Guilt

The Guardian has a column on guilty pleasure reads, which the author defines as books you hungrily consume while denying any interest in public. It is an interesting concept. While I certainly have guilty pleasure listens (such as) I don't really have guilty pleasure reads. Instead I have books which I don't want to be seen reading, although I will own up if asked. Fantasy novels are the obvious candidate. See here for a lengthy description of how to get your art published on a fantasy novel. When discussing the books you can talk plot instead of thinking about covers which can be described in this way:

This figure is sexy, strong, and in command of the situation without being obviously posed strictly for titillation. Royo explores all kinds of dark and erotic themes in his personal work but, for his book covers he is able to pull back a bit for the more conservative book publishing market.

When I take the light rail to work, I of course scan the books of my fellow riders. And I presume they are scanning mine. So I'd rather not have something with dark and erotic themes. I'd feel like one of those creepy guys looking at porn at the library.