Beach Bums
Editor: Neil Plakcy
Publisher: Cleis Press
Deadline: March 1, 2012
Payment: $60.00 per story, payable on publication, plus 1 copy of the book

Pick any beach around the world, and you’re bound to find excellent eye candy—swimmers, surfers, naturists and sun worshippers. These gorgeous guys are the stuff of gay fantasy—from sleek swimmers to muscular surfers and boarders. Their skins are toned golden brown, and their bodies shimmer with droplets of water.

I’ve been invited by Cleis Press to together an anthology based on the kind of men who spend their lives around a beach, and the men who love them. I hope to recruit authors who can recreate the best beaches of the world, from Florida to Hawaii, Australia to Brazil, and everywhere in between. Living in Florida, and writing often about tropical locations, I know a lot about the kind of guys who hang around beaches.

But I’m still able to be surprised, wooed and excited by your stories! I hope to get stories that feature a range of ages, body types and permutations as well as great locations.

Story length:  3,000 — 5,000 words
Deadline:  March 1, 2012
Publication Date:  Summer 2012
Payment:  $60.00 per story, payable on publication, plus 1 copy of the book

Submit your story to Neil Plakcy at plax@bellsouth.net as a MS word attachment. Please double space and indent the first line of each paragraph by a half inch.

Groucho redux

Although it is generally known, I think it’s about time to announce that I was born at a very early age.

— From Groucho Marx’s autobiography Groucho and Me (1959)

Heard on Univision

Another woman running for President in Latin America; this time trying to get rid of the despot ruining Venezuela:

Congresswoman and Presidential Candidate, Maria Corina Machado, with the courage that only a Latina can have, stood up and faced President Hugo Chavez, as no one has ever done before in Venezuelan history, and called him a liar and thief.

Read about her here.

Molly Ruppert

The Washington Project for the Arts’ Alice Denney Award for Support of Contemporary Art was initiated in 2006. It is named for the founder of WPA, Alice Denney, and is presented annually to an individual who has supported the organization for many years and has made a sustained commitment to the greater DC arts community.

This year’s honoree, Molly Ruppert, will receive the award at the SELECT exhibition opening reception on February 11, 2012.

Molly Ruppert is one of those key instruments that makes up the DMV’s cultural orchestra and which, in concert with the other instruments, makes our cultural art scene one of the best on the planet.

Think of her as the big bass drum, or the cello, or the harp; any of the real key instruments without which the symphony is off and out of synch. Also think of her as working behind the scenes as well as leading it.

Molly – and the entire Ruppert clan have been a powerful force in the DC arts scene. With the multiple opportunities the Warehouse Arts Complex have given over the years, Molly and her family have been one of the most commited supporters of the arts in our region.

Personally, I am also indebted to her.

When I curated the epic exhibition known as “Seven” for the WPA a handful of years ago, it was Molly who stepped up and offered the entire Warehouse complex to house all the WPA artists whom I had selected.

I was very pleased by the spectacular success of that show, but even more pleased when I ended up also meeting there, at one of the talks, the woman who would become my wife and best friend.

Thank you Molly!

Topher Forhecz on Banks and Nordin


The Gazette‘s Topher Forhecz pops in with a nice review (also nicely illustrated) of Michele Banks and Kendall Nordin’s exhibition at The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center on Montgomery College’s Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus.

Read the review online here and then go to the opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. on Feb. 9.

Groucho

“A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.”
— Groucho Marx

Under Her Thumb: Erotic Stories of Female Domination
 Editor: D. L. King
 Publisher: Cleis Press
 Deadline: April 10, 2012
 Payment: $50 plus 2 copies of the anthology

D. L. King is looking for some smokin’ femdom erotica.

That’s right, and I’m sure you’d agree it’s about time.  You know what I like and many of you have been sending it to me in submission for a while now, but now it’s time to pull out all the stops: Tell me stories about the first time you realized where your true passions lay–and what you did about it.  Why does a naked, bound submissive get your juices flowing? Guys, tell me what it feels like to be under the thumb of a sexy, dominant woman. What it does to you to have every physical response, every emotion guided and controlled; how the mixture of pain and pleasure brings you to the edge and sends you crashing over.

Tell me about bondage, about cock and ball torture and about goddess worship. Tell me about foot fetishes and rubber, about corsets and bunny slippers. Tell me about all the kinky things your lizard brains can dream up.

Guideline details at:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Under_Her_Thumb.htm

Heard on Univision

Mexican political party Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) has chosen Congresswoman Josefina Vázquez Mota as their Presidential candidate – the first woman candidate with a real good chance of becoming our Southern neighbor’s first female Presidente.

