I was chatting to my mother about my novel, and she asked me if there was going to be any sex in it. I said yes, and she asked why.

Firstly, I’d rather have sex in a novel than violence. (I’d also rather have sex in a film, too.) Secondly, I think that people likely have sex more often than they experience violence. I’d like to think that, though I know there are people whose lives will have that reversed. I want to look at intimate relationships, and that often includes sex.

I’m not writing for an audience that only reads award-winning novels. I know that I’m writing for an audience that likes romance novels, that likes erotica, and that enjoys something a bit beyond the norm.