I've been both writing and reading erotica more than ever of late. Well, it's a pretty awesome way to spend your time and when you're asked what you've been doing sitting in bed with your laptop all day, you can say you were working. With that comes more thought about the sorts of themes I cover, the sorts of characters I prefer to write about and the style I want to develop.Reading widely in your chosen genre is, of course, highly recommended. It has helped me to focus on cliches and stereotypes to avoid (they're the ones I don't review but put quietly aside), as well as themes and settings I might enjoy reading about but wouldn't use in my own work. The BDSM 'scene', clubs and major lifestyle stuff spring to mind. But there is also a danger that you can start to subconsciously mirror the writing style of your favourite authors and you're suddenly in dodgy territory, at risk of sounding like a cheap rip-off and failing to find your own unique and original voice. And that's why I'm going to intersperse reading Charlotte Stein's entire back catalogue (why does that sound rude?) with reading a variety of other authors. And going that bit deeper (again, rude) into why certain things make me smile and others make me go 'huh?'.
I've been writing a wider variety too. I've toyed with fiction for years, sending off the odd story to magazines or anthology submission calls. It was an acceptance for a short story from Xcite Books that spurred me on to take it more seriously. I wrote one for another Xcite anthology and got it published in a spin-off ebook. Both stories were about straight pairings with plenty of kinky shenanigans. But now I've started to explore other areas, venturing into a gay story, some fantasy and historical and a couple of much lighter-hearted 'smut' pieces. One even has absolutely no bondage in it, for goodness' sake! Anyway, the point is that it's useful to do these things in order to flex your writing muscles and hone your style. And for me, writing without the hardware of kink has made me think much more deeply about how to describe doing the deed without it sounding like an instruction manual. Speaking of which, I'm off to finish a story about what happens when your partner wants to follow an instruction manual...
I can relate, though, I have been reading a few other things here and there, I sometimes feel I SHOULDN'T read too much. I don't want to be influenced by too many authors or style or subject matter. I want to have more of blank slate or white canvas in my mind before I delve into writing an erotic story. Many authors say it's important to read a lot just as it is important to write a lot. I'm not sure I even want to read as much as I write.
ReplyDeleteI think it's important to be aware of what's going in your genre and you can learn more about your craft from what you like or dislike in other writers' work. But I agree that you have to be very careful how and when you do it. I think I have phases where I read more while I'm maybe mulling over ideas or at an editing stage, but less when I'm in the throes of writing a first draft.
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