Wouldn't it be nice if...

Wouldn't it be nice if...my hobby paid for itself? It is tax time, and I've been going over my expenses and receipts, and I've come to the realization that, over the course of the past 18 months, I've invested a fair amount of time and money into writing and recording erotica. I've purchased recording software, a mic, and preamp. This lead to the purchase of a laptop computer because the noise of the fan on my desktop computer was interfering with the quality of the recordings. I've spent hours learning how to use the recording software, how to edit and mix. I even learned how to amplify my voice 300%, since I'm so soft-spoken those listening to my mp3s had listen at max volume.

In July of 2005 I listed my first erotic story on Literotica. By the end of August I had posted six stories, most of them garnering positive feedback, including (surprisingly enough) encouraging words from professional writers and editors. On Halloween 2005 I posted my first audio story. It got mixed feedback, but a lot of it was from people begging me to record more, more, more. In early 2006 I was contacted by various people with proposals ranging from offering me free access to their porn sites in exchange for permission to use my stories, to internet radio, to going into business together. All of this was unanticipated, but intriguing. I contacted some people in the sex industry and received more proposals and expressions of interest. I did a voice-over for TheStoryMill and allowed a couple of my audios to be posted there. I talked with Oceania of PeacockBlue about possible collaborations, and The Sayer of RedWordSaid whose erotic audios for women are peerless. However, none of these produced any tangible results, as during this time I was also embroiled in the ordeal of my sister's illness, an ordeal that occupied me for nearly a year. Between her heath crisis and my work, I've been swamped, but I'm slowly surfacing.

Soon after my most recent audio post to Literotica, I received a request from a listener (for some reason I am hesitant to use the word 'fan') asking me to do an erotic hypnotic induction/recording just for him, for a fee. I'd never heard of erotic hypnosis or 'hypnofantasy' before, and he sent me off to Inraptured for more information and how-to tips. Wow. There is a very interesting hypnofantasy subset of the erotic audio market. I quickly made the acquaintance of the folks at HypnoFantasy and just might be working with them soon.

I am excited about this possibility, for a few reasons. One, I like their approach. Its professional and matter-of-fact instead of amateurish and sleazy. The sites are user-friendly, and they've got erotic and non-erotic material for men, women, and couples, with everything already in place to serve up audio recordings to an attentive audience. Two, there is a possibility of generating some revenue from selling access to my audio stories, which, three, could reimburse me for my time and expense and perhaps provide an incentive to devote more time to this hobby. I know I would be more prolific/productive with my erotic writing and recording if the benefits outweighed the costs. As it is, there are so many other activities that take priority over this hobby.

It should be interesting to see what happens. I can't help but wonder if people would be willing to pay to listen to me telling intimate sexual fantasies. It sure would be nice if my hobby paid for itself.