Email: rachelkramerbussel at gmail.com



 

Lusty Lady

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Friday, March 29, 2013

Autographed copies of Best Sex Writing 2013 and Twice the Pleasure now available

Awesome independent bookstore WORD in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, now has autographed copies of Best Sex Writing 2013, my hot off the press anthology featuring Jonathan Lethem, Patrick Califia, guest judge Carol Queen, Madison Young and many others. You can also get an autographed copy of Best Sex Writing 2013 or Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women's Erotica directly from me (US only) by sending $14 via Paypal to rkbenterprises2012 at gmail.com and including your name and mailing address (if you want it autographed to someone other than you, just let me know). Thanks! Snapped last night at our WORD "Is Feminism Sexy?" panel:

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Thursday, March 28, 2013

I'm on the "Is Feminism Sexy?" panel tonight at WORD, Greenpoint, Brooklyn

Come join me and these wonderful panelists for "Is Feminism Sexy?" at one of my favorite bookstores, WORD, in Greenpoint, Brooklyn tonight, 126 Franklin Street, off the G train. It's my last Brooklyn event as a Brooklyn resident (awww...NJ better have some awesome bookstores!) and hot off the press copies of Best Sex Writing 2013 will be for sale. Learn more at The Sexy Feminist. Here's the official Facebook invite.
[Description] Sexy Feminism’s Jennifer Armstrong will be discussing what feminism means to young women today with erotica writer/editor Rachel Kramer Bussel, The Frisky blogger Julie Gerstein, SexyFeminist.com contributor Britt Gambino, and feminist media activist Jamia A. Wilson.

In Sexy Feminism, Jennifer Keishin Armstrong and Heather Wood Rudulph offer simple ways for busy, young women to improve every aspect of their own lives by following feminist principles. With dozens of ways to take action, Sexy Feminism explains how feminism helps women get what they want (and does not, contrary to many reports, ruin anyone’s chances at love, success, sex, beauty, or style). It guides young women toward finding their own brand of feminism and using it to improve their lives and the world.

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Monday, March 25, 2013

My Best Bondage Erotica 2014 wishlist - deadline is Monday, April 1st

Both these anthologies have April 1st deadlines. Everything you should want to know is below but if after reading the guidelines you have a question, email the appropriate address (bestbondage2014 at gmail.com or shortsubmissionantho at gmail.com).

Update for Best Bondage Erotica 2014 (if you've already submitted and gotten a reply, I have your story and am considering it): Anything that fits the guidelines below goes, but I'm especially looking for creative/non-traditional bondage implements and settings and motivations/plotlines, female dominant/male submissive, male/male, female/female, non-binary gendered characters, stories featuring more than 2 people, and bondage combined with other acts of BDSM and/or sex acts. Hope that inspires some stories by Monday! And these are just suggestions. A sizzling hot story that grabs me from word one and wows me that isn't anything like what I've listed would also fit this series.

Please read the guidelines in full (pretty much the first rule of doing anything, writing or otherwise, but it needs to be stated because almost all the questions I get asked are right there in my guidelines). Looking forward to reading your stories! And like it says below, ONLY SEND ONE FINAL, EDITED VERSION OF YOUR STORY. I'd rather get the best/finished version later than an earlier version followed by umpteen iterations.

Call for Submissions
Best Bondage Erotica 2014

Best Bondage Erotica 2014 will collect the best bondage erotica stories around, focusing on a range of techniques, implements, characters and scenarios, from newbies to seasoned bondage players and everything in between. Bondage should be a central focus of the erotic element of the story but the plot does not have to hinge on bondage. The final book will include stories focused on both the physical and mental aspects of bondage, from varying points of view. Bondage plus other sexual activity is welcome (spanking, tickling, exhibitionism, voyeurism, intercourse, oral sex, teasing, etc.). Original, unique, creative characters, settings, scenarios and forms of bondage are encouraged. As befitting the title, I’m looking for the best, hottest, most creative bondage erotica for this collection. All genders/sexual orientations welcome. No poetry.

Original stories strongly preferred, but reprints of work published (or slated to be published) between September 2012 and November 2013 will be considered but will be given lower priority than original work and author MUST include original publication information and retain reprint rights. All characters must be over 18; no incest or bestiality. Please see Best Bondage Erotica 2011, 2012 and 2013 or my other kinky Cleis Press anthologies (Anything for You, Cheeky Spanking Stories, Bottoms Up, Spanked, Yes, Sir, Yes, Ma’am, He’s on Top, She’s on Top) for an idea of the kinds of stories I prefer. I will consider up to two stories per author.

