So around the time the first Fifty Shades movie my Facebook feed was pretty divided about the novel and movie. Now opinions aside, one thing I had noticed is how popular the erotic romance genre had become, however, they all seemed to follow the same pattern. Rich dominant man and a strong yet passive woman. Even the few I found where the woman was a dominant she became submissive with “the right guy” and it was kind of driving me nuts. So one day driving between Omaha and Lincoln I started thinking about how a female dominate/ male submissive relationship would work. I’d seen TV shows feature female dominates but they hadn’t really shown anything outside a stereotype in leather corsets, heeled boots and a whip. (Knowing what I know now this could just be a personal choice of the dominant, but again that’s after research.) Then Michael appeared in my passengers’ seat and said: “I’d like to know how that works.” When I got home started researching female dominants—harder to find than you’d think—the main thing I found was descriptions of the issues both the dominate and submissive have to overcome in the relationship. The main issue being that society tells us the man should not be submissive and the woman should not be dominate.
Then Olivia turned up, and I realized I would have an opportunity to say something with this book. I have seen documentaries and read articles bringing to light several issues society places on men and women and how their experiences are further shaped by society and media’s influences. So while Michael and Olivia explore the sexual relationship (which was a lot of fun in its’ own way) I also started pointing out some of the societal issues they faced in their jobs. Olivia is a lot of fun for me, honestly, because she is such a strong woman and a badass business owner. While Michael is not the typical man you see in these types of novels he still shows how a real man is sexy without being a sexual dynamo with unrealistic stamina and arrogance.
Check out “Power Play” to see how the whole story unfolds and start a dialogue with those in your life. Talk about different aspects of your relationships, question if you really enjoy something or just think you’re supposed to, and maybe just be a little more aware of why and what you’re saying because as a writer I know how powerful words can be.
Happy reading.