Max D.'s Blog, page 3
January 15, 2015
Author to Author: Plan Your 2015!
Amazon Kindle Unlimited is just one of a handful of features that will make 2015 a very difficult year for authors to promote, entice readers, and earn enough to justify writing. While the market for ebook readers is still growing, the marketplace is being saturated by low cost subscription models and more free content. At the same time, new EU VAT taxation requirements [Forbes] make it extremely difficult to be compliant without selling through distributors like Amazon, Kobo, and Smashwords. And social media continues to evolve in new directions that invalidate prior investments. Twitter is becoming something more akin to a podium for the influential, Facebook has effectively become a pay platform where even followers do not see your posts, and Instagram is creating a new biopic style intimacy that draws new eyes each day. Everything that worked in 2014 is open for discussion while planning 2015.
Here are examples of the information which we're looking at right now:
"Smashwords 2015 Book Publishing Industry Predictions" Hellen Barbara "Indie Authors and the Question of Kindle Unlimited" Mashable "Twitter vs. Instagram: The Showdown" Slate "No, Instagram Is Not Bigger Than Twitter" Slate "Twitter Is Not Dying" ALLi "How to Connect With Bookshops – Advice from a Former Bookseller" "The Purchase Funnel"The plan for Cherish Desire Erotica comes down to some new approaches across social media while continuing to expand marketplace presence. The longer format Cherish Desire Erotica titles will be coming out quarterly, and we will look at doing an exclusive version of "Very Dirty Stories: Free Orgasms" for Kindle Unlmited with some additional stories already slated for inclusion in "Free Orgasms, Volume 2" in the summer. Storylines for Alice, May, Priya & Miez, and Natalya all have great stuff in progress. Cherish Desire Divinations will pick up with two releases this year as well as more Very Wicked Dirty Stories volumes. Physical books and digital download cards are being explored as well, despite nearly non-existent sales for current CreateSpace paperbacks.
... and some secrets of course! We've got something up our sleeve for each quarter of 2015. Just take a look at our new releases and consider the possibilities. :)
What's your plan?
Thank you for your support. Cherish Desire Erotica dares to embrace the explicit desires of consenting adults even when one of them ends up in bondage with a large butt plug in his bottom. Sexy comes in all shapes and sizes and we consider dogs humping your legs to be proof of consent. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we link videos to bands we like while hoping to convert their followers, and Instagram which will likely feature endless summer photos, ducks, Max's office toys, and occasional blurry club photos. We also have a Facebook page which offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page that is universally not liked and which Mark Zuckerberg guarantees you will almost never see an update from. Most importantly: hang on to your superiority morality and vote theocrat so immoral, wealthy bastards can tell you what to think and what your body is supposed to do! *sheesh*
December 24, 2014
Cherish Desire: Wishing You A Wonderful 2014 Holiday Season
It's that time! Bring on the Ghirardelli Peppermint Bark Chocolate!
Sweeten your delightful desserts with Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories and Cherish Desire Singles erotica ebooks for sexy sensations!
Don't let the holidays stress you out! Relax, tune out the world, and settle into fantasies that taunt your desires. Divert into a pleasantly distracting world of erotic adventures that only Max could create! Perk up your commute, quiet evenings, lunch time reads, and sneak in some me time away from family with dirty stories that plunge into sexy action.
Start your Sexy Adventures with Cherish Desire Erotica!Download Cherish Desire Erotica from Amazon, Kobo, iBooks, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble. Spice up me time and keep warm for the holidays.
Best wishes from Cherish Desire!
Need a special gift for yourself?
These are the sexy stories we wanted to read! If you need something different and new with edgy sex and inspired characters who go all the way... then Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories is up to the challenge!
Need something longer? Check out Cherish Desire Singles releases. Start with these and prepare for more!
Enjoy her fantasies as she pursues an internet Dom & Dominatrix in Cherish Desire Singles: Responsibility (The Complete Nine Part Series) featuring Rachel. Her desires are to prove she's worthy of his lust!
Reduce eye strain with our audiobook edition of Cherish Desire Singles: "Object Confessions, Collection 1". Eleven intense confessions from women in pursuit of unusual satsifaction narrated for your pleasure. Whether it's a peculiar desire for a wine bottle, a massive candle nicknamed 'Master,' or a foam baseball bat - each confession adds another satisfying idea to your toy box! Enjoy a free sample MP3 to tempt your desires: Cherish Desire: "Object Confessions 4" MP3.
