My article about the different reactions  to Thief is now up on The Huffington Post.

I had more to say about the concept of the demon lover, but I wanted to keep the article under 1,000 words. The gist of what I wanted to say was this: though I didn't know the term demon lover when I was 13, I did understand the concept.

Why? Because I listened to Heart's song "Magic Man."

In 8th grade I sat with a friend of mine talking about a boy we both knew, and I told her that song was how the boy made me feel.

It seems funny now — the boy was another 8th grader and not a man at all. But he was daring in a way other boys  weren't, and when he touched me, I felt as though I was in the presence of something larger and stranger than anything I had ever known.

I've said often that I believe sex is a life force, and I think that was what I meant even then. I could feel that force in the boy, and it compelled me and he compelled me. He kissed me even more hungrily than I kissed him. It scared me a little, but I knew I wanted to get close to whatever the power was between us.