This is a book about writing sex scenes and erotica, but more importantly, it's a book about good writing, period. Even a writer who does not include a single erotic or explicit scene in his work would benefit greatly from reading this book. I've owned this book for a decade and have read it many times, and it's on my short list of the four or five most important books a beginning writer of fiction can read. The best thing about it is it answers some simple agonizing but common questions an author has--even if there is no explicit sex in his work.For instance, she concisely answers one of the most agonizing questions beginning writers have: "What do I call it". Meaning the genitals of a man or woman character. I mean (I went through this myself) I don't want to offend anybody, and the terms used by practically everybody would be vulgar in polite company, but I don't want to be cute or evasive or trite. So what do I call it? A fellow writing friend of mine asked me to read some of his work, and in it he referred to a man's member as his "manhood". I laughed so hard I almost fell out of my chair. I do not want to evoke that reaction in one of my serious works of fiction, however few erotic scenes they might contain.So in answer to this question which has undoubtedly agonized many of the best writers (James Lee Burke calls it a "phallus", which is technically correct but might not be immediately recognized for what it is by the average reader) in comes Benedict riding a white horse and waving a simple answer over her head. Like anything else, you call it what your character would call it. Bang! Simple as that, and right on the nose. A doctor might use clinical terms, but most others will use the common and vulgar terms amongst friends and lovers. Like Alexander, Benedict cleaves the Gordian knot with a single sword stroke and settles a question about an issue so many writers worry about and never seem to get right, in their attempts to be polite. Don't worry about who you might offend. Think about what the character would call it, and have the character call it that. Period. It isn't like 99% of people have never heard the word "d*ck" before.That's just one single practical bit of advice you get from this book. There is such a density of useful knowledge in this short book it should weigh as much as if it were solid Uranium. Again, like I said, there's so much good teaching about good writing in this book, even if your own fiction contains no intimate scenes whatsoever, you have much to gain from reading Benedict's book.A caveat: this is a book about writing about sex. The author, quite appropriately, includes extremely explicit segments quoted from some of the best writers of erotica or simply erotic scenes in history. Informative, and very instructive (not just in writing about intimate scenes) but if that sort of thing offends you, you should probably avoid this book. But if not, you need to read this book. You will learn a lot about not just writing intimate scenes well, but about writing well, period.