I met author
Kallypso Masters this year when I was invited to join the Kentucky Independent
Writers network. She is everything an author should be -- intelligent, witty,
charming, and just as fiercely loyal to her fans as they are to her. I invited
her to do an interview with me for my Indie Romance Novel column, but I was limited in space and not able
to post the entire interview. So, I decided to do that here.
This is the entire uncut interview with Kallypso Masters -- about writing, about her latest book, Nobody's Perfect, and a few other things besides.
This is the entire uncut interview with Kallypso Masters -- about writing, about her latest book, Nobody's Perfect, and a few other things besides.
***********
**Your
latest, Nobody'sPerfect, picks up with Savannah and
Damián eight years after the events in Masters at Arms. What can we expect in this story?
KM -- After
what Savannah went through in Masters
at Arms, Damián finds Savannah totally shut down sexually when
she comes to him for protection after her father and his business partner come
after her and her daughter. This wasn't nearly as erotic as the earlier ones in
the series, because I wanted to show how incredibly patient and slow a partner
needs to be when with an incest or abuse survivor. There are so many triggers
and trauma (including PTSD flashbacks) to learn about and work through. Trust
is always paramount in a BDSM romance, but in this one, it takes months to
establish enough trust that she'll allow Damián to even touch her. And
sometimes she takes one step forward and three steps back, which is very much
like it can be for survivors. Some reviewers complained of the repetition, but
it was there by design. You can't erase that abuse easily.
Another
departure is the type of relationship they have. Rather than exploring the
Dominant/submissive relationship, this couple will be in a Top/bottom one. He
is a Sadist Service Top at the Masters at Arms Club and provides a level of
sadomasochism I haven't shown in earlier stories. While Damián is now a sadist,
he does it more as a service to masochists who need and want that, rather than
experiencing sexual gratification as a sadist. (My stories always are Safe,
Sane, and Consensual, or SSC as it's known in the lifestyle). But the BDSM
scenes in the book are intended to be healing, not to titillate readers. To get
the emotions in the story right, I've been in touch with a number of
submissives and masochists, many of them survivors of abuse and trauma, who
explained to me how sadomasochism helps them release pent-up emotions and
endorphins. Many of my readers and reviewers have said they didn't understand
sadomasochism (and in some cases BDSM itself) until reading this book. Those in
the community have thanked me for portraying their world as the support network
it is and not just about kink, pain, and sex.
Ultimately, Nobody's
Perfect is about healing from past trauma. Both main characters
are so very wounded (emotionally and physically). Damián came home from Iraq an
amputee, feeling like a broken man. Savannah escaped her father's home and
sexual slavery after an incestuous childhood feeling no man could ever want her
because she's not only broken, but dirty, damaged goods. Damián's helping
Savannah redirect those negative messages from the past with more positive
interpretations not only help her heal, but him as well. He draws from her incredible
strength. As in my other books, I have my hero and heroine rescue each other.
It's not about the "damsel in distress" rescue.
**What is it about this couple that draws readers, do you think? It seems that Savi and Damián are everyone's favorite.
KM -- Well,
I think Adam and Karla might still be the favorite of the majority (based on
feedback I've received), but Damián and Savannah are a close second, especially
after this book. But this seemed like a question for my readers to answer, so I
went to the 750 fans who are members of my Facebook The Rescue Me Series Open Discussion Group and asked them. Here is a representation of some of
their responses:
Jo V-P.: I can identify with Savannah's 'mother
bear' attitude to Mari, and can understand her courage to face her problems.
With Damián, it is the fact that he may feel he is 'damaged goods,' but he is
still willing to help others, Patti and Savi, even while it is difficult for
him.
Melanie G.: First love that
turns out to be true love, plus the whole rescue thing… His fierce
protectiveness of her even though he knows they may never be together
romantically again, and his abiding love and patience.
Lisa S.: "For me, the resilience of both
individuals and their strength to survive against the odds is what pulled at
me. Damián being an amputee and having to struggle with the issues he has,
including about being a survivor, and Savi's issues around trust and safety due
to her horrific abuse… Watching the bond form between them SLOWLY and
realistically is what really got me. The fact you took your time to really go
painstakingly slow and not rush the process sucked me in completely.
Melanie I.: "I think it's
because they are so very, very damaged by their pasts…at times in utter
despair, without hope. This makes them kindred souls."
Chasity R.: "Another
aspect for me involving Damián and Savannah's story is the light that is shed
on the BDSM lifestyle and how it really works. Many times there is such a
misconception when someone hears the term 'BDSM' or Dom...Sub...Master, etc.
When I begin talking to people about these books and I get told, 'You are such
a freak,' I always go to Damián and Savannah's story and tell them how the
lifestyle helped her work through her dark past that she has buried. Before she
can truly move on and begin to heal she has to first face it all, and Damián is
able to help her toward that path with his use of BDSM. I think that readers
get such a bigger picture of the lifestyle with this story and it can help
people get past the stereotypical thinking. BDSM truly can help a broken soul
pick up the pieces and rebuild what has been destroyed. This story is a
flawless example of such!! Kuddos to you for your understanding and
views!"
