Sex and Chocolate

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, I felt a reprint of this article would be appropriate, especially since the holiday  mentioned in my story is Valentine's Day. The original article was posted on Tina Donahue's blog last September when "Decadent Delights" released. Enjoy!

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Sex and chocolate…

What is this relationship between chocolate and sex that we hear so much about? I read that Italian researchers discovered there is a connection between female sexuality and chocolate. The more we eat, the better our sex life. It’s an aphrodisiac that increases arousal and satisfaction from sex. Chocolate contains tryptophan that our brains transform into serotonin. High enough levels of serotonin will release endorphins, and we all know what endorphins do – they make us happy. Hence, chocolate + sex = happiness. That works for me!

I LOVE CHOCOLATE! Heck, I’ve been a chocolate addict since…okay, almost since birth. I dream about chocolate. I can smell chocolate a mile away, I’ve decorated my house in the shade of milk chocolate, and my cats are even “Chocolate Point Siamese”. So, naturally I had to write a story about it — “Decadent Delights”.

Now, I have to tell you a secret. See this girl? She makes chocolate look sexy, doesn’t she? Well, sometimes it’s not all that easy. You see, I have a confession to make. I tried this once on a friend, but it didn’t work out exactly as I planned it.

He fell backwards and his hit head on the floor while I was licking the chocolate from his chest. In retrospect, I should have laid him down on the bed first, especially since I had tied his hands and feet with silk ties. What can I say? It was during my experimental phase. He was initially excited about participating in the game, well, at least until he got hurt…that kinda spoiled the fun. I just thought I’d share that with you in case you had any ideas.

Another thing I learned about chocolate and sex—first, you should really put something down underneath the person who has chocolate on them because frankly, it’s pretty messy. And if you add marshmallow cream, well, can anyone say sticky mess? Your partner should be a good sport so you can laugh about it as you’re cleaning up. Oh, and it always helps to be clean-shaven, if you get my drift.

Now, this may sound funny to you, but, hey this is serious stuff. I discovered a book on Amazon called, “101 Chocolate Sex Positions: With An Ultimate Safe Sex Guide For Guaranteed Satisfaction At Any Age and Shape” by Dr. Christine Evans and Dr. David Usher. See. I wasn’t the first to think of this. Perhaps if I had bought their book, I might not have made such a huge mistake, and that guy and I might still be dating!

Of course, in “Decadent Delights”, I make the chocolate experience fun. I don’t refer to the problems mentioned above. My heroine, Dana, is quite the expert when it comes to fashioning erotic confections. She’s got a great way to advertise her products, which turns the hero on. Although she doesn’t make chocolate bars that look like this, she does fashion statutes of chocolate body parts.

You can read a portion of the first chapter of “Decadent Delights” on my website, www.gaildeyoung.com  or at Ellora’s Cave. I hope you’ll indulge. It was a fun story to write with lots of sweets and innuendos.

Here’s the hot cover of the book and the blurb:

Chocolate and sex—two of life’s most decadent pleasures—are the marketing tools Dana Evans uses to lure customers to her erotic candy store. Her sexy dancing gets her customers hot and bothered for her confections and Trevor Stanton, owner of Trevor’s Treasures, realizes he’d rather be on her side than competing against her. He pursues her with wit, charm and an offer to model nude for one of her statues.

Dana can’t believe her luck when she discovers the hunky ex-model has an identical twin brother. Little does she know that her strong attraction to Trevor will cause conflict between the two brothers, especially because she wants both of them to model nude for her.

When the competition gets hot, Dana is caught in the middle. What’s a girl to do?

I hope your Valentine's Day is sweet and that you receive lots of chocolate. Because you never know what that might lead to... :)

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

W.I.P.

As I sit here contemplating a hot, steamy scene for my current W.I.P. (work in process), I wonder how many other authors are sitting at their computer right now doing the same thing…well, not necessarily writing a hot, steamy scene, but just involved in writing their current W.I.P.  It’s a good feeling knowing that I actually have a story “in process”, not just an idea bouncing around in my head, or a plot that is in the formative stage. When I say I have a W.I.P. , it means I’m actually writing the story and will have something concrete to submit to my editor in the near future (which will bring a big sigh of relief).

I promised to write this book for a series called 1-800-DOM-help almost a year ago, though I did mention to the group that I was still working on “Decadent Delights” and handling all the details of my daughter’s upcoming wedding, so I wouldn’t be able to do it right away. There are sixteen authors in the group and they assured me that there were plenty of stories to keep the series going, so I could take my time.  At this point, ten books have been published, which -- for the most part -- have received rave reviews (no pressure here). With my daughter’s wedding behind me, I can focus on fulfilling that promise. I can’t wait!

Now that I’m involved in the actual writing phase, the story seems to be flowing quite well and I’m rooting for my characters to resolve their problems and fall in love. Some authors need an outline for their plot, but that doesn’t really work for me. It’s too confining, especially when my characters take over and tell the story the way they want to do it. I know when they’re ready to begin because they start having conversations in my head while I’m taking a shower or doing the dishes. I get the urge to sit down right then and capture what they said before it becomes a faint memory. If I’m lucky, inspiration hits when I’m at home and not at work, where I wouldn’t be able to work on it.  Soon, bits and pieces of the story coalesce and before I know it, an entire scene is written, then another and another. Page after page flies by as the story comes together. Eventually, I type those wonderful two words…The End.  Ah, wouldn’t it be lovely if I could just hand the book in for publishing at that point?

But NO! Never! When I get to that stage, the hardest part lies ahead. I may have put in many hours getting to that point, but the story is still a diamond in the rough. Only a few of my best friends will have the honor of reading it because I value their critique, and know I’m far from finished. It takes a fresh set of eyes to look at the manuscript and point out the flaws, i.e., the holes in the story, incongruities, etc.  Once those are worked out, there are still other elements that have to be reviewed, from proofreading for typos, to misspelled words, punctuation, formatting, names, places and times, and a myriad of other important things. This all takes time, but it’s worth it because then the editing process moves along much quicker and smoother.

So, I sit here with a smile on my face, despite the hurdles I have yet to encounter, because I know that when this story is finally ready for public consumption, I will have produced the best book I can for my reader’s enjoyment – and that’s the bottom line. The reader is the most important element in my stories, for without them, I wouldn’t have a W.I.P.  Yes, it’s a "work in process", and I love it.   

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