Free Newsletter!

.............................................................................................................................................
--- Writing Porn For Fun and Profit! ---
The Bi-Weekly E-Letter
Volume 2, Issue 1
October 1, 2001

=========================================
This issue may be distributed to friends, discussion lists and writing groups as long as the entire issue is included.
=========================================
To Subscribe - Send any email to
KatyTerrega-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To Unsubscribe - Send any email to
KatyTerrega-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
=========================================

************************************
Visit the site at
http://www.KatyTerrega.com/writers.html

Get back issues of this newsletter at
http://www.KatyTerrega.com/backnewsletter.html
************************************

==========================================
In This Issue:
==========================================

From the Editor - It's Our First Anniversary!
Interview with Annie Sprinkle
by Jenna Glatzer
Market Listings
Sex Quiz/Party by Cliterati.com
Market News - Good Vibes
Call From A Writer
Goings On - Congrats!
Looking for Writers

=========================================
From The Editor
Katy Terrega
=========================================

Hard to believe, but it was a year ago tomorrow that I sent out the first issue of the newsletter!It sure doesn't seem like it's been that long. I don't know exactly how many subscribers we had then but I know it was under 100, I'm thinking more like 80. Now we're almost at 820!

If I would have thought about it sooner, I would have planned something special. Hmm, now that I do think about it, how about I send a free copy of 'It's A Dirty Job' or 'Porn 101' to the 82nd person who emails me? Just hit reply, no need to type anything, and I'll keep count. And let's do only one email per person, just to keep it fair.

It's a gorgeous fall day here in Colorado but the weather's turning bad tonight, I hear. I hate winter. I hate the cold but mostly I hate the lack of color; all dull grays and browns. Oh, well, you don't see me moving to Florida just yet.

I hope you're all doing well, especially in the wake of the attacks in New York, my heart goes out to all of you touched personally by the tragedy.

We've got a great issue this week: An interview with Annie Sprinkle by Jenna Glatzer (thanks, Jenna!), a bunch of good (if rather urgent) market listings, some news and info about Cliterati.com and Good Vibes Magazine, some questions about contracts and rights in Q and A, one Goings On and a call from a writer in Texas. I think that's it! Since there's only the one Goings On, I imagine I missed someone, so if it was you, just let me know and I'll get it in next issue.

Enjoy this issue and please keep in touch!

Katy

===========================================
--- Interview With Annie Sprinkle ---
--- by Jenna Glatzer ---
===========================================
Originally Published at AbsoluteWrite. Reprinted with permission.

Annie is a former prostitute-turned-porn-star-turned-sex-performance-artist, feminist, and about a hundred other titles... including author. She entered the porn world after working as a popcorn-seller at a movie theatre that just happened to be showing an X-rated film when she was 17. When the theatre's owner was sued for showing it, Annie was called to the trial, and met the filmmaker and star of the movie. She was intrigued by their work, and followed them back to Manhattan. She had starred in over 100 porn films by the mid-1970s.

As time went on, she became more focused on performance art and sexual education, including her popular "Public Cervix Announcement." She has written articles and several books about her work and life, and holds a a Doctorate of Human Sexuality from the Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality in San Francisco. She is working towards her Ph.D.

Tell us about your latest book, Hardcore from the Heart.

This is my fourth book. I've also published magazines and have a comic book about me, too. This book is from an academic perspective. It is, as the subtitle says, about the "Pleasures, Profits and Politics of Sex In Performance." It includes some interesting interviews, a script of my most recent play, various writings, etc. It's a kind of scrapbook of my past ten years of work, with commentary by Gaby Cody, a fabulous art critic.

This book is the second in a series called Critical Performances. In each book in the series, a theater critic and a performance artist pair up and do a book about the performance artist's work. Generally, it includes a script of a show, so that people who are studying that artist's work can see how they work.

Why did you write this book?

I wanted to try doing something real academic. I was invited to do it. The project just fell into my lap. I certainly didn't do it for the money, because the advance paid was less than it cost us to do the book-- buy photos, pay for assistant, buy a plane ticket for Gaby and me to get together.

I find doing books very good self therapy. A way to assess one's work and life, and a way to document it, and share it with others. I also love the process of making books. It's fun. And once the book is out, there are usually perks, like offers for gigs, you get a little more well known and respected, and you can let go of the past, because it is out there for all to see and enjoy.

