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Where were you when you first learned what 69 meant? A friend and fellow romance author brought up a subject, it is something that doesn’t come up often yet it does happen, you find a friend in your company who hasn’t heard of a sexual term that everyone else is more than familiar with for example the almost obligatory soixante-neuf.  This was a story she told me: This happened at a New Year’s Eve party.  Some of the men in the group had just made a smutty joke about 69.  Since they all laughed, a lady at the edge of...

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A subject that pushes my buttons.  Thank you for the responses to the subject of censorship, my initial subject was the depiction of rape in literature.  As I have said a few times we should censor what we read and watch.  One reply I had was: “If it’s fiction I should be able to make my own choice as what to read. If it’s really that’s totally between the people, I do believe in safe and consensual. I don’t think Amazon, B & N should make up these hypercritical decisions as what we are allowed to read” another said: “I...

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I thought I would share another of my good friend’s posts.  Laurie Sanders has very much been a mentor to me over the years.  I value her writing skills.  When we first met I wrote rather dodgy ill-considered pros.  She made a lifelong ambition to become an author come true.  We chat often about books and publishing, I wanted to share another of her blogs.  This is on the all-important plot.   I would recommend looking at her website.  I would also recommend signing up for one of her workshops and sign up for her newsletter.  Please enjoy Laurie’s post as...

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In life, nobody should be forced to have sex.  This may not hold for all forms of literature but believe that in good romance stories, that feature sex, the sex should be consensual.  A lot of romance novels go into the darker world of domination and submission.  I write in this genre myself and I know the sex scenes can be more progressive.  The sex can be rougher and even out of the boundaries of what some folk would call normality, whatever normal is.  Even in the framework of BDSM and D/s, the participants should agree on sex.  This might...

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A deliberately provocative title, in this case, probably not the subject you might have been expecting.  Provocative title inspired by a great publicist and the subject of this blog.  I have just finished a book by Virgin founder Richard Branson.  He has been a hero of mine for years.  I first became aware of Virgin through the record label and have followed the growth of the company through record shops, airlines, telecommunications, trains.  Have followed his exploits, Atlantic boat time records, record-breaking balloon flights and now heading into space.  All great enterprises and all worthy in their own right, but the...

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Ok, a bit of a personal blog.  I did wonder whether to or not, but thinking about it yesterday I thought why not.  Without going into medical stuff, mostly because it is pretty boring, I have been walking with a stick for the last few days.  It has been a bit of a chore but it has not affected my work at BVS and I try to take the positives where I can get them.  The positives have had some extra time to read scripts, something that always needs doing.  I read for pleasure too and have been reading Richard...

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Shibari bondage is it a kink, or is it an art form? I have followed the Japanese art of Shibari both ground-based and suspended for a lot of years. I saw my first demonstration at an art exhibition at the Barbican Centre in London back in 2005. I thought of bondage as a bit kinky at the time, I did not see it as anything other than an activity some people did, in the privacy of their own bedroom, for there own pleasure. I have read a lot more, seen more and even had a modest attempt as Shabari since...

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Is semen vegan-friendly?  This started as a chat in the bar, discussing the benefits and drawbacks of a vegan lifestyle.  Animal welfare is core to a vegan lifestyle.  A definition from The Vegan Society being, Veganism is a way of living which seeks to exclude, as far as is possible and practicable, all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose. I have friends and colleagues who are vegans, and although I am not a vegan or vegetarian, I respect their views. Back to the discussion in the bar.  By the time we had talked...

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