Interview with spanking author Susan Thomas

Interview with spanking author, Susan Thomas.

It's always good to showcase other spanking authors, and I have Susan Thomas with me today, sharing news about her latest release and information about her work in progress.



Abigail
How long have you been writing spanking fiction?

Susan
Ten years now and no more. My first story was really almost an accident. It was written for an online friend I wouldn’t be able to IM for some days, so I wrote it as a sort of going away present. My friend insisted on sending it to someone to publish and to my surprise it was. That was the start, now it is hard to stop, and I also write non-spanking fiction.



Abigail
Did you read spanking fiction before you started writing it yourself?

Susan
Oh yes indeed. Once I had access to the Internet I began searching and was astonished by how much there was. I also used to come across references in ordinary novels, sometimes no more than hints, but I read those most carefully. I always kept it secret though, it was very much a guilty late night pleasure. I was always particularly excited by the ‘innocent young woman gets caught up in something and ends getting spanked’ type of story. Also any story where a young teacher finds herself in a situation where she has to be punished. That was probably because I was a young teacher.


Abigail
Do you produce detailed plots in advance or do you adopt a more relaxed approached and just go with the flow?

Susan
Abigail that’s almost a funny question as far as I’m concerned. I have listened to authors talk and some have told how they lay out each chapter in a sketch and then come back to write those chapters. I start with an idea and believe I will stick with it but I rarely do. The story seems to take over and some characters are extraordinarily willful and will just not do what I tell them. In the end I just give in and let the story and the characters take me along - all I do is type.

Some of my short stories are not like that; they appear complete in my head and I just write them. Usually the appearance is in the middle of the night when I really should be sleeping. One story I composed entirely in my head while lying on an intensive care ward bed. You would think that the mind would not be capable of doing that when the body is in such a bad state but I promise it’s true. When I eventually recovered I wrote it up with no changes.



Abigail
Who is the favourite character you've come up with and why?

Susan
I think Erin in Erin’s Visit is my favourite. She is the girl I would like to have been if my early life had been different. She has my independence of thought; not for her the route laid out to university and career, instead she chooses to work for her uncle in small town America. She is realistic enough to see she had better subscribe to the spanking ethos that she now lives in and I'm certainly realistic. She is brave enough to take the punishments handed out to her; well I hope I would too though I’m not sure I’m as brave as her. She is a kind girl and I do try hard with that, it is something I value. A little kindness goes a long way in this world.



Abigail
Are you a spanko, or someone who just likes to write about it?

Susan
Now that is a difficult question for me. Until my early thirties I didn’t really have any interest in spanking. I did have an experience in my first year of teaching when my boyfriend (a colleague) spanked me and I dumped him rapidly after that. I was outraged that he should feel he had the right. Then in my early thirties it seemed to me everything changed and I thought a great deal about it. That’s when I began exploring the whole world of spanking. It was very cautiously I can tell you. I was terrified someone would find out. Finally I had a short spanking relationship with another woman. I suppose that all makes me a spanko but perhaps a late convert.


Abigail
Does your family know about your spanking stories and books?

Susan
My husband does and he often discusses one with me. My parents-in-law also know, my father-in-law in particular. I expect that sounds very strange indeed but it all sort of happened by accident and to us is seems normal. None of my children or friends do. My eldest daughter knows I write but she only ever sees the non-spanking stuff. I tell my friends I also write erotica but I never show them anything.


Abigail
What is your favourite spanking implement?

Susan
My goodness another hard question for me. It implies I like being spanked, which I don’t! As far as I am concerned it hurts, but the problem is I like the possibility of it and most definitely the afterwards. Some years ago now I entered a sort of DD relationship with my husband. Not one of those where he tells me what to do every minute of the day or what to wear but he definitely wears the in-charge badge and he can spank me… and does. That may shock some but we are now very close as a result and happy like that. It is an arrangement that may well have saved our marriage. He mainly uses his hand but he also uses a small leather spanking paddle. Of those two I prefer his hand. I also, just like India Heath, enjoy the intimacy of that.


Abigail
What are your favourite spanking sub genres?

