# Alison Tyler
**Alison Tyler** is an American author, editor, and publisher of erotica who has written more than twenty explicit novels, hundreds of short stories, and more than thirty edited anthologies[1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler). Her best-known books include the BDSM trilogy beginning with *Dark Secret Love* (2013) and the twelve-volume Erotic Alphabet series published by Cleis Press[1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler) • [2](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler~208811.htm). Before her erotica career she wrote category romance and romantic suspense, and she has also published under the byline Elise Title[3](https://romancewiki.bham.ac.uk/index.php/Alison_Tyler) • [4](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler-1~7482.htm).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Nationality and residence | American; sources place her in San Francisco and in Northern California[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613) • [1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler) |
| Output | Over twenty-five explicit novels by her publisher's count; hundreds of short stories; more than thirty edited anthologies[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613) • [1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler) |
| Editorial work | Editor of *Best Bondage Erotica*, *Heat Wave*, and the *Naughty Stories from A to Z* series[6](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/31624/alison-tyler/) |
| Signature series | Erotic Alphabet, twelve titles from *A Is for Amour* (Feb 2007) to *L Is for Leather* (Feb 2008)[2](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler~208811.htm) |
| BDSM trilogy | *Dark Secret Love* (2013), *The Delicious Torment* (2014), and *Wrapped Around Your Finger* (2014), all from Cleis Press[7](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/alison-tyler.html) |
| Translation | Books translated into Japanese, Dutch, German, Italian, Norwegian, Greek, and Spanish[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613) |
| Awards | *Tasting Her* won the IPPY Award in the Erotica category in 2009; *Do Not Disturb* was nominated for the same award in 2010[8](https://www.booknotification.com/authors/alison-tyler/) |
| Earlier byline | Elise Title is a separate author who writes under the pseudonym Alison Tyler, with Candlelight Ecstasy category romance from 1984 onward[4](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler-1~7482.htm) • [14](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/title-elise) |
## Career and output
Tyler describes herself as a professional writer of more than two decades' standing in the erotic industry; in a 2013 interview she said she had been "writing professionally in the erotic industry for more than two decades, but I've been simply writing forever"[9](https://bookaholicsromancebookclub.weebly.com/alison-tyler.html).
Her publisher [Simon & Schuster](https://www.edgepedia.org/simon-and-schuster) calls her "a prolific author of erotic fiction" and credits her with over twenty-five explicit novels; her [Goodreads](https://www.edgepedia.org/goodreads) profile states "over 20 explicit novels" and adds hundreds of short stories and more than thirty edited anthologies[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613) • [1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler). FictionDB's erotica bibliography lists 89 books, dating the first, *The Silver Key*, to 1974[2](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler~208811.htm).
Her short fiction has appeared in *[Playgirl](https://www.edgepedia.org/playgirl)* magazine, the *Wicked Words* anthologies, and *Best Women's Erotica 2002 and 2003*[6](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/31624/alison-tyler/).
## Editorial and series work
Tyler's editorial catalog is extensive. [Penguin Random House](https://www.edgepedia.org/penguin-random-house) lists her as editor of *Best Bondage Erotica*, *Heat Wave*, and the *Naughty Stories from A to Z* series[6](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/31624/alison-tyler/), and Simon & Schuster adds *Three-Way*, *Love at First Sting*, and *Naughty or Nice*[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613). Other edited titles include *Alison's Wonderland* (2010), *Frenzy: 60 Stories of Sudden Sex* (2008), *Got a Minute?: Sixty Second Erotica*, *Hurts So Good*, and *Caught Looking: Erotic Tales of Voyeurs and Exhibitionists* (2006)[1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler) • [10](https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL371636A/Alison_Tyler).
The Erotic Alphabet series, produced with Cleis Press, ran alphabetically from *A Is for Amour*, *B Is for Bondage*, *C Is for Co-eds*, and *D Is for Dress-Up* in February 2007 through *E Is for Exotic* to *H Is for Hardcore* in August 2007 and *I Is for Indecent* through *L Is for Leather* in February 2008; Simon & Schuster describes the concept as "this alphabetical extravaganza of erotic delights" planned for 26 hot volumes[2](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler~208811.htm) • [11](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/AlisonTyler/259924367).
