Rachel Kramer Bussel's Blog, page 25
July 13, 2016
Begging for It, my anthology of sexual fantasy erotica, is out!
My new book Begging for It: Erotic Fantasies for Women is now out in print and ebook!
I meant to post yesterday but that's the kind of summer it's been that I didn't get a chance. I'm proud of this anthology because I got stalled on it, not due to anything other than my own perfectionism with my story and the introduction and so it is coming out now rather than earlier. I am thrilled to be publishing so many authors I haven't worked with before alongside ones I have and that the book offers such an array of types of women's sexual fantasies and ways they go about fulfilling them. Hope you like it! There's also a beautiful post by Jade A. Waters on her blog about body image, erotica, sexuality, writing and her story "Apple Thighs" that I found very moving. It helped remind me why I edit anthologies: in order to share stories like hers with the world.
Where to buy Begging for It:
Amazon (print)
Kindle
Bn.com (print)
Nook
iBooks
Kobo
Powell’s
IndieBound (find your local independent bookstore)
Amazon UK (print)
Amazon UK (Kindle)
Introduction and table of contents:
Introduction: Beggars and Choosers Rachel Kramer Bussel Symphony Dena Hankins
Tabitha the Cat Lauren Marie Fleming
Leo Rising Suleikha Snyder
Orcas Regina Kammer
Morning’s Come Sommer Marsden
Babes Elizabeth Black
Entreé Nous Darsie Hemingway
Dollymop Malin James
Best Laid Plans Oleander Plume
Lipstick M. Birds
Rediscovery Hedonist Six
A Proven Therapeutic Fact D. L. King
Caught Rei Pardieu
Jane’s Fantasy, Your Fantasy Annabeth Leong
Self-Denial Tilly Hunter
Ruthless Claire de Winter
Sucker Rachel Kramer Bussel
Apple Thighs Jade A. Waters
Little Girl Blue Laila Blake
Do Robots Breathe? Tamsin Flowers
Introduction: Beggars and Choosers
Judging from the title Begging for It, you might picture women with their tongues hanging out, perhaps a little drool pooling on their lips, come-hither eyes, kneeling, breasts thrust forward, ripe and ready and eager. And you’d be right—but not entirely right. The women you’ll meet in this book manage to beg in all sorts of ways—boldly, silently, sweetly, submissively, nastily, hungrily. Sometimes, their begging is quiet ardent, clear as a whistle, but other times, they may not even know what it is they’re begging for. Each of them, though, is on a journey, a path to find something that’s missing from her life at the start. Some are searching for a lover—or more than one—while others have a partner in lust but are still seeking a bit of magic, daring, adventure, to lure them somewhere they’ve been longing—begging—to go, if only in their dreams.
For this anthology, I wanted stories that spoke to the many ways fantasies can play out in our lives. I wanted femme fatales and shy, unsure women, those who have glimpsed their truest desires briefly but have yet to fully indulge them. I wanted the kind of women whose sexual energy radiates off of them, the kind who turn heads no matter what they’re doing, the kind who look just-been-fucked—or just-fucked-someone—whether they actually have or not.
What I got were women who do indeed know what they want, whether it’s rope bondage or humiliation, a corset or an erotic adventure, robots or rough sex, but who are also open to finding unexpected, incredible pleasure they could not have imagined. They’re women on a mission, but they never know where exactly those missions will lead, and to me, that’s the best part of sex, and erotica: that each time might wow us anew. When Lauren Marie Fleming writes, “I was wet, so wet I thought I’d drip on the floor, and my nipples were as hard as my clit, both threatening to make me come with the slightest touch,” I’m right there with her, as Tabitha discovers what suspension can truly do for her, not to mention sexy Caleb.
These lusty ladies fall for cowboys, bosses, drag queens, rope wranglers, threesomes, Sirs and strangers, yet they never lose sight of that inner spark that has pushed them to say yes. In giving themselves to the objects of their affection, they’re gaining something equally valuable. Sometimes, there’s a different kind of give and take involved, such as with the masseuse in D. L. King’s “A Proven Therapeutic Fact,” who makes the delivery of a spanking a very special event.
These women are both begging and demanding, but most importantly, discovering the thrill of the unexpected. They are all sexual adventurers daring to go where they’ve never been before, or have only been in their dreams.
