What a Cool Surprise!
““Consider making a painting with me sometime, too. The artist and the detective. what a delicious combination that would be.” Her eyes twinkled as she looked Laci up and down. “I do believe we would have some serious fun.”
Laci laughed and waved her off as she turned again to go. Just before she rounded the corner of the main house toward the stone pavers, Laci gave one final look behind her. Hedy was standing in the doorway of her studio, still completely nude, the fingers of her right hand between her legs.”
So excited to win the 2024 Erotic Fiction Award from Passionate Ink and it's a paddle. How appropriate! And in case you're wondering, it has in fact already been put to good use!
After being gone for almost a month I came home and found the most wonderful award in my mailbox waiting for me.
I was informed by Passionate Ink in July that my first Laci Kicklighter story THE SIMPLE ART OF LUST had won the Erotic Fiction Category in the Passionate Plume 2024 contest. That in itself was so rewarding. But now I have an actual award to put on the shelf with the book. And even better, it's in the shape of a paddle, and I don't mind saying it's already been put to use!
It's so rewarding to write and know your work is in the hands of others, or, in the case of erotica, maybe I should say, "the hand" of others. And I am also drawn to the fact that all of us who write erotica, whether it is recognized or not, contribute to a genre that has a long and rich and wonderful history. Nobody can do it alone. We learn from each other. We get help from each other. We contribute to the world of erotica with each other.
When I wrote THE SIMPLE ART OF LUST, I wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. I didn't have a website or any socials. I figured I would self-publish through Amazon's KDP as most authors of erotica do. But I didn't have an artist to do the cover or an editor who would look it over and tell me how to make it better.
Then along came the wonderful Jordan Kross who not only writes her own award-winning naughty tales but also serves as the President of Passionate Ink. She agreed to take me on and work with me as my editor and the stories would not be the same without her. She has taught me so much about writing in general and writing erotica in particular, and she is a constant encouragement and boost to morale, not just for me but for so many others as well. I am eternally grateful for her. And through her, I also found my wonderful artist who does the covers for all of the Laci Kicklighter stories. And then came my friend Logan Black who has been such a wonderful source of encouragement and help, another fellow writer who helped guide me along this new journey. Suddenly I had a team to help turn the stories into something that could be published!
What a fun year it's been. Full of the most wonderful surprises, most of all, the other writers of erotica I've gotten to meet along the way. The erotica writing community is the most encouraging, hard-working group of authors I know. I'm just about done with another Laci Kicklighter story. And as I think back to where I was just over a year ago I am encouraged and so grateful for the wonderful friends I've met along the way.