Lesley F.: "There is definitely something about
the Dom/sub relationship that has sucked me in. It's the ability of these Doms
to read these women. To KNOW what they are thinking and getting them to
vocalize it. Pushing the sub's limits sexually AND emotionally in a safe
environment, and then tending to the sub's needs before their own. Men are
typically so focused on their needs being met, and these Doms put the needs of
their sub's first. Awesome!!!!!"
Elisa L.:
"The
realness of their story. As many triggers I had/struggled with at times reading
their story, I found I had a better sense of my own self when I finished
reading it. And have since read it 3 times more. I L O V E them. They just
really really touched me."
Becki W.:
"For me, it was that I identified with both 'broken' characters and seeing
how they helped each other through their problems gives me hope that I can
heal, too."
Serenity S.:
"When they were torn apart due to various circumstances, you wanted so
badly for them to reconnect because you knew that they needed each other to
heal. The tenderness, caring, and deep love that they felt for each other and
their unwillingness to express their love because they felt the other deserved
someone better just tore at my heart. You wanted them to see that they were
perfect for each other and to watch their relationship develop and bloom."
Brandy R.:
"Because they are real and their lives have been so broken and rocky.
People can relate to something that isn't 'normal' because so many of us grew
up with things that others may find abnormal. To know that two people who were
so broken and alone could find true love and be happy gives so many others hope
as to the fact that it can happen for them as well."
Jackie W.:
"I think what draws me to these two characters is that both of them are
fighting battles. Usually it is just one of the characters in a romance, but
both of these are battling their own problems."
Mandy G.: "I was touched by the emotions they
experienced as they learned to trust one another. Very realistic. The unspoken
love that they had for one another and the long journey it took for them to
express it was especially touching. Their love story was beautiful after
experiencing such ugly things."
Maycee M.: They are such strong people. And together the broken
pieces mend. There's a quote about having courage that says bravery doesn't
mean you are not afraid, it means doing it anyway. And for Savannah and Damián,
after all they have gone through separately and together, no one would blame them
for curling up and quitting. But instead they hold their heads high and carry
on. True survivors!
**What drew you to the genre of BDSM and erotica as a backdrop for your stories?
KM -- I've read a few BDSM
non-Romance books since I was 16 (a long, long time ago), but I attended a
Kentucky Romance Writers workshop in March 2009 and first learned about erotic
romance. (I had been out of the romance-writing loop for over a decade while I
pursued my journalism degree and worked as a technical editor/writer.) I'll
admit that the first appeal for the genre was seeing writers were actually
making a living at writing in this subgenre (which wasn't true in other Romance
sub-genres among the writers I knew in real life). So, I went home to see if I
could write one (not having read one, mind you) and within a month I finished a
hot, steamy, dubious-consent novella with coercive BDSM elements. (Nothing like
what I write now, but a romanticized version of what I'd read in the
non-Romance market.) I submitted it to Samhain Publishing where it was rejected
for the anthology they were doing, but they did ask to see more, so that was
one of those "good" rejections we writers talk about. (I never
submitted another book to any publisher again, though, because by the time I
was ready to pursue a career in writing, independent publishing had taken off
and that's the only way to go, in my opinion, if you want to make a living
fast.)
The
following month, I drafted Nobody's Angel
as a ménage story, because I heard those were popular with readers. (I'm
telling you about all my mistakes here! Yeah, I thought I could write to the
market—so wrong.) That one was never submitted and life (and work) began to
consume me, so fast forward two years to Spring 2011. The evil-day-job
pressures kept me from writing, but when my job reverted to an administrative
position, I decided one weekend at a retreat for "The Artist's Way"
that it was time to quit my crazy-maker job. Because Erotic romance had been my
last endeavor (and was the only time I'd ever finished a manuscript despite 20
years of trying before in steamy Romances), I figured I was meant to write in
this sub-genre.
While revising Nobody's Angel multiple times over the
next 4-5 months, I learned that I can't write to the market. Thank God, because
those books never would have connected with readers the way my stories from the
heart do now. (And I even have a T-shirt that says "Write from the
Heart," which I got at a Central New York Romance Writers conference
decades earlier!) So, finally, three weeks before I published that book, I
gutted two-thirds of the original manuscript and wrote from the heart. I tell
my readers Master Marc came to me one morning to say he didn't want to share
anymore, but it actually was a beta reader asking if he really had to share.
Then rereading comments from my editor and another beta reader, I realized it
just wasn't working, mainly because I wasn't believing it myself. I did keep
the threesome scene on the sofa, though. It's a fan favorite I learned in a
recent poll, and my support team all agreed that THAT was working, it was just
what came after that they wanted to see changed.
