Why Closed Door Romance?

Why did I switch from open door romance to closed door when I’ve published over 25 open door books?

First, let’s define closed door vs open door. Open door romance has explicit s3x scenes. Closed door, means just that, all s3x scenes are behind closed doors and not for the reader to see.

I could probably define my latest books as fade-to-black rather than closed door, because there is some intense kissing before the rest of the intimate scenes fade-to-black. Think movies where you know what’s going to happen, but you don’t see it on screen.

I need to make another very important distinction between my closed door books and others. I do not write clean romances. When I say clean romances, think no cursing, chaste kissing, God’s name is not used in vain. My closed door romances have kissing, lots and lots of cursing (I love a foul-mouthed hero), and, yes, God’s name might be used in ways some might not like.

Now that we have the definition down and you’re clear on exactly what I now write, let’s move on to why I switched.

As a traditionally published author, meaning I signed a contract with a publisher and that contract states that the publisher has the final say on everything, I am at the whim of the publisher. The publishers want s3x. Or at least they did when I was publishing with them. I would submit my manuscript to my editor and when the edits came back nine times of out ten more s3x scenes were requested.

Writing those scenes is not fun (at least for me). It’s monotonous. It’s stressful coming up with new ways to say the same thing. Let’s face it, there’s only so many ways to write this stuff.

When I moved to indie publishing, I could make my own decisions and I decided no more intimate scenes. Yes, these types of scenes can advance the storyline, but for me, they aren’t necessary. They’re unfun to write, and they’re monotonous to read (IMO).

I read some of the great closed door romance writers like Sarah Adams and Jenny Proctor and I realized that you can absolutely have a great romance story without the detailed description.

And that, friends, is why I write closed door romance.

*I feel like I need to say this before people who love their smut come after me. There are all kinds of books out there for all kinds of readers. Read what you want. Enjoy what you enjoy. I read smut, too (although I skip those scenes now because, let’s face it, if you’ve read one, you’ve read them all). Just read!