Susan
I am not sure I have one. I don’t like brutality or cruelty in any spanking story. Nor do I like male spankers who simply assume the right to spank. My spankers must be essentially very kind and when they spank it is for the lady’s own good and not be excessive. Though of course excessive is in the eye of the beholder.

I quite like romance but I have read some which left me wondering what on earth the girl could see in the man. Western romances are often quite good because it is a male dominated world but with rules and almost all the cowboy heroes only ever spank for the good of the girl who always seems intent on doing something silly. I suppose I am a hard to satisfy reader!



Abigail
Spanking has always been a hot and often contentious topic. What makes it a hot topic for you?

Susan
I suppose it is to do with submission. Inevitably the girl or woman spanked must submit to the strong man who spanks her. She may squeal and kick but deep down she knows it is for her good. That is why it is important in my fiction world that the man be strong but kind. I am generally considered a strong person and I cannot imagine myself submitting to anyone not like that. I also adore the cathartic nature of being spanked. I might get myself really het up but after a spanking I am calm and full of well-being.



Abigail
Can you tell us about any of your works in progress?

Susan
Yes of course. I am attempting to write my first proper spanking novel. I would really describe anything lengthy I have written before as either a long serial or simply a long story and I’m really enjoying the challenge of it.

I suppose it is a sort of spanking mystery story set on an imaginary island. It appears to outsiders as simply an island enclave for the rich but the men are in charge in a most chivalrous way; there is even a court of gentleman where ‘ungentlemanly’ behaviour is put on trial. The women can and do get spanked but have all chosen the life. My heroine senses though that there is somebody behind the men who run the island… but who are they and why are they hiding? Her friend too is telling lies but she can’t work out why, and someone is spying on her. Needless to say her attempts at finding out end with many a sore bottom before she finds out the truth. I have no idea whether anyone else will enjoy reading it but I am enjoying writing it. The working title is Chapel Island.

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So far so good, and here's some info about Susan's published books:
Erin's Visit

Instead of going to University, Erin decides to go to America and stay with her Aunt Nicola and Uncle Jack, and work at the family business. Erin's mother has some misgivings as her churchgoing sister and brother-in-law live in a strongly religious area. Undeterred, Erin makes the trip, and discovers that she is now in a totally different environment and culture - because here in this devout Christian community, spankings are the norm. She finds that the church endorses physical chastisement and all the neighbouring houses have a church-approved spanking paddle hanging up in their homes. Erin realises her status as an unspanked 18-year old may mean she may not be popular with the other girls - so she takes steps to sign up to receiving regular spankings from her Uncle Jack. This is a rite-of-passage tale for Erin, who begins to learn the meaning of traditional discipline. She starts a relationship with local boy Josh who comes from an extremely strict family, and as their relationship develops, Erin grows in confidence and maturity and also learns more about the community in which she lives.




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And here's Susan's new release - Spanking the Secretary's Bottom
When Helen takes a job as a secretary at the prestigious Lady Alice school she is shocked and intrigued to discover that the headmaster, Dr Croft, canes the upper sixth girls. As her fascination with corporal punishment grows, she manages to get the headmaster to punish her for her own misdeeds - to their mutual satisfaction.

When a lucrative job offer comes up in government, Helen takes it, and makes the acquaintance of eligible bachelor, Crispin. The two become close, and Helen soon finds that Crispin canes far harder than Dr Croft ever did! It is not long before she becomes a regular visitor at Crispin's family home. The wealthy upper class family is headed by Crispin's father, the General, who takes discipline in the family very seriously, and does not hesitate to punish unacceptable behaviour.

Helen experiences two hard canings and a painful birching at the hands of the General. Yet in spite of the discipline, she feels more welcomed and loved by Crispin's family than by her own. As her relationship with Crispin deepens, a wedding is on the cards...



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Thanks very much Sue. Good luck with your sales, and do try and find time to finish the new book you're writing. I'm looking forward to it.

Erin's Visit is Available from Amazon & LSF Publications. Click here for further info.

Spanking the Secretary's Bottomis Available from Amazon & LSF Publications. Click here for further info.