Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
Currently, I have 15 entries on Amazon, two of which are in the anthologies Erotica After Midnight and Hot Summer Reads. Prior to that, I had over seventy submissions to a free site.
I’m a veteran living in the heart of the Appalachians who loves to spend his time enjoying the outdoors when I’m not writing. I’ve been writing on and off for about twenty years now and have had the fortune to be published in a couple of newspapers for short stories that I wrote. I got into writing erotica a little over ten years ago but put it down to serve my country after 9/11. Three years ago an old friend convinced me to take writing up again and I haven’t looked back since. For over years, I honed my writing skills on a free site, placing 4th and 10th in their Survivor contest before striking out into the indie publishing world.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Bloody Webcams is the latest book. It was inspired by a chat between two members of The Cabin, the group I’ve produced anthologies with. They were throwing out brief scenes, challenging each other to paint an image with as few words a possible. Several of those words, a cupcake, a dildo, and a computer monitor stuck in there and painted their story.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’ve heard of all sorts of habits so I’m really not sure what is unusual anymore. I suppose it’s that I don’t have a dedicated place to write. So many authors have little writing areas where they surround themselves with inspiration. I have yet to carve myself out a little nook like that, though I may have to look into that next year.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
My favorite authors to read are Jim Butcher, John Ringo, and Robert Jordan who I’ve learned quite a bit about world building and character building.
I’ve worked with Tx Tall Tales and Patient Lee on grammar and details in particular to writing erotica.
What are you working on now?
At the moment, I’m working on the fifth book in the transgender erotica series Shelley, titled Shelley: Halloween. Shelley and her boyfriend Matt will be attending a costume party at a transgender friendly resort. The series up till now has been fairly lighthearted and mostly about the sexual exploration of Shelley. With this book, there will be a major plot twist to the series, taking it down a more serious path to bring transgender issues to light.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The best promotion I’ve had was when we were able to get our anthology, Hot Summer Reads, on Bookbub last June. Other than that I’ve been fortunate enough to be in a number of blogs who offer author interviews and the chance to discuss my writing. I’m exploring newsletters now, with some mixed results.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing and don’t get discouraged early on. I wrote seriously for over two years on a free site, putting out over 70 entries onto the site until I figured out what I enjoyed writing and what readers enjoyed me writing. Coming into the paid market was like starting all over from scratch. It will take time for you to build a fanbase and for your name to get out there.
Speaking of getting your name out there, be sure to research out the sites that you choose to advertise through. Make sure that they actually get the results they claim.
Finally, be proactive and protect your work, especially any work you put out on a free site. There are story sites out there that exist simply to scrape your story and post it on their own site. Sometimes they give credit, plenty of times they don’t. There are also plenty of people out there who have no qualms with taking your work and posting it on a place like Amazon or Smashwords for the few months that they’ll get away with it.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
To just keep writing. You can’t get better as a writer if you don’t write. With rare exception, every writer needs feedback to find the problem areas that your stories have. All too often we don’t see the little mistakes, and while correction software has vastly improved, it still isn’t the best at asking the little mistakes that add up to big problems. An incorrect name, an unresolved thread, or a pace that leaves a reader disinterested. You only really get to discover these problems by writing and having people read your stories.
What are you reading now?
Currently, I’m reading Green Rider by Kristen Britain when I’m in the mood for fiction and when I’m in the mood for non-fiction I read Our Mathematical University: My Quest for the Ultimate Nature of Reality by Max Tegmark.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Oh I always have a few projects floating around in the muse. Usually when I finish one book I work on several at a time until one really catches my interest and starts to fill itself out. At the moment, I have ideas for a Shelley Halloween story, a second story for the Roommates Delight series, a continuation of Alice’s story that I started in the Erotica After Midnight anthology, and one or two ideas that haven’t gained much traction but are still floating around there.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Only four? Wow, I have way too many bookshelves full of books to choose only four. But I guess here goes: Kildar by John Ringo, Third Principia by Isaac Newton, Eye of the World by Robert Jordan, and Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Author Websites and Profiles
JC Winchester Website
JC Winchester Amazon Profile
JC Winchester’s Social Media Links
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