The trouble with condoms

I'm probably older than most of my smut-writing peers. I'm okay with that. Not much I can do about it anyway, right? I only notice the age difference now and then. Pop culture references usually trip me up. You could show me pictures of current pop singers and I would be stumped. I don't know how to use Instagram yet either. As quickly as I learn a social networking platform, they come out with a new one, and my brain is pretty much at capacity.

When it comes to my writing, I realize my style may be a little old-school, a bit more sentimental. That's okay, too. I lead with my heart. Where I show my age most often,is with those damn condoms. My editor pointed out in one of my stories that I hadn't addressed the lack of their use in a sex scene. Oy. There was no way to make it happen in that particular instance, and I REALLY tried to come up with one. I finally let it go as is, trusting the reader will understand the male character hadn't had sex for years and the female had been using condoms in her previous relationship. In all honesty, I simply tend to forget about condoms.

When I came of age in the mid 70s, condoms were thought of only as a means of birth control. As soon as we got the nerve, my female friends and I trooped down to the local health department and got an Rx for the  bc pill. Problem solved. It wasn't until the 80s that AIDS reared its ugly head, and I was long married by then. I was sure I'd never see a rubber again. Hah! Never say never. Flash forward to 1998. I'm divorced by then and have a younger man in my life. (Cougar, cradle-robber, I heard all the names. We've been together 17 years, so who cares?) To him, condoms were a given. His generation didn't have sex without condoms; using rubbers was automatic. Still, he admits it was more for birth control than protection from STDs. It seems young people will always believe they are invincible and immortal and bad things only happen to other people.

So, I will continue to try and remember condoms. Safe sex practices should always be promoted.  In my WIP Xander's Garden, future technology has made condoms obsolete. Hallelujah!

My brand
I've been trying to come up with a tag line I can use in promotions. Since I'm such a sentimental slob, I came up with "stories with heart and heat". The fabulous Julie Nicholls took that and a crappy clip art draft and came up with this logo. I love the flaming heart graphic!