tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post115956675473259877..comments2023-06-01T04:28:09.457-05:00Comments on I.M. Cupnjava's Writing Café: Excuse me, my neophyte is showing.IM Cupnjavahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1160029585844239532006-10-05T01:26:00.000-05:002006-10-05T01:26:00.000-05:00You ladies are so helpful. Thank you for all the i...You ladies are so helpful. Thank you for all the input.IM Cupnjavahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159752706636329862006-10-01T20:31:00.000-05:002006-10-01T20:31:00.000-05:00Great post, Cup. Not all stories have to have the ...Great post, Cup. Not all stories have to have the HAE, though they can have romance in them. Personally, I love romance "in" a novel, but it's not always my sole interest. Actually, it's usually not my sole interest. Write what you've got, Cup. If there's an HEA in there, it'll come out. If it's not right for the story to have a super pure HEA, then it's not right. And it's time to figure the perfect genre label for marketing purposes. ;-)KMFrontainhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03131867948048741792noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159646226908472962006-09-30T14:57:00.000-05:002006-09-30T14:57:00.000-05:00Tami's absolutely right.There are discussions all ...Tami's absolutely right.<BR/>There are discussions all the time, just saw one about historical romances and romantic historicals.<BR/>These classifications are general guides, no more, as much for the ease in cateloguing and shelving as anything.Bernitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264585685253812090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159581194433401662006-09-29T20:53:00.000-05:002006-09-29T20:53:00.000-05:00LOLLOLTami Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18254839673811955144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159581000891762422006-09-29T20:50:00.000-05:002006-09-29T20:50:00.000-05:00How about this. I'll write my stories and then try...How about this. I'll write my stories and then try to figure out what to call them. I may be sending you e-mails. LOL!IM Cupnjavahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159580474775440802006-09-29T20:41:00.000-05:002006-09-29T20:41:00.000-05:00Yes, well add to the fact that 'homoerotica' is ju...Yes, well add to the fact that 'homoerotica' is just starting to open up in many publishers lists. So now it's a whole new ball game in the genre blur.<BR/><BR/>HOWEVER... homoerotica (although usually defined in and of itself by that name -- hence your confusion) is NOT a genre in and of itself. It's the 'tag' line of a genre. <BR/><BR/>Oh lordy, now you're really shaking right? Go get a cup of coffee and take a deep breath.<BR/><BR/>Homoerotica is no more a 'genre' than Eroitica in and of itself is.<BR/><BR/>BOTH of those words however have a common 'known' in them to the general public that has spilled over into publishing as an accepted term for a 'type' of writing.<BR/><BR/>GOOD erotica (okay, and yes, we who write it DO know there's a huge difference between a good erotic STORY, and just plain old smut for the helluv it) is not the genre, it only describes the 'open door' sex.<BR/><BR/>The genre would be the same as ANY other field of publishing.<BR/><BR/>Horror, thriller, spiritual, romance, women's fic, (in this case) gay fic, chick/hen, and old maid fic... LMAO, about the only 'genres' you WON'T find in erotica is, of course, Young Adult, and Children's. LOL<BR/><BR/>Romantica, really is a 'made up' genre too. I believe someone said Ellora's cave thought it up, and may even actually have an 'exclusive' on the word.<BR/><BR/>Romantica is actually -- an Erotica story that is, by genre--ROMANCE.<BR/><BR/>That's it.<BR/><BR/>Short. Simple. and as Sweet as I can make it.<BR/><BR/>:)Tami Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18254839673811955144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159579453658071202006-09-29T20:24:00.000-05:002006-09-29T20:24:00.000-05:00I remember reading that when you wrote it. I read ...I remember reading that when you wrote it. I read it with a new set of eyes now. When I write a sex scene, I don't close the door or fade to black. I thought that meant my stories, no matter what else was in them, would be labeled erotica. Period. I write about two or more men in a sexual situation. To me, that meant in the eyes of publishers I wrote Gay Erotica. That's where my book would be listed. Call it done. <BR/><BR/>Nice. <BR/><BR/>Neat. <BR/><BR/>Simple. <BR/><BR/>Narrow-sighted. <BR/><BR/>I see now that I need to familiarize myself with the different genres and what it means to be "thriller", "paranormal" , and the others.IM Cupnjavahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159578171889267782006-09-29T20:02:00.000-05:002006-09-29T20:02:00.000-05:00I think you're catching on well here.LOTS of stori...I think you're catching on well here.<BR/><BR/>LOTS of stories have relationships, and even romance in them.<BR/><BR/>Jose has just written a good one... a thriller, but their is a relationship built in it... and they do actually end up HAE... so, what you say? You mean that's still not a romance?<BR/><BR/>Nope.<BR/><BR/>It's a thriller, with a nice little romantic twist in it.<BR/><BR/>I wrote a little article to a question about what the difference is between 'romantica and erotica'... I'll go get it and post it here, if you don't mind.