Friday Guest: Kay Jaybee

The most common question I’m asked as an erotica writer is 'Where do you get your ideas from?’ (Closely followed by, 'Have you done all that kinky stuff then- but I ignore that half of the question!)

It is an intriguing question, and one I can only partly give any sort of sensible answer to. This is mostly because, in the main, ideas just come to me. They literally pop into my head, usually at highly inconvenient times. On the school run, in the middle of doing the ironing, when I'm out for a long walk in the middle of nowhere on the only day of the year I have forgotten to carry a pen and paper with me etc etc...

When I stop to think about it properly though, I admit there are trigger points, things that get the subconscious flowing and the creative urges juicing.

Number one for me inspiration wise has to be a great location. I prefer ordinary places in which to set my mini sagas of temptation; places that every reader can relate to and easily picture in their minds eye. Cafes, bookshops, storerooms, clubs, offices, hotels and so on. One of the most enjoyable things about going to a new place for me, is to decide what if (should I mentally will away all the occupants within the said space), could happen there, with one, two, three, or sometimes more invented individuals, and how I might take their clothes off- or not?

The second main starting point for my writing has to be overheard conversations. I like to think I'm observant rather than nosy- but you could argue either way!

It's amazing what an innocent sounding sentence can be turned into if it hits your imagination at the right time and in the right place. This is the major reason I write quietly in public places. I never know if someone nearby will say something that will add that little bit of extra spice to my work.

In fact the entirety of my linked anthology, The Collector (Austin & Macauley, 2008), was based on the premise that people talk about their most intimate secrets in public places. They think they are talking quietly- sometimes they are- did I mention I can lip read? As a result I have literally collected together notebooks full of scribbled ideas from overheard conversations; enough material of erotic interest to compile several anthologies, rather than just one.

Even something as simple as an aroma can set off the creative urges. For example, the smell of new paint wafting towards me as I walked through my local town a few days ago was enough to get me wondering if there are people out there who get their rocks off by painting each other with emulsion...and so a new short story was born (or will be when I’ve finished it!)

My latest novel, The Perfect Submissive, came to life as a short story called Seducing Laura. The first chapter of the novel is based almost entirely on this original story, and centres on the first kinky encounter between the dominatrix, Laura Peters, and handsome artist Samuel in the Fables Hotel where she manages an adult entertainment facility on the exclusive top floor.

The first spark for Seducing Laura came as I watched a friend drawing a picture. There is something very sensual about watching a pencil caress a page...I’ll say no more on that, or it will ruin the novel for you...

By the time I’d developed the novel's central character, Miss Jess Sanders, I knew I had created a creature destined to endure an intense training schedule at the hands of Mrs Peters and her staff, before she ultimately becomes the perfect submissive...

So, where do I get my ideas from? From nowhere; from everywhere; from anything, and everything!
Thanks for your time today,

Kay

*****

If you need to find Kay on any weekday morning, then she's usually to be found in the far corner of her favourite cafe, with a large black coffee in one hand, and a ballpoint pen in the other.

After five years of compiling stories and poems, and reviewing other people's work, she says without doubt, that there is NO going back. Once writing has you in its power you are at its mercy for life. It doesn't pay well, it leads to constant disappointment, and it takes over every other thing you do - but when the publisher says "Yes," and the occasional unexpected royalty cheque arrives in the post, it suddenly all seems worthwhile, and I love it!!

You can find more information on Kay's website: . She's also on Facebook.