This “Behind the Scenes” blog is part of a series examining my romance novels. In each blog, I’ll talk about why I wrote the book, share my thoughts on the plot and/or characters, and reveal what I loved most (or least) about writing the book. Warning: Blogs may contain spoilers.
Beauty & the Bigfoot is a contemporary paranormal
romance—and it’s one of the most controversial books I’ve written. Why? Because
the heroine, Tara, falls in love with a creature commonly known as Bigfoot. (In
the book, Tara names him Joe.) The story blends sensual love scenes with a
healthy dose of offbeat humor. Readers aren’t supposed to take the story
seriously, because the characters don’t take the story seriously.
However, when the book came out, several reviewers were
appalled at the premise and had an issue with the love scenes. (Yes, Tara and
Bigfoot/Joe consummate their relationship—several times.) Some ebook retailers
wouldn’t sell the book because it was classified as “erotica” and a few readers
reported the book to sellers, calling it “bestiality” (among other things).
Yeah, this little story certainly caused some controversy.
What’s interesting is that in addition to everything else, the book could also
be categorized as… (Spoiler Alert!) a shapeshifter romance. I never saw
shapeshifter romances featuring werewolves, werebears, werepanthers, etc.
called out for bestiality or labeled morally reprehensible, but then again, I
don’t read too many reviews.
Maybe the negative reviewers of my book just hated the idea
of a woman falling in love with a “Bigfoot”—although that’s not exactly who—or
what—Joe is. Or maybe they never bothered to read the whole book and never learned
Joe’s true identity at the end… who knows?
But I’m happy to say most reviewers and readers LOVED the
book. They called it “a hoot” and understood the premise, the humor, and read
all the way to the end to discover the “twist” ending that truly makes this a
love story.
When I got the idea for the story, I knew I had to write it
with tongue-in-cheek humor, otherwise the story wouldn’t work. Nobody would
take a Bigfoot romance seriously. So right from the start, I incorporated humor
into as many scenes as possible. When the book opens, Tara doesn’t believe
Bigfoot exists and thinks her Bigfoot-hunter father is crazy. But she soon
learns that things aren’t always what they seem…
I loved creating the wacky scenes between Tara and her
oddball father. They were a lot of fun to write, and I just kept up the
strangeness as the story unfolded. I added in zany secondary characters (the
mob of people, the sheriff) to add more conflict and take the story to another
level.
As I wrote the romantic scenes, I knew there had to be a
reason Tara is attracted to Joe, and a reason Joe is in love with Tara. I won’t
give away the plot twist here, but I can say that Tara and Joe have a long
history together, and they knew each other before the story started.
Believe it or not, this book required a lot of research.
Since Tara’s father is a Bigfoot expert, I had to become a Bigfoot expert to
write his scenes. I went to the library and read a lot of books about Bigfoot
before I started writing. (Yes, the librarian thought I was crazy, so I know
how Charlie felt!) All the things Charlie says about Bigfoot (the historical
legends, the size of his footprints, the nests, his hair, the Patterson film)
are accurate.
Beauty & the Bigfoot is one of my favorite contemporary
romances. It’s certainly got an unusual plot, interesting characters, and
blends wacky humor with a love story. Here’s the summary and few of those
positive reviews…
BEAUTY & THE BIGFOOT
Can true love exist between the species?
Tara’s world is anything but normal. Her father is known as
the resident crackpot—just because he’s on a personal mission to catch a
Sasquatch. Despite all of the “Bigfoot evidence” cluttering their house, Tara
never really believed in Bigfoot—until the day her father brought him home.
She affectionately names her father’s prized catch ‘Joe’ and
discovers there’s something oddly familiar—and erotic—about him. With a media
circus descending on her father’s ranch and a showdown brewing with the local
sheriff, Tara risks her life to save Joe.
When Tara finally succumbs to her animalistic urges, she
learns that Joe is not exactly who—or what—he seems. Joe is more than a
Sasquatch… he’s her soul mate!
Order Beauty & the Bigfoot here:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B075SL9WT2
All other platforms: https://books2read.com/u/4Dog0Q
A few positive reviews…
“I could use a lot of words to describe Beauty & the
Bigfoot, but if I had to narrow it down to just one word, it would be this:
fun. I knew I was going to be in for a treat when I picked this novella up; there
was just no way a story with a title such as this could take itself seriously.
This story was a hoot and a half, and Ms. Wilkins has definitely been placed on
my “authors to be watched” list because of it.” - Bobby, Reviewer,
Bookwenches.com
"An erotic twist on the classic bigfoot tale! Beauty
& the Bigfoot is a thoroughly entertaining read on a classic legend that I
found enjoyable and sexy! Ms. Wilkins puts a twist on the Bigfoot myth that
left me pleased with the ending. Beauty & the Bigfoot was a well thought
out, erotic, and downright fun read to the end. If you are looking for an
entertaining read, Ms. Wilkins delivers.” - Missy Brown, Reviewer,
Paranormalromance.org
"4 Coffee Cups! I thought this story was going to take
a weird and strange turn when I first started reading it… but I discovered it
to be a regular love story with an odd twist. I enjoyed this book a lot. This
is one story where you will laugh and sigh all in one reading.” - Kimberly,
Reviewer, Coffee Time Romance & More
I hope you enjoyed this “Behind the Scenes” look at the
making of this fun romance. I welcome questions and comments from readers and
other authors. Contact me via the form on my site or on social media.
Happy Reading,
Kelli A. Wilkins
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