Thursday 6 July 2017

My Harlequin Experience - The Kinkiness Within


Okay. I’ll be the first to admit that I am not an erotic writer. My face burns up just thinking about it. It took me a long time to even decide to write sex scenes into my novels. To be honest I’m more about the romance within a novel than the sex, but sometimes the characters making love helps to emphasize the romance. For me the characters dictate the story and in my last five novels they told me that they wanted to get it on.

I’ve been talking about my initial drafts of A PerfectCaress. Once I lightened the story, and actually put in a conflict, my very patient editor at the time told me that some of the scenes were more kinky than romantic. Now this shocked me because I’m one of the least kinky people you will ever meet.
It turned out that I may not be kinky, but Lanelle’s best friend Toshia was. Let me tell you a little bit about Toshia – she’s one of the funniest characters I have ever written in my life. The woman had no filter and I loved that about her. I had actually based her and her job on one of the women I used to work with years ago. This woman was honest, funny, sexually aware, and didn’t give a rat’s ass about what anyone thought about her because it didn’t matter. Even to this day I think about her and laugh.

In drafts one and two of A Perfect Caress, Toshia throws and anniversary party and tricks Lanelle into inviting Dante to the party. Toshia has a Candy Shop  at the party (we’re not talking Twizzlers and gummy bears here- aka sales of sex toys) and things get a bit kinky in the scene- at least verbally.


In the third draft I toned down Toshia’s wild ways and remove the Candy Shop – a scene that I found both hilarious and embarrassing for Lanelle. Toshia is still funny and a bit unfiltered in the published version of A Perfect Caress, but she isn’t as scandalous as she used to be.


Can kinkiness be romantic?

11 comments:

  1. Haha, oh gosh, I can just imagine how mortifying a scene like that would've been for Lanelle. Toshia sounds like quite a character!

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    1. Her Wilder side definitely cracked me up. Her tamer side does too.

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  2. Mmmh, I can't help feeling a little annoyed that you had to change your character for your book. Of course, I don't know the full picture, but hmmm...

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    1. I know what you mean, Kathy. I definitely know.

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  3. I'm with Kathy a little as well, but you and I have already talked about that, when they asked you to take out the darker parts, but they are a brand and they have to give their readers what they want. When you sign with them you have to deliver and that seems fair.

    I think anything can be romantic if it's agreeable and consensual between the two people. You make it what you want it to be.

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  4. Toshia sounds like fun and naughty. Kinky? Not my style

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    1. Every once in a while it is everyone's style. Ha ha ha.

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  5. I think characters based on real world people tend to be the funnest. They feel so solid in a story.

    Truth, I tend to prefer closed door scenes with later inference to any relationship-building aspects that took place behind the door. Regardless, teasing is half the joy of flirtation, so as long as it doesn't get too crazy, I'm all good with that.

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    1. Closed door romance scenes make for a sweet story.

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  6. I like a little steamy and a lot of sweet. I tend to agree quite a bit with Crystal!!

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