Carrie Weisman from "Alternet" was interested in exploring what trends we've noticed around female masturbation habits in the time since Sssh launched. Great topic and perfect for masturbation month.

1. Are there any surprising trends you've noticed about what material (hetero) women find erotic? I know there was some studies a few months back about women getting into gay porn. Wanted to know if you've noticed any other sexy surprises on the Sssh platform.

I wouldn’t say it’s surprising, but in the years since 50 Shades became a hit, we’ve seen a dramatic rise in interest in BDSM. I think this is about more than just the popularity of the book, though; it’s also driven by the anonymity and privacy of the internet environment, which allows people to explore their sexuality more confidently and openly. I also think 50 Shades made make it more acceptable for people to talk about women as consumers of erotica and porn.

More generally, I think anybody who expects there to be a standard set of genres which appeal to women, or who thinks there’s a convenient and defined answer to ‘what women want’ in or from porn, would be surprised by how varied and ranging women’s taste in porn actually is, based on the feedback and requests we’ve received over the years. I don’t know why, but it seems like there’s an assumption all women will like the same kind of erotica, or a very narrow range of different types and forms, but the truth is women’s taste in porn is just as varied and wide-ranging as men’s.

2. What would you say mainstream porn gets "wrong" when marketing to female audiences?

What they often don’t do is emphasize the pleasure or enjoyment of the female characters; when it comes to the sex, it’s still primarily concerned with the masculine point of view and depicting sex acts which appeal to male fantasies.

It’s not that you have to ‘turn the tables’ on the typical porn dynamic and present all the women in your movies as dominant, or make them the absolute center of attention, but you do need to make them seem more central. The woman’s pleasure, her enjoyment, needs to matter, however it is being depicted or derived.

Of course, for many years, what the industry got wrong was believing there was no female audience for their products in the first place – so, in a sense, no matter what people are getting wrong these days, at least they’re trying, right?

3. What kind of material do you tend to avoid on Sssh? Why?

There’s nothing in particular which is automatically off the table; if a member submits it, as long as it's safe, sane, consensual and legal, we’ll at least consider the suggestion or request. There are many things I’m not into or wouldn’t be comfortable with doing when it comes to my own sex life, but I’m not about to impose my own proclivities on my customers and members; the movies I make for Sssh are about what they want, not what I want.