How to submit: Send double spaced Times or Times New Roman 12 point black font Word document with pages numbered (.doc, not .docx) OR RTF of 1,500-4,000 word story. Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch and double space (regular double spacing, do not add extra lines between paragraphs or do any other irregular spacing). US grammar (double quotation marks around dialogue, etc.) required. Only submit your final, best version of the story you are submitting. Do not send multiple versions of the same story. Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), mailing address, and 50 word or less bio in the third person to bestbondage2014@gmail.com. If you are using a pseudonym, please provide your real name as well as your pseudonym and make it clear which one you’d like to be credited as. You will receive a confirmation within 72 hours. I will get back to you by September 2013. I cannot give any feedback on rejected submissions.

Payment: $50 and 2 copies of the book on publication

Deadline: April 1, 2013 (earlier submissions strongly encouraged)

I’ve been seeing numerous recent submissions that do not conform to my guidelines. They are there for a reason. Please read and follow them. If you have any questions, please contact me at bestbondage2014 at gmail.com



Short Short BDSM Submission Erotica Anthology (title TBA)
Editor: Rachel Kramer Bussel
Publisher: Cleis Press
Deadline: April 1, 2013 (earlier stories strongly preferred and encouraged)
Email address: shortsubmissionantho at gmail.com Payment: $20 and 1 copy of the book on publication

To get a feel for the types of BDSM stories I'm looking for, see my books with a submissive POV such as Please, Sir; Yes, Sir; Please, Ma'am and Yes, Ma'am. For me the biggest challenge with editing 69 stories around a single topic is diversity in all sense of the word, so give me a range of characters, POVs (I welcome first, second and third person stories), settings, scenarios, motivations, experience levels, motivations, BDSM practices (which can be combined with other sexual acts), fetishes, couplings, relationships (yes, repeating this from the guidelines below, but it's the thing that makes or breaks a book like this, in my opinion, and as an editor I love having 3 times the room as I normally would in a given anthology to publish more authors and provide more of a range of storytelling and scenarios). This will be my third time working with such a large number of authors; I'm thrilled with how beautiful a book Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex is, inside and outside, and the next one, about orgasms, will be out later this year. So whether you read Fifty Shades of Grey and were inspired to write your own submissive hero or heroine or couple or other permutation or are an old hat at erotica, I look forward to reading your stories. This is also an excellent opportunity for new authors (new to erotica and/or my books) to try their hand at erotica, since I have space for 69 stories. Looking forward to reading! READ AND FOLLOW THE GUIDELINES. That is the first and, dare I say, very best way to get your story included in any of my books! For those new to erotica, I strongly encourage you to submit to this anthology if it seems up your alley. Questions? Email shortsubmissionantho at gmail.com after you've read the guidelines!

Please make sure to read and follow these guidelines in order for your work to be considered. Editor Rachel Kramer Bussel is looking for short short stories of 1,200 words or less focused on the theme of BDSM from a submissive perspective. While the word count is short, I want complex stories with a beginning, middle and end, not simply scene snippets. I will consider stories from a dominant's perspective if that is the best way to illuminate the mindset of the submissive. The final book of 69 stories will contain an extremely wide variety of characters, POVs (I welcome first, second and third person stories), settings, scenarios, motivations, experience levels, motivations, BDSM practices (which can be combined with other sexual acts), fetishes, couplings, relationships, etc. All genders and sexual orientations welcome. All characters must be over 18; no nonconsensual activity, scat, incest or bestiality. No poetry. Original, unpublished stories only. Stories from authors I have not published before are especially welcome. See my books Please, Sir; Yes, Sir; Please, Ma'am and Yes, Ma'am to get a feel for the types of submissive stories I enjoy. See Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex for examples of 1,200 word or less erotic stories.

How to submit: Send double spaced Times or Times New Roman 12 point black font Word document (.doc or .docx) with pages numbered OR RTF of 1,200 words MAXIMUM to shortsubmissionantho at gmail.com. DO NOT submit multiple versions of your story; submit ONLY your final, complete, edited version of the story. Note that this is a hard maximum. Stories that are not in keeping with the theme of the anthology or are over 1,200 words will not be considered. Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch and double space (regular double spacing, do not add extra lines between paragraphs or do any other irregular spacing). US grammar (double quotation marks around dialogue, etc.) required. I will consider a maximum of TWO stories per author. Include your legal name (and pseudonym if applicable), mailing address. If you are using a pseudonym, please provide your real name and pseudonym and make it clear which one you’d like to be credited as. You will receive a confirmation within 72 hours. I will get back to you by September 2013.