More Cherish Desire Singles ebooks are on the way so get started today!
Go ahead... gift yourself!
Keep watching Twitter and Facebook for more updates. Cherish Desire continues to push the envelope with new releases on Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and iBooks, new print editions, erotic audiobooks, and new retailers.
September 7, 2014
Very Dirty Stories on Barnes & Noble - September 2014
Thirty thousand free downloads can't be wrong! Good going, Barnes & Noble fans! We've been broadening the distribution of Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories erotica ebooks for maxmium pleasure and Very Dirty Stories: "Free Orgasms, Volume 1" has been a big hit!
Now you can satisfy your urges for something more and fulfilling on your Nook with our extreme erotica titles available for download from Barnes & Noble. Enjoy over 50 titles of Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories erotica ebooks written by Max and prepare for unexpected pleasure! Brighten your mornings, look forward to a quiet evening in, and invite yourself to an intimate lunch date with dirty stories that plunge into devious action.
Get Inappropriate Desires with Cherish Desire Erotica!Download Very Dirty Stories from Barnes & Noble. Spice up me time with a dirty delights and perverse action.
It took a lot of work to get this far! Be sure to make the most of the opportunity to put hot erotic titles on your favorite tablet. With sexy content involving sex toys, stretching, fisting, and depraved desires, you can finally burst out of mom-erotica. Heat things up and put your Nook to the thest! These intense erotic ebooks encourage feverish one-handed reading sessions and sudden gasps, so make sure your batteries are fully charged! Get inappropriate with Natalya! Keep secrets with Object Confessions! Enjoy kisses with Alice! There's so much more and you'll want to read them all! Each Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories ebook is a collection of short stories involving sexy ladies and their desires.
Very Dirty Stories available on Barnes & Noble
Craving even more?
These are the sexy stories we wanted to read! If you need something different and new with edgy sex and inspired characters who go all the way... then Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories is up to the challenge!
Need something longer? We've just started delivering Cherish Desire Singles releases to Barnes & Noble. Start with these and prepare for more!
Enjoy his fantasy to fist her bottom and the misadventures that follow in Cherish Desire Singles: Tom's Plan (The Complete Eight Part Series). It's not that she's opposed to his desires. It's just hard to share her intimate discoveries along the way!
More Cherish Desire Singles ebooks are on the way so get started today!
Cherish Desire Singles available on Barnes & Noble
Go ahead... get your Nook cooking and charge your tablet with gasps!
Keep watching Twitter and Facebook for more updates. Cherish Desire continues to push the envelope with new releases on Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and iBooks, new print editions, erotic audiobooks, and new retailers.
August 17, 2014
Very Dirty Stories on iBooks - August 2014
What did we do all summer? Good question! We've been broadening the distribution of Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories erotica ebooks for maxmium pleasure!
You can finally satisfy your need for something salacious and dirty on your iPad and iPhone with our extreme erotica titles available for download from iBooks. Enjoy over 50 titles of Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories erotica ebooks written by Max and prepare for iPleasure! Perk up your commute, quiet evenings, and lunch time reads with dirty stories that plunge into devious action.
Get Inappropriate Desires with Cherish Desire Erotica!Download Very Dirty Stories from iBooks. Spice up me time with a dirty delights and perverse action.
It took a lot of work to get this far! Be sure to grab these hot erotic titles as soon as you can because Apple is already marking some as INAPPROPRIATE. Maybe they just don't like sexy content involving sex toys, stretching, fisting, and depraved desires. Maybe they are struggling with the heat, but we're sure your iPad and iPhone can handle it! These intense erotic ebooks encourage feverish one-handed reading sessions and sudden gasps, so make your batteries are fully charged! Get inappropriate with Angel! Keep secrets with Object Confessions! Enjoy kisses with Jenny! There's so much more and you'll want to read them all! Each Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories ebook is a collection of short stories involving sexy ladies and their desires.
Very Dirty Stories available on iBooks
Craving even more?
These are the sexy stories we wanted to read! If you need something different and new with edgy sex and inspired characters who go all the way... then Cherish Desire Very Dirty Stories is up to the challenge!
Need something longer? We've just started delivering Cherish Desire Singles releases to iBooks. Start with these and prepare for more!
Enjoy his fantasy to fist her bottom and the misadventures that follow in Cherish Desire Singles: Tom's Plan (The Complete Eight Part Series). It's not that she's opposed to his desires. It's just hard to share her intimate discoveries along the way!
