“To porn or not to porn, that is the question…”

Okay. After three great blogs by eloquent authors of high-class, sexy ROMANCE, what more is there to say on the subject?

Hmmm. How about that I don’t particularly object to the word porn? After all, one woman’s porn is another woman’s romance. It’s just a word. Sticks and stones, remember? Except that words can and do hurt, of course. But when your fifteen year-old son introduces you to his buddies by saying, “this is my mom, she writes porn,” the word quickly loses any sting. My kid is bragging, you understand. He’s horribly proud of my success, even while not wanting to read a word of my “chick books.”

My books range from slightly steamy to heavily erotic. I’m in a position to be open about that. My husband’s career is safe, my sons are too old to care and young enough to be impressed when they see a book with mom’s name on it. I could care less what my neighbors think, and my relatives gave up on me a long time ago. So what you see is what you get. If you buy an Ellora’s Cave “Quickie,” you’re gonna get a lot of sex and not much plot. That’s the nature of the beast. The name alone should tip you off. On the other hand, if you buy my Cerridwen Press book, you get a fairly complex paranormal romance with a smidgen of sex. And that’s how it’s labeled. Take the hint—all of the books are rated by their publishers. And if you’re still not sure, I’ve happily answered emails of the people who have asked. I want the readers to be happy—I’m never going to steer someone to read a book that will make them uncomfortable. But hot doesn’t mean poorly written. I agonize over each and every sentence of a Quickie as much as I do one of my “Spicy” cowboy stories for the Wild Rose Press.

E-publishing lends itself to hotter, more explicit literature. People like buying their super sexy stuff on-line. No disapproving sales clerk shaking a finger, and a lot of towns don’t have a store that will even carry the really steamy stories. As the song (click here to see a video that will make you laugh your ass off, if you have a sense of humor about this sort of thing) says, “The internet is for porn.” That’s a fact of life. In the world of e-books, hotter sells better. And I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m in this business to hopefully make a living some day.

So I write what the market demands. Does that make me pornographer? Depends on your definition. Does that make me a slut? My husband only wishes. And yeah, I get a little crabby when people start calling me names. Doesn't everyone?

I call myself a romance author, and tell people I write very steamy books. I refuse to write anything that degrades women or men, or is just sex for sex’s sake. Even in my quickies, you’re going to find an HEA, limited though it may be due to space. Humans (or vampires, werewolves, gargoyles, etc.) are sexual creatures, and sex IS a big part of romance. I have no problem taking you behind the bedroom doors. If you don’t care for that in a story, I have some lovely friends who write sweet romances, and I’ll be happy to send you to their web sites. I'm not being snarky here. There are great books out there, no matter what your preference, and I think people should read, and write, what they enjoy. The bookshelves, real and virtual, are big enough for all of us.