Thursday 26 March 2015

Author Interview: Michelle Knight


About the Author:

To describe Michelle as, "average," is to say that Mount Snowdon is, "a bit of a hill in North West Wales." Writing is one of her passions, along with photography, music, computers and a host of other things. (She's a very passionate person.)

She had short stories published in '95 and released her first book in '96 because she thought outside the box and had the audacity to ask a publisher what they were short of.

With a career in IT, she spent a couple of years working in Europe, learning phrases like, "Ein weiss bier bitte," (A white bier please) and, "mein Freund bezahlt." (my friend pays) Michelle also got so good at saying, (in Dutch) that her, "Dutch was no good, could you speak English please;" that people nodded and acknowledged her ... in Dutch ... causing her to repeat the statement!

She has also spent a chunk of her life as a BDSM submissive and has decided to return to writing in an effort to give her audience a taste of her experiences, "in the scene," and some of the realities facing those who live this lifestyle, in present day British society.

Now living with her mother in Sussex, in the UK, Michelle spends her free time trying to catch a glimpse of the mysterious sign on her back that says, "Will repair computers for wine." Her idea of a relaxing time is with friends, in a riverside country pub, with a ploughman’s lunch and a nice, cold pint of cider. Most of her reading these days consists of very large I.T. technical manuals. She doesn't suffer from insomnia.

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Thanks for having me!

Do you plan everything or just let the story flow?

I have an overarching plan, a beginning and an end. Occasionally I have a scene or two that I want to work in, but the details themselves tend to flow. Each of the books has its own message and they have their own flows to fulfil what was needed, so they are all different reads.

Do your characters ever want to take over the story? 

Not really. They’re British and very reserved!

What is your favourite food?

I think a good beef chow mein is my favourite. Failing that, chicken and rice!

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Definitely a morning person. I’m normally awake at about 3am to 4am. I leave home for work at 6:30am so that probably has something to do with it!

Where do you dream of travelling to and why?

Actually, I don’t. I hate travelling. Or rather, I hate flying. Hang on, scratch that; I hate airports. When I spent two years working in Europe, I would drive from Folkestone to Muenchen, which is around seven hundred miles each way … that’s how much I hate airports! Commuting has tempered my desire to travel very far right now.


Do distant places feature in your books?

If the story is set in the present, like the Submissive Heart series, then I tend to stick to places that I know. When I deal with our world then it’s important that the locations feel real. Generally speaking, I don’t like to write about real places where I haven’t actually been. I feel awkward and insincere if I write about somewhere that I don't really know. I’ll do it if I have to, but I try not to. If I’m writing fantasy, then of course it could be anywhere at any time.

Do you listen to music while writing?

When I’m getting down some tricky detail then no; I have to see the scene in my head which needs concentration. If I’m editing and polishing then I do. My taste is all over the place from classic to rock. No real preference.

Could you tell us a bit about your latest release?

The latest release is book 2 in the Submissive Heart series, titled, “The Reluctant Leader.” It deals with two things. The first is giving the reader a taste of the legal and censorship issues facing BDSM people in the UK right now, and the second is that it takes a look at the dominant side of D/s relationships. While the main characters are M/f, a different female character had to learn about what it means to take control of someone’s life and that is an F/m thread. Also, the story line from book one becomes stronger and things start to tangle in readiness for book three. Difficult to detail that without spoiling it!

What have you learned about writing and publishing since you first started?

I first started in the mid ‘90s with a few short stories and novellas. I was writing for a very closed audience. A small box full of the finished book would land on my doormat and it was breath taking to see my name in print! Then, life took a turn and most of my writing was for the Internet, although I did compile some earlier shorts in to a book in 2002 and then I wrote “Companion” as a film script in 2005. By the time it came to re-write Companion as the first book in the series and return to publishing properly, a lot had changed. Reviewing had gone on-line and the Internet had opened up the world. A whole new set of rules to learn and a lot of competition, plus seeing my name in print isn’t as magical; I’ve grown and now my excitement comes from reader feedback. Physical book production has also changed; we now have print-on-demand so there is no need for books to ever go out of print again, which is an incredible thing!

Is there anything you would do differently?

Yes. I wrote Companion as a film script because I thought that there would be control over the imagery, so that it would eliminate any misinterpretation. The series is more about fact and emotion rather than porn action. However, I should have taken the chance and released it as a book, because unless you’re already in the film industry then no one seems to want to know you and I wasted many years.

Who, or what, if anything has influenced your writing?

Helping people. Long story short, I’m transsexual and when I put my experiences on the internet in the mid 90’s, people came back to me with reports of how my story helped them. I then spent two years in Germany where BDSM was more open and I gained the confidence to start the realbondage web site in 2002. I pretty much got the same response; what I was putting up, helped people. So the main drive for much of what I’ve done in my book and web site writing, has been dispelling myths and getting some truth out there.

Anything you would say to those just starting out in the craft?

Oh, lots! One is don’t give up. I’m doing this and I’m dyslexic. Don’t expect success overnight. Some books have been there for decades before society has discovered them; your baby might be weaning for a while! There’s much more advice on my web site. The last thing I’d say is, do it your way. Take a look at other people’s techniques and take what works for you.

What are three words that describe you?

Listener, creative and pedantic.

What's your favourite book or who is your favourite writer?

Arm up my back, forced to pick one, “Blott On The Landscape,” by Tom Sharpe. The BBC made it in to a mini series and it was quite, “British funny,” if you know what I mean!

Blurb of your latest release or coming soon book

Here's the blurb for book3, “From The Cradle,” due later this year - “The skeletons were out of the closet. So that they could spend more time together, L's closest friend, Kate, had gone through the nervewracking process of understanding the relationship that Mark and L enjoyed. As it turned out L would need all the friends she could muster as the skeletons were now trampling all over her life. They needed to be put into caskets and told forecefully to either rest in peace, or rest in pieces. In amongst herding the walking dead, L's life was going to change in a manner that she hadn't predicted...”

List of previous books if any

The previous books are, “Broken Spirits,” and “Genii In A Bottle and other stories,” but they were written when I was still learning and I cringe at my writing that early on!

Any websites/places readers can find you on the web.

My main site is http://www.msknight.co.uk and there’s a few things up there which include a few other shorts and fan-fic that I’ve written.

There’s also the adult site http://www.realbondage.co.uk – but that’s definitely not safe for work!

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Title - The Companion - book 1 of the Submissive Heart series
Author - Michelle Knight
Genre - Erotic Romance
Book length - 170 pages physical approx
Available from Amazon UK | US

Book Description:

All she wanted was to make other people's lives better. All they did was make her life worse. 

A chance meeting was all it took and she was introduced to a different way of life. When it came to society's way or the highway, she had never considered what might come of choosing the highway.

This is the journey of a woman into sexual enlightenment. Follow her transition from vanilla to 'the scene' - it is a highly erotic journey and depicts a path that countless women have travelled down in the past and countless more wish they had done so. Maybe now is their chance to follow Susan as we discover her own passionate, submissive journey into the freedom she was so hungry to find.

Series Link:
http://msknight.co.uk/behind-03.html

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