Wading Through Quicksand

Today, I'm sharing a blog post from best-selling, award-winning author Tim Smith.  I found it very interesting and thought provoking, and I hope you will also.

Here’s something you don’t run into every day — a man who writes straight contemporary erotic romance for a traditional romance publisher. Okay, I know what you’re thinking — “A man who writes romance and gets the details right? It can’t be done!” Trust me, I get that a lot.

I began published life writing mystery/thrillers set in the Florida Keys about a former CIA spy named Nick Seven, who tries to stay out of the intrigue game but always gets dragged back in. He lives with a former co-worker, a beauty from Barbados named Felicia. My first three novels in this series won awards, did well commercially, and I had a nice following. While they contained romantic undertones and sexual encounters, I never considered writing a full-fledged romance novel. Then something made me decide to wade into the quicksand known as contemporary erotic romance.

I was attending a large book festival and while my books were selling well, I noticed other authors drawing bigger crowds and I wandered over to see why. They were romance writers. After reading one of their books, I thought it would be fun to write one of my own, told primarily from the man’s point of view and with more humor. I also knew I could write something better than the one I had read.  

I wrote my first romantic comedy, Anywhere the Heart Goes, and found a traditional romance publisher who was willing to take a chance on it. It did well, and I followed it with two more lighthearted rom-coms before getting back into familiar territory of romantic thrillers. I’m still with the same publisher, and my books do contain romance and erotica. When I entered this new arena, I chose to continue writing under my real name, because I had developed a following, and thought it would carry over. I was surprised when my friends and followers, who were anticipating another Nick Seven thriller, asked me “How could you do such a thing???”

That was a dozen years ago, and it’s been an interesting journey. Acceptance from the romance community is still a challenge, though. I’ve had women writers tell me to my face that I couldn’t possibly write a credible love story because “Men just don’t understand romance.” I was tempted to ask if they ever voiced that opinion to their husbands or boyfriends, but I was polite. Another time, a romance blogger trashed one of my books, then attacked me personally because I was a man who dared to try out for the women’s soccer team. At some book signings, people have stopped by my table, asked what genre I write, then rolled their eyes and walked away. I was also barred from participating in a popular romance convention because of my gender.   

During one of the rom-cons I was allowed to partake in, I noticed on the list of attendees an author whose book I had recently reviewed online, and liked very much. My publicist was there, said she knew the person and would arrange an introduction. When she introduced me as a romance writer, the woman looked at me like I was a homeless guy she found camping in her living room, and stammered “B-But…you’re a man!” I smiled and said “Thank you for noticing. I’ll try to do better next time.”

The biggest difficulty I had to overcome was the way I wrote erotic scenes. They were present in my first three books in a mild form, but for this new market of e-book readers who wanted something spicier, I had to turn up the heat and be more explicit. I’ll admit it was a bit awkward for me at first, but I soon reached a comfort level and stopped blushing when I wrote something down and dirty.

There seems to be a stigma attached to writing straight romance if you’re a male. It’s like casting an actor in a type of role they don’t normally play, and telling them up front that nobody will like them as that character. When I was peddling my first romance, I received so many rejections I lost count. One of the publishers I approached told me outright that because I was a guy, they wouldn’t even read my submission. I offered to publish under a gender-neutral name, but was told it wouldn’t make any difference because “Our readers can tell if it was written by a man.” I doubt that Sue Grafton or Nora Roberts had that kind of pox cast over them when they chose a genre associated with the likes of Robert B. Parker and James Patterson.

In spite of the occasional negative attitudes, I’m optimistic enough to think that there’s room for all of us on the love boat. I’m always hopeful that people will read one of my books and discover something they like about it, something that will make them want to read more of my output. I think the nicest compliment I can receive is when someone says they can’t wait to read my next book. Man, it doesn’t get much better than that!

Check out Tim's website at: www.allauthor.com/author/timsmith