Payment: $20 and 1 copy of the book on publication in 2014

Deadline: April 1, 2013 (earlier submissions encouraged and preferred)

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Sunday, March 24, 2013

Buy one get one free ebook offer extended through Monday March 25th at 11:59 pm EST

I decided to extend this offer through Monday night. 2 books for the price of one! I'm having another buy one, get one free ebook sale, since the first one with Serving Him went so well! Here's the deal: From midnight on Friday, March 22nd through 11:59 pm EST Monday March 25th, if you buy the Kindle ebook edition or Nook ebook edition of Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women's Erotica, I will send you any of my Kindle or Nook ebooks listed in this paragraph FREE, which includes the just-released ebook of Best Sex Writing 2013, featuring writers like Jonathan Lethem, guest judge Carol Queen, Patrick Califia, Amber Dawn, Madison Young and many others (more about that very soon). You tell me which one, I send it to you as a gift. What you need to do: Forward me your receipt with "BOGO" in the subject line for your purchase of the Nook or Kindle edition of Twice the Pleasure made between midnight March 22nd and 11:59 p.m. March 25th by 9 am EST Tuesday, March 26th and tell me these 3 things: which ebook you want, which format (Kindle or Nook), and what email address to send to (for Kindle, I cannot use an @kindle.com address to gift an ebook). Then I send it to you. I'd love it if you'd spread the word and if there's a book of mine you've been wanting to read, now you can get 2 for $9.99 (Kindle) or $10.68 (Nook) - no, I don't have a thing to do with ebook or online sales pricing. This greatly helps visibility with online stores, especially on Amazon as it can help get the book on their bestseller lists. If this goes well, I plan to do more BOGO ebook sales! Book pick options: Anything for You: Erotica for Kinky Couples, Serving Him: Sexy Stories of Submission, Instruments of Pleasure: Sex Toy Erotica, Caught Looking, Crossdressing, He's on Top, She's on Top, Yes, Sir, Yes, Ma'am, Please, Sir, Please, Ma'am, Rubber Sex, Spanked, Bottoms Up, Cheeky Spanking Stories, Tasting Him, Tasting Her, Going Down, Do Not Disturb, Suite Encounters, The Mile High Club, Peep Show, Fast Girls, Orgasmic, Smooth, Passion, Irresistible, Gotta Have It; 69 Stories of Sudden Sex, Surrender, Obsessed, Women in Lust, Hide and Seek Only You, Best Bondage Erotica 2001, Best Bondage Erotica 2012, Best Bondage Erotica 2013, Best Sex Writing 2008, Best Sex Writing 2009, Best Sex Writing 2010, Best Sex Writing 2012, Best Sex Writing 2013.



Introduction: Hot Bi Babes: A Both/And Approach to Bisexuality

1 Percent Adaptable Nicole Wolfe
The Wife Kay Jaybee
Operetta Jean Roberta
Lifeline Emerald
Goa Dena Hankins
The Robber Girl Lori Selke
The Adulterers Penelope Friday
Sunset Logan Belle
Break Cheryl B.
In the Mirror Valerie Alexander
Glitter in the Gutter Giselle Renarde
Seduction Dance Dorothy Freed
A Little Fun Rachel Kramer Bussel
Trinity Jordana Winters
Meeting at the Hole in the Wall Aimee Pearl
The State Tahira Iqbal
Strange Status Quo Salome Wilde
Walking the Walk Shanna Germain
ReGretable Circumstances Lane
Right-Red Flagging Sinclair Sexsmith
Page of Wands Cheyenne Blue
What I Want, What I Need Jacqueline Applebee

Introduction: Hot Bi Babes: A Both/And Approach to Bisexuality

Woody Allen once famously said, “Bisexuality immediately doubles your chances for a date on Saturday night.” As a bisexual woman, I can attest that this is not necessarily true. Bisexuality is more than just a math equation and cannot be so easily categorized or summarized. Identifying as bi, or being attracted to or engaging in sex with a variety of genders, or whatever version of something approximating those states of being , is the theme of this anthology, and in many ways, the term is actually a lot broader than that dual opportunity. This is not a book about choosing either/or, male or female, or simply one of each. It’s not about narrowing gender down to one size fits all, but about expanding our options, to a both/and approach to how we view and cultivate our sexuality. It’s a welcoming, inclusive definition that welcomes all comers—pun fully intended.

I wanted this book, while fictional and focused on the erotic aspects of bisexual women’s lives, to explore as wide a swatch of “bisexual” as possible. That means that some of the best stories here don’t mention the word bisexual at all; they don’t have to, because their bi angle, their queerness, is embedded—and bedded—in the story. The characters are living it, rather than identifying with it; the sexual exploration and attraction, the experience and movement, are more important than what anyone wants to call it.