Reduce eye strain with our audiobook edition of Cherish Desire Singles: "Object Confessions, Collection 1". Eleven intense confessions from women in pursuit of unusual satsifaction narrated for your pleasure. Whether it's a peculiar desire for a wine bottle, a massive candle nicknamed 'Master,' or a foam baseball bat - each confession adds another satisfying idea to your toy box! Enjoy a free sample MP3 to tempt your desires: Cherish Desire: "Object Confessions 4" MP3.
More Cherish Desire Singles ebooks are on the way so get started today!
Cherish Desire Singles available on iBooks
Cherish Desire Singles Audiobook available on iTunes
Go ahead... get Siri aroused and turn your iPhone and iPad on with an iMoan!
Keep watching Twitter and Facebook for more updates. Cherish Desire continues to push the envelope with new releases on Amazon, Kobo, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble, and iBooks, new print editions, erotic audiobooks, and new retailers.
August 13, 2014
Author to Author: August 2014
You should want to fight that statement. You should want to protest and rally against the idea that a handful of vocal opponents can destroy anything. Unfortunately, you probably won't because you don't want to get into a confrontation. You don't want to stick your head up and get smacked down. You definitely don't want to be seen as being different or supporting something others might not like. It's so much easier to tune it out or move on or just keep your opinion private.
Even before Cherish Desire Erotica existed, I was dealing with this. Girlfriends shamed for enjoying sex and experimenting with sex toys. The whole deepseated hatred of anal sex with varying rationalizations that all seemed to center on "It's wrong" instead of "Do what you enjoy." The rather virulent social backlash around fisting and large sex toys in particular while the propagation of the dreaded hard plastic finger sized vibrators and the Rabbit was socially acceptable. It's not been easy for anyone with interests outside of vanilla sex as endorsed by their peer group and community.
We're talking about the most intimate thing humans engage in... and letting a group of scared strangers decide what we're allowed to do with our partners. It doesn't matter whether you enjoy it yourself or not. Somehow their opinion is the only one that counts. As adults this was supposed to get better. It doesn't. We're still hiding our preferences and our toys. We're still locking away our desires and our lusts. We're still doing everything we can to avoid the confrontation and judgment which will happen as soon as other people know. I don't even know what they are aiming to prove or achieve. I just know bringing up having a good time is going to provoke shock and rage and stupidity directed at me.
So we turn to books. Writing, reading, sharing our stories for others like us. That's the basis for Cherish Desire Erotica in the first place. That's why "Mornings in Grey" explores so many different ways to play. It's a key element in "Responsibility" as Rachel explores sex toy challenges, tattoos, and D/s. These are seeds planted in fertile soil to connect with all those people who have similar desires and needs but don't know anyone like themselves. These are a lifeline so men and women who may have struggled with what they've done and been told their sexuality is wrong suddenly recognize that they aren't alone.
Existing outside of the mainstream is dangerous though. It provokes the irrational distaste and hatred of people who desperately cling to cliche. The attacks can be both blatant and subtle. You're tempting the immune system of the masses to annihilate you by endorsing the possibility of other values than those rubberstamped and approved by unseen powers.
This is where the chilling effect kicks in. Take a look at the reviews for "Very Dirty Stories: Free Orgasms, Volume 1" on Barnes & Noble. Seven one star reviews. Two "Stupid" possibly from the same person. Two with a spurious connection being made to a religious author also named Max. One that actually comes out and says "Was too dirty for me" which at least is an honest and explained that one star review.
According to Smashwords, there have been 2,081 downloads of "Free Orgasms, Volume 1" on Barnes & Noble over the past 30 days. That's a pretty typical number since the ebook became available July 2013. So where are the positive reviews? Where is the feedback from people who thought it was ok, but maybe not great? Where are the people who thought it was pretty exciting? Short answer: They've already moved on and don't submit reviews. Ever. I don't blame them for not taking the time. The review logins at Barnes & Nobles have been broken on and off for a long time. But without their feedback, what is left? The feedback from people who think two authors having the same name must clearly be the same person. *head desk*
Kobo doesn't support reviews. One of their few business decisions I generally agree with. Smashwords has two reviews, both positive, even though there have been 6,057 downloads this past quarter. Amazon US has no reviews and still hasn't price matched the book to free. Amazon UK has two one star reviews - one from an account with three reviews in total that one star'd another free romance book for not having enough sex and a positive review for a medical thriller. I skimmed the other account's reviews, and the recurring one to three word summaries for most reviews and general distaste for romance and erotica hints at a pattern but I couldn't figure out what the reader was aiming for.
