very hard to keep my temper by this point. ‘So, what do you think I should write about? A small town where everyone’s happy and the mayor finds out who stole the Founders Day cake?’
‘Are there books like that? ‘Cause that might be worth a post!’

And that’s the thing. There are books like that. There are also books and films like Laura that touch on sexual obsession and murder, and where the characters aren’t always ‘good guys.’ There are many other kinds of books, too, and you, as the reader, get to choose which sorts of books you prefer. That’s the beauty of our freedom to read what we wish. If books are restricted or banned, we lose that freedom. And we lose the chance to write about them and talk about the ideas in them. That’s not a risk I’m willing to take, and it’s why, every year during Banned Books Week, I do posts on the topic. Hopefully someday I won’t have to.