Down and Dirty with TH Dillon

Down and Dirty with TH Dillon

Meet TH Dillon

His new book More Presents will be coming out later this year. 

Meet TH

Tell us about yourself....

Well....I am a Midwestern boy through and through. I was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin....and I’ve pretty much lived in the Madison area for most of my life (I’m 34 now). I guess I’m your typical All-American male in that I’m big, strong, athletic, etc. I love being outdoors. I love sports. I love cars. But I also enjoy a lot of things that many people wouldn’t associate with the All-American male stereotype. I am a mash-up of sorts, in that everything I have lived through, experienced, or endured in my life....has in some way left a mark on me as a person.

I grew up in your typical Midwestern, middle-class, conservative, suburban environment. I grew up going to church every Sunday. It was typical small-town suburbia life growing up. I am the youngest of three kids. By the time I graduated from high-school, I thought I knew some things about the world and the way it worked. And then I proceeded to start a tenure at the “School of Hard Knocks”....and get a very hard education in the way this world really is, or at least the way it really can be. My first job after graduating from high-school was as a used-car salesman. That was a very eye-opening experience to start. I thought I knew what it meant to be resented, because I grew up feeling resented by my older sisters for being the baby and the only boy and the fact that I got treated somewhat differently than they did. But then you find yourself walking out onto a car lot one day to greet complete strangers and welcome them....only to have them actually speed up and try and run you over! And you find yourself trying to make a living in a profession that some people REALLY vilify! And you start to lose respect for yourself at a young age....and then things just start to snowball from there.

Where my life went from there is so incredible and unbelievable at times, that I still have trouble comprehending that I survived it all and have come out of it a very strong, confident, and secure man. But also a more accepting and aware individual. A lot of things I went through in my 20’s challenged my faith, and even the concept of God as I knew it. A lot of what I was taught in church growing up, all of a sudden wasn’t making sense because I was living in worlds where those beliefs didn’t exist. So I’ve been forced to re-examine my beliefs over the years, adapt what I’ve come to know as the truth about some things, and evolve into the man I am today. And that man is a very middle-of-the-road, common sense type.

Nowadays, I am just happy to still be alive. I try to find pleasure in the simple things, because I spent too many years missing out on those joys in life. I still am an avid movie buff, as I have been my entire life. I still bleed green & gold for my Green Bay Packers, as I always will. And I still enjoy being outdoors whenever possible, to enjoy the masterful creations of nature.

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

You know it is funny how some people know what they want to be from their earliest memories, and some people don’t figure out what they want to do with their lives until they’re older. Being a writer was not my dream as a kid growing up. But the elements that go into being a writer have always been inside me....I just never put two and two together until about 2007.

My dream growing up was to be a pro-wrestler. I saw it on TV for the first time when I was 5 or 6 years old, and it just immediately captured my imagination. I knew right then and there that it was what I wanted to be when I grew up. But my father HATED that idea...and my mother was always worried that I would get dropped on my head wrong and end up paralyzed with a broken neck. And that is a very valid fear to have in that industry because it has happened on more than one occasion to individuals. So I fought back and forth with my parents all during my youth about being a pro-wrestler when I grew up. Then one day I got run over by a car walking home from high-school....and my athletic aspirations for football or baseball scholarships just kind of went out the window, along with any serious thoughts of pursuing professional wrestling after high-school.

But what always remained from that dream, was the desire to entertain people. Then you add in the fact that I come from a family that is notorious for being storytellers on both sides....and you can start to see where the underlying aspects of being a writer have always been in my life. Because of the way my life was going throughout my twenties....I never contemplated writing as a profession. I was always concerned about staying alive, and making it to next week or next month. I wasn’t thinking so much about my future because I honestly believed I was going to die before the age of 25.

