The Future of Taboo, Forbidden, Ultra-Smut, and Other Controversial Erotica

Will Incest Erotica Survive the Purge?

A short time ago the Lot’s Cave Newsletter published its thoughts about the future of controversial erotica on Smashwords. Mark Coker, the CEO of Smashwords responded by fiercely denying any censorship. (See back issues online for the transcripts). Today, Smashwords is stepping up its efforts to silence taboo and controversial erotica. It’s not your imagination; it’s happening right now. Smashwords just banned a number of hard core eBooks this last month, essentially wiping them off the Internet if not for Lot’s Cave. The rest of all erotica authors are supposed to think that’s okay because of rude subject matter. The latest victims consist of authors who write non-consent erotica.

Censors of rape and non-consent erotica assume all sexual violence committed is done by men and that men are by nature sexually violent to women. It has been proven time and again that it is women who most enjoy rape fantasy’s and rape erotica. Indeed, at Lot’s Cave, nearly all rape erotica is purchased by women. Censoring rape erotica actually hinders conversations regarding sexual fantasies and sexual responsibility. Hindering such conversations are actually detrimental to women’s health and sexually open relationships and reinforces the concept that women can only be victims. Does banning rape erotica reinforce toxic adherence to certain strictly enforced gender roles?

You are not delusional in thinking publishing platforms like Smashwords are discriminating against UltraSmut Authors and that they are gaslighting us by claiming ‘no policies have changed; they are just enforcing existing policies under stricter new criteria.’ Hey, we call that a policy change! When caught silencing controversial authors. The chilling effect that occurs every time a new round of “enhancements” is that it keeps most erotica authors far from the boundaries; it keeps them from writing anything that might be controversial in any way for any reason. Because these policy rules are largely unwritten, constantly evolving, being made up all the time, and enforcement is changing, they make a mockery of the concept of a self-publishing platform where all authors are treated equally and that book readers/buyers do not know what they want to read.

First Amazon, then Barnes & Noble, and now Smashwords are controlling the direction the entire publishing market, defining exactly what erotica consumers are allowed to read. If you control the terms, then you can control the outcome of social direction. UltraSmut authors are ignoring this at peril. You will lose every publishing platform going forward, including Lot’s Cave, if authors do not put a stop to this. Some ill-informed authors might agree with Publishing Platform claims that this is just “competition” this is just “free market”; if you do not like Amazon, if you do not like Smashwords, go make your own publishing platform. These authors have never started their own companies and don’t know what it means to start a business. These companies, including Smashwords now, have all built themselves up to the point of monopoly power on the back of protectionist government regulations.

Small companies like Lot’s Cave need large companies like Smashwords to plow the path ahead, without which it’s difficult to survive. We desperately want and need Smashwords to provide taboo authors an uncensored publishing platform. If Smashwords caves in to the vocal few complainers and discontinues publishing ultra-smut, it will make life extremely difficult for us by requiring Lot’s Cave to justify its existence.

Now that Smashwords has ‘arrived’; and in doing so, joined the ranks of all major publishing platforms in crowding out the last bastions of controversial erotica, they are changing the rules on us. On Sept 15, 2017 Smashwords published a table on their blog stating that ‘“rape for titillation” was allowed but discouraged and they would retain the right of refusal—but never provided any discernable “discouraging enforcement”’. Suddenly with no warning they are simply snuffing out authors completely and removing other titles this month. Yes, it’s true they are snuffing out authors and titles from authors that you and I do not necessarily hang out with, read, or enjoy; that’s not the point. They are testing the waters: so nobody protested when it was rape erotica, pretty soon it will be authors and content that are closer to what you and I enjoy writing. Remember a few months back when Mark Coker wrote to Lot’s Cave that “And FWIW, dubcon is considered taboo”?

With Smashwords and Lot’s Cave remaining as the two main platforms for publishing taboo erotica, we want to take a moment to ask some tough questions. The market has changed dramatically, both in what content authors are providing and how stores respond to customer feedback. Examining how to best maximize these market trends is vital… but so is paying attention to the established rules.

Lot’s Cave originally raised its concern when Smashwords implemented a new classification system for content deemed controversial. At the time, Mark Coker stressed the importance of doing so stating:

“Our new approach empowers those who know their content best – the author or publisher – to directly categorize and certify the erotic themes of their books. This will give our sales channels greater confidence to receive the erotica they want while avoiding the titles they don’t want.

The new Smashwords classification system is built on trust. We trust our authors and publishers to accurately categorize their books, and we trust they recognize it’s in their best interest to do so. As is our practice, we will continue to monitor all Smashwords titles for compliance with the Smashwords Terms of Service. Those who jeopardize this trust through deliberate misclassification will face account closure.”

Note here that Mark Coker stresses trusting authors to know and mark their content accordingly while also claiming that doing so is in their best interest. But is it really? What is Smashwords really incentivizing authors to produce? The answer isn’t clear cut. And in this murky water, how is an author to know what is in the mind of Smashwords? Failure to know the mind of Smashwords in defining the meaning of “allowed but discouraged” means being cut off altogether.

