Sex on the brain

You might think I spend all my time thinking about sex – but it’s not so. Really, honestly, truly I don’t. It’s just that teaching ‘Writing about Sex’ for six weeks, as well as reading slush for an erotica publisher this month, has focused me on the issue.

Last night was the last ‘Writing about Sex’ class. To celebrate we had wine and cakes. Some students read aloud, others brought along work they’d had published, and generally we had a wonderful evening. I shall miss those classes now they’re over. But it’s time to get back to writing my own work and thinking about my own fiction throughout the summer (if it ever arrives).

That indefatigable editor of quality erotica, Mitzi Szereto, is running a week long course in the autumn – if you can afford it and want to improve your erotic writing, details are below.

SMOLDERING WORDS: EROTIC WRITING WITH MITZI SZERETO

A week-long residential creative writing course in Sept 2006 on the Greek island of Skiathos

Erotic literature has changed dramatically in recent years. No longer banished to the top shelves of bookshops, it instead holds court on the front tables. Approaching the subject from a literary perspective, internationally known erotic-fiction author, anthologist, and erotic-writing workshop pioneer Mitzi Szereto will pull back the blanket on the field of erotic writing, offering her own perspective on the craft. The course is designed for those looking to write erotica for professional or personal exploration, or those looking to incorporate the erotic into another body of work. Open to all levels of writers.

Dates: Sept. 9-15, 2006

Cost: (in USD) $795. Includes accommodations for 7 days “Greek Style” room with private veranda and a/c, 22 workshop hours, and transfers by private car to/from hotel from airport/seaport on Skiathos. Single room accommodation is $100.00 extra.

American born Mitzi Szereto has more than a dozen books to her credit, including the critically acclaimed Erotic Fairy Tales: A Romp Through the Classics; The World’s Best Sex Writing 2005 (non-fiction); Dying For It: Tales of Sex & Death; Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers; and the Erotic Travel Tales anthology series. She’s also penned several best-selling erotic novels as M. S. Valentine. Mitzi is the pioneer of the erotic writing workshop in the UK and Europe, teaching them from the prestigious Cheltenham Festival of Literature to the Greek islands.