<BR/><BR/>Maybe it will help to clarify it a bit for you in YOUR particular area as well.<BR/><BR/>It was called:<BR/><BR/>Even Erotica Has Its Fuzzy Grays:<BR/><BR/>It was an early September post.<BR/><BR/>This is what it said:<BR/><BR/>Many writers moan about the shady lines between genres, and how its sometimes hard to distinguish between them. But if you really get down to it, it isn't all that difficult. You just have to find the central theme, and that's what the main genre is. The problem often times is the fact that so many novels now are written with attached subgenres. I'm not complaining, I like it, but it does make things a little harder to seperate.<BR/><BR/>While on a message board the other day, I came across a group of ladies trying to make yet another important distinction, and not being able to come up with any answers.<BR/><BR/>What is the difference between Romantica, and Erotica?<BR/><BR/>It's a question I've been asked before, so I gave these ladies my take on the subject as already formed by those previous inqueries:<BR/><BR/>Romantica is erotica with all the elements of a romance story as its core. Sounds simple, right? You're all going 'pshaw, I could have told you that, so what's the difference between that and erotica?'<BR/><BR/>Well, think of it as the difference between romance, and say to use any example, a horror story. Horror stories certainly may have relationships in them. They may have serious love issues in them, but their main story line is the horror aspect, not the romance. Same thing with erotica and romantica.<BR/><BR/>Erotica may, and considering it's nature often does have relationship issues in it, but that isn't really the main core of the story. Something else, be it suspense, horror, whatever, is the main pulse of the story that also includes lots of sex.<BR/><BR/>In romantica, the main focus of the story is the romance... with lots of sex. There may be other elements in it, as most writing now days has sub-genres attached to it, but those elements do not fuel the main plot of the story, the relationship does... so it's a romance novel, with no closed doors.<BR/><BR/>And that's it in a nutshell. The same way you decide with non-erotic genres is the way you can figure it out in erotic genres.Tami Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18254839673811955144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159577113606573172006-09-29T19:45:00.000-05:002006-09-29T19:45:00.000-05:00See, I KNEW I was missing something. I've always l...See, I KNEW I was missing something. I've always looked at myself as a "smut writer", "erotica writer", "romantic erotica writer" and not really considered myself just a "writer" writer. <BR/><BR/>For "true" romance, these articles might very well be correct. I would say they are correct, but apparently I'm still figuring out what "romance" is. <BR/><BR/>When I look at my stories I think of them in terms of who is doing what not what is going on. I watch them unfold and then I think about what it all means at the end. That might be why I keep thinking of them as "romance" stories. They're stories about people who are in relationships. <BR/><BR/>These stories are much more than that. The stories you've written (that I've read) are much more than that too. <BR/><BR/>I think I'm getting this. Maybe. I reserve the right to be confused about this later. <BR/><BR/>And the vamp thing -- so very true. LOL! When I meet one, I'll be sure to report on it. Who knows, I might even interview that vampire. <BR/><BR/>Ok, yes, you may smack me. That was a lame joke.IM Cupnjavahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03120808235965232520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34374756.post-1159574144053798972006-09-29T18:55:00.000-05:002006-09-29T18:55:00.000-05:00Well, here's the answer to your little dilema as I...Well, here's the answer to your little dilema as I see it my dear, Cup.<BR/><BR/>Those articles you clipped (the ones about romance, not going there with the vampire one right now) are RIGHT.<BR/><BR/>:o<BR/><BR/>Yes, that's what I said.<BR/><BR/>for the very most part, (some exceptions can be made, but it's tricky) a 'true' romance MUST have a HAE.<BR/><BR/>What YOU write is not romance.<BR/><BR/>:o<BR/><BR/>What again you say?<BR/><BR/>But there's love...<BR/><BR/>There's relationships...<BR/><BR/>It IS romance! You demand.<BR/><BR/>yes, there are all of the above in your stories. Your works 'contain' romance, but are not 'romances'.<BR/><BR/>You, as I see it, are a mainstream author of (depending on the particular story) fantasy, paranormal, thriller, or contemporary erotica. All of these genres can contain romance in their story lines... that does not make them 'romances'.<BR/><BR/>Okay...<BR/><BR/>For me:<BR/><BR/>Big Money--NOT a romance. Relationships--yes, love--yes, but that's not exactly what the story revolves around, and it's not a HAE.<BR/><BR/>Paradise--ROMANCE... HAE and all.<BR/><BR/>Dark Side-NOT a romance. (same as big money except not the same storyline).<BR/><BR/>So you see, you can have stories that have romantic qualities that are NOT romances.<BR/><BR/>As for the Vampire quote... oh please... when you meet someone who's ACTUALLY met a vampire... THEN you can quote what a vampire is SUPPOSED to be.ROTF.Tami Phttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18254839673811955144noreply@blogger.com