## The Story of Submission trilogy
The trilogy that brought her the widest attention is her quasi-autobiographical sequence about Samantha, a young submissive woman seeking the right dominant partner. *Publishers Weekly* reviewed *Dark Secret Love: A Story of Submission* (Cleis, 2013) as a "hot and honest quasi-autobiographical exploration of the journey of a young submissive woman seeking the perfect dominant male partner"[7](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/alison-tyler.html). In interviews Tyler confirmed the autobiographical element, saying of the character that "Samantha is yours truly in disguise" and that her goal in BDSM erotica is "to show a happy side" of dominant/submissive relationships[12](https://www.femalefirst.co.uk/books/alison-tyler-399755.html). *The Delicious Torment* (2014) continued the story of Samantha and Jack, and *Wrapped Around Your Finger* (2014) closed it; *Publishers Weekly* called the latter the wrap-up of an "intensely erotic BDSM trilogy"[7](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/alison-tyler.html). The trilogy holds a 4.04 average rating from 521 ratings on Goodreads, higher than any of her series as rated there[1](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler).
## Earlier romance writing and the Elise Title byline
Before the erotica career, Tyler wrote category romance for the Candlelight Ecstasy line and romantic suspense[3](https://romancewiki.bham.ac.uk/index.php/Alison_Tyler). FictionDB's separate entry for "Alison Tyler (1)" lists 27 contemporary romance books from *Business Before Pleasure* (April 1984) to *Chase the Sun* (December 1995), including Candlelight Ecstasy and Candlelight Ecstasy Supreme numbers such as *How Many Tomorrows?* (June 1985) and *Double Masquerade* (June 1987), with Dell romantic suspense titles *Chase the Wind* and *Chase the Storm* in 1987[4](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler-1~7482.htm). The same entry concerns the separate romance author Elise Title, who used Alison Tyler as a pseudonym[4](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler-1~7482.htm) • [14](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/title-elise).
## Recognition
*Tasting Her* won the IPPY Award, Erotica, in 2009, and *Do Not Disturb* was nominated for the IPPY Award, Erotica, in 2010[8](https://www.booknotification.com/authors/alison-tyler/). Reviewers and outlets have used nicknames that travel with her: "a literary siren" ([Good Vibrations](https://www.edgepedia.org/good-vibrations)), "a trollop with a laptop" (East Bay Express), and "the mistress of literary erotica" (Violet Blue)[5](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613) • [13](https://www.hachette.co.uk/contributor/alison-tyler/).
## References
1. [Alison Tyler, Goodreads author profile](https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/83389.Alison_Tyler)
2. [Alison Tyler Books in Order, FictionDB (erotica bibliography)](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler~208811.htm)
3. [Alison Tyler, Romance Wiki](https://romancewiki.bham.ac.uk/index.php/Alison_Tyler)
4. [Alison Tyler (1) Books in Order, FictionDB (category romance bibliography)](https://www.fictiondb.com/author/alison-tyler-1~7482.htm)
5. [Alison Tyler, Official Publisher Page, Simon & Schuster](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Alison-Tyler/320613)
6. [Alison Tyler, Penguin Random House author page](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/31624/alison-tyler/)
7. [Books by Alison Tyler and Complete Book Reviews, Publishers Weekly](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/alison-tyler.html)
8. [Alison Tyler list of books, Book Notification](https://www.booknotification.com/authors/alison-tyler/)
9. [Special Interview with Alison Tyler, Bookaholics Romance Book Club](https://bookaholicsromancebookclub.weebly.com/alison-tyler.html)
10. [Alison Tyler, Open Library](https://openlibrary.org/authors/OL371636A/Alison_Tyler)
11. [AlisonTyler, Official Publisher Page, Simon & Schuster](https://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/AlisonTyler/259924367)
12. [Exclusive interview with Alison Tyler, Female First (13 February 2014)](https://www.femalefirst.co.uk/books/alison-tyler-399755.html)
13. [Alison Tyler, Hachette UK contributor page](https://www.hachette.co.uk/contributor/alison-tyler/)
14. [Title, Elise, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/title-elise)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Literature and written works › Writers and literary biographies › Fiction writers: novelists and genre › Romance and popular fiction writers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license