Rachel Kramer Bussel
I meant to post yesterday but that's the kind of summer it's been that I didn't get a chance. I'm proud of this anthology because I got stalled on it, not due to anything other than my own perfectionism with my story and the introduction and so it is coming out now rather than earlier. I am thrilled to be publishing so many authors I haven't worked with before alongside ones I have and that the book offers such an array of types of women's sexual fantasies and ways they go about fulfilling them. Hope you like it! There's also a beautiful post by Jade A. Waters on her blog about body image, erotica, sexuality, writing and her story "Apple Thighs" that I found very moving. It helped remind me why I edit anthologies: in order to share stories like hers with the world.
Where to buy Begging for It:
Amazon (print)
Kindle
Bn.com (print)
Nook
iBooks
Kobo
Powell’s
IndieBound (find your local independent bookstore)
Amazon UK (print)
Amazon UK (Kindle)
Introduction and table of contents:
Introduction: Beggars and Choosers Rachel Kramer Bussel Symphony Dena Hankins
Tabitha the Cat Lauren Marie Fleming
Leo Rising Suleikha Snyder
Orcas Regina Kammer
Morning’s Come Sommer Marsden
Babes Elizabeth Black
Entreé Nous Darsie Hemingway
Dollymop Malin James
Best Laid Plans Oleander Plume
Lipstick M. Birds
Rediscovery Hedonist Six
A Proven Therapeutic Fact D. L. King
Caught Rei Pardieu
Jane’s Fantasy, Your Fantasy Annabeth Leong
Self-Denial Tilly Hunter
Ruthless Claire de Winter
Sucker Rachel Kramer Bussel
Apple Thighs Jade A. Waters
Little Girl Blue Laila Blake
Do Robots Breathe? Tamsin Flowers
Introduction: Beggars and Choosers
Judging from the title Begging for It, you might picture women with their tongues hanging out, perhaps a little drool pooling on their lips, come-hither eyes, kneeling, breasts thrust forward, ripe and ready and eager. And you’d be right—but not entirely right. The women you’ll meet in this book manage to beg in all sorts of ways—boldly, silently, sweetly, submissively, nastily, hungrily. Sometimes, their begging is quiet ardent, clear as a whistle, but other times, they may not even know what it is they’re begging for. Each of them, though, is on a journey, a path to find something that’s missing from her life at the start. Some are searching for a lover—or more than one—while others have a partner in lust but are still seeking a bit of magic, daring, adventure, to lure them somewhere they’ve been longing—begging—to go, if only in their dreams.
For this anthology, I wanted stories that spoke to the many ways fantasies can play out in our lives. I wanted femme fatales and shy, unsure women, those who have glimpsed their truest desires briefly but have yet to fully indulge them. I wanted the kind of women whose sexual energy radiates off of them, the kind who turn heads no matter what they’re doing, the kind who look just-been-fucked—or just-fucked-someone—whether they actually have or not.
What I got were women who do indeed know what they want, whether it’s rope bondage or humiliation, a corset or an erotic adventure, robots or rough sex, but who are also open to finding unexpected, incredible pleasure they could not have imagined. They’re women on a mission, but they never know where exactly those missions will lead, and to me, that’s the best part of sex, and erotica: that each time might wow us anew. When Lauren Marie Fleming writes, “I was wet, so wet I thought I’d drip on the floor, and my nipples were as hard as my clit, both threatening to make me come with the slightest touch,” I’m right there with her, as Tabitha discovers what suspension can truly do for her, not to mention sexy Caleb.
These lusty ladies fall for cowboys, bosses, drag queens, rope wranglers, threesomes, Sirs and strangers, yet they never lose sight of that inner spark that has pushed them to say yes. In giving themselves to the objects of their affection, they’re gaining something equally valuable. Sometimes, there’s a different kind of give and take involved, such as with the masseuse in D. L. King’s “A Proven Therapeutic Fact,” who makes the delivery of a spanking a very special event.
These women are both begging and demanding, but most importantly, discovering the thrill of the unexpected. They are all sexual adventurers daring to go where they’ve never been before, or have only been in their dreams.
