A Daily Dose of Romance

Language is always important in stories, especially in erotic stories. One wrong word and poof, there goes the mood. And in the historical tales I tell, words are extremely important. Not only do they need to be as historically accurate as I can get, but they need to fit the character’s situation, experience, and eventually growth.

There is a great deal that an historical, virginal heroine is not going to know. Not until the hero teaches her (always a fun part to write). And my heroes are always very, very alpha male in the department of sex. But that doesn’t mean you should count the heroine out – just give her a little time to learn and she’ll teach him a thing or two…

Another aspect where language comes into play is in each character’s point of view. No one is going to think in a contemporary manner any more than speak in one. I’m not just talking about physical surroundings, but also in terms of historical setting. Certainly not all of our contemporary ‘terms’ were used hundreds of years ago, but some were. And this is important because inside your character’s POV is where there world starts to change, or their perception of the world at least. It is where they rationalize all the irrational things they want. It is where they begin to rationalize love.

Language plays a huge roll in setting the level of eroticism a story will have. We all think many more things than we say or share, especially in the heat of the moment. So don’t be afraid to let your characters think, or say what they need to in order to reach your reader. Now, who’s up for a little dirty talk…