The large majority of the submissions I received for this book were about women having sex with women, which makes sense in the context of a culture that still privileges heterosexual identity over any other kind. Even in an era of so-called lesbian and bisexual chic, there’s still plenty of discomfort with the fluidity with which many women view their sexuality. Shifting away from a purely heterosexual mindset forces women to grapple with the ways we differ from mainstream society, even one that is becoming much more open and knowledgeable about the varieties of queer life. The first time we dare to dip our toes—or other body parts—into the world of sex with other women is often momentous. Many of us will find the character of Laura, in Nicole Wolfe’s opening story, “1 Percent Adaptable,” familiar. Laura at first protests Marie’s advances, warning her that she’s not gay, not bi, until she listens to her body and follows its yearnings. “Laura was shocked that the kiss had surprised her, considering what had just happened between her legs. She let her lips caress Marie’s. She dared to let her tongue out to play. She risked letting her hands tickle Marie’s hips and backside,” Wolfe writes.

But I didn’t want this to simply be a first-time bi-curious tentative collection, but a robust one exploring the intimacy of life as a woman interested in men and women. That’s why I wanted stories that asked questions like the ones in Jacqueline Applebee’s closing tale, “What I Want, What I Need:” “I’d been out as a lesbian since I was twenty-three. Why was I suddenly spending time with a straight man? Why was I enjoying it so much? Had I really been a lesbian at all, or had I been lying to myself for the past twenty years?”

There are girlfriends and wives, husbands and boyfriends, first dates, threesomes and much more here. There’s daring and adventure, women taking risks by stepping outside their comfort zones, whether it’s by surrendering to a bodyguard in “The State,” by Tahira Iqbal, or confronting “The Wife” of a male lover in Kay Jaybee’s story, only to be confronted right back. The women you’ll read about are attracted to strong women like “The Robber Girl” in Lori Selke’s story, and men who surprise them with their sensitivity, as in my story, “A Little Fun.”

There’s also kink, if that’s what you’re looking for. In Cheryl B.’s “The Break,” spanking becomes a way for two exes to reconnect and revive the passion between them, while Sinclair Sexsmith takes us inside a gay bar and then home with a boy her protagonist has met there, one who may or may not know her true gender, in “Right-Red Flagging.” The protagonist of “Seduction Dance” is under the watchful eye of her master when she finds a new female plaything for her to command and seduce. Gender is played with, fucked with, and grappled with as well in Giselle Renarde’s “Glitter in the Gutter,” in which the female partner of a male cross-dresser encourages his interest when he fears he’s crossed a line and doesn’t want to live in the new, judgmental world he’s stepped into. Aimee Pearl writes in “Meeting at the Hole in the Wall, “Chivalry is dead, and I want to writhe naked on its grave.”

These are celebratory, sexy stories, but, all apologies to Mr. Allen, they are more complex than a view of bisexuality simply as “twice as much” to offer. I like to think of them as both/and stories that, collectively, offer a look at the ways bisexuality, queerness and lesbianism affect us while recognizing that there’s no monolithic typical bisexual. We are multifaceted, full of desires that can’t be contained in a single, simplistic category. We are hungry, horny, mischievous, naughty, provocative and, yes, curious. We may think we know what we want, only to keep on surprising ourselves just when we think we have it all figured out. We are open to a wide range of sexual possibilities, whether they exist in our heads or beyond.

I hope you’ll enjoy the twenty-two stories presented here, and that they serve as erotic catalysts, no matter how you identify.

Rachel Kramer Bussel

New York City

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Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Bloggers wanted for Best Sex Writing 2013 virtual book tour

Want a free copy of Best Sex Writing 2013 and to join the conversation about sexuality and culture? Sign up to be part of the virtual book tour. Your blog can be about anything, as long as you agree to post on your assigned date about the book. You'll get a copy (print or ebook) and I'll link back to you. Interested? Email bestsexwriting2013 at gmail.com with "Tour" in the subject line and your URL and name and mailing address (for print copy) or that you want an ebook copy and Cleis Press will be in touch about your date and posting instructions. For those who just want to read the book, it's for sale right now on Kindle and Nook and will be in print very soon.