How did you first break into the writing world?

I started by writing for men's sex magazines, like Partner magazine, Cheri, Adam, Oui, Penthouse Forum, etc. I also did photography for the magazines. Often, I would write stories to go with my photos. I majored in photography at School of Visual Arts, and became pretty good at pin-up photography.

You have had fantastic publicity throughout your career, and I read that you often wrote your own press releases and worked on marketing your work. Any tips for authors who'd like to attract this kind of attention?

a. Sex sells, for sure!
b. Have lots of good 8 x 10 glossies to give out to the press. Although, these days, it can be done digitally. I think that having lots of good photos of myself really helped me get my shows and events written up.
c. Humor sells.
d. Be original as possible.
e. Be in the right place at the right time.
f. Send out press releases, and be sure they have a hook. Something that is current or something that will grab attention.

How did you find your publisher?

Gaby Cody, my co-author, approached me. She had the gig with Continuum to do a book for their series. Then she invited me to work with her. She got to choose any artist she wanted to work with. I was just lucky. I think Continuum is quite courageous to do such an eclectic, unusual kind of book and series of books.

How did you hook up with Gaby?

Gaby had been to one of my performances early on. But I didn't know her. Later, she came up to me after a show and introduced herself, and made me the proposition. As it turned out, we had some friends in common. I really liked her from the start. She's really sweet, and really smart, and very sexy. And a fine academic and great writer. And hey, she was interested in me and my work, and I was very flattered.

How do you define the line between erotica and pornography?

There is no real line. As I say in one of my shows, "In erotica you use a feather, in porn you use the whole chicken." Or, as my friend Gloria Leonard says, "it's all in the lighting." The words erotica and pornography generally describe a genre, but these words can be quite interchangeable. Some porn is more erotic than erotica. Some erotica can be pornographic and not erotic at all. But that's what makes it real folk art in a way, these things can't be easily defined.

A lot of feminists are anti-porn. How do you resolve the issue of calling yourself both a feminist and a porn star?

Because I am a feminist, and I make feminist pornography now. My work is geared to women. I wasn't a feminist when I got into porn. And in fact, I learned a lot from the anti-porn feminists.

Explain what you mean by "sex-positive" and "sex-negative."

It's a basic way of explaining how a person views sexuality. Are they seeing it from a positive humanistic perspective, or from a place of disgust and fear and judgment? Sex is not necessarily good nor bad, in the way the ocean is not good or bad, or fire is not good or bad. It's what we bring to it.

Your book contains several interviews, including one with Mae Tyme, an anti-porn feminist. How did you get her to agree to this interview?

Yes, I'm quite proud of this interview. It's a discussion, really. She and I met at a lesbian video night. We have agreed to disagree on some issues. She grew to trust me because my intentions are to educate and grow and to improve the way things are for women in the world. I told her that she could edit the interview however she'd like to. I promised her that if she didn't like what we did, then she could destroy it, and I'd never use any of it. I also paid her for the interview. I like to pay people whenever I can. And she knew that I would use the interview in the context of an academic book. She wouldn't have let me use it in a men's magazine. I promised her I would never use it without her permission. And I would never betray her trust.

After you've finished a manuscript, tell us about the process before it appears in print.

Well, in the case of my new book, Hardcore From the Heart, the editor did very little in terms of revisions or improvements. She did a lot of fact checking, and detail work. Oddly enough, no one at the publishers ever said if they liked the book or not, or gave me any signs of encouragement, other than publishing it. Which is quite a lot, really. The editor was in England in this case. With my past book, Post Porn Modernist, I worked with Felice at Cleis Press in San Francisco, and we got together quite a bit. And she pushed me to do little rewrites and make improvements.

So each time I do a book with someone new, it's always a different process.

Have you had any trouble getting book reviewers to cover it?

Well, it's pretty eclectic. It's not really a popular culture kind of book. So people who might normally review a book I do might not review this one because it's kind of over some people's heads. It's also not erotic or titillating in any way, so the mainstream sex media isn't paying it much attention. But I feel that it will have a long life. Rather than make a big bang at the start, it will have a slow burn.

We have gotten some great media attention in places that normally wouldn't review me-- some professional journals and educational magazines and such.

Anything else you'd like to add?

