Erotic or porn?

Erotic or porn?

As an erotic romance author, I’m always faced with the same dilemma. Do you write porn? Some people have this misconception that if we write about sex or describe in depth the intimate scenes. It’s pornographic or we are categorized as “P-star”.

So what is the difference between erotica and pornography? The dictionary defines the erotic as “anything that arouses sexual desire and heightens sexual excitement, “with romance and love mixed in while pornography is defined as “a commercial product designed to elicit or enhance sexual arousal by the portrayal of sexually explicit images.”

After this short and perfect definition, you’ll think that it’s perfectly clear. Oh, NO!  Here are some answers I gather.

- EROTICA is brunettes in silk, pornography is blondes in nylon. Erotica is for nice middle class literate people like us, pornography is for the lonely, unattractive and uneducated.

-  AS A FORMER bookseller, I would suggest that "erotica" is used by bookstores to disguise the fact that they are selling what most people perceive to be "pornography". The distinction lies in the psyche of the purchaser (or retailer): if you feel guilty about what you buy (or sell), then you call it "erotica". I once had a colleague who claimed a book full of pictures of naked bodies is art, so long as it is available only in hardcover.

To make it pure and simple porn is the explicit portrayal of sexual subject matter for the purpose of sexual arousal. Pornography may be presented in a variety of media, including books, magazines, postcards, photographs, sculpture, drawing, painting, animation, sound recording, film, video, and video games.

Whereas, erotica is any artistic work that deals substantively with erotically stimulating or sexually arousing subject matter. All forms of art may depict erotic content, including painting, sculpture, photography, drama, film, music or literature. Erotica has high-art aspirations, differentiating it from commercial pornography.

In conclusion, pornography shows violence and places women as objects. While erotica is more centered on feelings. It describes better the reality in a couple and the feelings felt by the two partners or more.