Foreword Carol Queen
Introduction: A Different Kind of Sexual Education

Live Nude Models Jonathan Lethem
Can a Better Vibrator Inspire an Age of Great American Sex? Andy Isaacson
Sex by Numbers Rachel Swan
Very Legal: Sex and Love in Retirement Alex Morris
Notes from a Unicorn Seth Fischer
Rest Stop Confidential Conner Habib
When on Fire Island… A Polyamorous Disaster Nicholas Garnett
Cherry Picking Julia Serano
Holy Fuck: The Fourth-and-Long Virgin Jon Pressick
Baby Talk Rachel Kramer Bussel
Dear John Lori Selke
Sex by Any Other Name Insiya Ansari
Enhancing Masochism Patrick Califia
Submissive: A Personal Manifesto Madison Young
Ghosts: All My Men Are Dead Carol Queen
Happy Hookers Melissa Gira Grant
Christian Conservatives vs. Sex: The Long War Over Reproductive Freedom Rob Boston
Porn Defends the Money Shot Dennis Romero
Lost Boys Kristen Hinman
The Original Blonde Neal Gabler

Introduction: A Different Kind of Sexual Education

As editor of the Best Sex Writing series, and a writer about sex in both fiction and nonfiction forms, I’m privileged to hear from lots of people about sexuality, whether asking for advice or wanting to talk about the big issues of the day, whether that means attacks on birth control or Fifty Shades of Grey. The biggest thing I’ve learned, though, is pretty basic: we are all always learning. You can indeed get a PhD in sexology, like foreword author and contributor Carol Queen did, but that doesn’t mean you simply give up and assume you know everything about the wide world of sexuality and sexual variation. You can’t; it’s impossible.

Part of why sex writing is so vital is because we all have things to learn—about ourselves, and about others. While this book will not teach you how to have sex, you will learn about what motivates others in their sexual desires, whether to engage in multiple relationships, perform sex work, come out as bisexual, build increasingly advanced vibrators, or more.

I think it’s safe to say that whether this is the first book about sex you’ve ever read or the thousandth, you will learn something about what makes people tick, about sexual desire and sexual community. The latter is as important to me as the former, because it’s within the community of sex writers, educators and activists that I’ve carved out a place for myself as a bisexual, feminist, kinky sex writer. Lori Selke writes in her open letter, “Dear John,” about feeling disillusioned by the judgments being passed around her local leather community. “See, my kinky leather identity grew firmly out of my queerness and my feminism. All three of those elements are important and in some ways inseparable. It’s important to me to pursue the sort of social justice that ensures that our consensual relationships are someday entered into from a place of roughly equal societal power. Without that aim, we’re simply perpetuating oppression.” I suspect many people aren’t aware of just how committed to their ideals those in the kink and leather communities are. To assume it’s all about whips, chains, bondage and spanking is to miss the point—of course it’s about those things, but it’s also about much more.

The educational lessons here are often much more personal. When Conner Habib opens his essay “Rest Stop Confidential” with, “I was fifteen the first time I found out that men have sex in public,” I must admit that, at thirty-seven, I have only seen men having sex in public at parties specifically designed for sex. The first of many firsts Julia Serano details in “Cherry Picking” begins, “The first time I learned about sex was in fifth grade.” We are all both capable of learning more, and impacted by what we did—or didn’t—learn about sex at a young age.

Some of what you’re about to read is sad or scary or disheartening; I cannot promise you a book of shiny happy sex bouncing off every page, because that is not the world we live in. There are laws to fight against, AIDS plaguing the gay community, internalized oppression, questions that may have no answers, or multiple answers. I didn’t select these essays and articles because they purport to have all the answers.

Last year’s guest judge, the noted sexual commentator Susie Bright, when asked about The Guardian’s Bad Sex award, responded, “There is no art without sex.” I think the same could be said for the news; sex is not a topic squirreled away on the back page of the paper; it’s on the front page, in the sports section, the business section, the editorials. It’s covered in fashion magazines and newsweeklies. In Best Sex Writing 2013, hot topics include New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow’s virginity and the laws governing condom use in porn.

Sex education remains at the forefront of the news and continues to be “controversial,” though, like birth control, another political battleground of late in the United States, I would think it would be a no-brainer. Yet I can still read articles like one in Time about the Mississippi county, Tunica, with the highest teen pregnancy that is only recently getting on board with sex ed, via a law mandating it do so. “During the four years Ashley McKay attended Rosa Fort High School in Tunica, Miss., her sex education consisted mainly of an instructor listing different sexually transmitted diseases. ‘There was no curriculum,’ she says. ‘The teacher, an older gentleman who was also the football coach, would tell us, “If you get AIDS, you’re gonna die. Pick out your casket, because you’re gonna die.”’”

