Why I Write Erotica
by Elene Sallinger
I never set out to write erotica. In fact, when I started
writing, Children's Lit was my genre of choice. I had visions of publishing the
next Goodnight Moon or Artemis Fowl. Life got in my way for a
while and when I turned my eye toward fiction once again, I was at loose ends.
Children's Lit no longer fit, but I didn't really know what I wanted to write.
As luck would have it, around this same time two fateful
events happened: I read my first piece of erotica and I resigned my job as Vice
President at a non-profit over an ethical dispute with my Chief Operating
Officer. So, I had a lot of time on my hands. I read voraciously as I searched
for a new job and did my best to stay solvent.
Reading erotica was extremely eye-opening for me. I grew up
on a very sexually repressed household. Neither of my parents ever had “the
talk” with me. I learned about sex in my third grade health class. My
elementary school secretary educated me about my period when I thought I was
dying the day it struck. Though it was never discussed, the overarching message
attached to sex was that it was dirty and wrong, so to read these erotic
stories was catalytic. Suddenly, I could see that I wasn't crazy or deviant for
the things I fantasized about or desired.
Instantly, I was hooked.
Unfortunately, I also found a lot of bad writing and story
lines that did nothing more than perpetuate stereotypes or hide abuse in the
guise of BDSM. This wasn't what I wanted to read, so I tried my hand at writing
something I'd want to read and I haven't stopped since.
I have an ulterior motive behind my writing though. I want
to help people like me who grew up with shame surrounding sex. I deliberately explore topics like abuse
and shame within sexual situations and focus on the psychology of sex as a way
of challenging our society's ingrained notions
of sexual ethics and morality.
I'm trying to make the world a better place through
fostering healthier sexual attitudes. I wasted decades feeling ashamed of
myself for no good reason. If I can help some else eradicate that shame, I want
to.
---------
Thank you for having me!
Reflection
Blog Tour
August
5th - September 30
Erotica
Elene
Sallinger
Released
- September 2013
Blurb…
Bridget Ross is a woman with a shameful
secret. Despite a life full of success and close friends she denies herself her
true desires in penance for the crimes she can't take back.
Connor Reynolds is a man without a purpose. His own tragic past prevents him from putting down roots and pursuing his dreams.
Their paths collide forcing them to face the ultimate question … is their love worth confronting their deepest fears and insecurities?
About the Author
Hailing from Washington, DC, Elene Sallinger
first caught the writing bug in 2004 after writing and illustrating several
stories for her then four-year-old daughter. Her writing career has encompassed
two award-winning children's stories, a stint as a consumer-education advocate,
as well as writing her debut novel, Awakening - a novel of erotic fiction that
won the New Writing Competition at the Festival of Romance 2011.
Excerpt:
“I have no idea why
you don’t see yourself as sexy, but you are. From your brain all the way down
to your perfectly painted toes. Everything about you is erotic as hell. You get
me hard in the same breath that you intrigue me with some thought you just
spoke.”
She turned her eyes away and flushed even
deeper at the mention of him getting hard over her. She was no prude, but she
wasn’t used to men so casually discussing sexual things with her.
He didn’t say anything else, but he did shift
until he was sitting more closely beside her. She could feel the heat from his
skin through the jeans he wore. The cotton of his T-shirt did nothing to mask
it either. A soft breeze washed over them and she could smell the light woodsy
scent of whatever soap he used. Her entire body was instantly attuned to his.
She saw his hand move but was still surprised
when he gently tipped her chin up to look at him. She didn’t know what she’d
been expecting, but the depth of the desire she saw in his face was not it. She
responded almost violently. Her nipples sprang to life, hardening and tingling
against the simple cotton of her bra. She went liquid at her core and her heart
rate kicked up a notch.
“I want to kiss you, Bridget. Hell, let’s be
real, I want to do a whole hell of a lot more than that, but I want to start
with kissing you.”
His eyes had deepened to an almost gunmetal
gray with lust. She was completely mesmerized by his obvious desire for her, by
the touch of his fingers on her chin, by the scent of his body so closed to
hers. She didn’t bother reaching for words, she just nodded.
He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers.
They were warm, and soft. As he deepened the kiss, licking into her mouth, she
could feel the rasp of stubble from where he’d shaved earlier that day. His
tongue leisurely explored her mouth. No crevice went without tending, but he
didn’t force his attention on her.
His hand ran gently up her body, stopping
briefly to cup her breast. He lingered but a moment as if testing the weight
and shape before moving up her body. She luxuriated in the feel of him. The
soft invasion of his tongue in her mouth was both foreign and familiar throwing
her even further off kilter.
She moaned and leaned into him bringing one
hand to rest on his thigh which flexed under her fingers. Her blood was
thrumming through her veins and she felt her body tuning to him. Any lingering
embarrassment over the portrait was forgotten as she gave herself up to his
kiss.
She could kiss him forever.
Connor brought his hand to her neck and
exerted gentle pressure to lean her backwards at the same time he turned and
subtly shifted his body to cover hers.
She didn’t think, she simply reacted. Her knee
connected with his balls and he exploded back from her curling into the fetal
position with a sharp cry.
“Connor!” she scrambled to her hands and knees
as realization sank in, “Oh my god! I’m sorry. I’m sorry!”
Hot tears began to run down her face and she
chanted her apology over and over. He wasn’t looking at her. His eyes were
clamped closed and he rocked back and forth, the pain evident on his face.
It was time to face facts. There was no use
pretending anymore. She was just too broken.
Tour schedule:
Comment and leave an email for a chance to win a copy of Reflections!
August 5th – Spotlight and Guest Post @ You Gotta Read -
August 5th – Promo @ Paranormal Book Club *
August 6th – Guest Post and Spotlight @ Page Flipperz -
August 7th – Guest Post @ Erotica for All -
August 7th - Review and Spotlight @ Cynthia Shepp
August 8th – Review and Guest Post @ As the Pages Turn
August 9th – Guest Post and Promo @ Ambrosia Arts -
August 10th – Interview @ Self Publish or Die -
August 11th – Spotlight @ Crystal’s Out There *
August 12th – Interview @ Sizzling Hot Books -
August 13th – Spotlight and Interview @ Deal Sharing Aunt -
August 14th – Interview @ My Home Away From Home -
August 15th - Review and Promo @ Reading Fiction For Life
August 16th – Spotlight @ Melissa Stevens *
August 17th – Character Interview @ Dominique Eastwick -
August 18th – Spotlight @ Close Encounters with the Night Kind *
August 19th – Guest Post @ From the TBR Pile
August 23rd – Guest post and Review @ Ezrabet’s Enchantments
September 1st –Spotlight and Review @ Romance in the Highlands
September 3rd – Spotlight @ A Passion for Romance
September 4th - Interview @ Lunar Haven
September 5th – Spotlight @ Jezebel Jorge
September 9th- Spotlight @ Big Girls Heart Books
September 10th – Spotlight @ Proserpine Craving Book Blog
September 27th – Spotlight @ Reviews From Beyond the Book
September 30th – Review and Guest Blog @ Nina’s Reading and Reviewing
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