That doesn't really sound like much, right? Here's the facts though: since the two one star reviews were posted on Amazon UK, "Free Orgasms, Volume 1" went from 10-20 daily downloads to zero. It's a free book, so this isn't a pricing issue. It's just the chilling impact of a one word review, and another that at best is misinformed or simply reflects what that reader "believes women want" or "is sexy." Those two reviewers have basically shamed away any other readers. One is possibly from the UK; the other is openly from Afghanistan. They now represent the entirety of the UK marketplace because they were the only ones willing to speak out.
While I'd consider it a boon to suddenly get a bunch of three star, four star, and five star reviews for my ebooks in response to this blog post, I don't think most people will take that sort of action. What I will ask though: as soon as you finish reading this, go out and show support for your favorite movies, books, and musicians by puttting a positive review on their listings at Amazon and whatever other retailer you shop at. Seriously. Go do it. It takes five minutes at most, and you are making sure your voice is heard. Not the voice of the haters. Not the voice of the "it's not like everything else everyone likes" crowd. Not the voice of the authorities on all things genre. Your voice on what you enjoy.
Thank you.
Cherish Desire Erotica does include such shocking themes as women enjoying sex and men preferring their ladies to be pleasurable to penetrate. These sexy stories don't apologize for embracing honest lust and are barely an adequate counter against tedious and repetitive vanilla stereotypes. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we drive away followers by sending out sexy images and bits of humour, architecture, art, and music. We also have a Facebook page which is rather unappreciated and offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page with less than one hundred other people and which Mark Zuckerberg feels you didn't mean to follow. And most importantly: If you hate a free ebook then go download a different one! *sheesh*
June 3, 2014
Cherish Desire Singles: Summer 2014 Releases!
Light your summer on fire! Get the latest Cherish Desire Singles erotica ebooks for scorching afternoons and late nights between the sheets!
Satisfy your craving for juicy inspiration and twisted sexual fantasies. Enjoy new releases of Cherish Desire Singles erotica ebooks written by Max and have ice handy to reduce the swelling! Keep these your little secret for enjoying your holidays.
Fulfill Desires this summer with Cherish Desire Erotica!Download naughty to take to the pool. Keep an ebook on your smart phone to read during your commute. Spice up me time with a dirty pleasure.
Wherever you are, keep sexy alive! Be sure to pull a towel over the wet spot while reading a fresh collection of very dirty confessions and enjoying lots of big dildo and fisting action... These steamy ebooks will encourage feverish one-handed reading sessions and knowing sighs. Get converted as Rachel services Natalya's lust and Max's desires. Get devastated by Tom's plan to fist his girlfriend's bottom and how it goes crazy wrong. Get overwhelmed with explicit confessions from sexy ladies outlining their sexual pleasures blow-by-blow. Three new Cherish Desire Singles ebooks deliver on extreme scenes and intense sexuality.
On Amazon
On Kobo
On Smashwords
Craving even more?
These are the sexy stories we wanted to read! If you need something different and new with edgy sex and inspired characters who go all the way... then Cherish Desire Singles is up to the challenge! Go for romance with a wanton kiss from sexy Grey. Giggle along as Mistress Alice smooshes boobies and corrupts all the pretty ladies while luring Ronin with desires to break her pussy. Gape in awe as Daphne seduces Nicolas and loses her virginity while being stretched to her limits. Moan along as Danielle pursues Ronin and submits to his preferences for an open, welcoming hollow between her thighs. Get real with candid sexual confessions from lusty ladies who find missionary boring and old fashioned. Witness Angel developing sexual hungers that dominate her world. Cherish Desire Singles ebooks are coated with the sweet nectar you've wanted to taste on your tongue!
On Amazon
On Kobo
In Print on Createspace
Audiobook on Audible
Go ahead... make your day hotter!
Keep watching Twitter and Facebook for more updates. Cherish Desire continues to push the envelope with new releases on Amazon, Kobo, and Smashwords, new print editions, erotic audiobooks, and new retailers.
