Is this erotica?

[amcal]

Ok, I admit I've never read erotica but it sounded, ummm, intriguing I always imagined it to be stories about mad, passionate mutual attraction, forbidden desire etc...

I read several recommendations for the Anne Rice Sleeping Beauty series (she writes this under a different name) so I bought the series off Ebay.

I got the books and sat down with the first one last night. The opening two pages started with a rape scene, followed by page upon page of the victim's humiliation and degradation. I couldn't get much past the first chapter but I did thumb through the rest. The entire book is rape after rape, the rapist rapes the main female character as well as other male characters, then his mother gets in on the raping and humiliation. It was so horrible, I had to stop.

I expected erotica to be exiting, exhilarating, sort of a fantasy world etc... I did NOT expect erotica to be rape after rape and humiliation. It left me feeling disturbed and yucky. I will not be reading any more of these books.

So, is this what erotica is? Is it rape, humiliation, degradation etc...?

[NiteNicole]

It's a certain kind of erotica.

There's something out there for everyone.

[astrophe27]

Well, that may be a fantasy some people find exciting... but it doesn't do much for me.

How about googling "Small Favors" by Colleen Coover? It's a "girlie porno comic" that features a girl and her fairy sidekick. It's light, airy, amusing girl-girl erotica.

Both DH and I found it amusing and some friends of mine I lent the comic to also were amused.

A.

[PeacefulSeams]

The Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by Anne Rice (A.N. Roquelaure) is BDSM Erotica. She has a couple others that she wrote (I collect her books).

Anias Nin is another author who has several books to choose from.

[dynamicdoula]

There is a great series of books called Herotica, short erotic stories written by women. They're pretty good. There's also Literotica.com which has categorized stories you can read which is handy, you can avoid the themes/fetishes you're not into and zoom in on the ones you are.

And I just googled Colleen Coover and found a listing of her art for sale and Oh.My.Gawd. What a novel way to present erotica and now I'm going to take a hot shower and jump my husband.

[merpk]

Back when I used to read that sort of thing I found Anne Rice's version of erotica insulting.


Some people find it erotic. I found it depressing. And insulting.

[3boobykins]

DH edits audiobooks, and I QC (quality control--check for missed edits, etc) all his work. He's edited I think "Best American Erotica" for audible.com from the years 98-2007, so I've listened to A LOT of this stuff. There is a huge spectrum of what people consider erotic. Some of it I found very erotic, other stories were just NOT up my alley, but would do the trick for other people.

DH"s producer has actually cast me to read a couple of stories from the next collection. I am very curious to find out if I get one of the more umm...out there stories.

[amcal]

Wow, I had no idea there were so many different types of erotica. I totally thought erotica was more like an edgy romance novel with more ummm, details.

Well, for me, these were awful and I won't pick them up again. But, I'll definitely try something else. I like the idea of it, just not this specific type.

[astrophe27]

What DO you like? Maybe I can help with suggestions? Without knowing your tastes, for a new person just looking around in general...

If you like reading... try going back to the old "Yellow Silk" collections done up as a book.

http://www.amazon.com/Yellow-Silk-Er.../dp/051758736X

Back issues of the magazine are still floating around as well.

http://www.well.com/user/green/Yello...sysysysys.html

What I liked about that then is that you got a little taste of many contemporary styles in both art and writing.

I already mentioned "Small Favors" by Colleen Coover for people who want their reading in comic style. Some comics can get a little rough in imagery and themes, but this one is very approachable girl-girl hijinks.

http://www.comicartcollective.com/coover/

Has some of her art for sale, and if you scroll towards the bottom of the list, you get scans of Small Favors #6 pages 1- 11 so you can read the comic there.

Or you can read "Sex in History" by Reay Tannahill (cultures, historical)

http://www.amazon.com/Sex-History-Re...8831724&sr=1-2

or "Sexy Origins and Intimate Things" by Charles Panati (more like trivia bits)

http://www.amazon.com/Sexy-Origins-I...8831802&sr=1-1

if you want to learn how things came about.

If you like just art/eye candy type... what about "Erotica Universalis I" and "Erotica Universalis II?" Those books are something like erotic art through history starting with cave paintings and zipping on down the ages. What they DON'T put in your art history texts. Very little text other than captions for the art. 1 art work per page.

This one may be hard to find but "Erotica Trilogy: An Illustrated History of Erotica by Charlotte Hill" was a set of 3 books. While it contained artwork through time like the "Erotica Universalis" series does, I liked that it also had stories. So you could read what erotic stories were like through the centuries and how the story writing was evolving too.

HTH!
A.

[marybethorama]

Wow

This thread is very informative

I have read erotica before but I learned about some new stuff.

Fun, fun, fun

[BookGoddess]

Yep, there are different types of erotica. I've read The Sleeping Beauty Trilogy by A.N. Roquelaure (Ann Rice) but degradation isn't my cup of tea.

I want to second the PP who suggested Literotica.com. It's a free site and the stories, written mostly by amateurs, are quite good. The stories are classified into categories so it's easy to peruse the huge collection of short stories.

Check out Ellora's Cave.com. http://www.ellorascave.com/index.asp
It's a line of erotica written by women for women. They have everything from futuristic romance to historical to paranormal. There's something for every woman (and man).

[kittywitty]

Wow. Never read that one. I started reading one when I was a teen and quickly put it aside. Not what I expected. I have heard a lot of people like them, though. The Vampire Chronicles are very erotic, but not like...that book I guess.

[dynamicdoula]

The Story of O is another that's very similar to Anne Rice's erotica.

[wonderwahine]

that series is definatly her erotica works

[bjorker]

Originally Posted by BookGoddess

I want to second the PP who suggested Literotica.com. It's a free site and the stories, written mostly by amateurs, are quite good. The stories are classified into categories so it's easy to peruse the huge collection of short stories.

Tehehe! Thirded.

I had an ex-gf who had read the aforementioned Sleeping Beauty series herself and started to read it to me, but, um, we didn't get very far. In that the relationship didn't last very long. But apparently she enjoyed it. I don't remember much of what I did hear, really.

[alaskaberry]

I read that one and wasn't too impressed either. For some, yeah, that's erotica. Degradation is not my cup of tea either. But there are other options.

Print:
http://www.redsagepub.com -- Red Sage puts out an anthology of rather naughty erotica.
Anais Nin (author)
always romance novels if you can stomach the contrived plots (ok, there *are* some good authors out there, but I probably shouldn't admit I read them...or write them )

Web:
Ellora's Cave (a PP already linked it)