Rachel Kramer Bussel
Best Bondage Erotica 2014 is the fourth annual collection of its kind that I’ve edited. With each volume, I try to push the envelope and give both fans of bondage and new readers a chance to explore as wide a variety as possible of types of bondage, ways of being bound, and reasons characters engage in bondage. I’ve had a few people tell me they’ve never heard of the BDSM term “eel” before reading Annabeth Leong’s story of the same name, and neither had I! That’s one of the things I love about editing this series—it gives me a sexual education as well as entertainment.
Why is the 2014 collection hotter than ever before?
One thing I appreciate as much as the physical element of bondage is the psychological; and the authors here deliver that big time. I’m especially fond of authors who get extra creative in terms of how bondage is performed, and Raziel Moore does that in “My Own Device,” going so far as to have a character create a bondage device for maximum effect. In “Clipped,” Lucy Felthouse uses an office setting and paper clips to deliver a very hot bondage scenario. I love when authors push the envelope in terms of the meaning of bondage in the lives of the characters, such as the chastity belt in “Belted In” by Roxanna Cross. While there are plenty of men and women here who’ve been tied up before, others are exploring bondage for the first time. I’m as interested in the motivation for seeing someone bound or being bound as I am by how it happens, and when they mesh perfectly, I know I have a story I want to publish.
Why is it important to include new and established writers in the genre for this collection?
Having new authors keeps the genre fresh and inventive. They can provide different perspectives, such as historical story “The Neckcloth” by noted BDSM erotic romance author Annabel Joseph, as well as new readers. I read every submission that comes in and do my best to make each book varied and lively for the reader, so that whether they’re new to the Best Bondage Erotica series or have read them all, they’re never bored. I like to mix up storytelling types as well as plots and who’s getting bound.
Why is fiction surrounding bondage becoming such a sensation?
People are curious about bondage, and want to know what it feels like to be tied up as well as what goes through a person’s mind when they’re at someone’s mercy (or holding the power in a bondage situation). Whether you want to try it in real life or not I think there’s a natural fascination with the power play of bondage that books like this tap into. I want this series to be accessible to seasoned players as well as those who’ve only thought about using, say, a scarf to tie someone up or as a blindfold. I think short stories are particularly powerful because you don’t need a major time investment to get a taste of different types of bondage, and then you can decide which; if any, are ones you want to learn or read more about.
When did your editing life begin?
I started out writing erotica, which I still do, and after a few years was asked to start editing my own collections and from there have gone on to edit over 50 of them, but it always starts from the initial idea and expands from there. I truly never know what I’m going to get when I post a call for submissions online, and that discovery process is what makes my job so wonderful. It’s been a fascinating l education in terms of just how outrageous and kinky authors can be and has forced me to up the game with my own writing.
How much does editing inspire your own work?
Editing helps show me the kinds of stories I wish I could write and ways to expand the scope of my writing. So perhaps instead of one person being tied up, three are, such as in my story “Dual Mastery.” I’ve given myself permission and sometimes even instructions to explore the points of view of characters of different genders and sexual orientations, and to write about things I’ve never done and will never do. Editing has given me more courage to be experimental on the page, because I appreciate when authors experiment and take risks and make their work stand out in memorable ways. I also know my limits; one of my favourite erotica stories I’ve ever published is “Chemistry” by Velvet Moore in my anthology Orgasmic; it’s about a woman who’s turned on by the science of chemistry. I almost failed chemistry in high school so I could never write a story about it, but I’m so glad someone else did! When I read a story that comes alive so vividly on the page about such an unusual topic, I’m inspired to find a way to try to do the same thing myself, but in my own way.
When did your passion for reading and writing erotica begin?
My passion for erotica began during college and blossomed in law school, when I was reading a lot of erotic stories and decided I could try to write one of my own. I had never written fiction before but am glad I took the plunge, and have been writing erotica ever since. Sometimes I go back and reread those early anthologies I got my start exploring and they are just as hot as ever. I love that erotica is timeless yet continues to grow and expand as a genre.
What is next for you?
I’m looking forward to the audiobook release of my favourite of all my anthologies, The Big Book of Orgasms: 69 Sexy Stories, as well as more kink this summer with The Big Book of Submission and a book of female fantasy erotica, Hungry for More, and, in December, Best Bondage Erotica 2015, which I’m reading for now.
Rachel Kramer Bussel regularly writes for and appears in Salon, Jezebel, Bust, Cosmopolitan, The New York Observer, The Huffington Post, The Daily Beast, and more. Based in New York City, she is a prolific erotica author and editor, and her titles include Serving Him, Twice the Pleasure, Cheeky Spanking Stories, and Fast Girls. Visit her at rachelkramerbussel.com and lustylady.blogspot.com, and follow her at @raquelita and @bigbookoforgasm