We send out congrats to Josefina!

PostSecret 2012 Tour

The local DMV art superstar known as Frank Warren is the only artist on planet Earth (at least that I am aware of) who can sell out college auditoriums and other such audience-venues as he continues to expand and discuss and publish his planetary scale installation megaproject PostSecret.

Check out the 2012 Spring tour video below:

Charity Auction

Distinguished works of art will grace the Middleburg Community Center on Friday, February 24th, in an unprecedented auction of original artwork from the community’s best local artists. Doors for this fundraising event will open at 5:30 P.M., and proceeds will benefit the Middleburg Montessori School.

“It is always impressive when so many artists come together to support a worth-while cause like this one,” offered Bradley Stevens, a well-known realist painter. Stevens, a former faculty member at both George Washington University and Georgetown University, donated a children’s group drawing lesson in portraiture and an adult “plein-air,” or outdoor oil-painting lesson, at Barrel Oaks winery in Delaplane. These items, like all other offerings, will go to the highest bidder.

With more than fifteen committed artists, including the furniture of craftsmen at Plank & Nickel, the auction will showcase the art of Misia Broadhead-Barham, Anthony Barham, Kim Basinger, Armand Cabrera, Hwa Crawford, Mikel Diaz, Richard Dimon, Charles Matheson, Lilla Ohrstrom, Dana Lee Thompson, Dana Volkert, Antonia Walker, Charlie Westbrook, Henry Wingate, and Cathy Zimmerman, among others.

A sample of the featured artists:

Armand Cabrera, known for his alla prima work—paintings completed in one sitting in the studio or outdoors—has donated “Farmhouse,” a stunning 8’ x 10’ oil on linen. Armand, a former California-based production artist in the entertainment industry, brings his eye for detail to his exquisite landscapes. His work has been featured in International Artist Magazine and American Art Collector.

Local artist Dana Volkert captures the natural world, isolated and enlarged, in abstract beauty. Her compelling work has been exhibited in galleries worldwide and is a must for the modern collector.

Antonia Walker, whose works are represented in many collections including the Arts-in-Embassy Program of The State Department, has been a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome. She has studied under Spanish Sculptor Benjamin Saul as well as Brittany, France-based artist William Woodward. Antonia is most well known for her oil paintings of the Virginia countryside and images of Italy and France.

Artist Henry Wingate’s first career was flying airplanes for the Navy. Wingate is best known for his classic oil portraits and his traditional representational works of art, approaches he studied in ateliers, or working studios. An award winning artist, Wingate has been featured in American Artist and Portrait Highlights magazines.

Also included in the auction are handcrafted, reclaimed wood furniture from the designers at Plank & Nickel. Two beautiful live-edge modern benches will be among the offerings.

The public is invited to this open event. Barrel Oak Winery will be providing wine to bidders and guests alike. Delicious hors d’oeuvres from Julien’s on Washington Street will add a touch of French cuisine.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with these talented artists,” explained BethAnn Slater, Head of School of Middleburg Montessori. “Ultimately, we are all coming together to benefit the children in our community.”

For more information about the event, or to become a donor, please contact Middleburg Montessori School at 540-687-5210.

WHAT: Art Auction and Reception, “ART OF THE PIEDMONT”
WHERE: Middleburg Community Center, 300 Washington St. Middleburg, VA
WHEN: Friday, February 24th, 2012 at 5:30-9:30PM (Free to the public)
WHO: Hosted by Middleburg Montessori School. Contact: 540-687-5210

By Ashley Lister

Constant Reader,

My name is Ashley Lister and, aside from being a regular columnist and reviewer at ERWA, I’m also a freelance writer and a creative writing lecturer. I’m reminding you of this because so many interesting contributors have appeared in this space since I last blogged here I can understand if you’ve forgotten me.

As I mentioned last month, I’m using this space to share some of my favourite writing exercises.

This month’s exercise deals with characters.

Have you ever met a person that you thought you would like – only to discover they were completely unlikable? Conversely, have you ever met a person you expected to despise – only to discover they were surprisingly charming?

This happens all the time in the real world.

However, it’s only in fiction – and really, only in badly written fiction – where we encounter characters that are written in shades of unmistakable black or white and absolute flavours of good or bad.

As writers creating characters, if we want them to be believable representations of real people, we have to keep in mind that real people are multifaceted individuals who are never wholly good or wholly evil.

We also have to remember, whilst some characters and their characteristics will remain consistent, their traits will appear to change depending on who is looking at them.