May 27, 2014
Author to Author: May 2014
I attend a lot of events around the world. The places, the parties, the venues, the entertainment, and the bands get referenced throughout my stories. Subtle things like mentioning Voodoo Doughnut or a specific park are giveaways to city locales and settings. Much like Harlan Ellison said in a talk I attended in the early '90s, I don't expect people to actually understand the meaning I intend to convey by these specific references. They are there to acknowledge the places I've been and to provide a nod to the people that have shared in my travels.
Fetish Factory Anniversary Weekend is no different. It gets mentioned less frequently than Torture Garden because the setting is much more of a community and the hotel take-over brings us all together for three days instead of being limited to just evening parties that last until five in the morning. You literally share elevators and rub shoulders with fantastic people all weekend. I'm sure that's the highlight for a lot of folks, but there are more subtle shared moments as well.
Which brings us to the characters that are all around us as well as the ones we craft in our minds. It can be so difficult expressing moments that matter, but short fiction requires them. The best one-handed read is most likely the one that inspires the imagination to fill in the gaps - whether it's the moment a squeaky toy makes her blush (thanks for that pet shop image, Thianna) or the battle between insecurity and lust that Angel faces in the mirror. It's the things that make us think and react whether we want to or not. Sometimes the moments are subtle, the lingering impression of smooth skin where her master tattoo'd her sex, and sometimes they are brutal, like the recognition of what he expects whenever she enters his home and her clothes need to be removed. Characters in written form are a string of moments that define them and their world.
So I'd like to share a character. The sort that are all around us and in plain sight. He was a cross dresser, and this past weekend he came out and danced by himself at each Fetish Factory event. He put himself out there, with a smile and a shuffle step, in his goth boots and dark clothes, a tight corset wrapped around his waist, with heavy lipstick and make-up. His wigs varied in colour, but he made an attempt to present himself as both well attired and a bit casually mussed. He was a a persistent feature of most parties though he kept to himself.
And he danced while the party crowd came and went. He danced while Moon and I goofed around, and he carefully danced where he could every time the big boys and bump'n'grind crowd took over the arbitrary dancefloor in front of the DJ. He carefully avoided contact with the prancing latex and bondage couples, and he moved to give the whip cracking and flogger crowd a safe play zone. He danced in the bright sun at two in the afternoon and in the soft glow of the pool party lights at four in the morning.
I'm not going to say he was a great dancer or a gorgeous cross dresser or any of that. He was a normal person - like you or me - and I have no idea what his motivations, desires, or reasons are. He was there dancing, and I'd wave or give him a thumbs up or just shuffle across from him for a minute before launching off toward whatever caught my eye. He danced with a crowd around him or just danced surrounded by empty space occupied by unseen ghosts. I'm certain that I've seen him at other parties in other places, but none of that mattered because he was effectively anonymous.
Late Sunday night... which was most probably early Monday morning... I was dancing with Moon while a latex couple I know from New York City were about fifteen feet away. The DJ was broken and playing fairly random stuff in an attempt to appease a diverse audience that spanned twenty-one to sixty-five years of age and every possible musical taste. He nearly killed the floor with some heavy bass dubstep and electronic tribal tracks, so the music was quickly headed into major label pop rock tunes. He put in The Killers, and we were happy to move to a familiar song. The chorus came around and punched into "Somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend..." and the cross dressed dancer was beaming. His wide grin exposed his feelings in a way the dark lipstick and tight fitting corset couldn't cover up. It was those specific lyrics - "Somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend..." - end stop because that's the lyrical hook that made him smile.
It was subtle and changed the meaning of the entire song for me.
I dance alone frequently - though I'm fortunate that I am recognized if not happily received by people in many of the cities I visit. It's a hard thing to put yourself out there, to be the only person on the floor, and to dance like you want to without anyone else joining in. I have a lot of respect for someone who makes the effort. I let him know that. It's important to us - personally - to let people know when we are aware of how hard they are trying and we respect the strength it takes to keep going it alone. At the same time, it's a fine line that I navigate with caution. We only know what we are presented with, but there are decades of stories behind every face.
Perhaps it's not the sort of character that you would explore in your writing. So listen to the music... and imagine if the lyrics were more than a heteronormative pickup line. Imagine if the chorus really was just "But somebody told me you had a boyfriend who looked like a girlfriend..." Imagine the if the singer is delivering a more complex message when he adds "I've got potential..." and "I said mybe, baby please, but I just don't know now when all I wanna do is try..." Imagine if it was an open ended statement about being brave enough to be yourself. Imagine a couple in the corner, and she's fixing his make-up and helping him adjust his corset. There are so many amazing characters walking right by us, hiding in plain sight, and they are much more interesting and involved than the shallow stereotypes that often get portrayed in fiction.
