I LOVED the uplifting emails I received about Sacred Secrets...
I was SAD I recieved not a peep about Sacred Revelations...
I must say, I was absolutely floored when by mid-day RELEASE DAY, I had already received one phone call and a text message and an IM voicing concerns about the "Dominant" portion of the anthology Dom/sub (written by B.D.Dark...
What was going on that these readers didn't even take the time to read the entire anthology? And more importantly, were they so irate that they would not read MY PART of the anthology?
Chat time later, assurances given...and promises received that they would read "Submissive"...I was somewhat relieved but also quite worried when evening hit and the next round of voiced concerns started rolling in...
I considered posting a blog immediately but decided to wait until the first official review...a week later...I wasn't so certain that I should wait for the review, thus my announcement yesterday promising this blog today.
Last night I reread "Dominant" by B.D. Dark and was left scratching my head about what the fuss was about because I see Dominant as a very lovely, innocent accounting of what happens when two people totally inexperienced in BDSM decide to take on a committed relationship with each other...
I'm also not going to skim-coat it to hides the ugly..."Dominant" alludes to the real darkness and true dangers of what happens when two totally inexperienced players decide to get in deep and end up in over their heads...
So woithout further ado...the answers to soooooo many questions:
Did you really expect anyone to make it past the first five pages?
Without ruining the ending of Dominant...I want to encourage those readers who decided to stop reading part way into the story (because it raised such high levels of emotion) to finish the story, because I find the ending touching and hope filled.
Why would you join "submissive" with B.D. Dark's Dominant?
I embraced B.D.Dark's "Dominant" and decided to run with the anthology when I read it in its rough-draft form..even though it made me nervous...even though I was left shaking my head, thinking "HOLY FUCK!". You will have to trust me when I say that I was scared for B.D. and the reaction she would receive from the reviewers, but I also applauded her bravery because she was willing to shine a big spotlight on what can happen and what DOES HAPPEN when two "Newbies to the Scene" get carried away and someone gets hurt. My only comment to her pre-edit was to make sure that the readers know that BDSM Play is only approppriate when it is done in a safe, sane, consensual manner...and even then...emotional damage can happen if not physical damage...if both players are one-hundred percent inexperienced.
Did you read "Dominant" before deciding to do the joint project?
I was slightly disappointed when I did read the cleaned-up editted version, although it did keep the truly dark undertones that brought out the emotional reaction in my readers, some of the very black and blue ugly was missing, along with the heroine's remorse (although remorse might be the wrong word...maybe just cut and dry doubt). Either way, some of the grit that I had found so compelling was now somewhat toned down...still a WONDERFUL READ...just not quite as scary and quite a bit more romantic, which is what we as Erotic Romance Writer's strive for--a great romance! So, I applaud Loose-Id for their editting skills on both stories. Dom/sub sets the stage for Big Romance albeit Very Big, Very Hot, Very Dangerous Romance.
Post Re-read, I understand the phone calls, texts, IM's and emails. Yes, the first few pages of Dominant herald a very dark, scary intro...but guess what...this is BDSM Erotica at its finest...this is not a Pregnant-Cowgirl-in-Need-of-a-Smalltown-Sherrif-Hero-Story! You would find THAT story under Sweet Romance.
Do you think this was a bad career move and do you regret this anthology?
I don't regret linking "Submissive" with "Dominant"...
As a BDSM Erotic Writer (and player in the scene), don't you feel it is your duty to cast BDSM in a positive light?
There is only one light, the big ugly spotlight, and noplace is absolutely perfect and without flaw...perhaps especially the BDSM scene...and in particular since the advent of Online-scenes, chatrooms, and blogs. I do keep a keen eye on what is happening online, partly because I am an e-book writer. I worry about the young girls I see posting their "trophy-shots" of their bruises, their master's names carved into their breasts, and their genitals pummelled into what could be described post damage as hamburger...
That is the main reason I applaud B.D. and respect the work titled "Dominant"...she gives us a strikingly honest look at what can happen when two newbies get together and explore the BDSM Lifestyle...
Read it and have comments? Post 'em here!
Haven't read it and now you are curious? Feel free to BUY IT NOW! It's only $5.99, easy to download, and the best BDSM Read you will immerse yourself in this year (yeah, I'm prejudice, sue me:)
Love to ALL of YOU!!!
Hugs
Roxy
9 comments:
was SAD I recieved not a peep about Sacred Revelations...
I haven't been able to finish SR yet! But it is THE ONLY ebook I'm allowing myself time to read. I have others purchased, but I think you are such an incredibly unique writer that I want to really "explore" the book!
I'm going to purchase your new book tonight!
Darr
I am sorry if i didn't tell you how much i loved Sacred Revelations. I loved them both, them emotional journey is amazing through these stories. I couldn't wait for this anth. to come out and i just bought it yesterday but i am determined to finish it today. I will let you know what I think when I am done. Hope you have a good week.
-Y-
I'm still befuddled about why poor Roxy had to field all this when I'm the one who wrote Dominant. If someone wants to drop me a line, use my bondav40@gmail.com email address.
And definitely finish the story before you decide what you think. It's kind of like a plane spiraling down, down, down then pulling up before hitting ground. The pilot realizes he's come close to making a serious error. (He clearly needs more flight training!)
I see my half of the antho as showing the negative aspect and Roxy's as the positive way the scene should be played. Her story is the healing counterpart.
