Well, officially the anthology, Romance in the Nudist Colony went live yesterday for the eBook version. The print version went live a bit earlier in hopes that those who wanted a hard copy of the book would be able to receive it by Valentine’s Day.
As I look back at Paul’s books and Will’s books, as well as mine. It appears that Romance was very much a part of the plot line in all of the stories, sometimes overt, and sometimes implied. I would hazard an educated guess to say that it is hard to find a decent story of any genre that doesn’t include an element of Romance.
This book has both male and female authors, as well as a diverse approach to romance. What is common in each of the stories is a setting – in a nudist colony. There are knee-jerk reactions to the use of the archaic term, nudist colony, that stir up some discomfort. The editors of the book are very aware of that sentiment, however the audience isn’t limited to modern naturists and nudists.
Those outside of the current naturist scene still call the resorts, campgrounds, and communities – nudist colonies. Such readers arrive with preconceived ideas. However, when they read the stories, they find themselves in a world that is identical to their experiences with just the difference of missing clothing in the picture. In a way, this allows for reaching a wider audience as the efforts to normalise nudity and naturism.
Of course, there is a problem when one includes romance in a story, including in naturist fiction. There is the elephant in the room. Sex. Add in the component of nudity and most of the human world seems to be hardwired to assume sex. After all, all too many fantasies include naked bodies and sexual activity. Take romance novels as a genre, especially those written by and for women. The covers of those novels invariably feature a chiselled male torso as though delectable meal to be feasted upon.
This is precisely what the naturist world, and naturist fiction is trying to avoid. Because of the overt nudity of the characters and settings in which the nudity occurs, too many quickly jump to images of group sex, orgies, and the horror-of-all-horrors – what about the presence of innocent children? Well, let me assure you, these short stories disabuse this presumption. No food for the porn hounds will be found in this anthology.
Happy Reading!
Is there a theme and a call for entries for the next “in the nudist colony” compilation?
There will be a call for entries in the spring once the “team” is ready. I am sure there will be an advert here when the time comes.