The Killers "Somebody Told Me"
Breaking my back
Just to know your name
Seventeen tracks
And I've had it with this game
I'm breaking my back
Just to know your name
But heaven ain't close
In a place like this
Anything goes
But don't blink you might miss
Cause heaven ain't close
In a place like this
I said heaven ain't close
In a place like this
Bring it back down
Bring it back down tonight, hoo hoo
Never thought I'd let a rumor
Ruin my moonlight
Well somebody told me
You had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
Ready? Let's roll
Onto something new
Taking its toll
And I'm leaving without you
Ready? Let's roll
Onto something new
Cause heaven ain't close
In a place like this
Heaven ain't close
So don't blink you might miss
Cause heaven ain't close
In a place like this
I said heaven ain't close
In a place like this
Bring it back down
Bring it back down tonight
Never thought I'd let a rumor
Ruin my moonlight
Well somebody told me
You had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
A rushin', a rushin' around
Pace yourself from me
I said maybe, baby please
But I just don't know now
When all I wanna do is try
But somebody told me
You had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
A rushin', a rushin' around
Somebody told me
You had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
A rushin', a rushin' around
Somebody told me
You had a boyfriend
Who looked like a girlfriend
That I had in February of last year
It's not confidential
I've got potential
A rushin', a rushin' around
Source: Metrolyrics.com
Cherish Desire Erotica is the erotica that no one else seemed ready to write. Someday I hope people will find it inspiring, but until then my various companions and partners are just happy I am too busy writing to notice how many spankings they deserve. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we spam followers with sexy images and bits of humour, architecture, art, and music. We also have a Facebook page which is rather unappreciated and offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page with less than one hundred other people. Don't ever forget: Characters are everywhere! We suggest bleach wipes just in case...
April 27, 2014
Author to Author: April 2014
The internet is a fickle and surreal realm. With a nearly unlimited potential, the digital landscape is still carved up into fiefdoms and empires that become household names and then fade away. If you're a small business operator trying to promote yourself on the internet then you know this far too well.
Cherish Desire leverages a presence in over a dozen different web properties to reach out to our potential readers and let them know we tell stories about the naughty things that turn them on. Those web sites have their own lifecycle though, and often times their motivation is limited to leveraging content creators to provide new reasons for web surfers to visit and drive their ranking up. It's a simple business model with one huge flaw: Continuity.
Continuity costs money. Continuity increases risk. Continuity is the bane of service providers and the goal of content creators. We've run into issues on Tumblr, Google, and multiple forums where our content is great for yesterday, but unannounced changes in policy and review have triggered deletion of content ranging from blog updates to book cover images.
Google's new fingers under panties detection algorithm deleted the prior cover for Very Dirty Stories #1 along with two-thirds of the legacy covers used for our books. Let's hope they don't mind heels.
The simple fact is that we have no control over our content once it is online. Most people worry about illegal copying and distribution, but as authors, self-promoters, and eager market seekers, we worry about continuity. A Tumblr blog with over 1,500 followers and 3,000 posts takes a lot of work, and when it's capriciously deleted with no explanation then we want to rage and rant and launch missiles at Yahoo headquarters. It's a situation completely our of our control.
At the same time, erotica is one of the few big growth categories in ebooks. You'd think retailers would at least give us better guidelines than "we know it when we see it" when it comes to description and cover content. This is the standard boilerplate response from Smashwords to a description needing work before being accepted for premium catalog inclusion: Your book description(s) are too explicit. Please rewrite them to be safe for a 'PG13' audience, Go to Dashboard - Settings to do this. Not all online vendors shield these descriptions even though they are marked for Adult Content. Tip: don't describe touching of sex organs. If it was as simple as removing a reference to touching a sex organ, the update would be done. Unfortunately, it's a trial and error method to figure out if the offending content is in the marketing intro, the reader's quotes, the actual story description, or the story theme codes. Kobo rejected a book description for using the phrase "boy toy." I briefly imagined a protest march with dominatrixes everywhere pulling out whips and heading to Toronto.