Then in 2007 I decided to go back to college and start working on a degree that could help prepare me for my future. And the first semester there, I was approached by my English professor and encouraged to find more challenging outlets for my writing. She really liked the papers I was turning in and she kept on me about joining the student newspaper. I was extremely hesitant to do so, because I wasn’t sure how I would fit in with the other students on the staff. Some of them were journalism students with serious aspirations. But I inquired with the Editor of the paper and she welcomed me to join her staff and write movie reviews. Basically that was sticking to the premise of “write what you know”. I wasn’t a political person, and I didn’t much care for the bland articles that typical had to be written regarding school events, functions, etc. So I joined her staff as a movie-reviewer and it just began to snowball for me from there. I was getting really great feedback from the movie reviews I was writing, and the process of sitting down to write those reviews was becoming very therapeutic for me. Something about the writing process has always felt therapeutic for me. Well eventually I wanted more assignments to write so I was tasked with writing opinion pieces because everybody knew me to be a very opinionated person. And I just took to that like a moth to a flame. Then in late 2008, I set about to write my first book. That was just the natural progression for me as a writer. I paid my dues and learned to respect the business. But I wasn’t a journalism student either, and I had no desire to be a staff writer on a newspaper for the rest of my life. I respected the people that wanted to do that....but I had a lifetime of telling stories, combined with a desire to entertain the masses, almost eating away at me. So writing books is what best fulfilled that for me as a writer. When my first book flopped, I got discouraged like most writers would...and I took to blogging for a few years before deciding in 2012 to get back into writing books.   

What made you decide to write Erotica?

Well the old saying “write what you know” was always ringing in my mind. I heard it from professors in college....people that had been in the industry for three or four decades. It’s key to having a chance at success. Every good writer has a toolbox, and by that I mean an imaginary toolbox of the skills and abilities that they possess as a writer. You know, what can you do as a writer? How adaptable are your skills? Can you write a truly unbiased and critical review of something? Can you be given a topic and a word count, and write a meaningful article that has impact with it’s audience? Can you write stories at length? Do you know how to draw your reader in? Can you create anticipation in the mind of your reader? Can you keep a reader captivated long enough to finish whatever it is that you’ve written? Can you effectively edit your own work? Can you write under the pressures of a time constraint? Can you work with others to put together an article, story, book, etc? These are all skills and abilities that you either have naturally, or you have to learn. And once you possess them, they go in your writer’s “toolbox”. Some writers have a very strong toolbox that they bring to the table. Other writers have a very weak toolbox that needs improvement.

So how then, did I decide to write erotica? Well erotic writing had been mainly a hobby for me throughout my 20’s. I was doing it at the request of my ex-wife at first, because she liked writing poetry and so I was trying to take an interest in a hobby of hers. I tried writing poetry just for her, and that eventually morphed into erotic writing for her own enjoyment. After my divorce, it was strictly something I did as a hobby for various female friends of mine, or women I was dating. It always seemed to get a good reaction from whomever was reading it, so when I decided to get back into writing books in 2012 it was at the forefront of my mind as something I had in my toolbox as a writer that I could potentially have success with. And I adhere to the belief that success means never having to wonder “What if?”. Really all that means is that if you take a chance and try something, it doesn’t matter what the end result is because you’re already successful for having overcome the fear or anxiety you may have had about trying it to begin with. I know a guy who has been working on a book for the past ten years of his life, and he is petrified to publish it or even show it to someone. He is being choked as a writer by the fear of receiving criticisms of what is so near and dear to him. I don’t live my life like that anymore, so here I am now....taking my chance and writing erotica (amongst other things) for a much broader audience. It’s a journey that I cherish being on.  

So you like to get down and dirty? Or just write it?

Well....truth be told....I’m still adhering to “write what you know”. Some of the stories I’ve written so far, are based on actual things I’ve experienced. I have been blessed with a high sex-drive, and I’ve had my fair share of fun. Maybe it’s because I was “late to the party” and didn’t lost my virginity until I was 22, but once I did....I was all about becoming the best possible lover I could be for a woman. And having grown up playing sports my entire life, it was always drilled in our heads “practice makes perfect” and “repetition is key”. So naturally I approached becoming a better lover with the same mindset. So if a woman chooses to be with me, then I’m out to rock her world everytime....and if it isn’t happening right away, then I’m gonna figure out why and we’re gonna get there together.

Great sex is a two-way street and both parties have to be committed to making it happen. All you need is the desire to please your lover, and the ability to effectively communicate in bed. If you and your partner both bring that to the table, then you’ll be getting your world rocked anytime you want. I’ve been with all types of women. I’ve been with younger women who don’t have a clue what to do, or what they like, or what an orgasm is even, because all they’ve ever known have been lame-duck lovers who climb on top for 2 minutes...get theirs...and then roll over and fall asleep.! And I’ve been with women in their 40’s who have had years of experience figuring out what they like, how they like it, and they don’t have time to waste dilly-dallying with a lame lover...so they communicate everything and then you’re off to the races rockin’ each other’s worlds.