We should not be reading articles like this any longer, but we are, and it’s not just youths who are in dire need of sex education. Just today, I received an email from an acquaintance asking if I could chat because, “I have found a wonderful woman with whom i have begun to explore areas of my sexuality i really have never followed through on or even verbally fantasized about.” He has questions. So do many people, but they don’t know where to turn.

This book doesn’t purport to have all the answers, and is likely to raise many discussions and propose multiple answers to questions about open relationships, prostitution, sexual orientation and other topics. It cannot take the place of talking about sex—with your lovers, friends, parents, children, neighbors and coworkers. Those shouldn’t be the same conversations, but they can exist, and by making sex a topic we don’t shy away from, we start to educate ourselves about what others are thinking, feeling and doing. So I hope that you won’t read this book and keep it tucked away on your bookshelf (or e-reader); while you are more than welcome to do so, I hope you will introduce some part of what you’ve read into a conversation, take it off the page and into real life. You will very likely learn something, and that is a process that can easily snowball; there’s never an end, because it’s a lifelong process, one that I look forward to every day.

Rachel Kramer Bussel
New York City

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5 free audio stories from Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex narrated by Rose Caraway

The amazing Rose Caraway has done it again! She's the narrator of Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex Audible audiobook and has generously made five stories available free! Listen below (the embedded players should work but if they don't for some reason, the links above them should). A huge thank you to her and everyone who's listened and purchased Audible audiobooks - I know how many of you there are because I am part of their Author Services program and I get $1 for each Audible purchase of my books, which is pretty much the best free money program I've ever seen. I'm analyzing that data and my sales figures to help me figure out what kinds of books to edit next!

Laugh by Sommer Marsden

Click here to listen to the free mp3





Police Dogging by Elizabeth Coldwell

Click here to listen to the free mp3





Remembering the Wrinkles by Penelope Friday

Click here to listen to the free mp3





Not Just a Myth by Heidi Champa

Click here to listen to the free mp3





The Dirty Things She Says by Sinclair Sexsmith

Click here to listen to the free mp3



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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

48 hour BOGO ebook sale March 22 and 23: buy Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women's Erotica and get any of my Cleis Press ebooks free!

BOGO offer extended: I'm having another buy one, get one free ebook sale, since the first one with Serving Him went so well! Here's the deal: From midnight on Friday, March 22nd through 11:59 pm EST Monday March 25th, if you buy the Kindle ebook edition or Nook ebook edition of Twice the Pleasure: Bisexual Women's Erotica, I will send you any of my Kindle or Nook ebooks listed in this paragraph FREE, which includes the just-released ebook of Best Sex Writing 2013, featuring writers like Jonathan Lethem, guest judge Carol Queen, Patrick Califia, Amber Dawn, Madison Young and many others (more about that very soon). You tell me which one, I send it to you as a gift. What you need to do: Forward me your receipt with "BOGO" in the subject line for your purchase of the Nook or Kindle edition of Twice the Pleasure made between midnight March 22nd and 11:59 p.m. March 25th by 9 am EST Tuesday, March 26th and tell me these 3 things: which ebook you want, which format (Kindle or Nook), and what email address to send to (for Kindle, I cannot use an @kindle.com address to gift an ebook). Then I send it to you. I'd love it if you'd spread the word and if there's a book of mine you've been wanting to read, now you can get 2 for $9.99 (Kindle) or $10.68 (Nook) - no, I don't have a thing to do with ebook or online sales pricing. This greatly helps visibility with online stores, especially on Amazon as it can help get the book on their bestseller lists. If this goes well, I plan to do more BOGO ebook sales! Book pick options: Anything for You: Erotica for Kinky Couples, Serving Him: Sexy Stories of Submission, Instruments of Pleasure: Sex Toy Erotica, Caught Looking, Crossdressing, He's on Top, She's on Top, Yes, Sir, Yes, Ma'am, Please, Sir, Please, Ma'am, Rubber Sex, Spanked, Bottoms Up, Cheeky Spanking Stories, Tasting Him, Tasting Her, Going Down, Do Not Disturb, Suite Encounters, The Mile High Club, Peep Show, Fast Girls, Orgasmic, Smooth, Passion, Irresistible, Gotta Have It; 69 Stories of Sudden Sex, Surrender, Obsessed, Women in Lust, Hide and Seek Only You, Best Bondage Erotica 2001, Best Bondage Erotica 2012, Best Bondage Erotica 2013, Best Sex Writing 2008, Best Sex Writing 2009, Best Sex Writing 2010, Best Sex Writing 2012, Best Sex Writing 2013.



