#WWoW! Write Your Fantasy!
TODAY guest blogger (and an author I enjoy reading myself) Author Renee Rose is stopping by today to talk about writing what you know... or more like, what you fantasize about! It's good advice so read on...
What does your deepest, darkest, most secret fantasy look like? Does it involve something taboo? Something somewhat shameful, that secretly makes you wonder what's wrong with you? Something you're too shy to ask your partner to do? Something you think you'd never do in real life, but turns you on to think about?
If so, you know where to dig for the heart of erotic writing. The fact is, erotic romance is about that je ne sais quoi that tweaks you and your reader and you can't play it safe if you really want to deliver.
The first time I read spanking fiction I felt embarrassed for the author, even as it turned me on. I could tell she must be wired like me, and I had shame about my own interest in spanking. And yet once I'd read one story, I was hooked-- I went back every night, reading sample chapters, ordering books and generally feeding my secret fantasies. At that time, I was already 100k words into writing a mainstream romance, editing out the spanking scenes that naturally occurred in my imagination. I quickly realized that my niche was somewhere else. Somewhere a bit seedier. A bit more embarrassing. A bit more ME.
You see, you have to write your own fantasy. You can't try to figure out what someone else might like to read. This does not simply apply to erotic romance-- it applies to exactly anything that tweaks YOU. Maybe it's a grotesque horror scene, or maybe a scene so dramatic you fear it will come off as melodrama. It takes courage to dig into the heart of your fantasies and then smear them across the page for all to see. We reveal things about ourselves as authors through our stories and when we publish the unique products of our imaginations, we open ourselves up to critique. You're waving your freak flag for all to see.
And yet to avoid your deepest, darkest impulses, your smarmiest imaginings, you miss the opportunity to really connect with your reader. I guarantee, if something turns you on, it turns someone else on, too. You are not alone, no matter what shocking things your brain may conjure. Shying away from what really tweaks you is selling yourself short and a missed opportunity to really connect with a reader at their base level.
Once I discovered spanking fiction, I whipped out my own spanking romance-- a short novella that practically wrote itself in just six days, was published two weeks later, and was a best seller for six months. It was a lesson for me in letting go of the shame I had around my own kink, and trusting that there were others just like me, who wanted to read my fantasies.
My latest book, The Knight's Prisoner, goes several steps further than my shy first attempt. There's a lot of heat and it certainly turned me on to write it. It's a medieval spanking romance,about a tavern prostitute who has the gift of second sight. She's abducted by a badly scarred knight who needs her gift for political machinations. The two tangle in a flurry of spanking, hot sex and dramatic tension as they make decisions about her freedom and their relationship.
If so, you know where to dig for the heart of erotic writing. The fact is, erotic romance is about that je ne sais quoi that tweaks you and your reader and you can't play it safe if you really want to deliver.
The first time I read spanking fiction I felt embarrassed for the author, even as it turned me on. I could tell she must be wired like me, and I had shame about my own interest in spanking. And yet once I'd read one story, I was hooked-- I went back every night, reading sample chapters, ordering books and generally feeding my secret fantasies. At that time, I was already 100k words into writing a mainstream romance, editing out the spanking scenes that naturally occurred in my imagination. I quickly realized that my niche was somewhere else. Somewhere a bit seedier. A bit more embarrassing. A bit more ME.
You see, you have to write your own fantasy. You can't try to figure out what someone else might like to read. This does not simply apply to erotic romance-- it applies to exactly anything that tweaks YOU. Maybe it's a grotesque horror scene, or maybe a scene so dramatic you fear it will come off as melodrama. It takes courage to dig into the heart of your fantasies and then smear them across the page for all to see. We reveal things about ourselves as authors through our stories and when we publish the unique products of our imaginations, we open ourselves up to critique. You're waving your freak flag for all to see.
And yet to avoid your deepest, darkest impulses, your smarmiest imaginings, you miss the opportunity to really connect with your reader. I guarantee, if something turns you on, it turns someone else on, too. You are not alone, no matter what shocking things your brain may conjure. Shying away from what really tweaks you is selling yourself short and a missed opportunity to really connect with a reader at their base level.
Once I discovered spanking fiction, I whipped out my own spanking romance-- a short novella that practically wrote itself in just six days, was published two weeks later, and was a best seller for six months. It was a lesson for me in letting go of the shame I had around my own kink, and trusting that there were others just like me, who wanted to read my fantasies.
My latest book, The Knight's Prisoner, goes several steps further than my shy first attempt. There's a lot of heat and it certainly turned me on to write it. It's a medieval spanking romance,about a tavern prostitute who has the gift of second sight. She's abducted by a badly scarred knight who needs her gift for political machinations. The two tangle in a flurry of spanking, hot sex and dramatic tension as they make decisions about her freedom and their relationship.
Have you written something that you felt shy about putting out there? If so, I'd love to hear about it in the comments. Talk to us.
Renee Rose, erotic romance author, did not come out of the closet as a spanko until she published her spanking romance Betrothed. A lifelong writer, she has a B.A. in creative writing from Knox College, where she won the Davenport prize for both fiction and poetry, and the Lorraine Smith prize for literary criticism. Her books have hit Amazon's top 100 in erotica and Regency Romance. She spent thirteen years in technical writing before she found a way to incorporate her deepest darkest spanking fantasies into fiction and express a part of her that longed to see the light. She is now passionate about supporting others in accepting and exploring their kink, whatever that may be. Please stop by her blog at www.reneeroseromance.com and join the conversation!
The Knight's Prisoner can be purchased at Amazon or Amazon UK, Barnes & Noble, or Blushing Books.
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While we don't claim to be experts, the goal is to impart what we've learned about
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Great post Renee! You do have some awesome fantasies!
ReplyDeleteGiggle. Thank you Celeste!!
DeleteMy writing is such a mix of my personal experiences and my fantasies... sometimes I even have to remind myself which is which. You give good advice here. Thanks for being my guest today! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for having me, Paloma!!
DeleteWow Renee. I love love love your honesty, your openness. Yes, it takes a hell of a lot of courage but there's something so satisfying, so gratifying (and so f****** scary) in putting yourself out there and making yourself vulnerable.
ReplyDeleteI would be your friend in real life - not just cyber space. :)
Paloma, thanks for bringing this post to us.
Thank you, Natasha!! I would be your friend in real life too!!! Maybe someday we'll meet because we'll be guest presenters at the very prestigious, not shameful Spanko Author Convention! :)
DeleteI'll be at that convention... with bells on! Wouldn't that be a fun place to be? Just imagine the possibilities.
DeleteI'm picturing it! One of my writing teachers says in 10 years we'll be as acceptable as the rest of them! :)
ReplyDelete