Stephen Collins Wrote Erotic Fiction In The 90s, Sexual Compulsions Were Favorite Themes

To add to the pile of disturbing news surrounding Stephen Collins, the former "7^th Heaven"actor who is alleged to have confessed in a secret recording by his now ex-wife to molesting and exposing himself to young girls, Gawker has uncovered his erotic mystery novels written in the 1990s. “Eye Contact” (1994) and “Double Exposure” (1998) both feature female characters who have sexual compulsions, primarily the compulsion to expose themselves to men. In the recordings TMZ obtained and released this week, Collins appears to confess to exposing himself to young girls and to at least one instance of inappropriate touching.

“Eye Contact” contains particularly unsettling subject matter in light of the allegations against Collins. Its female protagonist Nicolette, nicknamed “Nick,” discusses the origin of her compulsion to expose herself, indicating that it came from her teenage years. “During her emerging swanhood, she discovered a power previously unimagined. She experienced the effect of removing her clothes in front of the opposite sex. It had been her deepest secret.”

The book also details her efforts to hide her desires. “She began to expend an enormous amount of energy in seeming to be a person who absolutely would not do … such things.” She continues: “By keeping her romantic and her compulsive lives separate, in school, she accomplished two things. She could act out what she didn’t acknowledge or understand was a forceful compulsion while telling herself that she was true to her boyfriends. She didn’t know she was also feeding and nurturing her shame, which became an inconspicuous but constant companion.”

Later, Nick begins to worry about her sexual predilections. “[S]he felt she must certainly be some kind of criminal … she became convinced, deep down, that she was sick.”

"Eye Contact" was published by Bantam Books, and "Double Exposure" was published by William Morrow. Both are still available at Amazon.