(My) Writing about (My) Writing

For those folks that are interested in the pieces I have published on the web about my own writing process and struggles as a writer.

About “Trying Submission,” which was printed in Best Lesbian Erotica Vol 3:

• The Alchemy of D/s (in which I discuss service-based submission and the way D/s can transform mundane events because of the dynamic and meaning we bring to them, and how that works in the story)

About “Strong”, which was printed in Best Lesbian Erotica 2015, Say Please: Lesbian BDSM Erotica and Show Yourself to Me:

• gender and misogyny: responsibility and erotic writing (in which I describe the revision process for this story)
• My Stop on the Say Please Blog Tour (in which I tell the origin story for this piece, and of my piece “A Lesson About Gender”, which was printed in Pleasure Bound)
• Exchanging Power: Vulnerable Tops and Strong Supportive Bottoms (in which I talk about my revision for “Strong” and the Patrick Califia story that helped me figure it out)

About “Ready”, which was printed in Biker Boys, Coming Together: In Flux, Coming Together: With a Twist, and Show Yourself to Me:

• On the Edge (in which I describe the origins of this story, my writing process, and my desire to create vulnerable tops)

About “Baxter’s Boy”, which was printed in The Big Book of Orgasms and Show Yourself to Me:

• Orgasm Anthology (in which I describe the origins of this story, and my writing process)
• Desiring Faggotry (in which I connect this story to my own life and desires)

About “What I Need”, which was printed in Best Lesbian Erotica 2014 and Show Yourself to Me:

• Orgasm Control for the Reader? (in which I contemplate when and if to include orgasm in erotic fiction, and the idea of leaving the reader hanging)

About “Facing the Dark”, which was printed in Backdraft: Firemen Erotica, Coming Together: Pro Bono, and Show Yourself to Me:

• The Backstory Behind My Story in Backdraft (in which I describe the origins of this story and discuss my writing process, my prioritization of internal conflict in erotica, and offer excerpts)

About “Nervous Boy”, which was printed in Love At First Sting, Bondage By the Bay: Tales of BDSM in San Francisco, and Show Yourself to Me:

• The Making of Nervous Boy (in which I describe the origins of this story)
• Independent Body Parts in Erotic Fiction (in which I discuss this tool giving multiple examples from my own erotica, with particular attention to “Nervous Boy”)

About “Compersion”, which was printed in I Like to Watch and Show Yourself to Me:

• On Compersion (in which I tell the backstory for this particular piece, talk about compersion in general, and discuss the release of Alison Ty;er’s book Never Say Never, which excerpts this story)

About “Alley Obsession” and “The Test”, both printed in Got a Minute? and Show Yourself to Me:

• Last couple days of a big sale (in which I tell the backstory of these two shorter pieces)
• Got A Minute? (in which I discuss the inspiration of these two shorter pieces)
• Hot for Fag Public Sex, in which I talk about the connection between “Alley Obsession” and my own personal sexual history

About “Please”, printed in Best Women’s Erotica 2008,  and it’s sequel story “How He Likes It”, printed in Best Lesbian Erotica 2012, both printed in Show Yourself to Me:

• On the trouble that can come from writing to meet our own needs (in which I tell the backstory of and talk critically about these stories, and discuss the trouble that can arise from writing to meet my own needs, and how I’ve addressed it with these stories)

About “It’s My Job”, printed in Hot Daddies and Show Yourself to Me:

• On Writing Daddy Porn (in which I discuss why I write Daddy porn and describe my writing process for this story)

Here are a few general pieces about writing erotica

• illustrating verbal negotiation of consent in sex scenes (in which I discuss my desire to explicitly illustrate consent and give an example and links to other examples)
• How much realism *should* be part of BDSM erotica? (in which I discuss my own investment in creating BDSM erotica that is realistic, and why I care about that)
• Erotica Writing and Responsibility (in which I discuss the idea that readers use erotica as a source of sex education)
• What do you read to spark your writing? (about the kinds of things I read to spark my writing, specifically my new novel)
• Working With Alison Tyler (in which I discuss her influence on my work, as an editor)
• Erotica Featuring Group Sex (in which I discuss group sex in erotica, offer an annotated list of some of my favorite stories, and describe each of my own stories that contain group sex, complete with excerpts)
• Aftercare: In Kink and Erotica (in which I discuss aftercare in my own life and how I incorporate it into my kink erotica, giving examples)
• Imagining Disabled Characters in Erotica (in which I discuss what I would get out of having more representation of disability in erotica and a new practice in my own work of centering disabled characters)
• Writing Erotica for Trans Readers, Part 1 (in which I discuss being a trans reader of erotica), Part 2 (in which I discuss strategies I use when writing for trans readers), & Part 3 (in which I discuss whether my strategy of not providing detailed descriptions of bodies leaves something missing)
• How We Talk About Play (in which I discuss the importance of mutuality in BDSM and representations of kink culture in erotic fiction, and give examples from my own work)
• On Writing Anal Sex (in which I discuss writing anal sex scenes and give some advice about it)
• Fat Characters in Romance and Erotica (in which I discuss a trope I hate and my own erotic fiction centering fat characters)
• The Tipping Point (in which I talk about the tipping point into D/s and how I write it)
• Writing Erotica as a Disabled Top (in which I talk about writing disabled characters into my stories and give a concrete revision example)
• I wrote about editing erotica stories to include top vulnerability.
• I break down Why I Care About Depicting Survivors of Abusive BDSM Continuing to Do Kink.