There are also new sites going online every day that promise to bring new potential readers together. Some of these look great on the surface, but it's unclear how well they work in practice. I may have a love-hate relationship with Goodreads, but at least they don't expect you to upload a complete copy of your eBook in EPUB format without any commitment to security like Bublish. Shoshana Evers is experimenting with Storify. Rebel Mouse looks interesting. I've debated mirroring Google content to WordPress once the Spring 2014 updates are complete. Then you get into niche outreach. Fisting.com has consolidated Fist Fourums into a much slicker user experience, but it's still unclear how to best share stories and be visible. Beast Forum and Rose Butt Board still remain as tributes to the older BBS style discussion boards. I've started being more active with our FetLife profile, but it still gets less attention than it probably deserves. Facebook is a waste of time for most promotion, but VK is a good way to reach European audiences. The list goes on and on, to be honest, but our metrics suggest very little readers go from "free" to "paid." So how much time should authors realistically spend on these sites?
Which brings us back to continuity. With Yahoo and Google both aggressively purging first content and then accounts that have artwork and/or depictions of erotica, Picasa and Tumblr are rapidly no longer viable. Tumblr even purged Rachel's music video and discussion blog, so our collective investment of hundreds of hours has vanished in a heartbeat. We need to determine or define a haven for erotica audiences and erotica providers to come together instead of leveraging platforms intended for general participants.
I'm definitely open to suggestions on that front. Share your favorite places to discover erotica, and we'll see if we can put some free stories or similar content there. I'll even toss in a prize...
Cherish Desire Erotica is the outpouring of fantasies that we always wanted to read. Sexy stories that delightfully don't care about Christian Grey's opinion and would probably reduce Anastasia to moaning in a puddle. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we celebrate followers by sending out sexy images and bits of humour, architecture, art, and music. We also have a Facebook page which is rather unappreciated and offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page with less than one hundred other people and which Mark Zuckerberg feels you probably shouldn't see. Just remember an important tip: When someone else chooses what you read then you're accepting their dominance!
March 23, 2014
Author to Author: March 2014
I want to write about the characters that lurk in shadows and threaten to sink their claws and teeth into the unwitting primates going about their pub crawls. I started exploring paranormal and shapeshifter characters with Cherish Desire Divinations, but this is something different yet in the same universe. Writing and hashing the storylines in "The Bear" as a follow up to "The Lioness" has inspired numerous diversions into other characters from a dark reflection of reality. The problem is that these stories are a mix of paranormal, shapeshifting, and horror elements that stretch the Very Dirty Stories brand to the breaking point. We all prefer our expectations to align with our purchases, so I was struggling with how to brand these stories so readers would be happy.
We're in the second month of resurfacing web sites as well as updating ebooks. We need simpler things that work. When I brought up adding a new brand just for these ebooks, the response from all of us was a resounding "Fuck that." At the same time, my beta readers were utterly enamoured with the sinister characters and there was a clear positive response to the plots and sexual entanglements in the stories.
I lost sleep trying to work through "The Bear" and sort out a multi-book approach where these stories were seeds to be nurtured and grown into full fledged story arcs. In the end, I had to admit: it just couldn't happen. I'd have a dozen storylines sitting half written alongside a dozen stories ready to publish, and that was the whole point of Very Dirty Stories volumes. To publish stories as they were finished instead of waiting to have five to ten stories ready to complete a story arc book.
"The Lioness (The Complete Four Part Series)" was written over three months. "The Bear" has been in editing and revisions for six months. Fuck that...
After plotting out how we could add another brand and mapping out the work it would require across multiple web sites, I gave up and had a long think about just quitting. I got dragged back to a blackmail storyline that my British editor likes, and took some time off to work on other things while preparing for Resistanz and sorting out promotional materials I needed to bring over with me. Despite my editor, my lioness, some good friends, and others trying to keep me busy, I was still struggling with how to get these stories out. I was also still writing more of them.
At three in the morning I had stepped out for a moment to clear my head. Florida home base is in a very quiet area that is both partially under construction and completely absent of life after midnight. I walked to the end of the street, pondering the long list of work to complete, and ended up puzzling over what covers would look like for a new brand. I remembered how Coke and Pepsi had battled during their branding wars. The product was essentially just cola, and only a little bit of flavoring distinguished one from the other. Pepsi had targeted the New Generation and got some minimal traction. New Coke had been a spectacular flop, but putting Classic on supposedly original formula Coca Cola was a raving success. It seemed like staying with the Very Dirty Stories brand could work if I could reset expectations with a simple variation.
