Erotica Writer Steps Out of Her Comfort Zone

Please help me welcome this week's guest blogger, Cari Quinn, fellow Wild Rose Press author. Learn more about her here.

Cari wrote her first story - a bible parable - in 2nd grade, much to the delight of the nuns at her Catholic school. Once she saw the warm reception that first tale garnered, she was hooked. She attempted her first romance in junior high, long before she'd ever read one. Writing what she knew always took a backseat to what she wanted to know, and that still holds true today. Cari's genres of choice include contemporary, romantic comedy, romantic suspense, urban fantasy and paranormal. Recently she discovered erotic romance. Oh, how far she's come…

Comfort zone? What comfort zone?

I used to have one of those. As a classic introvert, writing seemed like a profession tailor-made for me. I could sit behind a screen and make up worlds to daydream in, and I soon discovered that sometimes they even PAY you for the fruits of those labors. Whoa! I could make up a pen name and let my imagination loose.

So I did. And lo and behold, my imagination turned into a bit of a she-wolf. Soon she wasn't content to circle around the arena of no-holds-barred sex, she wanted to jump in, teeth bared and go to town. What's a good girl who went to Catholic school for eight years to do?

Well, this one got a pen name and wrote her first erotic romance, that's what. ;)

Full Disclosure was released on November 6th at The Wild Rose Press' Wilder Roses and getting used to even a small amount of attention has been a steep learning curve. I'm not exactly someone who covets the limelight, nor am I one to bare my innermost thoughts. Yet intimate words I wrote are being read by all kinds of people, some I know, some I don't. And these people are paying for the right to read those words, so there's an expectation that they won't, you know, suck. Although sucking has a place in erotic fiction, I'd rather not see that particular word in a review. ;)

I like pushing boundaries, especially my own. I'll admit to more than a little trepidation at the knowledge that people I know will be reading my explicit writing, but I knew what I was doing when I sat at my computer and dialed up the heat to scorching. At the time, the day when I would have to "face the music" seemed far off, but now it's here and I'm learning to deal.

It's a nerve-wracking experience. It's exciting, too. And I've found the more I put myself out there, the easier it gets. My CPs tell me I'm good at writing erotic romance, so I'm determined to stop blushing and fretting over who might read the extremely naughty words in my novella and consider the fact that maybe some of those people might enjoy them. That maybe my book will help readers escape for an hour or two. Perhaps they'll live vicariously through my characters sexual journey toward an emotional connection that goes way beyond the physical. Hopefully, Holly and Alex's story will also allow my readers to create their own fantasies, which is the way great dreams begin to take flight. After all, once upon a time, I fantasized I'd be a published author.

And now I am.


Next week, Nov. 18: Debut Pocket Books author, Kelly Gay, discusses the insecurities many shy  writers face.