Rachel Kramer Bussel
July 11, 2016
Listen to my bisexual open marriage travel erotica story "Flying Solo" on new podcast episode
I love working with Rose Caraway, author, editor, audiobook narrator and host of The Kiss Me Quick's podcast because she is super talented, has an incredibly sexy voice and best of all, from my perspective as an anthology editor, makes the stories in my books available to anyone who wants to listen to them for free! That's what she's done with my story "Flying Solo" (click on the story title and scroll to the bottom to listen; press the arrow to the left of "libsyn" to start)) from
Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 1
, which stars a woman who usually picks up partners with her husband when they travel, but in this case is about to board a plane alone (hence the title) and has been instructed to bed someone she meets by her hubby. You'll have to listen to find out what happens next. And you can hear all 22 stories from the book ready by Rose on the Audible audiobook. Also, I couldn't be more thrilled with the hot graphic they came up with (catch the fun wordplay on the airplane; "Stupidfish" is their production company) that so perfectly captures the spirit of my story.
For more free erotica from the book, listen to these stories read by Rose:
"The Carnalarium" by Rose Caraway
"Two Doms for Dinner" by Dorothy Freed
"Ophelia the Second" by Jade A. Waters
For more free erotica from the book, listen to these stories read by Rose:
"The Carnalarium" by Rose Caraway
"Two Doms for Dinner" by Dorothy Freed
"Ophelia the Second" by Jade A. Waters
July 6, 2016
How chronic fatigue syndrome affects a woman's sex life
I'm very proud of my new Elle.com interview on sex and chronic fatigue syndrome. I did one on sex and depression and have been wanting to explore physical health in addition to mental health. I hope you'll check it out, especially if your life is affected by CFS, and if you're a woman interested in being profiled in this series or know someone who is, contact me at ellesexstories at gmail.com and tell me a little about yourself and what you'd want to focus on in the interview, which can cover any aspect of sex and dating (although I have a fair amount of polyamory and open relationship interviews at the moment). Thank you!
July 1, 2016
Why I want 500 submissions to Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3
The deadline to submit short stories to my Cleis Press anthology Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3 is December 1st, exactly five months away, which means my goal is to get an average of 100 submissions per month between now and then. Why 500? Well, for the first two volumes, I got around 200 submissions for each one, and while I had plenty to choose from, as an anthology editor, more is more. My duty to my readers, in my opinion, is to provide them variety, both within each volume and in the series, and to my mind, the best way to do that is to have a huge range of authors and stories to choose from.
So I decided to set my goal of getting 500 submissions to the book. Now, this does mean that the most horrible part of my job as an editor, sending rejection letters, will also be greatly increased, but I am okay with that because I know that by doing more outreach than I have in the past, so that more authors see my call and, hopefully, submit, I am best serving my readers. I want to find the stories that come from authors who might not have ever considered themselves erotica writers, but had that one amazing idea floating around in their head. I want to see more submissions starring transgender women as protagonists. I want to see more relationships about people 50 and over. I want to see, in a word, more. I could give you a laundry list of what I'd like to see in December when I sit down to sort through submissions, but the truth is, what I love most about issuing a call for submissions is seeing what comes in that I love but didn't know I would.
This series doesn't have a theme per se, but each anthology seems to wind up coming together with some sort of through line. The unofficial theme of Volume 2, as you will see when it pubs in December, is travel. That wasn't something I listed in my call but it wound its way into many of the stories in the book and I appreciate that each author tackled it so differently.
So my favor to ask of you is: if you know someone who might be a good fit to submit a short story to Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3, please pass along the call for submissions. I'm aiming to spread the word as far and wide as I can now to give authors the most time possible to write. I'm sure I will still get emails on December 2 saying "I just heard about this call..." and I'll have to say "Check back again next year," but in the meantime, I am doing my best to reach my 500 story submissions goal so I have a giant, sexy pile of stories to consider.
So I decided to set my goal of getting 500 submissions to the book. Now, this does mean that the most horrible part of my job as an editor, sending rejection letters, will also be greatly increased, but I am okay with that because I know that by doing more outreach than I have in the past, so that more authors see my call and, hopefully, submit, I am best serving my readers. I want to find the stories that come from authors who might not have ever considered themselves erotica writers, but had that one amazing idea floating around in their head. I want to see more submissions starring transgender women as protagonists. I want to see more relationships about people 50 and over. I want to see, in a word, more. I could give you a laundry list of what I'd like to see in December when I sit down to sort through submissions, but the truth is, what I love most about issuing a call for submissions is seeing what comes in that I love but didn't know I would.
This series doesn't have a theme per se, but each anthology seems to wind up coming together with some sort of through line. The unofficial theme of Volume 2, as you will see when it pubs in December, is travel. That wasn't something I listed in my call but it wound its way into many of the stories in the book and I appreciate that each author tackled it so differently.
