Writing Erotica - A Whirlwind Romance

By Lola Bruce-James (Guest Blogger)

From Lola to Lucilla

Despite a lifelong love of reading, my journey writing erotica only began in January of this year. It was something that I’d previously put off, usually because of a lack of time. But just before my husband’s birthday, I decided to write a sexy vignette for him. After reading it, in no uncertain terms, he told me that I needed to send it to a publisher.

I proof read the story, entitled it Lucilla and Her Slave and submitted it to Cobblestone Press. A week later it was contracted, although I had to wait until 1^st August for the book’s release.

I chose Cobblestone Press because, despite being British, I had a gut feeling that an American publisher might be more open to a submission from a first-time author. They seemed very author friendly and the guidelines on their website were crystal clear.

The quick acceptance of my first book spurred me on to do more and my writing soon became an obsession. It happened in such a short space of time and I felt so intensely about it, that it was almost like being involved in a whirlwind romance.

Since that first story, I have written five other books and Cobblestone Press has contracted them all. Three of them feature Lucilla. I’ve grown to love her, as well as a number of the other characters who appear in her books, and it’s my intention to carry on with this series for a while longer.

About Lucilla

I invented Lucilla and set her story in Ancient Roman times because of my love of historical fiction and fascination with that period. It provides huge scope for writing erotica. Although a very brutal time, there’s something about it that I’ve always found incredibly sexy. It’s that fusion of the primitive and the sophisticated; a time when men and women appeared to be more in touch with their natural instincts and most carnal desires.

I meticulously research both the historical and geographical elements of my books because I believe that a plausible story often makes for a more exciting one. That said their main purpose is obviously to arouse the reader and the quality control here is simple: every erotic scene has to excite both my husband and me before I will include it in one of my books.

Other Titles

I have two other erotic fiction projects on the go with Cobblestone. The first is The Portal Series. It will consist of four paranormal trysts and feature a modern day couple who travel back in time to a variety of interesting places at exciting times in history. The first book is set in Paris, at the time of the French Revolution, and will be released in October. At the time of writing, I’m about to complete the second story, which is set in the Wild West. I know how I’m going to play the final two books, but am still debating where to set them.

The other project concerns a character called Victoria. I’ve only written one story about her so far, but intend to follow it up. She’s a British secret agent and unrivalled dominatrix, which is an unusual mixture, I suppose. These books contain BDSM and plenty of humor! Like Lucilla’s Adventures, they will all be for Cobblestone’s wicked line.

Why I’m here

Since my first book was published, I’ve put a lot of effort into trying to market my work and expose it to as wide an audience as possible. This has been more challenging than writing the stories and I’m incredibly grateful to Lisabet for giving me the opportunity to speak to her readers, through this blog.

To show my gratitude I’d like to provide you all with an excerpt from my first publication, Lucilla and Her Slave, and give away one copy of my second book, Lucilla in Rome, in what I hope you think is a fun competition.

Blurb for Lucilla and Her Slave:

Publicly virtuous and privately scandalous, Lucilla is an elegant, Roman noblewoman with exquisite taste, particularly in men. Although an unashamed snob, she is also strong-willed, intelligent, resourceful and brave. She is loyal to her friends and unforgettable to her lovers. In this, the first of her adventures, she acquires a taste for a certain slave. But she will need all her wits about her if she is to survive when her tranquil, holiday villa is ransacked by Spartacus' slave rebellion. 

Excerpt (The opening to the book):

Lucilla gave a lazy smile as she led the slave into her private chamber. She had become bored with life in Rome and decided to reinvigorate herself at her villa on the coast of Campania. She had holidayed there frequently since her late husband, Marcus, had been killed whilst serving Rome as a general in the army.

She had been about to call on her favorite female slave, Harmonia, to provide her with her usual massage but, perhaps because of the hot, late afternoon sun and the wine readily available from her vineyard, she had chosen to break with convention.

As she entered her chamber, she wondered if this was the only reason for her decision. Of course, her strong attraction to the handsome, young, Greek slave had nothing to do with it. Lucilla suppressed a giggle. There was nothing wrong with a little titillation, was there?

Whilst the slave prepared the oil that he would soon rub onto her skin, Lucilla let her thin, white dress fall to the floor, revealing a small breast band and delicate loincloth, which covered her most intimate parts.

She was proud of both her looks and her body, which belied her forty years. She had noticed how her friends and acquaintances—even guards—looked at her, and it gave her a huge amount of satisfaction.

