John Cleland

John Cleland (1709–1789) was an English novelist best known for his controversial erotic novel 'Fanny Hill: or, Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure' published in 1748. The novel, written while he was in debtor's prison, is a first-person narrative of a young woman who becomes a prostitute and seeks respectability. Cleland faced legal suppression and trial for obscenity due to this work. He is recognized as a pivotal figure in the evolution of English erotic literature.