Yes, you can get my new book from my favorite store, Good Vibrations at goodvibes.com. Or from Amazon.com. Or order it at any book store. It's in many stores in Manhattan, but maybe not in Iowa or Louisiana, or...

My web site address is http://gatesofheck.com/annie. You can get the book direct from there, too. Please come see me when I'm in your town. My calendar is on my site.

I wish everyone lots of sexy fun and pleasure and big book advances and more. Keep it damp.

===========================================
--- Market Listings ---
============================================

Contest:
Hurry! The deadline for this one is today!

TOY STORY CONTEST: Have an erotic story to tell? Now's your chance. Enter Adult DVD Empire's "Toy Story Contest" and you could win big!! Pick a toy from our website and write a story or poem about it. Submit it to jtsmith@dvdempire.com with "Toy Story Submission" in the subject line.

What can I win?
1st Place - $200 Gift Certificate good towards purchases at Adultdvdempire.com
2nd Place - $100 Gift Certificate good towards purchases at Adultdvdempire.com
3rd Place - $50 Gift Certificate good towards purchases at Adultdvdempire.com
4th Place - 10th place - you get the sex toy that you used in the story free! (If you use multiple toys in your story you will only get one for free.)

Everyone that enters will have their story posted on www.adultsexforum.com in the Erotic Stories forum. The 10 best stories will be posted on Adultdvdempire.com. First, second and third place will be picked from the top 10.

How do I Enter?
Entering the contest is easy. Just pick a sex toy from our massive selection, and write a story about it. There are no other requirements. It can be long, short, gay, straight, anything you want - as long as it's HOT! When you're finished with your story, email it to jtsmith@dvdempire.com with "Toy Story Submission" as the subject.

How long do I have?
The deadline for submissions is October 1, 2001.

Can I write a poem?
Yes you can write a poem, haiku, story whatever you want.

How do I submit a story?
Once you've written a story, send it to jtsmith@dvdempire.com as an attachment or in the body of the email. Please use "Toy Story Submission" as the subject of the email.

Where will my story be posted?
All the entries will be posted on these sites -
Adult DVD Talk - Erotic Story Forum
Adult Sex Forum - Erotic Story Forum

The ten best stories will be posted here on Adult DVD Empire. Disclaimer - Stories that contain underage characters, rape or beastiality will not be posted and will not be eligible for the contest. All submissions become property of Adult DVD Empire for the duration of the contest.

Click here to pick out a toy for your story

---

Paying Listings:

EROTIC EPISTLE:

Fiction: We are looking for short stories (~500-5000 words) that explore the power of the erotic word.

For better and worse, we run our lives through a politically correct filter, separating what is sensual and erotic from what is acceptable. We find that the concentrated desires and passions that collect on one side of that filter can coagulate into a sticky mess, so throw a little life back into the mix. A good piece of erotica is rarely just about sex, and a great piece of erotica is rarely politically correct.

However, we are not interested in child pornography, and there is a fine line between submission and abuse. Please don't cross it. Simultaneous submissions are okay, but please let us know.

Reviews: Have you read it? Tell us what you thought about it! We are looking for entertaining reviews of sex-related fiction and nonfiction books, e-books, and web content.

Poetry: Christine loves poetry, but she's very, very picky.... Format: Please send us your submissions as text in the body of an e-mail, or as an attached Word document.

Compensation: Erotic Epistle pays one cent per word on the acceptance of original fiction, and ten dollars on the acceptance of an entertaining review. We are buying the first digital rights to publish your story or review in our magazine and the non-exclusive right to publish your story or review in our archives.

Please send all submissions to: submission@eroticepistle.com

---

Hurry! The deadline for this one is today!

BUTTMEN II: Erotic Stories and True Confessions by Gay Men Who Love Booty. West Beach Books - PO Box 68406 - Indianapolis IN 46268. Website: http://www.westbeachbooks.com. E-Mail: JERICSON@westbeachbooks.com. F(561)-594-7769. CONTACT: JIM ERICSON, PRODUCTION MANAGER. Yearly - early summer beginning in 2001 - erotic book anthology that celebrates the beauty of the male butt. 100% freelance written. Works with new writers. Submissions reviewed and accepted in the fall of each year. Purchases non-exclusive print and electronic rights. Pays writers 120 days after publication. Obtain guidelines at website. Submit finished manuscript, via email ONLY in Word or text doc with pages numbered and contact info on first page. For other guidelines, visit the site.
CURRENT NEEDS: Erotic stories and true confessions by gay men (or women who write under a penname) about the male butt. All types of writing accepted, including fiction and nonfiction.
PAYMENT: Varies; approximately $50 per story.
WORD COUNT: No minimum/maximum although we have a preference for shorter stories.
REPRINTS: Yes, as long as writers retain or secure rights.
HINTS: Please, please carefully read the submission guidelines on the website. http://www.westbeachbooks.com/submissions.htm

---

WORLD'S WORST EROTICA Erotica Submissions Guidelines
(Read these guidelines thoroughly. They're important.)

