We welcome you to Book Dragon Banter, where we (Sage, Katherine, and Zinzi Bree) talk fantasy and romantasy spice, from early reads like Mists of Avalon and Kushiel’s Dart to how modern romantasy has become more explicit on the page. We discuss when sex serves plot versus functioning like erotica, how unhealthy power dynamics, manipulation, and grooming can be portrayed (and sometimes left unaddressed), and why good sex doesn’t equal a healthy relationship. We also talk about foreplay-focused scene structure, common tropes like oral sex, language preferences and euphemisms (including a humorous run-through of terms from Naughty Words for Nice Writers), and the recurring age-gap fantasy problem.

BDB Fable Fantasy Focused Book Club: https://fable.co/club/diverse-fantasy-with-zinzi-bree-271215645134?referralID=f9KdWh3wtd

Current Book: How to Find a Nameless Fae by A.J. Lancaster

Author Site: https://ajlancaster.com/books/other-projects/how-to-find-a-nameless-fae/

Podcast links:

Linktr.ee: https://linktr.ee/bookdragonbanter

TT: https://www.tiktok.com/@bookdragonbanterpod

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/bookdragonbanter/

Other links:

Book Dragon Ink Retreats: https://www.bookdragoneditorial.com/ink-retreats

Write With Me, Zinzi Bree - Substack: https://writewithmezinzibree.substack.com/

Sage: https://readorbleed.substack.com/

Katherine: https://www.bookdragoneditorial.com/

Books Mentioned:

The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley

Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey

The Carry On Series by Rainbow Rowell

ACOTAR by Sarah J Maas

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson

Naughty Words for Nice Writers: A Romance Novel Thesaurus by Cara Bristol

"I Give You My Body . . .": How I Write Sex Scenes by Diana Gabaldon

Bride by Ali Hazelwood

Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger

Bridgerton Series by Julia Quinn

00:00 Uncensored Opener

00:21 Podcast Intro and Topic

00:47 First Fantasy Sex Reads

02:59 Romantasy Gets Explicit

04:17 Grooming and Power Dynamics

06:01 After the Happily Ever After

07:32 First Exposure Stories

09:09 Self Discovery and Communication

10:52 Mind Reading and Mental Load

13:15 Male Gaze vs Female Gaze

14:33 Writing Better Sex Scenes

16:14 Foreplay Tropes and Realism

19:12 Words and Euphemisms

20:55 Sexual Agency and Experience

23:05 Age Gaps and Immortal Lovers

25:53 Twilight Stalker Debate

27:30 Naming Body Parts

28:56 Euphemisms Versus Realism

29:51 Spice Goes Mainstream

30:24 Vagina Word List

32:48 Clit And Breasts Terms

34:31 Bridgerton Garden Metaphor

36:54 Wrap Up And Book Club

38:22 Unhinged Spice Recs

39:1

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