...And the lights are officially back on!

Last night began writing again, working on the new vampire story I've told you about. I've changed the title slightly to "Beware of Damsels in Distress," which I think sounds a little more provocative. As I said before, this story is based on an unfinished poem - which was pretty obviously lesbian-erotic to begin with. It'll be easy to jack up those scenes from PG-13-rated to X-rated; and then, since the poem is unfinished, I can make the ending just as wild as I like. Which will be pretty damn wild. ;-P I told you about that dream I had, remember?

At this point, I'm thinking my next story after this will be "Dummy," a non-EMC story with roots in Lovecraft's "The Whisperer in Darkness." After that I'm going to try finishing "Transfixed" as a service to those of you who bought the first book expecting to get the second one pretty quickly. Then I'll just follow my gut instincts about what to do next. I told you I had a couple of other Lovecraft stories on the back burner, as well as the unfinished EMC story "The Power of Positive Slavery." And I totally forgot to tell you that I'm thinking I could easily rewrite "Spy vs. Guy" as a lesbian story rather than a gay male story. I'm not sure what I'd call it, though. Any thoughts?

Based on my poll, it looks like almost everyone would be willing to check out my Lovecraft pastiches, so that's good to know. Remember, I'll be posting them under a different pen name, but if you don't mind being spoiled about the author's real identity, you can find my other name easily enough. Just keep the secret! ;-) I want to keep my online identities separate.

I'll be writing the Lovecraft stories under the pen name M.K. Addison.

My dream...and what comes after

When I first came back from hiatus (not long ago), I told you I'd had an incredibly hot dream about vampires, and that I'd give you the breakdown in another post. This is that post, and besides the vampire dream, it's going to include my ideas about where to go from here - and how you can help me decide.

First, the dream.  I was part of a vampire's banquet. I and several other people had been enthralled by a vampire who had undressed us almost completely. I was wearing nothing but an under-the-breast corset made of white rubber with artistic cut-outs. She'd programmed us so that the longer we kept our eyes rolled up, the more aroused we'd become, which meant we were all just wallowing in blind lust and seeing nothing around us. We lay on chaise lounges while our Mistress' guests - other vampires - came in. Some of us had been given special food or drinks beforehand to flavor our blood, and all of us were really just living bottles at a vampire wine-tasting: meant to be tasted and enjoyed, but not killed. We'd serve to this Mistress forever. First we'd be human slaves; and then, before we lost our looks, she'd turn us into vampire slaves. We'd never have free will, and we'd never be more to her than party favors.

Now, I can't remember whether I ever told you about a story idea based on a steamy-but-incomplete lesbian vampire poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge. If his name sounds familiar, that's because he's the guy who started writing his most famous poem, "Kubla Khan," in the midst of an opium bender and then got distracted by an unexpected visitor. By the time he got back to his writing desk, he'd lost both his buzz and his inspiration. So that poem went unfinished too. Anyway, I think my first post-hiatus story is going to be an eroticized takeoff of Coleridge's vampire poem; and the climactic scene will be based on the dream I just described to you. I think I might use the image at the top of this post to make the ebook cover, but I'd like some opinions about that. Is it hot enough for an X-rated story?

That's my first question for you; I'll get to the others in a second. I hope lots of you will add comments to this post. Remember that my blog is set up to allow 100% anonymous commenting, and I don't censor anything except spam and troll posts.

Now, my next question is where to go from the vampire story (Which I think I'm going to call "Damsels in Distress"). I'm torn over several choices:

• There's "Transfixed," which is still waiting out there half-finished on Amazon. I hate to leave the people who've read Part 1 hanging, and I do have an outline that will get me through Part 2, but I think this is going to be a "heavy lifting" project. That's one of the reasons I wanted to start with something short and new first, to get my mojo working again.
• Another option for my second project is "The Power of Positive Slavery," which I've teased here before and which is sitting half-written on my laptop. But again, with this one, I feel like it's going to be heavy lifting...and at least I haven't published anything on it yet, so I don't have to worry about anyone fretting over cliffhangers.
• Another choice would be to start in a new direction after "Damsels in Distress," writing Lovecraft mythos stories under a different pen name (which you'll be able to discover if you read my future posts carefully). I have three stories in mind so far. They'll be horror with a bit of humor and/or some eros - but no actual erotica. Under the US movie rating system, they'd be classified as PG-13 or R. I've planned out one of these stories (working title: "Dummy") very thoroughly already, and it's practically screaming at me to start writing it now. Actually, I wish I could write it alongside "Damsels in Distress," but I'm not good at juggling two projects at once; and I figure I'd better start with a sure success rather than something experimental.
• Besides "Dummy," these are the two other Lovecraft stories I have in mind. One is based on "The Mound," but told from the point of view of the pervy humans who served as the villains in the original story. This story would definitely involve some eros (and suggestions of orgies). The other story is actually based on the "King in Yellow" series (written by Robert Chambers) which were written before Lovecraft started his career and greatly influenced his mythology. If you want a taste of how freaky the King in Yellow stories areyou can read The Yellow Sign here. Actually, all Robert Chambers' writings are in the public domain now, but "The Yellow Sign" is the best one to start with. Then, if you like that, check out "The Repairer of Reputations" next.

Now here's my last question. I'd like to know whether fans of my EMC erotica would be interested in reading non-EMC Lovecraft mythos stories by me, so I'm setting up a simple poll in the sidebar up top. Please take a moment to tick a box - and again, please add some comments below.

Thanks!

Hiatus

You've probably noticed that my posts have become fewer and farther between; and if you've been following my blog for a while, you know I'm struggling with some very serious and painful real-life issues. I'm not the kind to spill my guts all over the internet, but if I did, the result would look like a scene from Brain Dead. It's bad.