I don't understand what the hipe is all about. Steve was a new dominant and obviously let his submissive take him to a place that was dangerous. Isn't it his responsibility to say when enough is enough. There is a lesson to be learned here, that the BDSM lifestyle can be dangerous and should only be entered by knowledgeable experienced persons. When new to the lifestyle people should only seek out an experienced Dom or Sub. It is never a good idea for both the Dom and Sub to be newbies.
Also, before attacking the author it is also wise to read the entire work. Therefore, making an INFORMED critique.
I really enjoyed both works. Roxy, you rock and you know it!!
Yay Darr..I was about to give up hearing from you...although I realize your surgery may have slowed you down...be well...
Glad you liked SR, Y...can't wait to hear what you think about Dom/sub
HELLOOOOOOOO Bonnie Dee aka BD Dark...
hmmm...anonymous??? Is that Hookah Girl or Forgotten Girl posting? Or do I have a brand new champion to my cause who is yet to be named????
Love and Hugs To Everyone
Roxy-love - haven't read the latest but it's in the ridiculously long "to be bought" pile. I'm actually glad to hear it's Bonnie who is BD Dark since i adore her writing.
And it's not a bad thing to be stirring up questions and provoking curiousity, ya know?
Hi, Rhian,
You'll find B.D. Dark still sounds like me, but with more edge. I always try to make each of my characters a real person with both good and bad qualities and with a human propensity for making mistakes.
As one of the people who immediately called Roxy upon reading the first story I will comment (sorry this took awhile).
My problem with the book is the pairing. Both stories are amazing stand alone titles, but they are the polar opposites of the BDSM erotic romance world. For me Roxy was an emerging voice of experienced and real bdsm. Not everything in her novels was ‘pretty’ or ultimately graphic. Roxy, you are the master of the subtle act, the deep emotional understanding, and explanation of subspace.
As Dark is a new author what I bought was a Roxy Harte book, and what I got in Dark’s story was far far away from what expected upon purchasing. The hero is possibly the worst Dom ever, and the BDSM ‘community’ non existent. If he had any actual desire to be a safe and sane partner he would have done what real practitioners do and spent time as a bottom. We never hear anything about him self experimenting to be sure he knew how hard to hit or what kind of rope to use (at one point it talks about rope burns, as if a cotton based rope were being used instead of nylon which is a gigantic no-no.)
There were also several things which I’m going to say are physically impossible and or would have permanently damaged the heroine, one example is:
*spoiler*:
Complete suspension by nipple piercings. I was so horrified at this I stopped reading. I checked to see if there was actually some breast bondage in there, meaning some of the weight could have been on ropes around the heroine’s torso, but didn’t see it. The hero would have ripped her nipples off doing this (despite it only being for a few moments.) The author also mentions clamps, but the heroine has pierced nipples, so then I was just confused as it what exactly is going on.
In a world where the subtlest stroke, or a piece of ribbon tied lightly around the neck, can be the ultimate act of control or arousal, the vague listings of BDSM acts read more like a laundry list. There was no emotion, no power, behind what was happening.
The hero came across as a play Dom, the kind you see online, talking about owning women. These men are far from what the BDSM community is about, most are men who cannot deal with women in real life and so need to control them sexually, they play for their own gratification, to make themselves feel powerful.
Another huge warning flag was that there was an allusion to gimping, with the heroine being deaf and hooded. This is by far one of the MOST dangerous of games, because gimping dehumanizes that person. The sub’s rapturous love of ‘subspace’ after scenes rang false. Even if she did hit subspace she should have gone through the shaky letdown of an intense scene. Even the most experienced players show the emotional effects of heavy play with fear or anger or panic.
The heroine herself is…I don’t know what she is. No matter how great the sex, or how great the high, she should have had moments of doubt that the hero would have to deal with. Even if the aftercare was amazing (more sex is not aftercare) she should have been waking up in the night wondering what she was doing, doubting herself and the hero. She was a foil for the hero’s exploration, but at the same time, was controlling the relationship, which the author even points out. She claims she wants to not worry about making decisions, but is very demanding, as if the author couldn’t decide if she wanted the relationship to be a complete power exchange or a more negotiated Dom/sub v. Master/slave relationship.
At the end the hero realizes that he’s gone too far, that he’s not in control, and pulls back, which is great. What he didn’t realize, but what I thought, was that he is not really a Dom, he’s a controlling lover with a fetish bent. If he were a Dom the intellectual connection with his sub, the obsessive need to protect her, even from herself, would have given him control over himself, and her, at the beginning.
This story was about two people with fetishes, pain and control, not BDSM players. I understand that they are both amateurs, but basic human survival skills and self doubts should have kicked in and had them severely questioning what was happening long before it did. Their lack of this basic human trait made them seem, well, inhuman.
If this story had been published on it’s own, given a blurb and warning list that made it clear this was not a realistic look at the lifestyle, I would have been able to read it and enjoy it on it’s own (though I still wouldn’t be able to relate to the heroine). It was the expectation that came with it being in this anthology that really threw me off.
The sad part is i've now read Dark's story twice, as I wanted to be sure I wasn't being unfair or had miss read, but have yet to read Roxy's as I end Dark's with a vague feeling of dread knotted in my stomach.
Like the characters, I didn't really know what the fuck i was doing. Do go ahead and read Roxy's much saner account and I'm sure it will ease your unhappy feelings. The pairing of the stories is deliberate, with Roxy's the tonic to the prior story.
Post a Comment