Reading and Writing Gay Romance: Finding my place in the world

I saw this video the other day, and it reminded me of what it was like when I read my first gay erotic romance: like I had found my place in the world.


or watch on YouTube


Then as I started writing erotic books featuring gay love stories, I found myself even more comfortable and at ease. And not just with my writing. I was where I belonged.

Writing for publication, although very rewarding, is a long, often times very lonely and challenging career path. I truly believe you have to have a great deal of passion for what you’re doing to keep forging ahead. You have to feel like it’s what you were meant to do.

You have to feel like you’ve found your place in the world.


Award-winning author Sloan Parker writes passionate, dramatic stories about two men (or more) falling in love. Sloan enjoys writing in the fictional world because in fiction you can be anything, do anything...even fall in love for the first time over and over again. She lives in Ohio with her partner and their neurotic cats where her greatest moments in life are spent with her family, her friends, and her characters. You can learn more about Sloan and her writing at www.sloanparker.com. 

How far is too far?

On Twitter the other day a conversation arose about joining the Mile High Club. One person remarked "the airplane bathrooms are too gross to pee in, much less have sex in." Several others said, "................." (I would assume since they'd had sex in airport bathrooms.)

Anyhoo, that conversation got me to thinking: how far is too far? How much is too much? As an erotic romance author, I try to push the envelope in my sex scenes. After all, who wants to read about yet another missionary-style coupling? BORING. No, you greedy things want to read about sex in the workplace, in the water, in an elevator, upside-down, twisted-like-a-pretzel, etc.

When does it go too far for me? With positions I know damn well are back-breaking, or guys who can get it up and come seven or eight times a night no matter how old they are (where IS that guy, and why isn't he tied to my bed?), or people jumping into bed w/o establishing any sexual tension or chemistry.

So when does it go too far for you? Tell me in the comments below!
-- Cassandra Carr

http://www.booksbycassandracarr.com
http://www.loose-id.com/Talk-to-Me.aspx

Changing My Mind About Synopses

Like the picture? Okay, now that i have your attention, let's talk about synopses.  LOL. I know, no one wants to think, much less talk about these necessary evils. We only write them because sometimes we can't submit a book without them, we hope no one really reads them, and, most of the time, we write them after the book is finished. At least that has been true for me. But it changed this past week. Two reasons. First, i want to take advantage of an exciting submission opportunity that requires a proposal (a partial, pitch, and synopsis), and, for the first time in my short writing career, the book in question is only a little over a third done, so i have to write the synopsis first. The other reason it all changed is because, when facing a writing challenge, i take a workshop! This past week i went to my favorite workshop source, Savvy Authors, and took a short and informative class from Cindy Carroll. Called, appropriately, Synopsis A Necessary Evil, i suggest you check it out. Cindy told us a lot of basics -- present tense, third person, written in the same "voice" as the book, and above all, it should always , always, are you listening Tara, be written BEFORE the book.

Are you reacting like i did? Wait, i'm mostly a pantser. I have a general story idea when i begin a book, but nothing so formal as an outline. All the good stuff comes in the writing when the characters start talking and telling me the exciting things about the story. Oh, really? His boss is Chinese? No kidding? His mother refuses to admit he's gay and keeps trying to marry him to a woman? I didn't know that.  LOL. Now, Cindy gave us a lot of great ways to create a synopsis -- the heroes journey, Save the Cat -- but i couldn't quite see myself following any of them. Maybe you feel the same way, pantser that you are. Okay, so if you're a pantser, how do you write a synopsis of your story that just happens? The answer is, at least for me, you PANTS it.

That's what i learned by doing (and what veteran writers already know).I had to do it, so I sat down at the computer and, just as if i was writing the book, started writing the story. I thought of it as my "Out of Africa" experience. Do you remember, Karen tells stories to amuse her friends. They suggest a first line premise -- there was a man named Wong Foo and a woman called Shirley --and she takes up the story. That's the way i felt writing the synopsis. New plot points, complications, twists and turns, poured out of my fingers. The style was more upbeat, more exciting than any synopsis i had ever taken from a finished book. And i will now admit the worst of all possible truths that many of you already know and can't believe i don't. It was almost as much fun as writing the book. Why? Because i hadn't already written the book! The unexpected fun of creation got transferred to the synopsis. We still have to see how much having this synopsis helps me write the book. Chances are, i'll barely look at it, since the structure of the story will already have seeped into my unconscious. I'll just write like i always do.

If you're rolling your eyes at me right now and saying "Tara, how much of a newbie are you?", the answer is "pretty new, thanks". But the fun of writing fiction for me is that i learn something new literally every day. That's what i learned this week.

What is your secret to making a synopsis sing? Come on, share. I need the input! LOL  :  )

Confessions of an erotic romance writer

A friend said, “I love you dearly, but I don’t know if I should read one of your books. How could I ever look at you the same way again? You’re so quiet, so shy, so sweet, and your books are so....”

This isn't the first time I've heard this reaction. I blame Barbara Cartland for dictating her perennial best sellers from a fainting couch while togged out the the max. Dictating is out of the question for me. My brain only engages when the fingers are connecting with the keyboard. Obviously, I don't look the part of a glamorous erotic romance author. Note to self: stock up on feather boas and backless pumps. On second thought, never mind. I'd feel silly and probably trip over the boa.

Naturally, I murmured something to my friend about how I wouldn’t want her to feel uncomfortable. And while I don’t see myself quite the same way my friends do, my real life persona is quiet, shy, and a bit dull, especially when compared with my characters’ adventures.

Most writers are introverts. Who else would choose such a solitary profession? We do tend to be a shy and sensitive lot. And yet we slave a way at an occupation guaranteed to thrust us into the spotlight (if we succeed)--a shy person’s worst nightmare. One of life’s ironies.

So why do we do it? There are probably as many different answers as there are authors. I can only speak for myself. The characters I write about are very real to me. They are the children of my imagination. I am protective of them. I struggle to bring them to life, and then I fight to give them the very best possible chance at finding a home in readers’ hearts.

Virtual motherhood is a strange, empowering phenomena, one that turns an otherwise mild mannered woman into lionesses willing to brave harsh critics and scandalized friends and family in order to protect and nurture the offspring of her dreams.

What would your friends be surprised to know about you?

Find out what else I'm up to at Evanne Lorraine