As for why BDSM,
I read the classic non-romance The Story
of O when I was 16. I think the BDSM world has always fascinated me, even
though I didn't know there was a lifestyle and community until last year while
researching my series. But I didn't really like the dark, hardcore BDSM novels
outside the Romance realm. Once I read Cherise Sinclair's Club Shadowlands, I saw how beautiful such a relationship could be
if it were safe, sane, and consensual (SSC). It's a world misunderstood by many
"vanilla" people (those who aren't in the kink lifestyle), so I
wanted to show a realistic version with people the reader might actually meet
(rather than the fantasy Doms and unrealistic set-ups). I seem to be a gateway
for lots of readers who have never read a BDSM novel before (or at least not a
realistic one). Feeling a responsibility to explain things that another writer would
assume their readers would know, I tend to provide more information when I
introduce some new technique or tem into the series, to keep them from running
off to google a term every other page. That may annoy some who are well-read in
the genre, but I also get messages and Tweets from those in the lifestyle
thanking me for portraying their world in such a positive, realistic way,
especially after that über-popular trilogy that was on the news earlier this
year, which left a lot of people seeing BDSM as something abusive. (While that
wasn't a BDSM-genre novel and I hadn't even heard of it until the Today Show
mentioned it in March, many readers did misconstrue it as what BDSM was all
about, which is far from the truth.)
**Was there a lot of research required for these books?
KM -- Definitely. I don't
live the lifestyle and I'm not a Marine or former military person or family
member. Masters at Arms primarily
required Marine/military research, because I didn't go too deeply into BDSM in
that one. Nine months after it was originally released, I uploaded a new
version that a retired Marine Master Sergeant who is a big fan had gone through
page by page to make sure I got everything right about the Corps he loves. I
just revised the wedding scene in Nobody'sHero, too, because the wife of a retired Marine Lt. Colonel noticed
something I had gotten wrong. But that same woman just "pimped" me
out to a Marine recruiter today while her son was taking his test to try to get
a Marine ROTC scholarship, because I do portray the Marine ethos so well.
As for the BDSM, I was
writing Nobody's Hero late last year
when I was adopted by a submissive who asked her Dom, Toymaker on FetLife.com,
to be available to me if I had questions. Boy, did I ever jump at that
opportunity! He's been in the lifestyle for more than 20 years and now mentors
other Doms. This couple helped me understand from both perspectives the
dynamics of the Dom/sub relationship, especially one in which past abuse of the
sub was an issue. Toymaker added warm-up techniques in the Shibari scene that
took it to a whole new level of sensuality. He also provides technical
assistance and helped me plan the play scenes in Nobody's Perfect to achieve the goals Damián had in those scenes.
Toymaker has worked with a number of submissives dealing with past abuse issues
and helped me see that it's not possible to erase those negative messages, but
a patient and well-trained Dom can work to redirect those messages and help the
submissive stay in the moment when flashbacks are triggered.
**Are there any more books in this series? And what will you write next?
KM -- There is no end in
sight. In fact, when I asked readers in my Facebook series discussion group who
else they wanted to see books about, they literally named every secondary character, including "the next
generation." I have ideas for about a dozen books in this series (and I
just published #4), plus a spin-off series with Angelina's firefighter brothers
and Victor and Patti from Nobody's
Perfect. My goal is to publish two books a year starting in 2013 (I
averaged two a year in my first two years), so I'll be writing for a very long
time. Unlike some writers, I really have no desire to branch out into some
other world or sub-genre at this time. I have left so many characters with
unresolved issues or in desperate need of Happily Ever After (HEA) endings that
I feel compelled to write as quickly as I can in order to get them the
happiness they all deserve.
Next up is Somebody's Angel, the HEA for Marc and
Angelina who were left at Happy For Now in Nobody's
Angel. I hope to get back to writing as soon as I get the first four books
out in print. Originally, they were supposed to reach their HEA as a subplot in
Nobody's Perfect, but when I realized
what it was that Marc had buried so deep inside even HE didn't know it was
there, I saw that it would be a distraction to bounce back and forth between
the two plots. Besides, Damián and Savannah needed their space to deal with
their issues in what was already a very long novel (172,000 words!). So, I
decided a month before publishing Nobody's
Perfect that book five in the series now would be Somebody's Angel, running simultaneous to most of the timeline in Nobody's Perfect, but taking the series
just a little further into the future at the ending. Then will come the
long-awaited story of Luke in Nobody's
Dream. I won't put that one off any longer!
![]() |
Masters at Arms is the first book in the series and is a free read. |
Thanks so much for
having me, Jesse! I'd like to invite your readers to download the free
introduction to this series, Masters at Arms, which provides prequels to three of the following books in the
series, but is primarily intended to show how these three Doms bonded together
in Iraq and what their earlier experiences with BDSM had been. They can get a
list of buy links at all booksellers where the books are sold by going to http://kallypsomasters.blogspot.com/p/books-by-kallypso-masters.html.
You can find Kallypso Masters books at all online booksellers. I recommend them highly!
4 comments:
I looooove this lady. Go out and buy her books people. You won't regret it.
rmwyer at shaw dot ca
Read this series NOW! You will love it! Start at the beginning and then start again!
modularmates(at)comcast(dot)net
I agree-get Kally's books now! They are excellent! Hers is the kind of series that stays in the front of your mind and you find yourself reading over and over again!
Great interview! Thanks for sharing.
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