Very Wicked Dirty Stories was conceived a few days later. The initial cover layouts look solid, and with some tweaking, I think this will be a good way to introduce some new erotica material without starting all over again with a separate brand. Time and metrics will determine the results, but I'm glad to be able to share these stories sooner than later. After all, my lioness prefers to leave her lovers bleeding after she's done with them.
Very Wicked Dirty Stories volumes planned for late May 2014 Fuck yeah...
Cherish Desire Erotica does include such shocking themes as women enjoying sex and men preferring their ladies to be pleasurable to penetrate. These sexy stories don't apologize for embracing honest lust and are barely an adequate counter against tedious and repetitive vanilla stereotypes. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we drive away followers by sending out sexy images and bits of humour, architecture, art, and music. We also have a Facebook page which is rather unappreciated and offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page with less than one hundred other people and which Mark Zuckerberg feels you didn't mean to follow. And most importantly: Classic Coke made with actual sugar is definitely the superior cola product!
Auhtor to Author: March 2014
I want to write about the characters that lurk in shadows and threaten to sink their claws and teeth into the unwitting primates going about their pub crawls. I started exploring paranormal and shapeshifter characters with Cherish Desire Divinations, but this is something different yet in the same universe. Writing and hashing the storylines in "The Bear" as a follow up to "The Lioness" has inspired numerous diversions into other characters from a dark reflection of reality. The problem is that these stories are a mix of paranormal, shapeshifting, and horror elements that stretch the Very Dirty Stories brand to the breaking point. We all prefer our expectations to align with our purchases, so I was struggling with how to brand these stories so readers would be happy.
We're in the second month of resurfacing web sites as well as updating ebooks. We need simpler things that work. When I brought up adding a new brand just for these ebooks, the response from all of us was a resounding "Fuck that." At the same time, my beta readers were utterly enamoured with the sinister characters and there was a clear positive response to the plots and sexual entanglements in the stories.
I lost sleep trying to work through "The Bear" and sort out a multi-book approach where these stories were seeds to be nurtured and grown into full fledged story arcs. In the end, I had to admit: it just couldn't happen. I'd have a dozen storylines sitting half written alongside a dozen stories ready to publish, and that was the whole point of Very Dirty Stories volumes. To publish stories as they were finished instead of waiting to have five to ten stories ready to complete a story arc book.
"The Lioness (The Complete Four Part Series)" was written over three months. "The Bear" has been in editing and revisions for six months. Fuck that...
After plotting out how we could add another brand and mapping out the work it would require across multiple web sites, I gave up and had a long think about just quitting. I got dragged back to a blackmail storyline that my British editor likes, and took some time off to work on other things while preparing for Resistanz and sorting out promotional materials I needed to bring over with me. Despite my editor, my lioness, some good friends, and others trying to keep me busy, I was still struggling with how to get these stories out. I was also still writing more of them.
At three in the morning I had stepped out for a moment to clear my head. Florida home base is in a very quiet area that is both partially under construction and completely absent of life after midnight. I walked to the end of the street, pondering the long list of work to complete, and ended up puzzling over what covers would look like for a new brand. I remembered how Coke and Pepsi had battled during their branding wars. The product was essentially just cola, and only a little bit of flavoring distinguished one from the other. Pepsi had targeted the New Generation and got some minimal traction. New Coke had been a spectacular flop, but putting Classic on supposedly original formula Coca Cola was a raving success. It seemed like staying with the Very Dirty Stories brand could work if I could reset expectations with a simple variation.
Very Wicked Dirty Stories was conceived a few days later. The initial cover layouts look solid, and with some tweaking, I think this will be a good way to introduce some new erotica material without starting all over again with a separate brand. Time and metrics will determine the results, but I'm glad to be able to share these stories sooner than later. After all, my lioness prefers to leave her lovers bleeding after she's done with them.
Very Wicked Dirty Stories volumes planned for late May 2014 Fuck yeah...
Cherish Desire Erotica does include such shocking themes as women enjoying sex and men preferring their ladies to be pleasurable to penetrate. These sexy stories don't apologize for embracing honest lust and are barely an adequate counter against tedious and repetitive vanilla stereotypes. Be sure to check us out on Twitter where we drive away followers by sending out sexy images and bits of humour, architecture, art, and music. We also have a Facebook page which is rather unappreciated and offers you the unique opportunity of Liking a page with less than one hundred other people and which Mark Zuckerberg feels you didn't mean to follow. And most importantly: Classic Coke made with actual sugar is definitely the superior cola product!
