When Jennifer asked me to discuss the difference between erotic romance and erotica I jumped at the chance. So many don’t understand the difference, and even some authors use the words interchangeably. They are not.
Erotica has been around a lot longer than erotic romance. Like the confusion with erotic romance and erotica, there is confusion with erotica and porn.
I’ve read all sorts of erotica, porn and erotic romance. There was some early stuff, in the 1990’s put out by Black Lace an UK publishing company, that was my first introduction to erotica, that’s what it was called at the time, but as time went by and erotic romance was first introduced I realized that the Black Lace I was reading was erotic romance, but authors who went on to write erotic romance.
Other books in the Black Lace catalogue were straight erotica. There might be some sort of a story, but it really all revolved around the sex. But isn’t that what erotic romance is about.
Not really – here’s my take on the two:
Erotic romance – is romance at its heart. If you can take the romance out and leave the sex and still have a story then it’s not a romance it’s Erotica.
Same with the sexual content, if you can take it out and still have a story than it’s not erotica or erotic romance it’s Romance. Sidebar– there are many sub-genres of romance I’m not going to get into them.
I write erotic romance – my stories revolve around the hero and heroine, their romantic and sexual journey. Yes, the sexual journey plays an important part with the characters as they explore their wants and desires, but it is also a love story. They have fears and conflicts that they have to solve to have that to get to the HFN/HEA (Happy For Now or Happy Ever After). There are romantic scenes as well as some hot sex scenes. It is a character driven story with goals, motivations and conflicts.
Erotica is different. Erotica does not have to have the HFN/HEA, it also doesn’t have romance in it. Erotica is written to titillate the reader. Sometimes there is a story, but a lot of times there is no in-depth characterization. It can also just be a series of sex scenes without emotion. Not all erotica is like this, but a lot is.
Not all Erotica is Porn, nor is all Porn, Erotica
When I first started writing erotic romance, I wrote what I liked to read. The stories that combined romance and sex. As I wrote I came to realize, I was writing about a woman’s sexual journey, and then the hero’s as well. All my books are romance driven, and I can’t take the romance out, just like I can’t take the sex out, because it’s a part of the characters.
I hope this helps people understand the difference, at least from my perspective.
If you have questions please ask.
More of You
Game night at Club Crave is heating up...
Blurb:
Up until now, Anna Carson's relationship with Chris Peterson has been strictly D/s play. He's had a vanilla girlfriend. Anna has respected that boundary, but the sexy Dom is no longer attached. Now, Anna is ready to be more than his submissive. Game night at Club Crave is the perfect place to make her move, if only she can face her fears and be bold enough to ask her Dom for more...
Excerpt:
A bell sounded, and Master Jason took to the small stage. The room went quiet.
“Good evening, friends, welcome to game night. You are the first fifteen couples who RSVPed to the event invitation.” Master Jason’s voice was loud and cheerful. “Tonight’s game comes with a twist.” He lifted a shoe-size box and shook it. “Inside this box are pieces of paper with your tasks for the game. All the items you will need to play
tonight will be provided. The normal club safewords apply. Have an issue with the task? See me once everyone has chosen.”
“This sounds interesting,” Tanner said.
“Intriguing twist. That’s why we were told not to bring our play bags,” Chris said.
“You are not to share your task with others once you’ve drawn. You will read it, then get your submissive and follow the directions.” Master Jason looked out over the crowd. “Dom Chris, you are first.”
More of You is available at:
Barnes & Nobel: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1133270985
Universal Link: https://books2read.com/MoreOfYou
Bio:
Marie Tuhart lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her muse, Penny, a four pound toy poodle. Marie loves to read and write, when she’s not writing, she spends time with family, traveling and enjoying life.
Marie is a multi-published author with The Wild Rose Press, Trifecta Publishing and does some self-publishing. To be alerted on new releases on Amazon or Book Bub. Also you can join Marie’s newsletter where she gives her group advance information on her books, runs contests and does giveaways just for newsletter readers. Marie can also be found on Goodreads, Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook.
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Very interesting, Marie. Thanks for clarifying.
ReplyDeleteYour book sounds intriguing, Marie. Love the cover and excerpt! All the best!
ReplyDeleteGood definitions, Marie. Best of luck with your book :)
ReplyDeleteGood explanation, Marie!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the topic, Jennifer and Marie. I've always considered the difference between my Christian erotica and my erotic romance is -- like Marie stated above -- the arc of the sexual relationship in an erotic romance is used to show the growth in the characters as they move toward love, much the same way the faith arc works in an inspirational romance. My erotica is about the main character's growth in her awareness as a sexual and spiritual being. If there's romance in the story it's peripheral or a subplot, not the main story.
ReplyDeleteGreat post, Marie. Good luck.
ReplyDelete