Do you struggle with how much sex to include in your romance novel? Or not just how much sex but how graphic?
Who Are You as a Writer
I have been writing romance novels for two years. I have published eight books and short stories and two collections. And yet, I have never really known, who I was as a writer? Recently I have started to wonder about this question. Who I am and what am I writing? And I mean this in terms of sex.
From the beginning, I decided to write contemporary romance novels with a smattering of hot, but not graphic, sex. It wasn’t always easy, but I managed to avoid four-letter words, and used every word I could think of to avoid ‘penis’, or ‘cock’. My readers went behind closed doors with my couples but I made sure my sex was romantic at all costs.
Yet, when the reviews started coming in, my fans responded to the heat levels in my books. “I had to fan myself,” said one. “Yowza,” said another. My readers were responding to the sex – and enjoying the stories.
Asking for Input
When I noticed this phenomenon, I asked my readers about it. My friends who read my novels often told me they skipped the sex altogether, and in most cases, I believed them.
But my fans asked for more in some cases, less in others but never none. They shared other writers they enjoy and many of them were writing steamier stories than I was. They were responding to my “What to Read Next Recommendations” even if their heat levels were higher than mine.
My sisters who edit my books wouldn’t discuss this with me much at all. They continue to do their jobs despite any discomfort they may feel that their ‘baby sister’ is writing erotica.
So this was a split decision – about half went for romance and half for erotica.
Experimenting with Categories
Next, I tried a little Amazon experiment. I changed two things. First, I went exclusively with Amazon so that I could be a Kindle Unlimited Author. It has improved my reach and as a KU reader myself, I wanted to offer that to readers. Also, I have read repeatedly that to compete as in the romance genre, KU is vital.
Second, I changed my book categories, all of them. I was using Contemporary Romance, a heavily used and very competitive genre and struggling with rankings and sales. So I changed all of my books to erotica: romance and guess what? Sales improved. Threefold.
[click_to_tweet tweet=”Recently I have started to wonder about this question. Who I am and what am I writing? And I mean this in terms of sex. #amwriting #erotica” quote=”Recently I have started to wonder about this question. Who I am and what am I writing? And I mean this in terms of sex.”]
Other Changes
Can I attribute the increased sales solely to calling my books erotica instead of romance? Probably not. But it still got me thinking. I was running more giveaways on Bookfunnel and Instafreebie (see my post “How to Increase Your eMail List and Sell More Books”) to increase my following, so I was reaching a larger audience with my emails. I had added Kindle Unlimited. Certainly, changing categories didn’t happen in a vacuum.
But it was not a small change nonetheless. My sales increased three-fold or more. And my ‘also bought’ recommendations started to change too. They started to include a lot more erotic romances and less historical romance. They started to include more of the books I was reading.
You are What you Read?
I took a hard look at the books I was reading. They were definitely romantic, but they were decidedly erotic too. Books by Tara Sue Me (don’t you love that name?) and CD Reiss, Robyn Kelly and more. Writers have been turning up or turning down the heat for a while. Me, I felt stuck In the middle.
So I made a decision, and if you also might want to do this if you haven’t already. I am getting out of the middle. It’s time for me to choose. I plan to turn up the heat on my books.and so I now proclaim myself an erotica writer and I do it without shame.
And why not? After all, sex sells.
Gem of the Week
I am beyond excited to have received my new 2019 Day Designer in the mail this week. I am a huge fan of this planner, the only one I have ever stuck with. You can try it out for free by downloading their daily page samples from the “printables” at www.daydesigner.com or you can just buy one.
Why am I so in love with this planner? This is the first planner that keeps you focused on what is important. This year they have added wonderful pages to help you set annual goals based on your values, break those into tasks and even help you determine if they are weekly, daily or monthly tasks and how soon you can execute your plans. Seriously, they have thought of everything.
The covers are fun, they come in two sizes (I like the mini, not too small but easy to fit in my briefcase, backpack or purse). I tried using my computer planners, my iPhone planners and other paper planners. I still use Trello for automating and sharing, but I use my Day Designer to stay on track. As someone wrote recently, “A calendar is not an aspirational tool”. The day designer can be.
You might also like:
- “How Steamy, Exactly? Expectations About Sex in Romance Novels” by Kella Campbell
- Modern Good Reads Discussion: Romance > “How Important is Sex in a Romance Novel?”