I.G. Frederick's Blog

Today I published the first short story in a new collection, When Two's Not Enough. You can purchase the story, "Honeymoon," for $2.99 or wait until the entire five-story collection (which will include two, never-before-published stories) is available in July. (If you can't wait until July, send me an e-mail, we'll work something out. ;-)

One reader called Honeymoon "a steamy and fun read. The premise is a clever and insightful twist about what's sexy." The story, first published by Ravenous Romance, was inspired by the Mallory Todd.

Sometimes I get so busy juggling all the balls I have in the air, I forget to take a breath and share some of what's happening here. I'm a little better about posting news on Facebook, Twitter, and Google, so if you're not subscribing, following, or circling me there, please do.

Two "appearances" of interest from the past few weeks:

Monday, April 30, my guest blog post on Avoiding Abuse in the Search for D/s appeared on BDSM Book Reviews.

Also last month, I appeared on Oregon Public Radio's Public Insight Network. I answered the question of what I would do if I was mayor. It aired on April 26 and a photograph Patrick took of a street in our neighborhood appeared on the blog post.

To celebrate the release of Playing With Dolls in print, I've published a free short story excerpt, "A Night to Remember."

Jesse, 18, is effeminate and more comfortable wearing women's clothes than men's. Of course, this means he must be gay. He's had a few sexual experience with other boys and hated them. A Lesbian couple befriends him and they enjoy dressing him up and showing him off. One night, they take him downtown for an experience he'll never forget.

You can download the story in pdf, epub, or mobi from my website, or find those and other formats at Smashwords.

Yesterday, I had a lovely discussion about BDSM and gender issues with Jesse V. Coffey on Edin Road Radio. I also shared an excerpt from Playing With Dolls (you can click on the link or listen below).

Playing With Dolls is now available in print as well as in ebook (you can purchase ePub, PDF, and mobi at OC Press).

Adding to all the grief related to the PayPal bullying (which has not ended), I have had to change links in books and on websites (mine and others) to another retailer which decided it no longer will accept work by indie authors. (They gave logistical issues that had nothing to do with payment as a reason, so I won't call them out.)

I hate only pointing to Amazon, both because it's also a corporate bully (the above link discusses that as well) and because it only offers books in one format. I also don't like pointing to Smashwords for my novels. Even though I earn more money per book sale, the reader experience isn't as nice because the efforts I put into design are lost in the meat grinder.

So, I was delighted to find a very welcome retail environment on OC Press. I was not unfamiliar with this publisher, Oysters & Chocolate bought one of my poems, The Drummer, back in '10. All four of my novels are now available for sale there in pdf, mobi, and epub format. The staff was very easy to work with and very enthusiastic about carrying my work. They even have a category specifically for Banned Erotica. Check them out.

My fourth novel, Playing With Dolls, is now available in ebook at Amazon (Kindle only) and All Romance (you need to log in to see it, but all formats are available). It will be available at various other online outlets and print in the next few weeks, but if you don't want to wait, you can start reading it now from either of those stores.

Playing with Dolls was inspired when I read a letter to an advice columnist in which the writer complained that her friend was going to marry an "obviously" gay man -- obvious, according to her, because he was effeminate. I wrote a letter to that columnist which refuted those concerns based on the possibility that the couple in question might have a FemDom/sissy boy relationship. Of course, my letter was ignored, because everyone knows all effeminate males are gay.

I know lots of effeminate males. Ninety percent are straight and most of the other 10 percent are bisexual. I also know many Gay males. Most of them are about as macho as a guy can be. You're not likely to find a more butch male than a Gay leatherman. Unlike macho straight guys, Gay leathermen have absolutely no exposure to anything female in their personal lives. But our society insists on equating "feminine male" with "gay."

Jesse enjoyed playing with dolls and wearing girls' clothing as a child. His liberal father, resigned to having a gay son, encourages Jesse's involvement in the LGBT youth culture of Eugene, Oregon where they live. On his eighteenth birthday, Jesse has his first sexual experience and hates it. A few months later, he is befriended by a Lesbian couple who introduces him to S&M. When they move away, he flounders, pretending to be a woman to get a job. Although Tony, a handsome leatherman, rescues him, Jesse finds the price too high for his liking. Then Tony takes his boys to Paradise and Jesse learns things about himself that he finds very difficult to accept.

So much has been written about PayPal, why write more? Because the bullying didn't start last month and I doubt it has ended, despite the apparent PayPal capitulation.

I detailed a recent history of some PayPal transgressions and make a case for finding an alternative in PayPal Back Pedals: Excuse Me if I Don’t Celebrate on 4-Letter Words.

Yesterday, as part of Eden Connor's "Dirty Mind vs. Debit Card" series, I discussed the stories behind my stories that have been banned and how my books that are so "offensive" were inspired by real life abuse.

Today, I received word that Broken and Shattered have been reviewed and re-activated by All Romance ebooks and are now available there for sale (although you have to be logged in to see them, unlike romance books such as Dommemoir ).

While this is good news, it doesn't change what I wrote for yesterday's post on "Dirty Mind vs. Debit Card." They were re-activated because, although the consent is questionable, there is consent.

Now, I ask, which is more psychologically traumatic -- rape by a stranger or a trusted adviser/teacher/therapist taking advantage of someone's vulnerability to use them sexually? In the first case, the victim knows they've been violated. In the second case they often don't.

While I'm pleased that Broken and Shattered are again available for sale, I question the differentiation. I don't believe non-consensual sex should be banned from written works. I'm disturbed that a ban on non-consensual sex accepts dubious consent.

I should have posted this last week, but things have been a little crazy, especially with all the controversy surrounding PayPal's attempts to censor legal fiction. I've been busy ranting about censorship, changing tags, taking Broken and Shattered off one retailer's site, etc.

But, last week, Blak Rayne published a great interview with cover designer Nyla Alisia and promoted it as "what an interesting and amazing life." Nyla discusses how she became a cover designer, the process she uses to design a cover, and how she came up with the cover for Dommemoir .

"When designing a cover, I have to understand the writer, as well as understand what has been written and who it was written for. That is just the beginning: next I must discover what sets that piece of writing apart from everything else it is going to be competing with on the store shelf, and how to get that message across at a glance." Read the full interview at Blak Rayne's blog.

To celebrate the re-release of Dommemoir, I've published a new edition of the short story "Jarod" (an excerpt from Dommemoir ) for free. You can download a PDF from my website, an ePub from Gooodreads, or various versions (including Kindle) from Smashwords. (Unfortunately, Amazon insists on selling it for 99 cents.)

Geneviéve, a forty-something divorcée, accepts an offer from a twenty-four-year-old co-worker to help her move into her new condo. She volunteers to make him dinner as a thank you, but he has other ideas..