Here’s an interview with Jim Lyon. Take it away, Jim…
- How did you start writing erotica?
I was an avid reader of erotica before I started writing it. In the mid 1990s there was so much poorly written erotica on the Internet, complete with glaring grammatical errors and multiple misspellings, that one day I concluded I could do better and have no trouble getting it posted somewhere, since I have a B.A. in Journalism and wrote a play and a few short stories in college. For several years I wrote short erotic stories, mostly with BDSM components, and submitted them to various sites. The first ones were technically correct but not especially dynamic. Eventually I got better at it – on sites that gave readers the opportunity to rate the stories, I consistently received high ratings. That motivated me to keep writing and at one point I became the story editor for the now-defunct ownme.com, which was one of the few sites that copy edited submissions before posting them. Circumstances in my life became such that I needed to concentrate on activities that generated income, so I took a break from writing erotica until 2012, when I decided to write my first erotic book, Uncharted Territory.
- What’s your favourite published work of yours and why?
That would have to be Uncharted Territory. Besides being my first book-length work, it’s also the most creative thing I have written. It started out as a short story involving a lesbian initiating a friends-with-benefits relationship with a male friend, with him as the bottom, but evolved into a longer more complex femdom story as I realized how that scenario might affect the male bottom’s psyche.
- What erotic authors do you enjoy reading?
Anne Desclos aka Pauline Reage, author of Story of O.
- Where do you draw your inspiration from?
Ideas just come to me sometimes when I’m doing things like walking, driving or taking a shower.
- Do you have any unusual writing rituals?
Since I’m a morning person, I prefer writing in the early part of the day. Often when I’m struggling with a scene, I’ll get up and walk around or sit in a comfortable chair and relax.
- Where’s your favourite place to write?
I usually write at my computer, I rarely make handwritten notes or drafts.
- Who is your favourite character from one of your stories and why?
Probably my favorite character is Lola Reynolds, a pop star with a serious pony girl fetish, in my newest book, Accidental Domme (not published yet). I like her because she always finds a way to get what she wants without creating turmoil in her life.
- Do your nearest and dearest know what you do, and if so, what was their reaction when they found out?
My wife has known about my penchant for writing erotica since the beginning. Considering our previous involvement with the BDSM scene in Los Angeles, she has no issues with what I do.
- What was your ideal career when you were a child?
I always wanted to be a writer. Little did I imagine my niche would be erotica.
- How do you get yourself in the mood to write?
I need to be relaxed with an uncluttered mind before I can write effectively. To accomplish that, sometimes I go for a 3 to 4 mile walk or mediate while burning an aromatherapy candle.
- What’s the best writing tip you’ve ever been given?
Always try to help the reader visualize what’s going on.
- If you get writer’s block when you’re writing, how do you get around it?
I just wait it out. I only write when the muse is ready.
- Which author, erotic or otherwise would you love to meet and why?
I would like to meet Elmore Leonard because I admire his lean prose and compelling plots.
- What’s your favourite genre within erotica and why?
I seem to gravitate to variations of femdom, probably because of the role reversals.
- What are you working on at the moment?
I’m trying to get Accidental Domme published and complete a new book tentatively titled Personal Assistant’s Journal.
- What’s the biggest writing challenge you’ve ever taken on? Did you succeed?
Writing an erotic novel and getting it published. It turned out to be easier than I thought it would be.