What is dark erotica?

Dark erotica is typically taboo erotica where the lines of consent or right and wrong become blurred. This might be because of a close, family relationship (daddy/daughter, brother/sister, mother/son, etc.) It might be because of lack of consent or reluctance (rape, kidnapping, sex slavery, pimping). It might be extreme (blood play, asphyxiation, snuff). There might be elements of horror (monsters, tentacles). Or it might just be taboo (diaper play, shifters).

In short, it’s the dark side of sexuality.

There’s nothing to be ashamed of in liking it, or reading it, of course. My partner and I write it because we have a thing for it, and sometimes we just get in a mood where we need something a little scary. A little frightening. We love horror erotica, for example, and think that all those heightened emotions make the sex even more impactful.

There’s just something exciting about indulging in something that society deems as inappropriate or impolite or even immoral. It ups the ante a bit, and makes all of the reader’s feelings more potent and arousing.

It just feels so much more primal.

Skye Warren describes it as “BDSM with the safety off”, but I don’t really agree. Yes, BDSM contains so many really interesting subsets, such as the Gorean lifestyle, and that can definitely be fairly ‘dark’.

But most dark erotica books contain no elements of BDSM. There’s no consent, negotiations, hard limits, soft limits, or even interest. There’s just some of the worst aspects of humanity, the worst aspects of society, and the taboo kinks that we hate to admit to ourselves that we have.