The dangerous, dark, kinky romance: Folk can't get enough

I'mma set this down right here. I don't like dark romance reads. Kinky or not. Not my cuppa. But if it floateth thy boat, read on! Just like with NA, the dark, erotic read rubs me the wrong way. "Rub, eh, eh," she said all Beavis-and Butthead-like. Naw. Can't do it. The abduction themes. The hostage scenarios. The mental anguish and orgasms derived from being mind fucked and humiliated. No. I tried. No. Like I said, if you read it, or live it, more power to ya. But like anyone who truly knows theirself, I know my limits. I know romance readers, at least the hordes that descended upon the virtual romance book aisles online after the FSoG trilogy can't suck the books up quickly enough. It's as if these thirsty folks, who I am sure have NEVER read, or wanted to read, a romance before, believe en masse that all those ridiculed, syrupy, tomes are actually filthy, taboo, hot wank fests that women have been keeping to themselves for years. And now this new readership wants it. Now. All the time. But I believe there in lies the key to this appetite for "dark" romance. That new flood of readers who really AREN'T romance readers at all, that group who thinks ALL romance has some degree of BDSM (no matter how badly depicted) in it. That group. (And if a romance book doesn't contain it...Well, that writer, don't know what REAL romance is! Amirite?) The demand drives the market. I get it. The writers filling that need are doing it very well. And doing well. EXCEPT. When the fervor dies down, when the silk-ropes-and-handcuff stories with the doms and subs start to trend lower on those best-selling, alphabet book lists, when they bring in less money for publishers (traditional or self), or most importantly when the horde's appetite has been sated, what will the publishers do? What will the newly-discovered, breakout authors of newly-discovered BDSM romances do?

Well, the traditional publishers will survive. They are like cats or vampires or both. The romance industry is notorious for being a step BEHIND the next trend. By the time the Big 5 catches up, a trend has already saturated the market and is no longer "on fire." The Big 5 are not innovators. But they'll be around. Nothing sells like imitating the trend. As for the writers of BDSM romances...The real writers will survive. They know HOW to write, HOW to CRAFT a story, no matter the genre. If they have to switch genre ("switch." Another Beavis moment) to be seen, they will. But the new-kids-on-the-block? The ones who tied together every school yard term for genitalia with a verb? The ones who used a ton of synonyms for the word "wet?" The ones riding the wave who know analytics but not craft? The ones who don't know a modifying phrase from their elbow? This is my advice. Enjoy the money AND enroll in some writing courses for the next trend.