I have heard this said and I have been asked this so very many times and frankly it is a sad reflection upon the genre. Yet I can see where the questioner is generally coming from, I say generally because we first need to review the groupings of those that say and ask.
1. There are those for whom they have no experience of the genre and are making an assumption, they have experience of porn at some point in their lives and therefore assume that as they are basically both when you boil it down about sex then they must both be the same.
2. There is a group who like “1” have no experience but are in fact actually asking for guidance, they actually want someone to tell them that they are not the same and that it is perfectly alright to take a peek, you never know you might actually enjoy it.
3. There are the ones for whom a bad experience was had, and they tar the entire genre with the same brush, they read a ten-page wonder and were slightly warmed but it had no lasting impression (or worse still were left cold). After all, with only a handful of pages how can it be anything greater (see a previous post on the whole Tab A and Slot B thing).
4. There are a group I like to call the Ideological’s a special group for whom the whole expression of passion in generally any form is barred on the grounds that passion is against the rules of their personal following. Be that some modern age cult, ancient religion or socio-political leaning really doesn’t matter. In the end they are a group that despite the fact they would probably all hate each other in life are basically one and the same.
5. The final group I am going to list are the ones I call the SHADES, these are the readers that saw the hype over titles and rushed out to buy. They may or may not have enjoyed the read, they may or may not have enjoyed any other form of presentation of the materials that came there way. But have been now conditioned to feel that is all and that if it doesn’t have the “movie of the month deal” then it can not be real, it can not be worthy and therefore if can only be a poor attempt at porn without pictures. I have actually been told in the past when introducing my titles to a potential reader “Oh but you aren’t as famous as X therefore yours won’t be any good”. Well to that would be reader, I have been told more times that mine is better 😉
So what do I think? Well I think in simple terms there is a gulf between good (please note the use of the term good) erotica and porn. Modern porn is intended to give you a fast fix without requiring you to invest any time and thought in the process. You watch the “Actors” (in the erm loosest sense) trot (in some cases literally) through their paces, and with that you and they are done. Erotica (use of term good again here doth apply) sets the story up, introduces the players and always gives you the chance to understand them and feel with them. You can love and hate them as you see fit but you do so for who they are as you follow their exploits.
The reader is encouraged to sink in to the story (well my readers certainly are) and you will see and feel yourself to be there in the scenes as they unfold, you will find yourself rereading and discovering new aspects you may have missed the first time as your imagination is exercised on each and every read.
So I am not saying ditch the porn it is a poor reflection of erotica (see what I did there 😉 ), but I am saying that if you want a lasting impression and an experience rather than a swift fix then erotica (yes use the good one last time) is the place to be.
So now for the obvious sales pitch and if you have come this far I beg your indulgence a short while longer, I would suggest you look at the following titles, both stand alone and both highly rated by my readers. Haven Retreat and the ever popular The Librarian, both can be found here on this site for your shopping convenience.
I hope you have enjoyed this somewhat longer post, please leave a like and a comment, and I look forward to posting again very soon 😊
Cole