Smashwords has gone to great efforts to define the content it deems controversial, and to their credit, they actively attempt to make the process easy for authors. However, there are quite a few problems in their current definitions. We want to take an honest look at these definitions, what they encourage authors to do, and how publish platforms treat such controversial content as a whole. As authors, it is always important to take into account the climate of public opinion, as we soon shall find out.

As mentioned previously, Smashwords makes is extremely easy to look up their content requirements and definitions. There’s the blog post discussing content, and their Terms of Service. In short, here are the definitions of content deemed necessary of further classification:

Age play – One or more consenting adult characters role playing, pretending to be babies or children. Most retailers will take this, but iBooks will not.

Bestiality – Sexual relations between humans and real-world animals (sex with Big Foot, dinosaurs, shape shifters and other imaginary creatures is not bestiality). Few retailers will take this.

Dubious Consent (dubcon) – A common and popular theme in mainstream fiction. Dubcon explores the gray area between consent and non-consent. Not clear if the receiver of the sexual act was fully on board or not at the time of the act. Most retailers will take this.

Incest or pseudo-incest – Sexual relations between family members, whether biologically or non-biologically related. Includes stepbrother, stepsister and step-anyone. Few retailers will take this.

Nonconsensual sexual slavery – Erotic depiction of a person captured or held against their will, such as kidnapping, imprisonment or human trafficking. Not to be confused with BDSM, which is predicated upon informed consent and negotiation between both parties before the act, and which provides safe words so either partner can end the act if it goes too far. If the book adheres to BDSM best practices, do not classify it as Nonconsensual sexual slavery. Few retailers will take nonconsensual sexual slavery.

Rape for titillation – The dominant theme of this book is rape — whether the rape is by one person or a character is raped by a group of people, i.e. a gang rape or nonconsensual “gang bang” — and it targets readers who are titillated by the fantasy of nonconsensual sexual relations. Few retailers will take this.

Out of these, Smashwords says that most retailers will accept Age Play and Dubious Consent (Dubcon). But what about Smashwords itself? Isn’t that what we really care about? Smashwords provides a graph in the blog post that says they will take Age Play, Bestiality, Dubious Consent, and Incest. What they will take but highly discourage is listed as Rape for Titillation and Nonconsensual Sexual Slavery. This shouldn’t be too shocking to authors, but things quickly get confusing. You see, if one wishes to double check this information in Smashwords’ Terms of Service, one finds vastly different information. According to Smashwords ‘Terms of Service’ under section 9f, we find the following information:

“Barely legal” erotica is strongly discouraged, and is subject to additional review and may be removed without notice at the sole determination of Smashwords, especially if characters are in situations – or have mannerisms – that suggest that the characters are actually underage.

Rape erotica and sexual slavery erotica, where the predominant theme is rape violence for titillation, is strongly discouraged, and is subject to additional review and may be removed at the sole determination of Smashwords. Note that erotic BDSM fiction that adheres to BDSM best practices, where all role-playing is consensual with safe words, is allowed and not to be confused with rape or sexual slavery erotica.

Bestiality erotica is allowed but not encouraged. A one-off title is more likely to be acceptable than if a publisher is publishing dozens or hundreds of such titles. At Smashwords discretion, such content may be removed or accounts closed.

Incest and pseudo-incest (sexual relations among non-biologically related relatives and siblings) erotica is allowed, but it will be blocked by most retailers and library aggregators.

Confused yet? Well, if not, why don’t we just go ahead and point out the immense problems here. The first glaringly obvious issue is the number of controversial categories we’re dealing with has changed. Do you notice Dubious Consent anywhere under Section 9f? It’s missing. Dubious Consent is not discussed anywhere in Section 9f. Not only that, but some of the category information has been changed. Note, for example, that Rape for Titillation and Sexual Slavery Erotica are now under the same exact category. There is also no Age Play, but if we assume a bit here, Barely Legal has taken its place. Also, what is encouraged and discouraged content has changed as well. The blog post originally said Smashwords took, but discouraged Rape for Titillation and Nonconsensual Sexual Slavery. But now, Smashwords has said it also discourages Barely Legal, Bestiality, and that original category of Rape for Titillation with the Sexual Slavery tacked onto it. But let’s take another look at Section 9f’s wording with a bit of emphasis…

“Barely legal” erotica is strongly discouraged, and is subject to additional review and may be removed without notice at the sole determination of Smashwords, especially if characters are in situations – or have mannerisms – that suggest that the characters are actually underage.

Rape erotica and sexual slavery erotica, where the predominant theme is rape violence for titillation, is strongly discouraged, and is subject to additional review and may be removed at the sole determination of Smashwords. Note that erotic BDSM fiction that adheres to BDSM best practices, where all role-playing is consensual with safe words, is allowed and not to be confused with rape or sexual slavery erotica.

Bestiality erotica is allowed but not encouraged. A one-off title is more likely to be acceptable than if a publisher is publishing dozens or hundreds of such titles. At Smashwords discretion, such content may be removed or accounts closed.

