International BDSM Day

For those of you who aren't aware of it, the 24th of July is International BDSM Day. It's been around since 2003, I don't know much about the history of the day but I have heard the date was chosen to represent the 24/7 aspect of the BDSM lifestyles. A very clever date to choose if you ask me.

There's never really a lot of publicity about the day, unlike other international days, which draw all sorts of media and community attention. However, it's still a day to celebrate. It's a day to be proud of who you are and what you like. It doesn't matter if you only practice when you can or you're firmly entrenched in the lifestyle, today is a special day. There is such diversity within the Kink community, which is one of the things I love about being part of it. In my experience there's also acceptance, respect, and understanding - both of individuality and the preference for how people practice their kink. For a lifestyle that's often demonised in the media and misunderstood by the wider vanilla community, I think we get a lot of things right with the way we treat each other.

So, no matter how you enjoy your BDSM, kink or particular fetish, whether you are fully emerged in the lifestyle, practice it occasionally or just like to read about it in a BDSM romance, determine to do something special today. After all, it's a day to celebrate.

If you're stuck for ideas on things to do, here's a few suggestions.

• Go corset or toy shopping with your kinky friends.
• Walk up to a stranger and ask if can you spank their ass in celebration of International BDSM Day.
• Go to the races to watch the public display of cropping.
• Visit your local hardware store and get the sales assistant to help you choose a new suspension system to install in your dungeon.
• Invite your vanilla friends over for morning tea and serve cupcakes with BDSM symbol icing.
• Go to the local police station and ask if you can buy a set of handcuffs.
• Do the housework in your sexy french maids outfit.
• Take your toy-boy to the local pet store and buy him a new collar and lead.  
• Read a BDSM erotic romance novel.
• When your boss gives you an instruction reply 'Yes, Sir' in honor of the day.
• Be a brat to everyone.

The possibilities are endless.... :)

If you don't like any of the suggestions above, what are you doing to mark International BDSM Day?

Come over for a chat

I'm chatting all day today (15th) over at The Romance Reviews forum. Here's the link to the chat so feel free to drop in and say hello. http://www.theromancereviews.com/forum/index.php?topic=434.0

You do need to join the TRR site (it's free and easy) in order to access the forum but there are lots of things going on over there and it's always an interesting place to peruse. Hope to see you there, come along and ask anything you like, I'll try and answer any questions about my books and my writing as best I can.

Win a copy of Healing a Cougar's Heart

Healing a Cougar's Heart's is having it's day as part of The Romance Reviews Summer Sizzler event. Check out TRR for how to enter and win.

Isabelle O’Connor never considered herself the type of woman who needed a knight in shining armor to come and rescue her, until one does. Well he’s more a knight in blue jeans and white shirt. After all, it is modern times. Unfortunately, her perfect hero has a flaw... he’s a cop.  Isabelle decided years ago never to become involved with a police officer again, and she isn’t going to change her mind now.

Mark Dean loves being a cop. He also loves the hot redhead he rescued from a creep’s unwanted attention at a local nightclub. Mark knows that before he can gain Isabelle’s affection he has to convince her of something. Being a cop has nothing to do with her reluctance to date him. Isabelle’s heart never healed after the death of her husband and Mark makes it his mission to help heal this feisty Cougar’s heart.

BDSM Unleashed

BDSM certainly has had it's fair share of time in the spotlight recently, most of it due to a book called Fifty Shades of Grey. Whether the saying any publicity is good publicity turns out to be true remains to be seen, but the interest generated within the community of romance readers, publishers and the media may have positive benefits for those of us who write erotic romance, particularly with BDSM themes. 

BDSM isn't new to erotic romance, there are many excellent authors who have been writing BDSM specific romance for years.  It is, however, new in the eyes of many mainstream romance readers and even publishers. Readers who liked the Fifty Shades trilogy are now looking for other authors and books along the same lines, opening up a new reader base for established authors writing within the genre. If demand for more kinky novels continues then it isn't a far cry to see mainstream publishers taking on more authors that write BDSM specific novels. So it's all good I hear you say. A win/win for readers and authors. Maybe not.

The quality of writing in Fifty Shades has already drawn negative attention. It remains to be seen whether the popularity of the books ultimately taints work by other authors with readers assuming all BDSM is of the same quality as Fifty Shades. I hope readers that are interested in BDSM, but weren't happy with the writing style of Fifty Shades seek out quality work by other authors, rather than disregarding the genre all together. As with any fiction, there are good and bad authors out there and popularity doesn't always equal a quality read. Just as readers like and dislike different books, so the quality of writing varies according to each author.

There has also been criticism from feminist groups leveled at the book questioning whether women's rights and the gains made in the area of gender equality are adversely affected by the submissive representation of the female character in the novel.  This accusation has far reaching effects, not just for authors but for those of us that are part of the BDSM community. It's an unwarranted criticism that submissives living the lifestyle have faced for years. All I can hope is that any media exploring this topic seek out members of the BDSM community that can counter the argument articulately and present a positive view of dominance and submission as an individual lifestyle choice. 

I'm glad that The Playroom has put together this blog hop and I'm proud to be part of it. It's not just an event where readers can win a free ebook or two, it's a community of authors and those within the lifestyle presenting a positive view of BDSM writing and offering information to those interested in finding out more about what BDSM really is.

Now for my giveaway... click to follow my blog, leave a comment on this post, along with your email address and go in the draw to win an ebook copy of Playing Jax, the second novel in my Wylde Shore Series.  If you already follow the blog then you still get to go in the draw if you leave a comment on the post.

Also to go in the major draw of the BDSM Unleashed Giveaway visit The Playroom BDSM Authors Blog at The Playroom and comment on one of the posts as part of the blog. You'll also find a list of more than 30 other authors participating in the giveaway, so there are lots of chances to win prizes and lots of informative blogs to read.


Update: 24th July 2012: I want to thank everyone who commented for a chance to win my ebook but there can only be one winner and that lucky ducky is... Sebrina. Congratulations, Sebrina. Please check your email to find out how to claim your prize.

The Playroom authors will post during the hop about their love for the genre. Comments on The Playroom Blog posts will count as entries to win the BDSM UNLEASHED GRAND PRIZES


Below is the list of participating authors for this blog hop. Check them out for changes to stack your reading shelves with lots of prizes.