Erotica and Genre Fiction

The funny thing about erotica is how we tend to classify it according to the type of sex involved. Is it a story of romantic sex? Rough sex? Group sex? Gay sex? We label it by particular fetish being explored -- cuckold, interracial, BDSM. That often makes sense, because in the final analysis, in much of erotica the story -- the plot -- is really pretext. It is just an excuse to throw together the people that you want to have sex.

But I've been exploring recently, at least part of the time, writing in a particular genre and having the sex be genuinely germane to the plot. Now, I don't want to make it seem like the sex is an afterthought. It isn't. But I guess my idea recently has been to try to write more stories where the sex serves the plot rather than the plot serving the sex.

Part of my motivation is that when I think of really sexy moments and characters, say in film, they rarely come from the world of porn. Rather than come from interesting fiction where the sex somehow seems organic. Think of Bound. One of my favorite movies of all time. Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon set the screen in fire, but it is very much in service of the plot.

Or think of Linda Fiorentino in The Last Seduction.

Or Kathleen Turner in Body Heat.

Yeah, I like modern film noir. 

Anyway, my new book, Whatever It Takes -- which will be out in the next few weeks (still working on final edits) -- tried to be in that mold. A crime thriller with lots of sex. Keep an eye out. I am getting close on that one.

But I have an idea for a science fiction book as well. We'll see how that idea develops.

Sucking you in

I don't mean literally. I mean, what is it about a book, particularly an erotic book, that sucks you in, makes you need to read the next page?

For me, it is often a relationship at risk. You can populate your story with an endless array of hard-bodied, sexually adventurous characters, but that's just a story about dicks, tits, and ass. Ultimately, that is a yawn.

What gets me is always when there is something emotional at stake. Unrequited love. Risky sex. Relationships tested. That is where eroticism comes from, no?

Let me know what you think.

I started this blog to, ideally, get some discussion going. Help me out. What makes a story hot for you?

New Book Coming Soon

Sorry for the lack of posts. I've been working hard on a couple of new books. One of them is now basically done and is in editing, so it should be out reasonably soon... definitely by the end of the month, maybe sooner.

My new book is something of a departure for me. There are many of the same themes I've written about before: A sexy wife, other men. But the story is richer, deeper, than anything I've written.

At its core it is a crime thriller. Think a pornified version of Carl Hiassen. There are strippers, drug dealers, and in the middle of it all, a white bread couple desperately trying to keep their heads above water. It has been fun to write. I hope people like it.

More updates coming soon!

The Genesis of a Story

The most common question I've been asked over the year is where my stories come from.  The short answer is, "it depends." But the more thorough response is that my stories usually begin with a single thought or scenario or character or concept. In truth, I don't always remember the original nugget after the story has been written. Especially in the case of longer works, that original concept or idea is often so buried under later developments as to be invisible.

But one of my favorite of my own stories -- The Crush -- has that nugget right up front. It is the first sentence of the piece:

What would you do if your wife told you she had a crush on another man and that she wanted to act on it?

That is all the story began with. But then I asked myself, well, what kind of woman would say this? And why? What sort of relationship is this where she would say it? And the characters and story just grew out of those questions.

Btw, Annie, the main character in the Crush stories is one of my favorite of my slutty wives, especially in her version of the story (one of the few I've written from the female POV).

At some point I want to check back in with Annie... 

The Nature of the Genre

So, I write most in the "naughty wife" genre, although as my friend Kenny Wright notes, my "tastes lean closer to the “cuckold” side of the spectrum." Why is that? Where do my stories come from?

I don't think there is any great mystery here, but it is worth exploring a little. So, there are a lot of "naughty wife" stories out there. It is really one of the most popular erotica genres.

Like many other forms of popular erotica, it addresses transgressive sexual behavior, the sort of stuff that turns us on precisely because it is out of the ordinary, exists largely in the realm of imagination. But this is a weird category because, in truth, sex outside of marriage is far from uncommon. There is nothing really, fundamentally transgressive about a woman having an affair. It happens all the time.

I would argue that in this case, the stories I write are based not in their exoticism, but in their commonness. What do I mean?

Well, look, many men feel/worry/believe that they somehow married out of their league. Sometimes that is objective reality. More often it speaks to insecurities. But is is a common sensation. And if you feel like you've married out of your league, then it is inevitable to think that sooner of later your wife will, you know, wake up and trade up.

It is a dark, weird thought. It is the kind of thing that men immediately reject when they focus on it consciously. What does "trading up" mean? A hotter guy? A better earner? A more accomplished fuck? Most crudely, a bigger tool? But the sentiment isn't about conscious calculation, it is about inchoate emotions.

Anyway, I think my writing tends to be grounded in that very common, completely absurd, and yet brutally compelling worry that the women who love us are somehow settling for less... for now... but not forever.

Vacation From Our Marriage

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Two Sides of Terri Published

My very first novella was just released. You can find it at Amazon under Two Sides of Terri.

I am really, really pleased with how it turned out. Give it a shot.

Here is the description:

Two Sides of Terri

Bill has just about the perfect life. Good paying job. Lovely home. Perfect children. And most of all, he has his wife Terri--smart, funny, great with the kids. Thing is, she's a good girl trapped in a bad girl's body. Blonde, busty, and devastatingly beautiful, she makes him want to do dirty things--things you don't admit to wanting from the girl-next-door.

Or so he thought.

It starts with a revelation about Chucky, a past boyfriend, and everything he thought he knew about his sweet wife unravels. He becomes obsessed with learning more about this other side of Terri--and everything he learns points back to Chucky, a man she couldn't say no to. Does he dare invite her past back into their present? And if he did, would she now be able to say no?