Shay Tiziano
San Francisco bondage educator, performer and producer known for dynamic Western bondage and self-suspension, author of Tying & Flying (2019), which event hosts call the first book on the subject, producer of Twisted Windows and stages co-lead of the Folsom Street Fair.
Shay Tiziano is a bondage educator, performer and event producer based in San Francisco. Twisted Windows credits Shay with a dynamic, Western style of bondage, and class hosts describe Shay as a self-suspender, the subject of Shay’s book Tying & Flying. Shay uses she/her or they/them pronouns. The biographies printed by Twisted Windows, the event Shay produces, and by class hosts are the main sources here.
Self-suspension and books
Shay is the author of Tying & Flying, a guide to self-suspension. The Goodreads record lists it as a 271-page paperback dated 10 September 2019, with photographs by Stefanos Tiziano, and its description presents it as a thorough guide that avoids dogma; Shay’s biographies call it the first book ever devoted to self-suspension. No publisher or ISBN appears on that record. Shay has also written Creating Captivating Classes, described as the first book written specifically for educators in kink, sexuality and relationships, and edited an anthology, Soaring & Exploring.
Teaching
According to the Twisted Windows biography, Shay has presented across the United States for more than a decade, with hundreds of presentations. Signature classes include an introduction to self-suspension, two-point dynamic suspensions and triangle suspension. The biography lists conferences and venues where Shay has taught, among them the Rome BDSM Conference, KinkFest, Westcoast Bound, Thunder in the Mountains, the Center for Sex and Culture, and university settings at San Francisco State and Stanford, and says Shay’s classes have appeared on online platforms including Shibari Study and Kink Academy.
A class listing from VoxBody Studio, where Shay teaches the beginning self-suspension course, shows how the material is pitched: it is aimed at people who already tie confidently on the ground, works partly as an inverted classroom with reading sent in advance, gives each student a hard point and allows a non-tying spotter, and takes its harnesses from the book. Hosts describe Shay’s approach to kink education as centered on risk awareness.
Production and performance
Shay produces Twisted Windows, a performance event built around bondage and fetish acts, and is a co-lead for stages and entertainment at the Folsom Street Fair. The biography also lists performances or curated showcases for San Francisco Pride, the Seattle Erotic Art Festival, Tethered Together, Ropecraft and Dark Odyssey, among others.