EL James interview: ‘There are other stories I want to tell. I’ve been with Fifty Shades for so long

• Published in: The Independent (Online)
• Main Author: Alter, Alexandra
• Format: Web Resource
• Language: English
• Published: London Independent Digital News & Media 17.04.2019
• Subjects: Franchises; James, E L; Middle age; Novels; Writers; United Kingdom > UK; Albania

The author of the blockbuster erotica trilogy tells Alexandra Alter how she wants ‘The Mister’, her first work of original fiction since she became an international phenomenon, to start a new phase of her career EL James does not like speaking to journalists, who often want to know deeply personal things, like how much money she makes and whether she has a sex dungeon in her basement. Beneath the frothy fantasy, The Mister deals with unexpectedly weighty topics like economic inequality, the plight of undocumented workers, the oppression of women in conservative societies and the way social institutions and governments elevate the wealthy and powerful and exploit the vulnerable. James wants to show me some nipple clamps she helped design in collaboration with the sex-toy maker Lovehoney, a British company that produced a line of Fifty Shades-themed erotic accessories. [...]James chooses a dress of her own that she brought from home, a long blue gown with a deep V-neck, which she bought for one of the Fifty Shades movie premieres.