You may not know it, but did you know that the best-selling novels in Spain are romantic and erotic novels? The boom since 50 Shades of Gray was released has meant that these novels no longer have to hide. to be read, and many are encouraged to write and/or read.
But what exactly is an erotic novel? What is the difference with porn? What features does it have? Whether you want to read, or want to write one, this may interest you.
What is an erotic novel
An erotic novel is characterized by in the text a relationship is made, either direct or indirect, about eroticism, sex, or physical love between two people, whether they are a man and a woman, two women or two men. Even also threesomes and other types of sexual relations.
Now, the erotic should not be confused with pornography. The fine line that divides them is based on the fact that the scenes, although they may deal with the same thing, the peculiarity of the erotic novel is that they are written in a sentimental way, where what happens is not explicitly specified but sentimentally.
For this, the authors They usually use a wide variety of resources, one of them being metaphors., because they allow references to be made, so that each reader knows what they are referring to but not having to go directly into describing the act, but rather sensuality, the union of bodies, etc.
What is the origin of the erotic novel
If you are thinking that the erotic novel came about with 50 shades of Grey, we must say that you are very wrong. Before this there have been millions of books considered erotic. Some have been very good, but due to the taboo that existed almost nobody talked about them.
According to experts, the origin and where the erotic novel begins was in Ancient Egypt. At that time, some treatises began to be collected that explicitly spoke of sex, specifically of sexual positions. A little later, references were made between the union of something earthly and something divine (in the case of the gods).
Characteristics of the erotic novel
For all that we have discussed above, the characteristics of the erotic novel should not be unknown to you. But, as a summary, here they are:
- Focuses on a love or sexual relationship between two or more people.
- the main plot, and the nexus of the whole novel, is that intercourse. Regardless of other situations occurring (because they will not always be in bed).
- There is a release. It can be moral, prejudice, taboos...
- Language always appealsin sexual situations to be sensual, provocative, exciting. With the words the authors must reach the depths of the desire of these characters.
- As for the act itself, not written explicitly, but the description must be based on the feelings that these characters may have at that moment with the different actions they perform.
How to write an erotic novel
Writing an erotic novel may seem easy. But it really is not. And it is not precisely because of the scenes that have to be written, that it is easy to fall into the coarse, the vulgar and in a language more typical of the pornographic than of the erotic.
The first thing is to think well about the plot. Because within every relationship there must be a context, and how the protagonists met, how they fell in love, if there is something that unites them, etc. Tone and vocabulary are also very important when working with characters. And speaking of them, you must be very solidly built since it is easy to make mistakes when writing about them.
A trick of some of the best erotic novel authors is to make the reader feel the same as the characters feel. And this is not easy. You have to know how to measure words well, and be able to capture feelings, noises, sounds, images, tastes, sensations, etc.
Erotic novel authors: which are the best
If we had to list all the authors that exist or have existed of erotic novels, we would never finish. But what we can do is recommend some of the books by erotic novel authors that will help you see the tone, depth and, above all, the way in which these works are narrated.
Lolita, by Vladimir Nabokov
It is one of the traditional erotic novels that has given more to talk about the characters themselves. And it is that the girl is not a conventional woman, starting because he is only 12 years old. Meanwhile, the protagonist is a 40-year-old teacher.
Lady Chatterley's Lover by DH Lawrence
In this case, and taking into account the boom in the novel based on the aristocracy, this may be a good example. I know It is the story of a British aristocratic lady and a working-class man..
Censored for 30 years for how the story was told, we can now freely read it.
The ages of Lulu, by Almudena Grandes
Even established authors in other genres have written erotic novels. Such is the case of Almudena Grandes, who won the IX Vertical Smile Award with her.
In this case, here we have the story of a 15 year old girl who succumbs to the attraction of a family friend. And from there something else happens that we do not want to reveal to you.
Story of O by Pauline Reage
This novel was quite criticized, and it is not for less. If you've seen the movie, the truth is that there is no comparison to the book and if you like BDSM (stronger than 50 shades of grey) then this novel may interest you.
In it he tells us about O, a submissive girl who is willing to do whatever her "Master" wants, whether it be sharing her, educating her or loving her.
120 Days of Sodom by Marquis de Sade
It is one of the most daring novels, even more so at that time. In her tells the story of how four men gather 9 young women and men and subject them to all kinds of suffering and physical and mental torture.
The Duke by Elisabeth Elliott
This last erotic novel that we are commenting on is even more recent than all the previous ones, but It will give you a very good vision about the use of sensual language and that does not touch the pornographic.
The story places us in the aristocracy where Lady Lily Walters hides from everyone that in reality, a spy capable of risking her life to protect the secrets she knows hides behind that facade.
But when she meets the Duke of Remmington things change and she begins to wish her life was very different.
What other erotic novel books have you read or do you recommend?
You forgot the Kama sutra.