What’s your fave position?

Most variations of woman on top. And you can let your mind wander a bit with that statement. I’m a big, powerful guy....so there is something extremely sexy to me about giving up control to a woman and letting her dictate how slowly or quickly things progress. I’m not into domination, but it’s extremely sensual and intimate to just be able to let her take control while you sit back and watch her enjoying herself. I think the sexiest a woman can ever look is when she’s working on an orgasm for herself, at her own pace.

Music? Or quiet room....? If music, what kind?

For sex, or for writing? LOL

If it’s for sex....then music usually only serves 1 of 2 purposes for me. To either set the mood with some mellow background tunes......or to save my neighbors from he aring something they don’t want to hear. LOL

As for writing, I usually have some music playing while I write. Music is now an imperative part of my writing, and really always has been. As to what kind? That really depends on my mood at the time. I’ll listen to alot of trance music when I want to lose myself in my writing. I’ll listen to a lot of sensual music when I am writing erotica. If I am blogging or writing a commentary on something, then it’s usually going to be something upbeat like 80’s music, dance music, or some good metal that will keep me jamming.

Tell us about your current project....

My current project is entitled “More Presents from T.H. Dillon” and is me venturing out on my own after the dissolvement of my writing partnership with someone else earlier this year. During that time, people saw me writing short-story erotica and attempting to write short-story paranormal romance. I wasn’t very comfortable writing paranormal romance because it wasn’t a tool I had in my writer’s toolbox....and I think any fan of that genre could tell that when they read those stories of mine. Now that I’m out on my own again, and in control again, I’m going back to “write what you know”.

More Presents is going to be in the erotica genre, where I am most comfortable right now. It is titled after a piece I wrote entitled Your Present that seemed to go over well with a good portion of readers. Some readers took issue with my style in Your Present but that’s okay because it’s not for everyone. My writing style is what has been getting me praise from readers and peers for the past five years, so I’m not about to veer away from who I am as a writer and try to write like someone I’m not. So More Presents is going to incorporate the style of Your Present, but also include more traditional storytelling methods. It will be a book of short-story erotic narratives, directives, and situational scenarios that lend to fantasies very well. I’m hoping to create a book that offers variety to women everywhere with repeat reading value, and hopefully encourages their husbands or boyfriends to really step their game up and keep their ladies smiling. Anything I write is something any man can do for his lady if he just puts forth the effort. It’s not going to be a book full of kink either. I have to stick with what I know in order to write as well as I possibly can....so I’m not going to pretend to be an expert in S&M or a veteran of the BDSM scene. That’s not me, that’s not what I write.

When casting your lead, what actress do you see in that role?

Usually the brunettes, or dark-haired girl-next-door types. That’s always been my weakness. Actresses that I’ve liked over the years have been Alyssa Milano, Jennifer Biel, Sandra Bullock, Anne Hathaway, Eva Mendes, Jennifer Lawrence, Neve Campbell, Jennifer Garner, and Rebecca Romijn to name a few.

What was one of the most surprising things you learned about yourself in creating your books?

How much I enjoy writing more than I ever could have imagined growing up. Growing up I read a lot of books pertaining to history and things that interested me. But I never was much of a fiction reader. To me, reading was always for knowledge gathering. My recreation was done through sports. And my imagination was fed by movies and television shows I watched. So now at 34 years old to be finding so much enjoyment in creating books and developing story ideas and then seeing them through to publication.....it’s mind-blowing for me at times. Then I remember how much I like to tell a good story and how much I like to entertain people, and then I wonder why I didn’t figure this out about myself at a younger age.

In this mass influx of Indie Authors today, it seems everyone is writing, and learning as they go. What’s the one thing you’re glad you learned, and helped make you the author you are today?

The one thing I’m glad I learned....I learned before I ever set out to write my first book. And it very much has helped me be the author that I am today. It has kept my mind set in reality and has kept me grounded as an author. It wasn’t any one thing that any author can learn from reading a book on writing books. It was a critique of my abilities by someone who saw something in me and took the time to mentor me a bit. It was advice for my career as a writer going forward, but that advice was wrapped in knowledge too. And it came from a gentleman who had been a writer for over 40 years. So his critique of me, and advice, and the fact that he saw potential in me over others.....that still resonates in my mind with every writing project I undertake. The one piece of advice I’d give a writer is “write what you know”.