So my favor to ask of you is: if you know someone who might be a good fit to submit a short story to Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 3, please pass along the call for submissions. I'm aiming to spread the word as far and wide as I can now to give authors the most time possible to write. I'm sure I will still get emails on December 2 saying "I just heard about this call..." and I'll have to say "Check back again next year," but in the meantime, I am doing my best to reach my 500 story submissions goal so I have a giant, sexy pile of stories to consider.
June 29, 2016
Erotic romance anthology Hungry for More is only $1.99 today and tomorrow!
Flash sale: my erotic romance anthology Hungry for More: Romantic Fantasies for Women is only $1.99 today and tomorrow in ebook form! It has some of my very favorite stories I've published, such as sports and voyeurism themed "Bringing the Heat" by Tiffany Reisz and the very edgy and amazing "Jailbait Torch Song" by Valerie Alexander and many others. I'm thrilled because this is a book I loved editing and was super excited about but never quite found its audience, so if you missed it the first time, grab it now (the iBooks version is not for sale).
Buying links:
Kindle
Nook
Google Play
Kobo
Introduction: Getting Explicit
Submissive Jacqueline Applebee
Happy Endings Giselle Renarde
Craig’s List Greta Christina
Bringing the Heat Tiffany Reisz
Madam Secretary Jaye Markham
Kitchen Slut Olivia Archer
Just Once Jocelyn Dex
Boat Rocking D. L. King
The Sleeper’s Beauty Jade A. Waters
Upstairs at the Ava DelovelyOlive
Organically Grown Brandy Fox
The Room of Guarantees Jessica Lennox
Redrawing the Lines Bren Emile
Tickle Day Jeremy Edwards
Relief Katya Harris
Jailbait Torch Song Valerie Alexander
Red Lipstick Erzabet Bishop
Something Sleazy Elizabeth Coldwell
The Instructor Rose de Fer
My Pillar-Box Red Cock Tilly Hunter
A First Time for Everything Rachel Kramer Bussel
Buying links:
Kindle
Nook
Google Play
Kobo
Introduction: Getting Explicit
Submissive Jacqueline Applebee
Happy Endings Giselle Renarde
Craig’s List Greta Christina
Bringing the Heat Tiffany Reisz
Madam Secretary Jaye Markham
Kitchen Slut Olivia Archer
Just Once Jocelyn Dex
Boat Rocking D. L. King
The Sleeper’s Beauty Jade A. Waters
Upstairs at the Ava DelovelyOlive
Organically Grown Brandy Fox
The Room of Guarantees Jessica Lennox
Redrawing the Lines Bren Emile
Tickle Day Jeremy Edwards
Relief Katya Harris
Jailbait Torch Song Valerie Alexander
Red Lipstick Erzabet Bishop
Something Sleazy Elizabeth Coldwell
The Instructor Rose de Fer
My Pillar-Box Red Cock Tilly Hunter
A First Time for Everything Rachel Kramer Bussel
June 28, 2016
How about some free erotica for your listening pleasure?
For the next few days, while my publisher switches distributors, my ebooks will be offline. They'll be back soon and I will be promoting them as I usually do, because even though I prefer print, I love that I can get the immediate gratification of an ebook purchase and save money so I can buy even more. So in the meantime, I wanted to share some free audio erotica read by my favorite narrator, Rose Caraway, from the book I'm most proud of,
Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 1
. Right now I'm brainstorming about possible readings for Volume 2 as I finalize the table of contents and getting ready to make that launch a spectacular one (want to help in just two seconds? Add the book to your Goodreads want to read list!).
Not only do I love Rose Caraway's voice, but because she hosts The Kiss Me Quick's podcast, I get to share the stories from my book with the world for free. Of course, I hope listeners will then go on to buy the Best Women's Erotica of the Year 1 audiobook and listen to all 22 stories, but even if they don't, I'm so thrilled to work with Rose and by the high quality she brings to her recordings. (Fun news: more Rose and Rachel audiobooks are on the way! More on that soon.)
So I'm thrilled to share with you these three free stories: "The Carnalarium" by Rose Caraway, which you'll just have to listen to for yourself, because it's wild and creative and I don't know how to describe it "Two Doms for Dinner" by Dorothy Freed, based on her real-life BDSM kinky play as a submissive woman with two dominant men, and "Ophelia the Second" by Jade A. Waters, a Shakespeare themed erotica story. Click through to listen to them on Rose's site (yes, I know there's a way to embed them, but my time is short this morning so I'm posting these the fastest way possible).