Word Count: Up to 6000 words.

How to Submit:
ALL SUBMISSIONS MUST BE SENT AS HARD COPY. NO EMAIL
SUBMISSIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED.

Submissions should be typed/word processed, 8.5x11" paper, 12-point type in some relatively conventional typeface, double-spaced. Pages should be numbered. Submissions should be STAPLED and should include the COVER SHEET, stapled to the submission.

Submissions must include a COVER SHEET that includes the following information:
Your Legal Name
Pseudonym (if you use one)
Mailing Address
Email Address
Phone Number
Title of Work
Word Count

DO NOT SEND A COVER LETTER. DO NOT SEND BIOGRAPHICAL DATA, PREVIOUS PUBLISHING CREDITS, OR RESUME INFORMATION.

PLEASE DO NOT SEND SUBMISSIONS VIA FEDEX, UPS, OR OTHER SERVICES THAT REQUIRE SIGNATURE UPON DELIVERY. If you want to be sure I got it, please see "receipt confirmation" below and follow the instructions.

Previous Publications: If the work was previously published, please list where and when it was published on the cover sheet. You must retain rights to your work if you submit it.

Multiple Submissions: If you send multiple submissions, each submission must have its own cover sheet and must be stapled as a separate unit with its cover sheet.

Reciept Confirmation: If you wish confirmation that your submission has been received, you must include a self-addressed STAMPED postcard. Non-US residents please just include a self-addressed postcard, since non-US postage won't work from this end.

Pay: To be determined.

Submissions will NOT be returned. Submissions not chosen for inclusion in the book will be recycled.

SEND SUBMISSIONS TO:
Hanne Blank, Editor
World's Worst Erotica
5310 Cedar Lane #206
Columbia, Maryland 21044

DEADLINE: Submissions must be postmarked before February 1, 2002.

========================================
--- Sex Quiz/Party ---
--- Cliterati.com ---
=========================================

http://cliterati.co.uk, the sex site for women, is having a sex quiz on Friday 30th November, tying in with World AIDS Day to raise money for the Terrence Higgins Trust.

If you want to put in a team and help raise money for the Terrence Higgins Trust, let us know.

Details are as follows:

- Teams can include up to 5 people
- The entry fee is £5 per team member
- Every entrant will get one free drink
- The winning team will win a prize generously donated by http://www.firebox.com

All proceeds go to Terrence Higgins Trust

If you want to participate, go to http://www.cliterati.co.uk and click on the contribute a story button at http://www.cliterati.co.uk/page/submit.php?type=story .

Put in your name and e-mail address and you'll receive details on how to the event.

===========================================
--- Market News ---
============================================

Thomas Roche writes that Good Vibes Magazine has stopped taking freelance submissions for the time being.

========================================
--- Call From A Writer ---
=========================================

Houston, Texas area erotica writer seeks others for local writers group. Support, education, marketing, editing, critiques etc. Please contact ackerdr@aol.com for information.

===========================================
--- Goings On ---
===========================================

Kelly Steed and Colleen Elliott published the hard science fiction/horror novel Stasis in September as a trade paperback with AmErica House Book Publishers. It is available online from PublishAmerica, Inc. http://www.publishamerica.com

---

Congrats Kelly and Colleen! If you sent me your Goings On but don't see it here, just let me know and I'll get it out.

---

Tell me what's going on! Have you made a sale? Do you have a piece being published? Let me know and I'll print it here for all to see!

---

I've got my revamped website up and running here - www.KatyTerrega.com.