To illustrate this point, I recently read out rude a poem to a large audience. The audience members that laughed and applauded clearly thought I was risqué and funny and deserved to be on the stage in front of them. The audience members that walked out and complained clearly thought I was vulgar and humourless.

I was the same person at the microphone. But I was a vastly different person to each of those responding in such diverse ways.

Here’s the exercise:

Write about yourself from the perspective of someone who likes you. Write for about half a page on this first part of the exercise. Now fill out the other half of the page writing about yourself from the perspective of someone who doesn’t like you.

Hopefully there should be a contrast in perceptions here. Ambition and greed are often different sides of the same coin. It’s admired to be relaxed but few people approve of someone being lazy – yet the two adjectives can be used interchangeably depending on whether we like or loathe a person. A beloved bargain-hunter can easily be regarded as a despised tightwad.

This exercise is not only useful for self-examination. You can use it to better understand how your characters are perceived by other characters in the fictional world you’re creating.

Your fashion-conscious protagonist could be seen as a vacuous clothes-horse by her detractors. A sexually adventurous hero could be seen as an immoral man-slut.

Take a shot at this exercise and feel free to share your favourite contrasts via the comments box below. It would be interesting to see how readers of this blog believe themselves and their characters to be perceived.

Ash

For the big game

For the last two days I’ve been cooking “Ropa Vieja” in the slow cooker. This is my favorite Cuban dish and it takes forever to cook properly, but when done right… OMG! You start with simply a few chunks of skirt steak, tomato sauce, onions, fresh garlic, and a few key spices and two days or so in the slow cooker.

Since it is the Super Bowl, I also made my own salsa, and not to brag, but seeing that salsa is NOT a Cuban dish to start with, I think I’ve put my own tag on this most Mexican of foods and may have even put my Mexican compadres to shame; let’s just say that garlic and cilantro to an overwhelming state can never go wrong – and then crush some mango into that puppy and Mmmmm…

Now let’s hope that the Giants kick some rump.

From the Erotica Readers & Writers Association
By Lisabet Sarai
_______

Dear Raunchy Romantics,

February has arrived, the month of love: roses and ropework, chocolates and chains, candlelight and caning… But perhaps your definition of romance differs from mine. However you prefer to celebrate it, Valentine’s Day offers a fine excuse to indulge in the sensual delights we offer here at the Erotica Readers & Writers Association. Not that you need an excuse, of course, but still, if someone catches you browsing in the Sex Toy Playground or Erotic Books sections, you can always say you’re shopping for your sweetie.

Since I’ve brought the topic up, let’s begin in the Sex Toy Playground, where Kyra Saunders shares her experience trying out the Obsession Bullet Vibe, a toy that actually remembers your power settings from your last session. Now that’s intelligence! Alicia Gunn from Babeland offers practical and fun suggestions for getting your sex life out of a rut (many of which don’t involve any toys at all). Our Sex Toy Scuttlebutt gives you the down and dirty (so to speak) on the latest amorous artifacts available from our reputable affiliates. (Personally, I want the Rumblin’ Rose Ring Vibrator. So very discreet!) And of course we’ve arranged discounts for our honored visitors, so if you just can’t live without that dildo or penis pump, it won’t cost you a month’s salary.

Come frolic in the Playground. Your lover will thank you.
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ST/Sex_Toy_Playground.htm

After you wine and dine your honey on Valentine’s, why not curl up with a hot movie to get you even more into the mood? Michael Ninn, one of my favorite adult directors, brings you “The Four”, a heroic treatment of female power and sensuality set against the backdrop of Sparta’s defeat by the Persians at Thermopylae. Really! Max Candy’s creation “Inglorious Bitches” is more than a parody of the popular Quentin Tarantino feature. Gorgeous Tarra White musters an army of desperate whores to assassinate Nazi scum. If this sounds like too much plot for your tastes, you might sample “Pretty Tied Up”, a set of bondage (and sex) vignettes aimed at couples, or splurge on Elegant Angel’s two disk collector’s edition of “Performers of the Year 2012″.

There’s lots more to ogle in the Adult Movies section, including a page featuring the 2012 AVN Award winners. And our “Better than Popcorn” sale lets you satisfy your desires at smart prices.

Get visual with our premium porn:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AM/Adult_Movies.htm

It may sound like I’m trying to sell you things. To be honest, ERWA relies on purchases made through its links to meet its expenses – so we can continue to offer you the best free adult content on the web. You don’t have to buy anything to enjoy ERWA, but if you do decide you absolutely have to have one of the products we feature, please click through from our site to the vendor’s.

