Hey, I’m Sinclair Sexsmith

They/them. Queer. Trans masc. Butch. Dominant. Writer. Editor. Teacher. Coach.

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“The best-known butch erotica writer whose kinky, groundbreaking stories have turned on countless queers.” — AfterEllen

“In all the books, wins all the awards, speaks at all the panels and readings, knows all the stuff, and writes for all the places.” — Autostraddle

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I’ve been writing about desire, kink, gender, and power since 2006 — first here at Sugarbutch, and in more than thirty anthologies, literary journals, and publications since then.

My work lives at the intersection of queerness, dominance and submission, trans and nonbinary identity, and the conviction that erotic writing is one of the most powerful tools we have for documenting what it means to be alive in a queer body at this particular moment in history.

I write dirty stories. I write essays about D/s dynamics, Daddy relationships, protocol, and power exchange. I edit anthologies. I teach. I coach. I’ve been doing this long enough that I’ve watched a generation of writers find their voices — and I’m still here, still at it, still turned on by the work.

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What I do

I write. My short story collection Sweet & Rough: Queer Kink Erotica was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. My work has appeared in more than thirty anthologies including eight volumes of the Best Lesbian Erotica series. I’ve been publishing new stories, essays, and poetry here at Sugarbutch since 2006.

I edit. I’ve edited seven anthologies, including Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volumes 4, 5, 6, and 7, Best Lesbian Erotica 2012, Say Please: Lesbian BDSM Erotica, and Erotix: Literary Journal of Somatics.

I teach. I’ve been teaching about erotic writing, D/s dynamics, queer and trans identity, somatic arts, and kink techniques since 2002 — at conferences, colleges, community centers, leather events, and online. I’m an international leather titleholder and have presented at dozens of leather and kink conferences over the years. See my current calendar →

I coach. I offer one-on-one sessions in two areas:

• D/s Coaching — for people navigating dominance, submission, Daddy dynamics, collaring, protocol, and the full terrain of power exchange. I’ve been supporting people in D/s relationships professionally for more than fifteen years. Read more →
• Writing Dominant Coaching — for writers who are ready to stop going it alone. I’ll hold the structure, give the direction, and keep you accountable to the work you’re here to make. Read more →

I run Writing Spicy. Once a year, I lead a six-week online erotica writing group for writers at every level — beginners, experienced writers, published and unpublished alike. It’s a space to hone craft, build community, and be braver on the page than you’ve been before. Get on the list →

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Awards & recognition

• Lambda Literary Award finalist, Sweet & Rough: Queer Kink Erotica (2016)
• National Leather Association John Preston Short Fiction Award (2019, 2016)
• National Leather Association Cynthia Slater Non-Fiction Article Award, Honorable Mention (2019)
• National Leather Association Cynthia Slater Non-Fiction Award (2015)
• #1 Kinkly Queer Sex Blog (2019, 2021)
• #1 Kinkly Erotica Sex Blog (2019, 2020)
• Named one of the best places to read erotica online by Cosmopolitan, the Village Voice, and the Daily Dot
• 100 Women We Love, Go Magazine (2010)
• The Lezzys Best Lesbian Sex/Erotica Blog (2008, 2009)

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Support this work

Sugarbutch has been free to read since 2006. If the writing has meant something to you — if a story got under your skin, if an essay gave you language for something you couldn’t name, if something here made you feel less alone in your desires — I’d love your support.

Join my Patreon for access to monthly D/s and erotica writing workshops, the mentor coaching rate ($100/month for a monthly one-hour call with me), password-protected posts, and more.

Order my books

Share a piece you love with someone who needs it

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Get in touch

The best way to reach me is through the contact form below — it helps keep my inbox manageable. You can also find me on:

• Bluesky
• Instagram
• Patreon

My email is sinclair@sugarbutch.net, though the contact form is always faster.

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For press & media

Copy and paste the following bio for interviews, event listings, and publications:

Short bio:

Sinclair Sexsmith (they/them) is an award-winning queer trans masc writer, editor, and teacher focusing on queerness, kink, dominance and submission, and transgender and nonbinary experience. Their short story collection Sweet & Rough: Queer Kink Erotica was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. They are the editor of seven anthologies including multiple volumes of the Best Lesbian Erotica series and have published work in more than thirty anthologies. They have been teaching about erotic writing, D/s dynamics, and kink since 2002, and write at sugarbutch.net.

Extended bio:

Sinclair Sexsmith (they/them) is “the best-known butch erotica writer whose kinky, groundbreaking stories have turned on countless queer women” (AfterEllen), who “is in all the books, wins all the awards, speaks at all the panels and readings, knows all the stuff, and writes for all the places” (Autostraddle).

Sinclair is an award-winning queer trans masc writer, editor, teacher, and coach whose work sits at the intersection of queerness, dominance and submission, trans and nonbinary identity, and the transformative power of erotic writing. They have been publishing at sugarbutch.net since 2006 — one of the longest-running and most celebrated queer sex blogs online, named #1 Kinkly Queer Sex Blog and #1 Kinkly Erotica Sex Blog multiple years running, and recognized by Cosmopolitan, the Village Voice, and the Daily Dot as one of the best places to read erotica on the internet.

Their short story collection Sweet & Rough: Queer Kink Erotica was a 2016 finalist for the Lambda Literary Award in lesbian erotica. Their fiction, essays, and poetry have appeared in more than thirty anthologies, including eight volumes of the Best Lesbian Erotica series. As an editor, Sinclair has shaped some of the most significant queer erotica publications of the past decade, editing seven anthologies including Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year Volumes 4, 5, 6, and 7, Best Lesbian Erotica 2012, Say Please: Lesbian BDSM Erotica, and Erotix: Literary Journal of Somatics. Their fiction has been recognized with multiple National Leather Association awards, including the John Preston Short Fiction Award in both 2016 and 2019, and the Cynthia Slater Non-Fiction Award in 2015 and 2019.

Sinclair has been teaching about erotic writing, D/s dynamics, somatic arts, and kink techniques since 2002. An international leather titleholder, they have presented at dozens of leather and kink conferences, colleges, community centers, and events across North America and internationally. They are the creator and lead instructor of Writing Spicy, an annual six-week online erotica writing group for writers at every level, and offer one-on-one coaching in both D/s relationship dynamics and writing — bringing the same grounded, directive, deeply experienced presence to both.

Sinclair’s writing is rooted in the belief that the erotic lives of queer, trans, nonbinary, kinky, and otherwise strategically undervalued people are still undertold — and that telling those stories with craft, honesty, and heat is an act of documentation, resistance, and care. They live and write on unceded Muckleshoot land. Find them all the places online at sugarbutch.net/find-sinclair.

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Want to get in touch?

Y’all, I get so much email. So. Much. And I spend a lot of time answering it, but it still piles up. In an attempt to make my email inbox more manageable, please use the contact form to get in touch.

My email address is sinclair@sugarbutch.net, but I’d much prefer you use the contact form—it helps keep my inbox under control. Thank you!