Parisian Phoenix Publishing

Marilyn Jaye Lewis signed a contract with us last month for her novel, The Curse of Our Profound Disorder. Marilyn tells me that this project dates back 25 years. She sent me a sample in the spring, asking if I might be interested if she should finish it.

Something about her writing style drew me in and mesmerized me. In general, I cringe at first-person stories, passive voice and dialect, but in Marilyn’s hands, something magical happened as I read.

I stood uncomfortably in the middle of her grand boudoir while I watched her light a cigarette. Her room was filled with furniture, most of it white, and on every available table, bureau, and shelf, there were pretty things. Things made of crystal or porcelain, things that looked old and expensive. It was a huge room with a very high ceiling. Even with all that furniture and all those pretty things, the room didn’t feel crowded.

Main character Jemima always knew that she was the illegitimate offspring of the local married preacher. Her mama, impregnated in the backseat of a Plymouth at age 15, explains lust and sexual pleasure as the presence of God. Jemima has a hard life, but sees the world pragmatically, with beauty at times.

There’s erotic flair in the novel, though no graphic sex. And the whole story hinges on adult themes. We will be publishing it as part of our Parisian Phoenix Kink imprint, though I’m still unsure of its genre. Perhaps erotic fictional memoir?

Marilyn came to me through M.Christian so she will be one of the authors participating in an upcoming tribute anthology. I will be working with Ralph Greco Jr. on assembling that, details are still very much up in the air.

Speaking of Ralph, a little birdie told me that he’s preparing to publish some of his short naughty fiction here on Substack. So watch for that if you’re so inclined.