In the February Erotica Gallery, ERWA’s special guest is EPPIE award winner Angela Caperton. She’s provided three stunningly erotic tales that will definitely get the juices flowing. We’ve got more sexy stories from the members of our Storytime list, including a raft of flashers, some humorous and some intense. We’ve got poetry, too. Perhaps you’ll be inspired to pen some amorous verse for your Valentine.

The best in original erotic fiction is just a click away:
erotica-readers.com/GD/S/Erotic_Fiction.htm

Once the Gallery puts you into a reading mood, sashay over to our Books for Sensual Readers pages. February’s literary feast offers new anthologies from acclaimed editors: ONE NIGHT ONLY: EROTIC ENCOUNTERS, edited by Violet Blue; WOMEN IN LUST, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel; RED VELVET AND ABSINTHE, from Mitzi Szereto; LUSCIOUS: STORIES OF ANAL EROTICISM, from the ever-outrageous Alison Tyler. If you’re looking for gay erotica, consider RIDING THE RAILS: LOCOMOTIVE LUST AND CARNAL CABOOSES by Jerry L. Wheeler (an alliterator after my own heart). And I’ve bookmarked STEAM POWERED, edited by JoSelle Vanderhooft, a collection of lesbian steampunk tales. Erotic romance is exploding, and we’ve got some great recommendations including THE DUKE IS MINE, by Eloisa James and AN UNSETTLED RANGE, gay erotic romance from Andrew Grey. In the graphic novels section, I’m lusting after TRANSCEPTOR: IRON GUAGE, the latest collaboration between Michael Manning and tattoo artist Patrick Conlon. And you may not realize that ERWA bookshelves feature more than just fiction. I really want to read THE LAST OF THE LIVE NUDE GIRLS, a memoir by Sheila McClear, who chronicles her experiences working in a Times Square peep show.

I don’t have to tell you what to do if you want any of these books, do I?

Wander through our sensual stacks:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/EB/Erotic_Books.htm

Over in the Authors Resources section, the big news is – ME! This month I begin a year-long series of columns entitled “Naughty Bits: The Erotogeek’s Guide for Technologically Challenged Authors”. Each month I’ll be explaining some aspect of computer technology that authors need to know. My maiden article (of course, I use the term “maiden” figuratively) is “What the Heck are Bits, Anyway?” (There’ll be a quiz in March! And I do have my ruler, for any slackers…!) Meanwhile, Donna George Storey is back with more wise insight into the writer’s life, along with luscious recipes (for cookies, this month) and Ashley Lister shares his thoughts about the whys and hows of blogging.

The Calls for Submissions listings keep growing. This month’s additions include a new romance e-publisher Adams Media; calls for Halloween, winter and M/M medical-themed anthologies from Total-E-Bound; print anthology calls from Liz Coldwell at Xcite Books; a gay “weird science” anthology from Torquere Press; and several “Best of” calls including Best Erotic Romance 2013 (from Kristina Wright) and Best Bondage Erotica 2013 (from Rachel Kramer Bussel). This list doesn’t begin to exhaust the opportunities available for you to sell your erotic gems. Whether you write romance or raunch, short stories or novels, fiction or social commentary, ERWA can help you find the right publisher.

Kick your writing career into gear:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Erotica_Authors_Resources.htm

Inside the Erotic Mind, our fearless erotic adventurers debate whether lingerie is sexy or superfluous. I was amazed at the diversity of opinions, from both male and female members of the conversation. You’re very welcome to join the discussion. Just click on “Participate”.

Anything can happen inside the erotic mind:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/ITEM/Inside_The_Erotic_Mind.htm

This month’s web gem is publisher Ellora’s Cave
Ellora’s Cave was established in 2000 and remains at the vanguard of both the erotic romance and digital publishing revolutions. The company works hard to retain its leading edge by continually discovering fresh talent, blazing new genre trails, and paying some of the highest royalty rates in the industry. With books in six languages and authors and editors around the world, we are truly an international publisher.

We accept both agented and unagented manuscripts, and as an author-owned company are very author-friendly. For submission guidelines and calls for submissions, visit
www.jasminejade.com/t-writerscircle.aspx

Authors, editors, fans, aspiring authors, Caveman cover models and other industry professionals from around the world gather at our annual convention RomantiCon for fun, inspiration, education and networking:
ecromanticon.com

Before I sign off, I want to remind you that February 29th is Sadie Hawkin’s Day – the day when women can turn the tables and tell men what they want. Don’t miss your opportunity, ladies! If you want any femdom pointers – or to borrow my cuffs and riding crop – just shoot me an email!