Not only do I love Rose Caraway's voice, but because she hosts The Kiss Me Quick's podcast, I get to share the stories from my book with the world for free. Of course, I hope listeners will then go on to buy the Best Women's Erotica of the Year 1 audiobook and listen to all 22 stories, but even if they don't, I'm so thrilled to work with Rose and by the high quality she brings to her recordings. (Fun news: more Rose and Rachel audiobooks are on the way! More on that soon.)
So I'm thrilled to share with you these three free stories: "The Carnalarium" by Rose Caraway, which you'll just have to listen to for yourself, because it's wild and creative and I don't know how to describe it "Two Doms for Dinner" by Dorothy Freed, based on her real-life BDSM kinky play as a submissive woman with two dominant men, and "Ophelia the Second" by Jade A. Waters, a Shakespeare themed erotica story. Click through to listen to them on Rose's site (yes, I know there's a way to embed them, but my time is short this morning so I'm posting these the fastest way possible).
June 25, 2016
Read my Jazz Jennings interview for Paper on her new memoir, overcoming depression, bathroom laws and more
I interviewed transgender teen activist and I Am Jazz star Jazz Jennings for Paper magazine, my first piece for them. I only had twenty minutes for the interview and wasn't sure if we'd get to everything I wanted to cover but we more than did, and Jazz had lots of fascinating things to say about her double life as a media star and regular teen, overcoming depression, the fight over restrooms and much more. Hope you enjoy it.
June 24, 2016
Why I love editing the Best Women's Erotica of the Year series
I'm in the midst of working on three volumes of the Best Women's Erotica of the Year series at once, promoting Volume 1, which is out in print, ebook and audiobook, finalizing the table of contents for Volume 2, which will be published in December, and doing some early promotions and brainstorming, and spreading the word as wide and far as I can about the call for submissions for Volume 3 so I can meet my goal if receiving 500 submissions.
It's a lot to juggle, especially with two part-time jobs that combine to make a six-day-a-week full-time job, but I'm happy to do it because I'm incredibly honored to be at the helm of the series. For me, editing a series is different than editing a one-off title, because I know that each book does not stand alone. They stand as sequels to all the ones that came before them (in this case, starting with Best Women's Erotica edited by Marcy Sheiner in 2000 through Best Women's Erotica 2015 edited by Violet Blue, before the series changed to using volume numbers and I became editor).
As I'm editing, I also envision the same readers reading all of the volumes I'm editing, and I keep that in mind when I'm selecting stories. I try not to repeat scenarios or pick anything too similar to what's come before; I think of it as wanting the stories to echo and complement each other, to speak to each other but not duplicate. So one thing I'd love to see in Volume 3 is another outstanding pop culture reference erotica story, similar to what Lazuli Jones did with "Starstruck" in Volume 1, but outside the comics/superhero world. I also have subjects that for whatever reason, didn't yield many submissions for Volume 2, so I am definitely on the hunt for the perfect trans woman erotica story or stories for Volume 3, and some stories about older female characters. I know I may not get everything on my wish list into every given volume, and I don't know for sure that I will get to edit more, but that's why I'm putting my heart and soul into promotions, so that I can hopefully keep on editing the series for a long time to come. That being said, it's fiction, and part of the beauty of any writing is that everyone will approach it with their own ideas and experiences and angles, what writer Todd Henry calls your authentic voice.
It also helps me on a personal level when I have to do my least favorite task, sending rejection letters. I just sent out over 200 rejection letters for Volume 2, and that is such a hellish experience it deserves its own post. Suffice it to say, it makes me feel like a terrible person and never want to go through the process again, but what gets me through it every time is knowing that I will most likely have new anthologies on the horizon and a rejection today might mean an acceptance on another story next year, or the next or the next.
This mindset helps me get through sending rejections but on a more positive note, it also helps me conceptualize what I want my role to be as editor. I am taking a more pro-active approach to Volume 3, reaching out to groups and websites and authors I think might appreciate the call, and doing my best to spread the word while there's still 5+ months left before the deadline. I'm not against one-off anthologies, but I feel extra excited about the possibilities for the series, and maybe even doing some joint readings from multiple volumes, if I'm lucky.
