Can You Keep

A Secret (part 2)...

From the desk of Emily Akuze
Syracuse, New York

Dear You,

If you’re here, it means you've heard something about The Curious Whore.

Maybe someone sent you a line.

Maybe you read a review.

Maybe you saw the title and felt a strange little tug in your chest.

Or maybe you just wanted to know what kind of woman writes something like that.

Either way—welcome, it's nice to meet you and I'm so happy you're here.

My name is Emily Akuze and The Curious Whore is a kind of dumb little dirty story I wrote a few years ago.

It's now turned into a ridiculously popular little series of underground erotic vignettes.

The thing is, as I'm getting older, I think more and more about sex.

Not just the act—but the power of it.

The truth of it.

And how much of ourselves we usually have to hide when we talk about sex.

The things we have to repress.

To water down… just to be OK.

We were mostly taught that to be desirable, we must be good.

Obedient. Pleasant. Subtle.

But desire isn’t subtle.

It’s raw, wet, wild, and holy.

And nobody should have to give us permission to want.

To crave.

To burn the goddamn house down if we want to sometimes.

But consider this your permission slip anyway.

To want more.

To feel it in your belly, in your bones, in your bedroom.

Even if no one else sees it but you.

Why am I telling you all this?

Well, the thing is, I have a secret.

Who am I?

My name is Emily Akuze, I’m 54 (ish). I’m married (second husband - I’m keeping this one).

Two children. A dog.

I live in upstate New York.

And I write love stories.

All kinds.

Sometimes I write sexy ones.

I call them vignettes, but what they really are is love spells.

Which brings me to that secret I wanted to talk to you about.

Every week I write a new one of these little love spells.

One sexy little dirty story.

Different story and characters each week.

The style is classic confessional, first person, with that 1970’s vibe where the world was a bit simpler and darker and dirtier.

I have fun with it, but it’s also about how sex is a powerful energy that just reading about is helpful in all sorts of ways.

Emotionally, understanding self/relationships, transformation etc.

The stories are sexy. Sometimes naughty. Always powerful.

You can read each one in less than 3 minutes (unless you want to savour the feeling, read them real slow and take as long as you want).

I call the series The Curious Whore (mainly because I liked the look on my mother’s face when I told her I was writing it).

And (if you want), I would like to send them to you, a new one each week.

Praise for The Curious Whore...

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “It made me want to start a secret life.”—Anonymous Goodreads review (and possibly my ex)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “If Anaïs Nin and Ottessa Moshfegh had a very dangerous baby.”—@hotbibliowitch

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I didn’t think it would make me cry. Then I didn’t think I’d cry again 15 minutes later.”—T. Delaney, nurse, mother, secret romantic

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ “The most erotic story I’ve ever read that never once described anyone’s genitals.” —Duncan, 44, awkwardly reading it on the train

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I told my therapist I was reading it. He asked for the link.”—Sofia L., ex-Catholic, current mess

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I read it in one sitting, then immediately texted someone I shouldn’t have.”—A reader in Boston

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Not sure if I should frame it or delete my browser history.”—Reddit user u/LowKeyPossessed

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “The pacing of a thriller, the heart of a love story, the soul of a confession.”—@bookburningbeauty

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “There is one sentence in this story that broke something open in me. I won’t tell you which one.”—@quietchaoswords

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “This is the kind of thing I would hide under my mattress.”—Me, if I were you

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I keep buying these stories like they’re vitamins. But for my bad decisions.”

— Angela B., email subscriber

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Claudette is the reason I broke up with my therapist and started journaling with a knife.”— @smutandpsychology

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “This is not erotica. This is a heist. And I am the willing victim.” — Devon S., Instagram DM

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “The Curious Whore gave me more clarity about men than six years of dating and two group chats.”— Julia T., book club review

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I wish I could unread it just to feel that first holy sh*t again.”— @whorecorefanclub

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I didn’t expect to feel seen. And then Claudette made me feel exposed.”— Alison D., 43, Minneapolis

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Like if Dorothy Parker wrote fanfic for Killing Eve.”— Postmodern Pulp Weekly

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Sharp enough to leave a paper cut on your soul.”— The Indie Erotica Authority

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “If you don’t fall in love with Claudette Jones, you’re either dead inside or owe her money.”— Modern Vice Magazine

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “Emily Akuze writes with the kind of precision that should be licensed — or banned.”— The Lit & Lust Dispatch

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ “I just want Claudette to step on me in those stupid pink cheesecake shop heels.”— commenter, Reddit

But you can't buy it anywhere, anymore :(

When the first version of this story was catching fire I self-published it. Cost me $1,972 and I learned a lot.

It wasn’t available in stores. It wasn’t advertised. And still, women everywhere started reading it.

They wrote me long emails that felt like diary entries.

They told me they felt seen.

Some said they had to put it down halfway through and walk around the room.

But then… I pulled it.

Why?

Because I changed.

And even though I still write the series, I didn’t want to just write about love in the shadows anymore.

I wanted to write about love in the light, too.

The soft kind. The awkward kind. The first kind. The last kind.

Love that’s brave. Love that’s funny. Love that’s small and daily and worth paying attention to.

So I started something new: a little daily experiment, called How to Write a Love Letter.

Each morning, I write one tiny little story about love, then I email it to my readers.

Different every day. Always real in some way.

It takes about 3 minutes to read.

It’s 100% free, and always will be. No charge, ever.

And it might just change how you feel about your day, and your life, and everything.

I've got this weird feeling it's important, and I'd love it if you joined in.

Can I bribe you?

So here’s what I'm doing...

If you sign up now - today - for my new little daily love letter experiment, I’ll send you the original copy of The Curious Whore for you to read and keep.

100% free.

All I ask is that you give it a try,

You can cancel anytime and still keep the book, but I think you'll like it.

Think of it as an ethical bribe if you like.

Remember, it’s no longer for sale anymore. It’s not on Amazon. It’s not in stores.

The only place you can get it is right here, right now.

So if you want it—and if you like the idea of also getting a little daily love story delivered free to your email—sign up below.

And tomorrow, a brand new little love story will be waiting for you in your inbox.

But first I'll send you the one that started all the trouble in the first place.

With love (and just the right shade of lipstick on the envelope),

Emily
@EmilyAkuze

P.S. My publishers wanted me to say that this book isn’t for everyone, but then again, neither are you. I'm not sure what they mean by that.

All I know is I had a lot of fun writing this book, and I hope you'll have as much fun in reading it.