What’s your biggest pet peeve about the Indie Author revolution?

Oh God.....where do I start? I am quickly becoming an outspoken voice in the community, but that’s out of necessity I think. There are too many wannabes running around trying to pull the wool over the eyes of readers all around the world. I’ve stated on a couple of occasions that I hold people to a higher standard and that’s true. I see the wannabe authors and it makes me sick to think that they might make some money off some easily conned or gullible readers. I see their tactics they employ to market themselves or lure readers into buying their books, and it’s nauseatingly disrespectful to me as a writer. I see their motivation for being in this business and then I think of the avid readers who will end up buying their books just because they need new material to consume. So this current environment only begets more problems....for authors AND readers!

The greatest thing that will come out of this is redefining in our industry how success is achievable in a manner for a lot of GOOD writers, that it wasn’t before due to the traditional publishing process and leaving it up to them to decide who to bestow success upon with contracts...with chances to be seen and read by readers around the world. Now GOOD writers are on a more even playing field. GOOD writers have a much better chance at succeeding with their passion is this new revolution.

The worst thing that will come out of this is the amount of readers that get discouraged or become disenchanted entirely with Indie authors because of all the BAD writers out there that will be publishing CRAP and then dressing it up with a $200 cover to make the consumer think they are buying a quality book. So much low-quality crap is getting published by “authors” who I dare say....have never even subjected their writing to critical review before...let alone competition. It’s destroying the pricing structure for GOOD writers because as newer and lesser-known authors...they are forced to sell their work for next to nothing to compete for the consumer dollar in a market that is driven largely by avid readers with eReading devices that help them to consume a book a day! Back in the day....you had to go to your library and wait for new books to come in, and after a certain point you probably read everything they had in a certain genre. Now you’re downloading new books to read instantly and the turnover rate for avid readers these days is astounding. You download a $0.99 book and you’re done with it in a matter of hours. Now you’re back online shopping for more books to read. And too many BAD writers are looking at that and salivating at the thought of getting their slice of the pie. So now the market is being flooded with a ton of low-quality stuff that is frustrating for avid readers to deal with. You can only bilk people out of their hard-earned money so many times before they become entirely disenchanted with your type altogether. I see a lot of Indie authors upset with the return policy currently in place on Amazon for ebooks. They have reason to be upset. Too many low-quality writers have watered down the market with CRAP....and it’s creating a growing population of frustrated consumers who are tired of being taken for a ride with their purchases. So of course these people are going to take advantage of the return policy on Amazon! I would too if I was an avid reader of fiction who was shelling out $0.99, $1.99, or $2.99 for something I read in a matter of hours that was entirely generic, repetitive, unoriginal, or reads like something you wrote in 7th grade.

My biggest pet peeve is a person who is in this business for the wrong reasons. They only make it worse for everybody else.

I know you’re as big a coffee whore as I am! What’s your current flavor?

My current flavor is Highlander Grogg.

Shut up!!! Highlander Grogg is the #crack

As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?

For the longest time it was be a professional wrestler. Then after that dream got squashed, it became selling exotic and classic cars. I’ve loved cars my entire life, and I had the chance during my teen years to be around some of the most expensive and exotic cars in the world. I had the chance to meet George Barris and Carroll Shelby. It just got in my blood at an early age. So when I was a teenager leaning on the wing of a Gulf Racing McLaren F1 GTR...and watching Ferrari F40’s and F50’s, and a Jaguar XJ220, and a Lamborghini Countach....it’s no wonder why I dreamt of selling those types of cars and getting to be around them everyday.

If you could take a woman anywhere in the world, where would you go?

Probably the most awesome castle in Europe I could afford! LOL I’ve always been a history buff, so it would definitely be a place steeped in history. The Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island is another destination on my “to do” list. I visited that when I was younger and have been determined to go back there ever since.

Faves:

color- Green

song- The Power of Love” by Huey Lewis and the News

movie- The ‘Back to the Future’ trilogy

food- That seems to change every few years. Currently: chicken wings

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thdillon

Twitter: https://twitter.com/THDillon69

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6588332.Thomas_Hunter_Dillon

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