Introduction: Hot Bi Babes: A Both/And Approach to Bisexuality

1 Percent Adaptable Nicole Wolfe
The Wife Kay Jaybee
Operetta Jean Roberta
Lifeline Emerald
Goa Dena Hankins
The Robber Girl Lori Selke
The Adulterers Penelope Friday
Sunset Logan Belle
Break Cheryl B.
In the Mirror Valerie Alexander
Glitter in the Gutter Giselle Renarde
Seduction Dance Dorothy Freed
A Little Fun Rachel Kramer Bussel
Trinity Jordana Winters
Meeting at the Hole in the Wall Aimee Pearl
The State Tahira Iqbal
Strange Status Quo Salome Wilde
Walking the Walk Shanna Germain
ReGretable Circumstances Lane
Right-Red Flagging Sinclair Sexsmith
Page of Wands Cheyenne Blue
What I Want, What I Need Jacqueline Applebee

Introduction: Hot Bi Babes: A Both/And Approach to Bisexuality

Woody Allen once famously said, “Bisexuality immediately doubles your chances for a date on Saturday night.” As a bisexual woman, I can attest that this is not necessarily true. Bisexuality is more than just a math equation and cannot be so easily categorized or summarized. Identifying as bi, or being attracted to or engaging in sex with a variety of genders, or whatever version of something approximating those states of being , is the theme of this anthology, and in many ways, the term is actually a lot broader than that dual opportunity. This is not a book about choosing either/or, male or female, or simply one of each. It’s not about narrowing gender down to one size fits all, but about expanding our options, to a both/and approach to how we view and cultivate our sexuality. It’s a welcoming, inclusive definition that welcomes all comers—pun fully intended.

I wanted this book, while fictional and focused on the erotic aspects of bisexual women’s lives, to explore as wide a swatch of “bisexual” as possible. That means that some of the best stories here don’t mention the word bisexual at all; they don’t have to, because their bi angle, their queerness, is embedded—and bedded—in the story. The characters are living it, rather than identifying with it; the sexual exploration and attraction, the experience and movement, are more important than what anyone wants to call it.

The large majority of the submissions I received for this book were about women having sex with women, which makes sense in the context of a culture that still privileges heterosexual identity over any other kind. Even in an era of so-called lesbian and bisexual chic, there’s still plenty of discomfort with the fluidity with which many women view their sexuality. Shifting away from a purely heterosexual mindset forces women to grapple with the ways we differ from mainstream society, even one that is becoming much more open and knowledgeable about the varieties of queer life. The first time we dare to dip our toes—or other body parts—into the world of sex with other women is often momentous. Many of us will find the character of Laura, in Nicole Wolfe’s opening story, “1 Percent Adaptable,” familiar. Laura at first protests Marie’s advances, warning her that she’s not gay, not bi, until she listens to her body and follows its yearnings. “Laura was shocked that the kiss had surprised her, considering what had just happened between her legs. She let her lips caress Marie’s. She dared to let her tongue out to play. She risked letting her hands tickle Marie’s hips and backside,” Wolfe writes.

But I didn’t want this to simply be a first-time bi-curious tentative collection, but a robust one exploring the intimacy of life as a woman interested in men and women. That’s why I wanted stories that asked questions like the ones in Jacqueline Applebee’s closing tale, “What I Want, What I Need:” “I’d been out as a lesbian since I was twenty-three. Why was I suddenly spending time with a straight man? Why was I enjoying it so much? Had I really been a lesbian at all, or had I been lying to myself for the past twenty years?”

There are girlfriends and wives, husbands and boyfriends, first dates, threesomes and much more here. There’s daring and adventure, women taking risks by stepping outside their comfort zones, whether it’s by surrendering to a bodyguard in “The State,” by Tahira Iqbal, or confronting “The Wife” of a male lover in Kay Jaybee’s story, only to be confronted right back. The women you’ll read about are attracted to strong women like “The Robber Girl” in Lori Selke’s story, and men who surprise them with their sensitivity, as in my story, “A Little Fun.”

There’s also kink, if that’s what you’re looking for. In Cheryl B.’s “The Break,” spanking becomes a way for two exes to reconnect and revive the passion between them, while Sinclair Sexsmith takes us inside a gay bar and then home with a boy her protagonist has met there, one who may or may not know her true gender, in “Right-Red Flagging.” The protagonist of “Seduction Dance” is under the watchful eye of her master when she finds a new female plaything for her to command and seduce. Gender is played with, fucked with, and grappled with as well in Giselle Renarde’s “Glitter in the Gutter,” in which the female partner of a male cross-dresser encourages his interest when he fears he’s crossed a line and doesn’t want to live in the new, judgmental world he’s stepped into. Aimee Pearl writes in “Meeting at the Hole in the Wall, “Chivalry is dead, and I want to writhe naked on its grave.”

