Author Interview with AJ Ryder!

This week, we had the pleasure of interviewing romance author AJ Ryder! She wrote a series of novels that celebrate all things geek! From a passionate love affair aboard a Star Trek cruise called, In The Captain’s Quarters, to a tryst at a LARPing event in The Ranger’s Pet and a virtual romance with a few BDSM elements in Submissive’s Quest, Kinky Geeks combines the best of both romance and geekdom. Check out what she has to tell us about romance, publishing and writing great love scenes.

When did you decide to become a writer? Was it something you always wanted to do or did your interest develop over time?

I didn’t start writing until a few years ago. I should preface that by saying that I love playing video games. Anyway, I had just finished playing Dragon Age 2 after its release, and I found myself wanting to know more about what happened in between the time jumps (the game takes place over the course of seven years, so naturally, a LOT of stuff is skipped over, summarized, and just generally left open to the gamer’s own personal headcanons. Well, my headcanons started running amok, so I started writing them down and turning them into fanfiction that I would occasionally publish on various fan sites. Those fanfics led to my writing fanfiction for other fandoms, and the next thing I knew, I was writing regular fiction in my spare time.

Between my own personal writings over the course of these past few years, as well as all of my devouring of various romance novels, becoming a romance author myself seemed to be the next logical step. So…a few months ago, I finally took the plunge and wrote Submissive’s Quest, the first book in my Kinky Geeks series.

You are a self-described rare and elusive girl geek. Do you think that geek girls are really rare, or maybe just in hiding and need a little encouragement to come out?

Oh, there’s definitely a good population of us out there, but we tend not to expose ourselves very often…at least, in the past. We’re kind of like unicorns that way. We’ve gradually become more out and proud thanks to pioneers like Felicia Day, Pamela Horton, Jessica Chobot, and the entirety of Team Unicorn, but it was a long road getting to this point simply because of the sheer amount of trolls we’ve encountered along the way…and sadly still continue to encounter. This is actually depicted very well in the movie Gamers: Hands of Fate.

What do you like to read when you’re not writing? Any favorite books or authors that have helped inspire your work?

Oh, I’ve got a BUNCH of romance authors that I just absolutely adore reading in my downtime! Tamsin Ley, Christine Feehan, and Lynsay Sands are my top three favorites though. Sands was actually the first romance author to get me into the genre, and the first book I ever read by her (Tall, Dark, and Hungry) got me completely hooked and prompted me to discover other authors to satiate my ever-growing hunger for steamy reads.

To be honest though, I do have quite the weakness for paranormal romance novels, as well as romance novels that feature even just a little bit of magic. Not even going to attempt lying about that.

You write romantic erotica with a little BDSM thrown into the mix. Can you tell us a little bit about what first drew you to this genre?

BDSM has gotten a lot of negative attention over the years. Most people associate it with abusive relationships, and to an outsider, I can understand how the more extreme and hardcore aspects of the BDSM lifestyle can appear that way. I mean, there are some practices that I just do not understand the appeal of; but, as the saying goes, “different strokes for different folks”.

The point I’m trying to get at here though, is the fact that in any BDSM relationship (regardless of the intensity and extremeness), consent and trust are BOTH key. Without those two vital aspects, the entire dynamic falls apart. The Dom would never push their sub past their limits without first talking the matter over with them and gaining the sub’s consent. The sub in turn trusts their Dom to respect the boundaries of the consent they have been given even though it would be so incredibly to ignore those boundaries considering the vulnerable positions in which the sub is so often placed. If the Dom and the sub are romantically involved with each other outside of their sessions…well, that level of trust simply opens the two of them up to deeper aspects of their relationship because they literally have all their cards on the table. The entire dynamic of their relationship is founded upon openness, honesty, and trust.

Now…I don’t know about you, but I think that’s a beautiful thing.

A healthy BDSM relationship isn’t abusive, because in a healthy BDSM relationship, the sub is the Dom’s primary concern. It falls to the Dom to assure the sub’s comfort and to ensure that the sub feels safe during a session. It falls to the Dom to care for and nurture their sub after a session. A true Dom is a loving Dom…he (or she) is firm but fair, and I tried to portray that in my stories (particularly in Submissive’s Quest, and Dungeon Master). I also kept in mind the fact that not everyone who might read my stories would be involved in the BDSM lifestyle, so I kept things on the lighter side to make it a bit more accessible to them.

Erotica is becoming more mainstream in recent years. Why do you think it’s become so popular?

I think (partially in any case) it’s because it allows women (and men) to vicariously live out fantasies that they might be too shy or even ashamed to explore with their partner/spouse. Another reason could be the fact that a good “bodice-ripper” really allows the reader to just sit back, unwind, and enjoy the ride…pun partially intended Sure, there’s suspense, comedy, and even adventure thrown in for the sake of making an engaging plot, but they don’t make you use your brain in the same way that say a mystery thriller would, or put you on edge and make you afraid of shadows in the way that a horror novel would. In these increasingly stressful times in which we find ourselves, I think that people are simply looking for a sense of escape and release, and both romance and erotica serve that up perfectly on a silver platter.

For new authors looking to break into the romance/erotica genre, what would you say are the most important components to creating a great story?

Familiarize yourself with the genre by reading…a lot. But, honestly, I think the best advice I can give is to practice, practice, PRACTICE writing love scenes. If you’re not familiar with writing them, then they can be difficult to write in the beginning when you’re first starting out…especially if you’re just starting to dip your toe into the writing pool.

Nothing will take the reader out of the story faster than a badly written love scene. I can speak from my own personal reading experience with this. The time leading up to all the hot and sexy goodness is rife with sexual tension and chemistry between the two, central characters, and the reader is constantly wondering “when will they?”. The love scene (especially the first one) is supposed to be the culmination of all of that. If that scene falls flat, then it kills the mood and the reader is left with a feeling of “that’s it?”.

How was the publishing process for you? Did you go it alone or publish with a company?

I actually publish through a small publishing company called Scarlet Lantern Press, and the process could not be easier. They are friendly, helpful, and are very good about in keeping in contact with their authors throughout the editing and publishing process. They also help in the marketing of the books they publish, so I’m very happy with them.

How do you find your courage? A lot of new writers are scared of putting themselves out there to be judged. So much so, that many of them never even take the first step. What advice would you give to them?

Just do it. Will it always be an easy walk down a primrose path? No, but there’s nothing that quite compares to the feeling of accomplishment that follows once you take that first step.

What’s Next for you? Any new novels coming out or projects that you’re working on?

Well, I did just recently release a collection containing all ten of my Kinky Geeks stories in one delicious volume. It’s available on Amazon in both Kindle and paperback formats.

Aside from that though, I am very excited to report that I am working on a brand new series that will actually be incorporating paranormal/magical aspects. While I can’t say too much about the project at this point, because I’m still in the early stages of writing the first book, I can say that it will feature completely new characters, and take place in a completely different setting from that of my Kinky Geeks series. I will also be exploring different themes and dynamics, and I honestly can’t wait until the first book in the series is finished so I can start sharing it with everyone!

What else would you like our readers to know?

I like cheese…and collecting antique tea cups.