When I first read Rachel Kramer Bussel’s call for submissions for her anthology Smooth (titled Naked then), I knew the story I wanted to tell.  I’d had the idea for what would be “Löyly” floating around the edges of my brain for some time, but I needed the focus provided by Rachel’s specific request for naked stories to bind the birch rods of inspiration into a proper flail.

My father’s people are Finnish, and saunas were something he grew up with and taught me and my siblings about when we were young.  There is a rich culture surrounding the Finnish sauna experience, and I tried to honor that tradition while writing a hot and steamy - literally and figuratively - story of discovery and respect.

“Löyly” leads off this anthology of stories by some of today’s best erotica authors. This is what Rachel says about my story in the introduction:

In the opening story, the stunning sauna romp “Löyly,” by Angela Caperton, Sorrow Cove becomes a very happy place when our heroine, Andie, submits to a sensual beating in the intense heat. Caperton writes, “Blood pounded in my veins and pooled suspiciously in my belly. Anticipation added an edge of tension and vulnerability before the bright shock of the strike. It wasn’t hard, but the leaves laced my skin with firm control, a lush wetness and a shimmer of sting that slashed my back with an awakening charge of delight. I closed my eyes, savoring the moment, the fresh scent of the birch binding me in a cloud of awareness and newfound sensation.”