These are celebratory, sexy stories, but, all apologies to Mr. Allen, they are more complex than a view of bisexuality simply as “twice as much” to offer. I like to think of them as both/and stories that, collectively, offer a look at the ways bisexuality, queerness and lesbianism affect us while recognizing that there’s no monolithic typical bisexual. We are multifaceted, full of desires that can’t be contained in a single, simplistic category. We are hungry, horny, mischievous, naughty, provocative and, yes, curious. We may think we know what we want, only to keep on surprising ourselves just when we think we have it all figured out. We are open to a wide range of sexual possibilities, whether they exist in our heads or beyond.

I hope you’ll enjoy the twenty-two stories presented here, and that they serve as erotic catalysts, no matter how you identify.

Rachel Kramer Bussel

New York City

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Saturday, March 16, 2013

How Mary Lou Lord's cover of "Polaroids" inspired me to leave law school

Find out why at The Weeklings, where I"ve taken part in their Power Trio series, which even has its own playlist on Spotify. I love being asked to write about topics that aren't about sex (not that I don't love and live by writing about sex, but it makes me feel especially valued to be asked to do other things). I'm at CatalystCon and prepping host the last ever In The Flesh Reading Series with an amazing lineup. You can follow the conference with the hashtag #ccon (and every panel and event has its own hashtag too!).

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Thursday, March 14, 2013

I Slut-Shamed Myself and Lied to My Gynecologist

Read all about it at The Frisky:
I didn’t think I was ashamed of the number of sexual partners I’ve had in the 20 years I’ve been getting it on until I found myself filling in a number half the true total at a recent gynecologist appointment. Although I know doctors are trained not to judge, and this doctor in particular had been particularly kind, helpful and professional when I’d seen her previously, in my head, all of a sudden the number (at best an approximation as I haven’t kept an exact count in year) seemed like cause for alarm.
Keep reading

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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

I interviewed former Westboro Baptist Church member Lauren Drain

At The Hairpin, I interviewed Lauren Drain, author of Banished, about her time in the Westboro Baptist Church (and being banished from it). Interesting how often religion is cropping up in my life - been to temple twice this year, for a funeral and a bris, which is probably more than the last three years. And have another author interview coming up that touches on religion. Also, I'm doing lots more book coverage so if you are a publicist and have a new memoir, pop culture, current events, dating/relationship, addiction book or something else that I might like, I am accepting egalleys (and print copies if there are no egalleys). Email me at rachelkb at gmail.com and I will check them out. Netgalley is my new favorite website!

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Tuesday, March 12, 2013

2 new audiobooks: Cheeky Spanking Stories and Anything for You: Erotica for Kinky Couples

Audible has released 2 more audiobooks of my books, Cheeky Spanking Stories and Anything for You: Erotica for Kinky Couples (click on links for free sample listen. This is in addition to the other audiobooks of mine available, including Gotta Have It: 69 Stories of Sudden Sex narrated by Rose Caraway, who's posted I believe 4 free samples; follow her @RoseCaraway on Twitter to keep up and stay tuned for a fun bonus reading of a story of mine by her! More a reader than a listener? See http://cheekyanthology.wordpress.com/about/ and my Anything for You post (it has its own URL but I need to get it updated) and http://gottahaveitbook.com/about/ for the introductions, tables of contents and sample stories!







What audiobook reviewers are saying about Gotta Have It:

"This is the best produced audiobook I have heard in the erotic category. Fun and interesting stories are presented in a way that holds your attention. The format of the book lends itself to enjoying in tiny, yet satisfying, bites of time."

and

summed up in 3 words: "Literal, suggestive and sensual"

and

"There were many short stories and each one was very different, you could start and stop and keep everything going. When you get an anthology of stories, your not going to "Love" every one of them but I believe at least 90% were excellent and worth the buy. Some were hard core, others were soft core, other were just romantic. A nice mix. I usually enjoy anything RCB puts together. I wasn't disappointed on this one. The good part none of the stories were more than 15 minutes long, so if you felt it was not to your liking you could skip to the next. I only did that 4 times. "

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Wednesday, March 06, 2013

My review of The Feminist Porn Book

My review of The Feminist Porn Book, edited by Tristan Taormino, Celine Parreñas Shimizu, Constance Penley, and Mireille Miller-Young, is up at The Hairpin, and I will be covering next month's Feminist Porn Awards and Conference, so stay tuned!

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