Literotica Authors 10: Geronimo_Appleby

For a few years now I have been conducting a series of interviews with authors on Literotica. This is the tenth in the series, with the author geronimo_appleby. He is a very prolific author, with 248 stories as of this writing. I think you'll appreciate his story.

I hope that you enjoy this series of interviews. Please feel free to send me your feedback, including suggestions of some of your favorite authors you would like to see interviewed. These are the words of the authors themselves; I have conducted a light edit only for formatting, typos, and consistency.

Is there anything about you and your background, beyond what is in your Literotica profile, that you would like your readers to know about you?

Nope.

Your profile says your location is in Vietnam. Is there a story there you'd like to share?

I have to amend that. I'm now back in the United Kingdom. There's no story, per se, but I spent a lot of time there between 2012 and 2018. That all began because, well, someone died which turned out to be the catalyst to a 'fuck it" moment. I basically took off with no end-date in mind; I thought a year tops but it didn't work that way. Started in Belize, Central America and travelled by [Tica] bus along the isthmus to Panama. Did that in a couple of weeks and didn't see much beyond the capital cities. Turned around at Panama City and took a meandering route up to Guatemala and then Mexico by chicken buses. Took three months.

Anyway, after someone took ill in the UK I made a quick return before I bounced out again. That time I went to Southeast Asia. The next six years were all about Thailand, Malaysia, Bali, Vietnam, Australia, even the USA and Canada. Rented accommodations in some of the places, like Ranong, Langkawi, and Hoi An, and other times just did AirBnB, etc. on quick moves. I lived in Spain for six months during that time, too. It sounds bad but I came back to the UK because I actually got bored with it all. Turned out to be a good idea because the whole new situation in the world [the coronavirus pandemic] could have been very much worse on a personal level. Could have gotten stuck somewhere where the medical facilities aren't that great, etc.

Do you remember when you first discovered that you liked reading erotic literature? How did this come about?

I'm not a fan of reading erotic literature.

When did you first begin writing your own erotic literature? What prompted you to write your own?

2004, my first story, Angela. Someone put me onto Literotica, for reasons other than the stories -- and that's another story! However, I liked the idea of writing so I had a go. I remember being very anxious about how it would be received out there in the world. It's quite a big deal to offer something up and wait for the criticism, etc. That's why the trolls are so damaging on Lit, in my opinion anyway. They just bash without giving any valid reason, which can be very influential on someone writing for the first time. So, while waiting for that scene to come up I told myself if it got the red H [meaning designation as a Hot story, a rating of 4.5 or higher], I'd do some more. These days I'm not bothered by scores or feedback. In fact, I started to disable scoring and comments, but back then it was a huge deal. So, the story scored the H and I kept going. I did think about taking a whole load of the scenes down because I cringe when I look back on them all. Then I just leave them up, warts and all, because hopefully there's a progression from absolute crap to something less crap.

You write across a wide range of categories, and have been very prolific, almost 250 stories published so far. When you start out to write a new story, do you start it with a specific category in mind, or do you start with a story idea and then see which category it will fit into as the story develops?

I sort of have the idea in mind before I start. Everything on Lit is experimental. Just to try new things out. I've tried planning scenes in detail, which doesn't work too well for me because I drift off-topic or come up with an idea which jars with the original plan. No plan survives contact with the enemy! Thing is, if I do something off-the-cuff, I lose track of where the hell I am. The Abandoned folder on the laptop is quite large.

Do you have a favorite category that you most prefer to write for? If so, what is it and why is that your favorite?

I tend to go for incest/taboo because it's popular, scarily so, and because it's easy. I do like Loving Wives but it's so polarised in readers' views, and also full of absolute nutters, I got put off. Maybe time to dust that off again? We'll see.

Where do you get your story ideas from, what are your inspirations?

Anything. I once did a scene off-the-cuff while on Langkawi, Malaysia (apologies for name-dropping ... again) after following a hottie along the beach for about a mile. It wasn't intentional in an "Uncle Pervy" sense. I swear she just angled out from her accommodation onto the beach as I was walking along. Her positioning meant she was probably ten yards ahead of me. I think she might have been Russian. Anyway, seeing her rump twitch as she moved along in that red bikini sort of fired up the idea. Other times an idea can come from seeing someone in the supermarket. Maybe they have a certain look about them or something? Yep, ideas come from everywhere and nowhere.

What is your typical writing style - do you work in shorter bursts, writing a section of a story and then putting it aside and returning to it? Or do you sit down and write a story from beginning to end? Do you work on just one story at a time, or do you work on multiple stories at once?

It all gets messy. I'll start something and then drift because real-life gets in the way. I work a few days a month out in the real world -- a proper, grown-up job and everything. I also write scenes for a porn producer and sometimes publish books. The paid work (real, porn scenes, and the books) take priority over Lit, which is why my Abandoned file is so big. I just lose track of what I've done on a scene. Hence the huge gaps in-between submissions on Literotica while other times it's a flurry of activity.

Most readers read erotica in order to be aroused, and many (hopefully!) are also looking for a good plot. How do you balance the need for plot in your stories with the "hotness" factor necessary to get attention on Literotica?

I usually try for the hook, I'm not so hot on plot. I think my voice is kind of stilted and sometimes old-fashioned so I try for nastiness and usually throw in dirty-talk in the dialogue. Some people seem to love it, some are less than enthusiastic. Again, hence why I don't enable comments and scoring. It got tedious trying to please everybody. Impossible. A lot of people get the arse because I didn't include this-or-that, or because I did include it.

When you're not busy writing your own stories, what are you favorite kinds of stories to read on Literotica, and why?

As I said above, I don't particularly enjoy reading erotica. I do look at Lovecraft's stuff because he's a genius! But that's out of envy and admiration. I hate that bloke. *wink* - he knows I'm kidding. We've talked in the past. [You can read my interview with him]

Many readers wonder about the sex lives of the authors they like reading. We all know that most stories on Literotica are fantasy, but do your stories and poems provide a window into your own sexual being that you'd like to share with our readers?

No, they don't, not really aside from my own penchant for mature blonde ladies with large boobs, and that's been a thread since I was 18! Thing is, these days, those mature blonde ladies with large boobs are younger than me! A lot of my characters are as described. Which is probably why I do so much incest/taboo. Mothers, aunts, even grandmothers ... Blonde, large boobs... But as for that being my real-life scene? Nope.

Outside of your erotica, do you do other types of writing, either for work or pleasure?

Ah, yep, I said above. I write scenes for a producer and also try to put a book out every now and again. I also had a gig for about a year, 2012-13, where a bloke in the US used my stuff. That paid enough to fund travel for a few months. I have no idea where the scenes went, however. Lost touch when my email address was compromised in SE Asia. So, Sean, if you're reading this...!

Any specific advice you would give to authors new to writing erotic literature on Lit?

Ignore the trolls and keep going. FIDO -- Fuck it, drive on.

Anything else about you or your writing that you would like our readers to know?

It's all in flux. And thanks for reading.

And thank you geronimo_appleby for this interview!