Enjoy your Valentine’s Day, however you decide to celebrate, and remember – you can’t have too much love.

Amorously yours,
Lisabet

Visit Lisabet Sarai’s Fantasy Factory
Check out Lisabet’s blog
Join Lisabet’s List

Write, learn, and play on ERWA email list. Details at:
erotica-readers.com/PRIVATE/index.html

Chawky Frenn Opening at BlackRock

Tonight: Chawky Frenn at BlackRock

I have always thought that the BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown, MD has one of the most beautiful and dramatic gallery spaces in the region. With its impossibly tall gallery space, it opens itself to all kinds of great curatorial ideas.

And tonight, GMU Professor Chawky Frenn will be opening his “Be The Change You Seek” solo show. And if you know Frenn’s past, then you can expect a show sure to raise some eyebrows. Frenn uses his vast technical skills as a painter like a weapon, aiming his talented brush at social, political and historical issues.

The opening is from 5:30 – 7:30PM. The show goes through Feb. 27.

BlackRock Center for the Arts is located at 12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown, Maryland 20874. Call them at 301.528.2260 for more info.

See ya there!

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: Friday, March 9, 2012

The Bethesda Urban Partnership and Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District has announced “Tunnel Vision,” a public art exhibition to be hung in the Metro Tunnel that runs under Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda.

“Tunnel Vision” will showcase the work of 12 selected artists inside the Metro Tunnel. Interested artists are invited to submit up to 5 images of their work for review. Each artist will be paid $500 for the license to use their image. If selected, artists will need to provide a high resolution file for the image of their artwork to be printed on a poly metal material, size 4′ high x 8′ wide. Artists are encouraged to submit artwork that can easily be sized to 4’ x 8’.

Artists must be residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C. to be eligible for consideration. There is a category for young artists, age 14-17, to apply. The deadline for submitting images for review is Friday, March 9, 2012. Interested artists should visit this website for more information and the application for consideration.

Steam Bath: Steamy Gay Erotic Stories
Editor: Shane Allison
Publisher: Cleis Press (early 2012)
Deadline: February 1, 2012 March 30, 2012
Payment: $50/story, upon publication

Shane Allison is back at it again.  This new book will be focused primarily on hot bathhouse encounters. This will not be an anthology on simple hook-up scenarios, so the job I propose to you is turning such a stereotype on its ear. Think:
- Hot orgies
- Exhibitionism and voyeurism
- muscle lust bears to horned up silver daddies
- kink

I want it all. Stories can be told from second or third person, as long as it’s an erotic story focused on the topic.  Stories can be long- or short-term relationships or single encounters, or anything in between, as long as the characters and plot are believable and the story is hot. I don’t want simple snapshots of scenes that don’t tell us anything about the characters’ motivation. No nonconsensual stories; all characters must be over 18. No scat or incest. No reprints.

Guidelines and submission details at:
erotica-readers.com/ERA/AR/Steam_Bath.htm

Torpedo Factory Art Center Visiting Artist Program

Deadline: February 15, 2012. 



The Torpedo Factory Art Center invites emerging and experienced artists to apply for one, two, or three-month residencies between June 1 and August 31, 2012.

The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia is home to more than 140 visual artists working in 82 studios. Artists create in a wide variety of media including painting, fiber, jewelry, ceramics, printmaking, and sculpture. The Torpedo Factory is open to the public every day; visitors are invited and welcomed into studios to watch artists at work.

Visiting Artists will be provided with studio space and will be able to display and sell original work. The projects undertaken for this self-directed, creative residency must be compatible with available working studio spaces and facilities.

Finalists will be selected by Paula Amt, owner of gallery plan b. There is no application fee. 
You can download the Prospectus from this website.

Heard on Univision

The Mexican Minister of Health, Salomón Chertorivski, has announced that the Mexican government has invented a vaccine to prevent heroin addiction.

Details here, in case you think that I’m messing with you.

Spidey is an issue

So far, for my naked Superheroes series of drawings I’ve depicted the Man of Steel about a dozen times, Batman (and Batman and Robin) 2-3 times, and Supergirl about 6-7 times.

Next is Spiderman, although I am having a hard time visualizing the drawing. It is easy to conceptualize Superman or Supergirl flying in the buff, but why would Peter Parker be climbing the facade of a building in the buff, and somehow still be wearing a mask or somethings that identifies him as Spidey?

The agonies of a brilliant mind…