Greetings from Edinburgh!
For the next month I’ll be a travelling Erotic Provocateur as I attend my son’s wedding here in Scotland before heading to France to explore my partner Gwendal’s history and heritage.
So, in the spirit of practising what I preach, I’m slowing down.
For the next four weeks I’ll simply be sharing a few musings as my travels unfold. I’ll also be taking a break from recording the Salon until I return in August.
At the top of Arthur’s Seat overlooking Edinburgh (it’s a bit windy up there!)
And my first musing is a reflection on the past six months of The Erotic Provocateur.
Six months ago I pressed “publish” on the very first essay: A Place to Slow Down. I felt like something that had been taking shape for years had finally found its voice.
At the time I wasn’t entirely sure what The Erotic Provocateur would become. I simply knew I wanted to create a different kind of conversation about sexuality, relationships and what it means to live well.
Twenty-six essays later, that vision feels much clearer. The Erotic Provocateur has become a place where science meets soul, where intimacy becomes a path of self-discovery, and where the erotic invites us to become more fully human.
I’ve realised something else too - writing every week has been a discipline that has changed me, and I hope that it has sparked positive change in you too.
It’s helped me distil decades of clinical work, study and lived experience into ideas that feel simpler, clearer and truer. This isn’t because I have all the answers, but because after listening to thousands of people over many years, patterns begin to reveal themselves.
People aren’t failing at intimacy, they’ve just never been given the maps. Developing those maps has become the work of my life, and sharing them has become the next chapter.
When I return home in August, The Erotic Provocateur will move to a fortnightly rhythm as I begin writing my book—a project that has been taking shape through these essays over the past six months. The essays allow me to explore ideas as they emerge; the book will weave them into a larger whole.
I’m looking forward to sharing that next chapter with you.
But for now, I’d like to leave you with one question.
Looking back over these first six months, which idea has lingered?
Not in your mind, but in your life.
And now I am heading out into Edinburgh’s Old Town to soak up some history and heritage - and do a little gender-bending as I take my son and partner out to get our nails done in preparation for the wedding!
If you’d like to follow a little more of the journey, I’ll be sharing photos along the way over on Instagram.
Note - no Salon while I’m on holidays!
I really enjoy all of it. Best for me has probably been the “simmer zone” as well as “nonlinear love making”. Keep ‘em coming!
Your inviting smile and the wind in your hair says aliveness in spades. A photo which sparkles. ❤️