I've been struggling to write despite everything, but it's been like winching words out of a hole that goes down for miles. It's just become impossible. I'm going to have to take a break until things resolve - which will take some time. For those of you waiting on the Transfixed sequel and The Power of Positive Slavery, I'm sorry, but you're going to have a longer wait than any of us anticipated.

Please keep a kind thought for me as I go through all this.

A sneak peek on my next story

Right now I'm at roughly the halfway point of "The Power of Positive Slavery." It's going to be a long story, which will be great for you when it finally comes out! The problem is getting it out. I feel like I'm giving birth. :-/ Anyway, I thought I'd gift you with the first couple of sections tonight, just so you have something to play with. This should give you a good idea of where the story will be heading, and you can fantasize about all the nice and nasty little touches I'll throw in along the way.

The wording isn't pinned down yet, but this is how the story begins.

---

“Not even komodo dragons?”

Ainsley groaned. “Komodo dragons live in Indonesia, not Polynesia, and don’t act like you didn’t know that already.”

Gemma had already drunk more wine than was good for her. Sober, she was a brilliant lawyer. Drunk, she was a very deliberate airhead. She held her fingers a couple of inches apart and giggled. “Not even little itty bitty dragons?”

Ainsley was drunk enough, herself, to brush that off. “Oh, sure,” she said, “we’ve got tons of those. But since they don’t have wings, we had to come up with a special name for them. We call them lizards.”

Gemma pretended to pout. “Well, I don’t see how you can name an island Île des Dragons if you don’t have any real dragons. Maybe I shouldn’t go after all.”

“I bet you’d go if you knew Chance Finney would be there.”

Gemma’s eyes widened. “He won’t!”

“He will. He signed up just last week.”

“So if I go, I get to fuck him?”

“Like I told you, it’s all about the free love, baby.” Ainsley had never met a genuine hippie in her life and quickly abandoned the accent. “After a full battery of tests, of course. We take care of your health and your pleasure. By the time you leave the island, you’ll be tanned and fit and more mentally stable than you’ve in your life.”

“You know, that last bit really does kind of make it sound like a cult.”

Ainsley snorted. “How long have we known each other? Trust me, Gemma, if I got brainwashed into a cult, you’d be the very first person to notice. Do I look like a cultist?”

She really didn’t, though Gemma. She looked fit and happy – too happy, but that was just the wine. The only real change Gemma had noticed in Ainsley’s personality was the loss of her sense of entitlement. They’d been shopping earlier in the day, and Ainsley had actually chatted with some of the sales clerks. Normally she’d have treated them like servants.

Gemma bent close and peered into Ainsley’s eyes. “Okay, your pupils aren’t spinning, and you haven’t shaved your head or started wearing funny robes. I guess you’re all right.”

“Damn straight I am! So, are you in? I promise it’ll be the best vacation you ever had.”

“I thought it was a retreat, not a vacation.”

“It’s both! That’s the beauty of it. And since I’d be your host, it would be like we were taking a vacation together, with beautiful scenery, great activities, and some of the hottest guys on the planet.”

“Don’t forget the mystery dragons that may or may not exist.”

“Oh, I can’t forget the dragons,” she said, and grinned. “Now, do you want a chance to fuck Chance, or not?”

“Eww, bad joke, Ainsley. Very bad.”

“Give me a drink. No, sorry, I mean give me a break. It’s the drinks making me tell bad jokes. But come on, Gemma, please tell me you’ll come!”

Gemma sighed. “Okay, I suppose I can take the time off work.”

“That’s my girl!” Ainsley raised her glass. “To Île des Dragons!”

“Or Île des Lizards!”

They clinked glasses and poured themselves another round.

*****

It was almost morning before they said goodnight. Gemma stumbled off to her bedroom singing Chance Finney’s biggest hit. All she knew was the chorus.

Ainsley slipped into the guest bedroom and locked the door behind her. Then she stood listening for several minutes, making sure Gemma wouldn’t come out again. Once she was satisfied, she dropped her mask and pulled out her cell phone. The wine made it difficult to dial, and she had a lot of digits to get through; but she couldn’t put this number in her directory. After three tries, she got through.

The call was picked up on the first ring. “Result?” said a calm male voice.

“Positive,” she answered flatly. Then she ended the call and went to bed.

Feedback received and decided upon

A couple of weeks ago I asked readers for feedback on three questions related to two stories I'm currently juggling (A question I'll have to ask myself soon is whether to keep juggling or just work on one till it's finished and then move to the other). I've had lots of input now, so here are the things I've decided.

Let's start with Transfixed Part 2. I said that while I'd originally planned to write it as a Choose Your Own Adventure, I was beginning to feel like I was in over my head. So I asked you all how you'd feel about getting a sequel that was an ordinary novelette instead. Nobody was displeased by that idea, and in fact, it sounds people just mainly wanted to get the book quickly. Well, that's what I want to give you, so we're in agreement. Transfixed 2 will be a novelette and not a CYOA.

Now on to the other story. First - and this relates to a post prior to the "feedback" post - I have an official tittle now. Thanks, Jock! It's going to be called The Power of Positive Slavery, and Jock will get a free copy for gifting me with the idea.

As for my questions about the story, this what I've decided based on the advice of people who know a hell of a lot more than I do:

1. The rare form of lighting will be an LED black light. That's a real light source that would damage human eyes in real life, but I'll handwave a filter that makes it safe.

2. The latex worn by the catsuited slaves will be lubed on both the inside and outside because that allows for maximum mobility and shine. It's also nice to know that latex doesn't get too hot too quickly. Really, folks, no matter what kind of kinky shit I write, the only latex I've ever worn were gloves! I'm glad some of you out there are bolder than I am!

Thanks, as always, to everyone who takes the time to comment. :-)