Yes, she was undoubtedly beautiful. Her wavy, brown hair usually stretched half way down her back, but recently she had taken to wearing it tied up, with ornate, curled ringlets dropping down onto her neck and framing her face.

Huge, brown eyes, high cheekbones, a Roman nose and a petite, prim mouth made her look exactly what she was…an exquisite example of the Roman, female nobility.

“I want you to concentrate on the top of my back and shoulders,” she purred as she lay down, “and careful not to use too much oil.”

As soon as the slave’s strong hands took hold of her shoulders, she knew she had made the right decision. His firm, decisive grip began to rid her of the tension she experienced, overseeing the management and affairs of her vast estate.

The minutes passed and her anxieties vanished…well, all but one of them. That vexatious longing for her sexual appetite to be fed just wouldn’t go away. The sun and the wine didn’t help, but were they the cause of it? She chuckled as she contemplated it. No, she decided. She had always been highly sexed.

The slave, blissfully unaware of her secret needs, continued with his task, whilst Lucilla, her mind working overtime, became more and more aroused.

There was nothing wrong with replacing Harmonia with a man, she told herself. She was perfectly entitled to a massage, wasn’t she? And the things that she had thought, but never spoken of, about this young man…? They were nobody’s business but her own.

But what if she decided to develop those thoughts…to make them a reality? No, that would be out of the question. In fact, completely insane.

The slave toiled on, and Lucilla, still slightly inebriated, began to convince herself that she might be wrong. She worked hard, didn’t she? Entertaining, organizing the villa, maintaining her appearance—there were bound to be other things she did too, things which took time and effort. As a Roman noblewoman, wasn’t she entitled to do as she pleased with her slaves?

And who would find out?

She chuckled mischievously. She knew what needed to be done. The excitement of forbidden fruit added to her already escalating desire, and she decided to act. Her legs trembled slightly in anticipation.

“Remove my breast band,” she commanded, attempting to sound as authoritative and matter of fact as she could.

The slave hesitated.

“Did you not hear me?” she said, slightly louder but with an element of shrillness in her tone, caused by nervousness, which she was unable to hide.

There was a slight delay before he complied. She took a deep breath.

“And the other…” Despite the wine and her natural air of authority, she was too tense to complete the sentence. Her pent-up desire and daring decision had left her lost for words, so she gestured toward the loincloth, the front of which, unseen to the slave, was already moist.

After what seemed like minutes, but was little more than a few seconds, the slave removed it. He steadily got back to his work, but now there was uncertainty in his hands.

She allowed things to settle slightly so she could regain her composure and steel herself to sound in control. Was she really doing this?

“My lower back and bottom,” she said in a wooden tone. Again, the slave complied, this time without delay. As he worked his hands and gradually recovered his former confidence, she experienced a warming in her sex. She had to go through with this. She didn’t want to give herself time to think and take the sensible course of action.

Once the slave’s hands were on her bottom, she quickly and effortlessly slid herself upwards. The hand jerked and slipped down onto her wet pussy before quickly withdrawing.

She gave a gasp and looked over her shoulder, meeting the slave’s dark brown eyes. She was at the point of no return. The scandal, if caught, would be unimaginable.

She paused…

“Move your hand back down there, and carry on.”

The slave stood as still as a statue.

“Carry on,” she said with a firmness that belied her nerves.

There was nothing more to say.

His hands tentatively returned to her back and slid downward. His fingers reached her wetness. The butterflies in her stomach did somersaults. How long his fingers remained there, expertly massaging her, she could not say, for she was now crazy with lust.

She eased herself up, brushed the slave’s hand aside, and eyed him. He was tall, dark, slim, and probably half her age. The bulge pressing against his thin tunic was unmistakable.

Competition Details

I have listed the names of the first four Lucilla books below. What would you like to see the fifth one called?

The winner will receive a copy of Lucilla in Rome in their chosen electronic format. I will also use the winning entry as the title to the fifth book and write a dedication to the winner inside it.

 

Lucilla and Her Slave and Lucilla in Rome, both by Lola Bruce-James, have been published by Cobblestone Press. Lucilla on the Nile, A Portal in Paris, Victoria’s Secret Assignment and Lucilla: Ides of March are coming soon.

Amazon, All Romance eBooks, iBookstore, Bookstrand, Kobo and Barnes and Noble Nook already stock the first two books. A quick link to buy is

www.cobblestone-press.com/catalog/books/lucillaandherslave.htm  

You can contact me via Twitter @LolabruceJames and also on Goodreads. I’d be absolutely delighted to hear from you.