To conclude, if you know anyone who might be eligible and interested in submitting their erotic fiction to Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 2, please pass along the writing guidelines to them. If you want to help me get a head start in spreading the word about the amazingness that will be Volume 2, please add it to your Goodreads want to read list.
It's a lot to juggle, especially with two part-time jobs that combine to make a six-day-a-week full-time job, but I'm happy to do it because I'm incredibly honored to be at the helm of the series. For me, editing a series is different than editing a one-off title, because I know that each book does not stand alone. They stand as sequels to all the ones that came before them (in this case, starting with Best Women's Erotica edited by Marcy Sheiner in 2000 through Best Women's Erotica 2015 edited by Violet Blue, before the series changed to using volume numbers and I became editor).
As I'm editing, I also envision the same readers reading all of the volumes I'm editing, and I keep that in mind when I'm selecting stories. I try not to repeat scenarios or pick anything too similar to what's come before; I think of it as wanting the stories to echo and complement each other, to speak to each other but not duplicate. So one thing I'd love to see in Volume 3 is another outstanding pop culture reference erotica story, similar to what Lazuli Jones did with "Starstruck" in Volume 1, but outside the comics/superhero world. I also have subjects that for whatever reason, didn't yield many submissions for Volume 2, so I am definitely on the hunt for the perfect trans woman erotica story or stories for Volume 3, and some stories about older female characters. I know I may not get everything on my wish list into every given volume, and I don't know for sure that I will get to edit more, but that's why I'm putting my heart and soul into promotions, so that I can hopefully keep on editing the series for a long time to come. That being said, it's fiction, and part of the beauty of any writing is that everyone will approach it with their own ideas and experiences and angles, what writer Todd Henry calls your authentic voice.
It also helps me on a personal level when I have to do my least favorite task, sending rejection letters. I just sent out over 200 rejection letters for Volume 2, and that is such a hellish experience it deserves its own post. Suffice it to say, it makes me feel like a terrible person and never want to go through the process again, but what gets me through it every time is knowing that I will most likely have new anthologies on the horizon and a rejection today might mean an acceptance on another story next year, or the next or the next.
This mindset helps me get through sending rejections but on a more positive note, it also helps me conceptualize what I want my role to be as editor. I am taking a more pro-active approach to Volume 3, reaching out to groups and websites and authors I think might appreciate the call, and doing my best to spread the word while there's still 5+ months left before the deadline. I'm not against one-off anthologies, but I feel extra excited about the possibilities for the series, and maybe even doing some joint readings from multiple volumes, if I'm lucky.
To conclude, if you know anyone who might be eligible and interested in submitting their erotic fiction to Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 2, please pass along the writing guidelines to them. If you want to help me get a head start in spreading the word about the amazingness that will be Volume 2, please add it to your Goodreads want to read list.
June 22, 2016
Why dating tech guys is the worst and Bay Area Peter Pan Syndrome at Elle.com
My latest sex interview for Elle.com is about dating in the Bay Area and men who don't want to grow up (my interviewee cooked dinner for a guy who left early to go have sex with someone else). I'm on the lookout for more women to interview! Some topics I'd like to discuss: sex and dating when you travel often for work, sex after abortion, sex while dealing with illness, any momentous sexual first times, your experience with female ejaculation, preferring sex toys over partner sex, and sex when you have a very specific fetish, but I'm open to pretty much anything else, especially subjects I haven't covered yet. Email me at ellesexstories at gmail.com and tell me about yourself and what you'd want to discuss and if you know any women who might be open to talking to me, please pass this on.
June 21, 2016
On entering new careers at 40
This year has been a drastically up and down one emotionally and professionally. The two, for me, as a woman who wears her heart on her sleeve in the form of a tattoo with the word, are intimately intertwined. For a few months I was in pretty bad shape mentally; nothing really seemed worthwhile and the less work I had, the more convinced I was that I should start prowling want ads and take any available job, not just for the money, but to feel useful and wanted.
Cut to May and June, when I've been working full-time hours six days a week and making more than I ever have in the years since I got laid off from my magazine editor job in 2011. It's been exciting, and today starts a new chapter in the form of a copywriting job that will actually require me to leave the house sometimes and work in an office, which will be its own kind of adjustment.
