There probably aren’t as many things that will irritate a writer as somebody ‘suggesting’ how the writer should tell their stories.
I’m kind of torn between irritation and the desire to laugh over a complaint I’ve received regarding A FOREVER KIND OF LOVE.
“I expected sex.”
Um. Well, nobody promised you’d get it. Not with this book, not with any of my books, really. Yes, some are very erotic. Some, not so much. But I don’t care to get pigeon-holed and expected to have hot sex in every story. Basically what that tells me is that I am ‘expected’ to write a certain type of story, which means apparently ‘all’ of my stories have to fit a certain type-or I’m supposed to make them fit.
Nooooooo. Sorry, but no. I don’t always write hot sex. There may even come times when I don’t write straight-on romance. I’ve got plans and ideas to explore urban fantasy, possibly even fantasy. If I do that, the romance is only going to be a thread, if it’s there at all. And sex? Who knows.
As to the sex in my romances, the plain and simple fact is that not every story needs it. And if I go forcing sex into a story just because some people ‘expect sex’…well, then I’m doing myself a disservice and I’m doing my readers a disservice, IMO. Forcing sex in where it doesn’t belong is short-changing the story. That’s gratuitous, plot-less sex and I’m not interested in it.
What’s really ironic is the fact this book was straight-out classified as ‘sweet contemporary’…it’s not listed in the erotic section on the publisher’s site, not is it classified as erotic on any of the book seller sites that I know of. So even though I’ve had more than a few stories that aren’t erotic, and even though nothing in the blurb indicates the story was going to be erotic, apparently some people think “a Shiloh Walker will have sex.”
No. I’ll try to make sure the story is the best I can make it, and I’ll try to write a good, solid romance. But there’s no guarantee that every ‘Shiloh Walker book’ is going to have sex. It has what the story calls for.
Excellent post! That would really annoy me if I were an author and someone wrote that. You write fantastic books which I read for the story. You always have these deep characters with realistic plots. Thanks again.
I expected a great story and interesting characters and that is what you gave me, the romance was just right and the love story was exactly that a love story… When I read it back on July 10th these were my parting thoughts in my review of Chase and Zoe’s story: (Every long time fan of Shiloh Walker will once again get what they wanted, a beautifully written tale that satisfies but still leaves you wanting more at the same time…)
I understand where your coming from, I haven’t bought it yet, and I too have to admit I would have been expecting hot sex too. Honestly, ever since some early books, I’ve been craving more like that from you. But you are free to write what you want to write. But I imagine after hearing this, That I won’t be the only one not reading this one. I have friends that are writers and a lot of them have switched to Paranormal and other things that I just do not read. I say great for them as long as they are happy, but I don’t buy their books anymore, and they understand I think, but some still try to get me to read some of them. lol.
When I buy a book I want a good story, great characters and lots of fun; if there’s great sex, that’s wonderful too but if there isn’t/ So long as the story is there.
I think sexual tension can be just as hot & you create that so well. It has to fit the story. You can’t just stick the sex in there like a recipe. It’s the icing on the cake but the story comes first.
@tennismom
Heh. That’s pretty much it, exactly.
@Sherry, writers voices often time goes by.
Some change to keep with trends, because it’s sometimes necessary to keep selling. Others, like me, we bounce around because we have different kinds of stories in our heads. But we can’t force a story that simply isn’t there. Well, some could, but if the story is flat for the writer, it’s going to be flat for the reader, too. Some people may choose not to buy it because it’s not as hot, but I also had a lot of people wanting another straight contemporary and those readers have seemed pretty happy. I can’t please everybody and I’ve never been inclined to try, I’m satisfied that the book worked for the audience it was intended for.