2004 Romance Author Roundtable

6. AOTW: Which do you think readers prefer, the more erotic/graphic romance or the old-fashioned romance that leaves most everything to the imagination? Has this changed over the years?

Linda Francis Lee: I think that in this day and age, through such intense media coverage, most of us have more detailed access into just about every aspect of life than ever before. People's personal lives, people's love lives --- the list is endless. As a result, whether it is a sex scene or any other, a novel must grab readers and sweep them into a very vivid world. Does that always include more graphic sex? Not necessarily. But whatever detail the writer gives the reader, it must truly grab them and pull them into the world the author has created.

I think of Tom Clancy's The Hunt for Red October. We were pulled into the world of nuclear submarines. The same with Colleen McCullough's The Thorn Birds, which immersed us in the outback of Australia and the behind-the-scenes workings of the Catholic hierarchy. And now, Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code. Readers are fascinated by the story because they are swept up in a world they recognize, but are given graphic details that they generally weren't aware of before reading the book. The point being, whether it's sex scenes or religion or nuclear submarines, give me amazing/graphic details and I'm frequently going to be fascinated by the sense of being there.

Laura Lee Guhrke: Readers have their own individual taste, but I find that all readers want a riveting story. Period. Most do not care so much about the level of eroticism. I think they care more about the tension between the people, sexual and emotional tension. To make that happen, strong conflict between the hero and heroine is everything, in my opinion. If you have emotional conflict between a man and a woman, you have sexual tension. In my opinion, every romance reader wants that. I think the amount of actual sex or the level of eroticism is less important to most readers.

Nicole Jordan: Romances have definitely become spicier in recent years because of reader demand. Many readers prefer more explicit love scenes --- if they're done well, of course. But I think it's much more important to have riveting sexual tension than sizzling sex.

My books tend to be hotter than most romances, because I write what I love to read. And by now my readers expect a certain level of sensuality from me, so I try hard to deliver. I often have a love scene in the first chapter or two, and usually one or more scenes, that push the typical boundaries of romance. I want my love scenes to be erotic but not erotica. The difference? Erotica focuses primarily on sex, while romance is about love and relationships, of which sex is a very natural part. And since I'm a die-hard romantic at heart, I focus on the romance.

Judi McCoy: Love scenes have definitely changed over the years. And I'm so happy they have. I hated the scenes from the older romance novels that glorified heaving bosoms, throbbing manhoods and male dominance. I'm happy the sex is a bit more realistic, because that type of encounter shows a woman's power. And let's face it, women are the power behind all the love in the world.

Stephanie Bond: In general, I believe that readers enjoy a more sensual romance, and yes, that has changed over the years as women discover they can read what they like instead of reading what they think they should like. What hasn't changed, in my opinion, is that readers don't like four-letter words in their romance novels. In short, a romance novel with explicit love scenes can still be romantic, but the same romance novel with graphic language and descriptions will be deemed as "erotica" by some readers.

Kimberly Raye: I think readers want both. They've always wanted both, whether thirty years ago or today. It's just that thirty years ago, society wouldn't permit the more graphic romance. Times have changed, and now readers have the freedom to choose what they want to read. Thanks to the publisher's response to reader demands, the more graphic novels are much more accessible. Are they taking over the publishing world? No. Just as people differ, so do personal tastes. There will always be readers who want a "sweet" romance, just as there will be those who want a more graphic read. The wonderful thing is that both are readily available now to satisfy any and all tastes.

Cherry Adair: Yes, it's definitely changed over the years. The industry has widened what it "thinks women want" to allow for more erotic or graphic sex. Today's books are more graphic and considerably more sensual than they were fifteen, or even ten, years ago. I don't prefer one over the other in my personal reading. I just want a good story, well told. There's plenty of room for both.

Susan Crandall: Gosh, I think there are plenty of readers who prefer each of these approaches. It's hard to admit, but as an author you're not going to please everybody. I try to stick with what works best in my story line. In general, I take the reader inside the scene, but I don't usually go as far as what I consider "erotic." I think some of the most sensual scenes are sometimes those without too much detail. Again, it's all about the characters --- how they're connecting, what emotions they're dealing with.

I think what has changed over the years is the general acceptance of such scenes, not the number of people who prefer one or the other.

Karen Rose: I know what I like to read, but everybody is different, and providing the full range of sensuality is what keeps readers coming back, I think. I like my romance a little higher on the sensuality scale so that's what I write. Has it changed over the years? I don't know. I think the number of the more sensual romances have increased, so perhaps the preference itself hasn't changed, but instead the market is providing more variety from which to choose.

Lisa Jackson: All readers are different. Some love the graphic stuff; others prefer to be teased. Again, the nature of the book dictates the eroticism of the love scenes. Also, from reading their books, readers learn what to expect from authors on the level of sensuality. So, if you develop an audience writing sexy, you continue to write sexy so when readers pick up your books, they know what to expect.

Jill Marie Landis: I think that's like trying to decide how many people like hot spicy foods and how many only order mild dishes. Some like it hot. Some like it mild. Sometimes people like both --- it just depends on their mood that day. I think preferences, like fashion, are always changing. Books that are old romance classics aren't necessarily politically correct today, but I still dig them out of my keeper box and enjoy them. What goes around usually comes around again.

Thankfully, there are still choices out there, although it seems that if a certain kind of romance sells well, publishers start looking for clones. Pretty soon, readers lose interest because all the books share the same settings, plots or themes, or even characters.

Linda Lael Miller: I think some readers prefer one, and some the other. Plus, there's a lot of territory in between. With so many good writers working in the genre, there's something for everybody. My stories tend to have hot love scenes, but I find I use them less now than earlier in my career. That way, they seem to have more impact.

Susan Elizabeth Phillips: Romance readers are as varied as the female population, and they always have been. I've never written a book where I haven't received e-mail complaining that I'm too graphic and e-mail complaining that I'm too tame. The lesson I learned early on is to write the scene that's appropriate for the characters and ignore everything else.

Mary Balogh: I think there is a wide variety of tastes out there. Books have clearly become more graphic over the years. I do not know which type of book is the most popular. A survey of readers would have to be taken to get that answer. Very few of my readers have ever objected to the explicit nature of my love scenes --- even when I was writing traditional Regencies. And no reader has ever asked for more sex in my books. So I suppose for my own readers the balance is just right.

Lisa Kleypas: Well, I've actually been trying to combine the wonderful emotional aspects of the good old-fashioned romance novels with the intense sensuality of the newer ones. Because as a modern woman with a big romantic streak, I enjoy all those things!

Beverly Jenkins: That's something you'll have to ask the readers, but the romances of the 21st century are pushing the envelope in many ways.

Jane Feather: I think there's plenty of room for both. What might offend one reader will delight another. It's certainly true that the genre has become more diverse and open over the years, which can only be a good thing for both readers and writers.