Eric Ross: Blog

When I first wrote Afterglow, it was a celebration of wild sex in wilder places—two people chasing heat, freedom, and each other across the globe. Ginger and Coco were impulsive, untethered, joyfully carnal. But somewhere along the way, I realized that desire without depth couldn’t carry their story forever.

Panic at the Glacier marks a shift. It’s the first time Coco stops running long enough to reveal what’s chasing her.

Set in the eerie stillness of an Icelandic lagoon, this scene cracks open the glossy surface. For the first time, we hear Coco speak about the grief she’s buried beneath bravado. The moment is quiet, heavy, and deeply human. And it’s not just about loss—it’s about what Ginger chooses in the face of it. He doesn’t fix Coco. He doesn’t flee. He simply stays.

With this interlude, Afterglow grows up. It’s still a story of sexual freedom and globe-spanning lust—but now it’s also about what it costs to be known, and what it takes to stay when the laughter fades. This is the beginning of Coco’s backstory—and the beginning of Ginger’s commitment.

Eric

I’ve been having a great conversation with one of my readers, Aardvark8, who offered some sharp and thoughtful feedback on Mazeheart. As a result, I’ve made a few updates to the story—most notably, it now opens with a short prologue from the maze’s point of view.

This addition makes the maze’s sentience explicit from the beginning, grounding the story’s magic and giving the maze its due as a character in its own right. It’s a big improvement over the original version, which left that connection more ambiguous.

“I am not hedge. I am not wall. I am passage, trial, mouth. I open for the worthy. I bite the careless. I crave the ones who hesitate.”

If you’ve already read it, this version adds new depth. If you haven’t, now’s the perfect time to get lost.

Eric

Chapter 5 of Afterglow has arrived, and Ginger and Coco are taking their passion to Paris.

From a secret blowjob in business class to an orgasm under the lights of the Eiffel Tower, Champagne & Sinners is a whirlwind of indulgence, public heat, and quiet vulnerability. But beneath the sex—God, the sex—something more is stirring. Coco’s starting to trust. Ginger’s starting to fall. And Paris, with all its sultry sparkle, might be the moment that shifts everything.

There’s a cabaret handjob, a sex club interlude, and a balcony yoga pose you won’t find in Yoga Journal. But there’s also hesitation. A crack in Coco’s armor. A confession that maybe, just maybe, she’s not running anymore.

And here’s a little tidbit: Afterglow is not quite fiction.

Many of the places in this story are drawn from my real travels. Afterglow is semi-autobiographical. The sex may be fiction, but the cities, the emotional terrain, and the sense of always chasing the next high? That part is very real.

So pour something bubbly, dim the lights, and dive into Chapter 5.

👉 Read Champagne & Sinners now.

Mel’s back—and the jukebox’s not the only thing moaning.

If you’ve been following the Mel series, you know she’s all sharp edges, sharp heels, and even sharper comebacks. In earlier stories, I kept things tight—dialog-only, no narration, all innuendo and sass tossed across yoga mats or cocktail bars. But with The Bell Don’t Ring Itself, I let the scene breathe.

This time, Mel struts into a backroom poker game, settles a score, and drags a tattooed cowboy into a neon-lit alley for a bourbon-soaked encounter that’s equal parts blues song and barroom brawl. The dialogue still crackles—but now there’s sweat on the walls, smoke in the air, and a jukebox humming through every beat.

The story draws inspiration from one of my favorite old blues tunes—Lil Johnson’s “Press My Button (Ring My Bell)”. It’s raw, shameless, and full of heat, just like Mel. I wanted to write a story that felt like that song sounds: dirty, defiant, and irresistible on repeat.

Writing this story was a shift. I realized that while dialog-only stories are fun and punchy, they can also be limiting. Mel demands atmosphere. She demands narrative. She wants the heat of the alley and the glow of the neon to tell part of her story too—and honestly, she was right.

I’ve also started experimenting with OpenArt.ai to create visuals that match the mood of these stories. I’m still learning, but I’d love to hear your thoughts—does the art capture Mel’s fire? Does it hit the right tone?

The Bell Don’t Ring Itself is live now. Feedback always welcome. Mel wouldn’t have it any other way.

Eric

The wild ride of Afterglow continues.

In Chapter 4, Coco trades muddy trails for velvet seats as she and Ginger test the acoustics—and the limits of self-control—in a private opera box. The champagne flows and their bodies collide with the same hunger that’s driven the series so far. But something quieter begins to stir: a note of vulnerability, and a pulse that’s more heart than heat.

If you’ve been following Coco and Ginger since the alley, the coffee shop, and the mountain, you already know: this is more than sex. It’s two people crashing into each other with wit, wildness, and the possibility of something real.

Chapter 4: Opera Boxed is now live.

Missed the earlier chapters? Start from Chapter 1: The Alley.