Reading & Writing Romance Without Sex

When I wrote my first book for Avalon Books the guidelines were specific. They described their books as wholesome adult fiction, suitable for family reading. No graphic sex,  no premarital sex, or sexual tension was allowed in their novels.

In June, 2012 Amazon Publishing bought the 62 year old company. The LA Times headline for the article read - Amazon Publishing buys Avalon Books, Gets 3,000 Squeaky-Clean Titles.

Back in the day before e-readers, readers who wanted these "squeaky-clean" books knew exactly where to find them. Avalon Books catered to the library market and often had their own shelves for their monthly releases. Avalon books is gone and searching online sometimes takes us through a list of sexy books before finding that sweet/clean story we're looking for. At the end of this blog, I list some links to sweet romances. Check them out.

No Sex Scenes

I like to say I write sweet, sensual romance. My stories end with a happily ever after that is earned through conflict and growing respect between the hero and heroine. My characters flirt and find each other attractive. The push and pull of the sensual tension is important to bring them together, but goes no farther than an emotion packed kiss.  A recent Amazon review  described Chocolate Couture as a story about "Nice people being nice while going through the realistic trials of life."

No Profanity 

The first book in my Love by Chocolate series, Chocolate Secrets is about a sexy firefighter who bakes chocolate cakes.
While joking around at the firehouse he made a reference to fame, fortune, and good sex. The 'good sex' was edited out because I couldn't have the reader think there might be a sex scene in the story.  The edited line was changed to fame, fortune, and a good time. Even with the change, a reviewer on Amazon said she enjoyed the story but found it a bit suggestive.




Sweet vs Clean

Sweet/Clean romance are not to be confused with Christian or Inspirational romance which are faith based.  A sweet romance won't have profanity, but might have some mild language. Although sweet and clean are often interchangeable, clean romance can have a darker plot without the sex and profanity or violence.

Looking for a sweet romance? Here's some help finding one.

Visit my amazon page
http://www.amazon.com/Zelda-Benjamin/e/B001JS8IPG/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1


Some sweet romances for you to enjoy.

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