100 Heroes: John Preston
The gay man who became a leading author of gay erotica.
John Preston was an American author of gay erotica and an editor of gay nonfiction anthologies.
Life and work
Born in 1945, Preston grew up in Massachusetts and eventually settled in Portland from 1979 onwards.
As a writer, Preston was active within the LGBTQ community - including a stint as editor of The Advocate in 1975. He also wrote for Drummer magazine.
Preston published around 50 works of erotic fiction. Titles included Mr. Benson, and I Once Had a Master. His non-fiction works included The Big Gay Book: A Man's Survival Guide for the Nineties, Personal Dispatches: Writers Confront AIDS, and Hometowns: Gay Men Write About Where They Belong. He also published the novel, Franny, the Queen of Provincetown.
As a writer of erotic gay fiction, Preston was part of a trend that valued a higher literary quality in storytelling and narrative than the pulp-fiction stories of earlier years.
Preston was also a leading voice within the leather community.
Preston died in 1994 at the age of 48. The cause of death was AIDS-related illnesses.