Comments on: Erotic Fiction Without Sexual Arousal: Attempting the Impossible

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 09:34:08 +0000

Haha, well, I suppose it depends what you write and what you intend to do by writing it.

By: SexyLittleIdeas

SexyLittleIdeas — Mon, 10 Dec 2012 20:26:25 +0000

So arousal stacks the cards unfairly against talented erotic writers and filmmakers? Damn you, sex!

By: JacquelineB

JacquelineB — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 15:18:57 +0000

Yes, the lack of an alternative word does make it tricky – and I agree that ‘writing about sex’ does sound more like non-fiction. (And the only options I can come up with right now are awful sounding word smooshes that makes ‘Brangelina’ look inspired!)

Then again, I could be being too narrow in my thinking; sci-fi and fantasy seem to cope with having an umbrella term within which many sub-genres that range from ‘a bit of fun’ to ‘serious and thoughtful’.

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 15:12:50 +0000

Thank you for your comment.
Yes, I think leaving comfort zones really hones our skills; the broader the spectrum of topics you’re writing, the better.

By: Carina Benjamin

Carina Benjamin — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:57:32 +0000

This is something that’s been going round in my mind a lot recently as well. I’m relatively new to this erotica blogging lark (for want of a better phrase), and up until now it’s really been a self-indulgent little place for me to write down some of my own fantasies. So yes, in the fictional pieces at least, I do find myself getting aroused when I am writing. However, recently, I have been toying with the idea of branching out a bit and writing about things that are perhaps a little further out of my comfort zone, purely to see a) whether I’m capable actually capable of doing it, and b) as a sort of mental exercise to see whether I can be a bit more distant and critical, which might actually help me improve.
You’ve definitely given me food for thought – thank you!

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 12:59:53 +0000

You might be right actually: the word ‘erotica’ is very loaded with sex and arousal. However, I don’t think there is another word for the kind of writing I mean. But there is a difference between fiction that is erotic, and fiction that explores sex. The problem for me is that when you say ‘writing about sex’ I imagine non-fiction. Tricky but important difference I think.

By: JacquelineB

JacquelineB — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 21:22:59 +0000

I wonder if there is a line between ‘writing about sex’ (which doesn’t necessarily arouse, and may or may not write about sex in an interesting, intellectually stimulating way) and ‘erotica’, which, to me, by the very word itself, ought to attempt, at least in part, to arouse, even if that is not the whole or primary intent. I can get behind the idea of marking out works that deal with sexuality in a critical, exploratory way, and I think erotica writers are among the best writers to do so because they are far less coy about sex than many ‘mainstream literary’ writers seem to be (that last point might be just an impression). But I can’t quite break away from the idea that ‘erotica’ as a word has sexual pleasure (whatever form it takes, even if it seems deviant to some) and arousal at the core of it’s definition. This could be sheer pedantry for definitions my part, but I’d be curious to hear your thoughts on that.

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 22:41:03 +0000

Haha, no worries – I understood.

By: Joan

Joan — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 21:01:54 +0000

Er, intentional titillation. Not, deviation. Though, yes. Intentional deviation, too.

Gosh. That’ll learn me to browse in the morning.

By: Harper Eliot

Harper Eliot — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 20:48:22 +0000

Merci.