Before this year, I'd never done any copywriting; now I have and I've been paid for it and even though I was terrified at first, doing it once and seeing my ideas respected and valued taught me that I can do it, even if it's all new. At age 40, I assumed I would keep on simply doing the same old tasks I've been doing for years. When people asked me what my dream career was, I would say, "This, but earning more money." Well, now I am earning an income I feel is commensurate with my skills and that is helping me pay down debt and just might pay for super pricey fertility treatments, and I'm finding that knowing I am capable of learning so many new things each day has been incredible for how I value myself.
I've also learned how to be an entertainment blogger, and let me say that for me, Blogger in no way prepared me for the job I do now writing Wordpress posts. I thought I knew a thing or two about blogging; after all, tis one's been going since I believe 2002 (in a fit of rage I deleted the entire thing and brought it back sometime around 2004). I used to have a pretty significant part-time job blogging at Cupcakes Take the Cake. But writing for OMJ has been an entirely different experience.
Before May, I knew nothing about Getty Images. Now, I use it every day. Now my beats includes parents and babies who I'd honestly either never heard of or never thought of. I have constant technical questions and am now doing my best to learn as much SEO as I can because I'm genuinely curious.
I'm still all in on erotica, and will soon be revealing the updated version of my eroticawriting101.com site I launched this year to work directly with clients on their writing. I'm editing new anthologies and have book releases in July and December. I'm still doing weekly sex interviews for Elle.com and freelance writing here and there. But I can't stress enough how invaluable it is to have strangers take a chance on me in arenas I was unfamiliar with and believe in me enough to hire me. That's allowed me to believe in myself so I never feel stuck, like I can only do the things I've already done.
Maybe some wouldn't consider entertainment blogging and copywriting "new" careers because they involve writing, but I do. To me, they are vastly different from writing fiction or essays or journalism because they serve a different purpose. The writing does involve words, but to me that's where the similar ends. So as a new phase of my career begins, I wanted to share this, and if it in any small way encourages those of you wanting to learn a new skill or try anything they haven't done before, please take this as encouragement to go for it and see what happens. You'll never know unless you do.
Cut to May and June, when I've been working full-time hours six days a week and making more than I ever have in the years since I got laid off from my magazine editor job in 2011. It's been exciting, and today starts a new chapter in the form of a copywriting job that will actually require me to leave the house sometimes and work in an office, which will be its own kind of adjustment.
Before this year, I'd never done any copywriting; now I have and I've been paid for it and even though I was terrified at first, doing it once and seeing my ideas respected and valued taught me that I can do it, even if it's all new. At age 40, I assumed I would keep on simply doing the same old tasks I've been doing for years. When people asked me what my dream career was, I would say, "This, but earning more money." Well, now I am earning an income I feel is commensurate with my skills and that is helping me pay down debt and just might pay for super pricey fertility treatments, and I'm finding that knowing I am capable of learning so many new things each day has been incredible for how I value myself.
I've also learned how to be an entertainment blogger, and let me say that for me, Blogger in no way prepared me for the job I do now writing Wordpress posts. I thought I knew a thing or two about blogging; after all, tis one's been going since I believe 2002 (in a fit of rage I deleted the entire thing and brought it back sometime around 2004). I used to have a pretty significant part-time job blogging at Cupcakes Take the Cake. But writing for OMJ has been an entirely different experience.
Before May, I knew nothing about Getty Images. Now, I use it every day. Now my beats includes parents and babies who I'd honestly either never heard of or never thought of. I have constant technical questions and am now doing my best to learn as much SEO as I can because I'm genuinely curious.
I'm still all in on erotica, and will soon be revealing the updated version of my eroticawriting101.com site I launched this year to work directly with clients on their writing. I'm editing new anthologies and have book releases in July and December. I'm still doing weekly sex interviews for Elle.com and freelance writing here and there. But I can't stress enough how invaluable it is to have strangers take a chance on me in arenas I was unfamiliar with and believe in me enough to hire me. That's allowed me to believe in myself so I never feel stuck, like I can only do the things I've already done.
Maybe some wouldn't consider entertainment blogging and copywriting "new" careers because they involve writing, but I do. To me, they are vastly different from writing fiction or essays or journalism because they serve a different purpose. The writing does involve words, but to me that's where the similar ends. So as a new phase of my career begins, I wanted to share this, and if it in any small way encourages those of you wanting to learn a new skill or try anything they haven't done before, please take this as encouragement to go for it and see what happens. You'll never know unless you do.
