Sunday, April 29, 2018

Erotica for the Big Brain at Six—A Mission Statement


Hard to believe that I’ve been at this for a little over six years now. It had never occurred to me in all that time to post anything like an Official Mission Statement for EftBB, although I have articulated all these principles separately over the years. So here, at last, is something like a coherent mission statement:

(1) Erotica is literature—not smut, or filth, or garbage, but real literature.
(2) The quality of writing and storytelling in erotica should be subject to the same critical standards applied to any other type of literature.
(3) Well-written erotica is no less worthy of serious discussion and appraisal than any other form; it deserves the same level of critical attention—thoughtful long-form critique—as any other “serious” form.
(4) By regarding erotic literature with high expectations, and by working to raise the standards of craftspersonship and professionalism within the form, my aim is to show that it is not only possible, but perfectly natural, to be a creature of profound intellect, wisdom, and spirit, as well as a thriving, fully-realized sexual being. “Smart and sexy” is not an oxymoron. “Wise and sexy,” “sane and sexy,” “ethical and sexy,” and “happy and sexy” are not contradictions.

[NOTE TO READERS: As I race to complete work on The Erotic Writer’s Thesaurus by the launch date of Tuesday, May 22, I hope after that time to have enough breathing space to get back to a regular schedule of reviews, articles, and stories. Thanks to all EftBB's faithful readers for their forbearance in this hectic time. TAS]