---

Check out my column at http://www.AbsoluteWrite.com on - what else?! - writing porn. This week I finally wrote about the happy truth about porn writers; which is that we love our jobs!
Check it out here - http://www.absolutewrite.com/specialty_writing/porn_101.htm

===========================================
--- Q & A ---
=============================================

Concerning rights:

When a market says that they buy ALL RIGHTS, they mean just that; the publication owns your story lock, stock and barrel and can do with it what they please. In addition, you lose your right to do with it what you please. Some writers don't sell to markets that buy all rights, some do, it's up to the writer.

When a market buys FIRST RIGHTS - internet, North American Serial, etc. - it means that the publication has the right to publish the piece for the first time and usually for some set time period after that. When that time is up, the author has the right to resell or republish the story.

Concerning copyrights:

Do you need to do anything to make sure your work is copyrighted?

Not usually. A work is copyrighted (to the author) the instant the author puts it down in tangible form. It's rarely necessary to go to the trouble and expense of registering your stories with the copyright office. As long as you don't sell all rights, you retain your original copyright.

Some people are worried about theft. From what I've heard, it does sometimes help to have a registered copyright in the case of stolen work, but it's not necessary. Given that, however, you may want to consider copyrighting longer works, such as novellas or full length books.

---

A reader wrote (long ago, sorry!) about the rather lame contracts offered by some porn publishers, especially as compared to some of the more mainstream markets. For example, she mentions the fact that one paying market asks for first rights but wants the author to sign a 'statement' stating that any future (published) editions of the story acknowledge the original publisher. Some markets might request this, and it's common courtesy to grant it, but it's rare for a market to demand it, and the reader pointed out that it basically constitutes free advertising.

She says "Not only am I dismayed to encounter this sort of exploitation of writers in the porn industry, but I wonder why these contracts exist. Is it because the market's flooded with quality porn writers, so publishers can dictate whatever terms they want? Is it because porn writers are too naive to negotiate fair contracts? Are these types of unfair contracts unusual in the industry, and I've just happened to encounter a bunch of them early in my career, or are they they norm?"

Well, there's normal and then there's normal.

Many porn publishers have great contracts; they give decent pay for first rights, short exclusives and, even if they pay on publication, they pay promptly. These are generally big name print publishers like The Score Group and Hustler, to name just a few. These publishers buy (and expect) top-quality work and as such, are not always open to newcomers.

Other markets, unfortunately often those more accessible to beginners because of lower pay and standards that are not quite as high, vary in what they offer the writer. They run the gamut from 'decent' - for example, mediocre pay but they'll reassign book rights on request - to downright insulting - token payment for all rights.

Part of this can be explained by the idea that you 'get what you pay for.' In these cases, the higher paying markets publish higher quality work and have better contracts.

But in my experience, it's also true that the porn genre does seem to have more of these not-so-good markets than other genres. Probably that's because porn tends to be a 'beginner's' market; often fledgling writers can break into porn before they can make it in other genres. Beginners are often willing to put up with less pay and less appealing contracts just to get clips.

That doesn't have to be a bad thing; many porn writers have worked their way up into the more prestigious markets. But it does mean that the porn writer needs to be fairly discriminating when it comes to sending out manuscripts. It helps to have a good grip on what it is, exactly, that you want. Is it money? Clips? Accolades?

Define your goals and work from there. It's fine to put up with less than stellar contracts just to see your name in print, or to build clips or marketability. It's also fine to refuse to work for less than top dollar and to hone your skills until you can do so.

Either way, you might want to read that fine print in the writer's guidelines before you submit.

---

Send me your questions! I'll answer the most common ones here, and if I don't know the answer, I'll do my best to find a pro who does. (Of course, failing that, I'll ask y'all for help...)

===========================================
---Looking for Writers---
===========================================

Send Me Your Stories And Ideas!

I'm looking for essays/articles that will inspire and/or instruct other porn writers. Success stories, how to break into certain markets, unique views on the genre, etc. Around 800 words is good, although I'm flexible.

I'd love articles on specific markets. There are so many sub-genres of porn and it's hard to know the subtleties of each. If you've got a specialty, from BDSM to Watersports to Leg Sex to Amputeeism, feel free to share your knowledge.

You can either suggest a topic (query) or send something whole. I'll get back to you within a week as to whether or not I'll be able to use it.

I pay with a copy of the updated 'It's A Dirty Job...Writing Porn For Fun And Profit' or 'Porn 101: 12 Essays On The Art Of Writing Porn And Erotica,' plus a lengthy bio and url if you'd like.