Erotica literature is definitely Crossing The Line for some people. Many people completely dodge the erotica section of the bookstore because they feel very uncomfortable seeing half-naked people on the cover and they would never dream of picking up an erotic novel to bring home to read. While some people are very comfortable with sexuality in general, others shy away from reading books about people having a Sexual Encounter. It is completely normal that people are so divisive about the issue and it's something that you, as an author, should not take lightly.
It's important to point out that erotica, in general, is a comfort zone. You, as an author, need to respect that there are boundaries, both for your readers and for yourself. You need to understand that writing an erotic story is all about creating a beautiful story between two or more people, and not about making it as raunchy, dirty and uncomfortable as possible. The sexual activities between two people can be a beautiful thing and the literature is only there to highlight this union.
Experimentation as an author
When you start writing erotica, it's important that you as an author feel very comfortable in what you're writing. If you feel that your story is going to cross some lines and you feel yourself getting uncomfortable with the scene after writing it, stop and rethink.
If you feel uncomfortable, imagine how you readers are going to feel. Perhaps you are feeling uncomfortable because the story is taking a turn that you never expected. When you started writing, you may have had one idea in mind but as the story progressed, it slowly turned into something else. If you are feeling uncomfortable, chances are readers are going to be turned off and immediately put down your book.
You may not get any of that important word-of-mouth marketing that you had hoped for.
That's not to say that you can't experiment as an author. But when it comes to experimentation in an erotic novel, consider writing things that you feel comfortable with rather than experiment to the point where it just becomes uncomfortable.
You can always ask your friends for their own sexual experiences and see if they would share some stories that you can use as inspiration. If your friends can laugh about it with you, chances are it's not as uncomfortable.
It's out there forever
It's also important to know that when you start crossing the line, you start to create a brand for yourself. When you publish a novel, the words on the page are out there forever. It's not something that you can necessarily take back. Once you've written something and readers are turned off, your author name gets criticized. That's the last thing you want to do if you're starting a career as an erotica writer.
Good erotica literature is all about being comfortable, both for the author and for the readers.
Good sex is good sex and while you can experiment with certain things, you don't want to end up describing a sexual encounter that can turn readers off tremendously. That's not good for your brand, that's not good for readers, and that's certainly not good for the book sales.
Have you ever read an erotica that crossed the line with you?