Incest and pseudo-incest (sexual relations among non-biologically related relatives and siblings) erotica is allowed, but it will be blocked by most retailers and library aggregators.

What is the difference between strongly discouraged and may be removed without notice and strongly discouraged and may be removed, besides a notification? Furthermore, what is the difference between strongly discouraged and allowed but not encouraged? Anyone? Would we be terribly in the wrong to think all is not as it appears to be? The fact of the matter is the language used within Section 9f is highly suspect. Not to mention, the language is extremely negative, just look again at the Incest category, “Incest Erotica is allowed, but it will be blocked by most retailers and library aggregators.” And that brings us to a very important point.

Remember when we said Smashwords’ definitions will impact what an author does, either intentionally or unintentionally? Well that’s the problem with wording with Section 9f. Smashwords is actually falling into a pit of problems, finding itself trapped in being both a publishing platform AND a distributor. They run their store and have their own content guidelines, but so do the platforms they distribute to. But the language quoted above is actually quite telling. Smashwords is encouraging authors to produce content that is highly distributable, and that can’t be articulated with set definitions. This is why there are glaringly obvious difficulties with the classification system among many others. But why is Smashwords encouraging highly distributable books, especially if we assume no ill intent toward controversial content?

The answer, if we’re allowed to speculate, is simply public opinion. While it might be a difficult subject for many, public opinion has a large and heavy influence on controversial content. After all, how does one even get controversial content without others finding it controversial? Smashwords, being the large platform that it is, has to walk to the tight rope between both allowing controversial content and keeping public opinion happy. This is not an easy undertaking in the least! And somehow, Smashwords’ actions are leaning more and more in favor of those who dislike controversial content… and they might not even realize it!

In short, controversial content becomes censored not because of orchestrated bans, but a dwindling ability and incentive to publish and sell such content. With the diminished platforms, it becomes more and more difficult for authors writing such content to make a living. But, on the more insidious side, it also allows public outcries against publishers that blaze a trail and continue to allow controversial content where others failed to. Smashwords, we assume, still very much wishes to be a platform for everyone. However, if that is the wish, it needs to better articulate their terms. Separation between what is able to be distributed and what the storefront will publish is a key step. Allow authors to help. This isn’t about trusting authors, but authors trusting Smashwords. The winds have changed, and with the change in winds comes a new need, the need to be upfront and honest about what content is or is not acceptable.

Again, part of this also gets down to being honest about defined content. Are Age Play and Barely Legal the same thing? What does Barely Legal mean, and why is it a problem? How many titles per catalog are authors allowed if they write Bestiality or Non-Consent? Does the intensity of the rape scenes matter in defining what is Dubious Consent or Rape for Titillation? Many of these questions are often determined by public opinion. For example, violence toward women is often linked to Rape for Titillation in the first often called out by more sensitive readers. One must always be mindful of promoting violence towards women. Sound familiar? Well, what about blackmail? Is sexual blackmail, especially without any violence whatsoever, Rape for Titillation? Authors are begging to know! And that leads me to my last point, that of proper categorization.

Properly categorizing content isn’t just on the author’s end of responsibility. Smashwords also has to recognize and rely on the filters in place. Given that authors are trusted to properly categorize their content and flag controversial subject matter, what is wrong with Smashwords’ own filters for customers? Right now, there are three filter settings available to customers. The first of these is outright exclusionary to erotic content. The second filter setting is one that allows only mainstream erotica. Lastly, we have the filter that allows all erotic content; or a controversial filter as it were. What is wrong with this? If Smashwords were to trust authors to truly label their content, and there are filters in place for the customer, does public opinion really matter?

Odds are the public opinion won’t matter as much as you may first think it does. And that’s really the heart of the issue. Does Smashwords really trust its customers and authors? We hope they do, because if not, there’s going to be very difficult standards to comply with in the future. As a distributor to Smashwords for our authors, we want to be in full compliance. We want to be the trusted source specializing in controversial content that continues thriving in an erotica market that allows for said boundary pushing content.

The FOSTA & How It Impacts Authors

To prevent sex trafficking the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate worked together in passing updates to the Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act (FOSTA). Instead, FOSTA shut down of Furry dating sites, Reddit forums, and the Craigslist’s Personals section. Other forums are removing link materials to intended to assist new authors writing erotic content. Worse yet, a great number of people now question the impact FOSTA will have on sex workers. Yes, there’s even a hashtag to raise awareness for those impacted by FOSTA. Clearly, authors writing controversial subjects need to take note of this issue.

Authors are already panicking over the new updates to FOSTA. This is to be expected, especially given how many authors still remember the impact of Operation Choke Point. For those who recall the tough government sponsored crackdown, the collateral damage surrounding efforts to stop sex trafficking is nothing new. Ironically, the first victim’s of Operation Choke Point were those same sex workers now advocating for raised awareness in dealing with FOSTA. The crackdown didn’t just impact sex workers, but websites like Lot’s Cave and our authors as well by causing credit card processors to drop us. While most businesses accepted Operation Choke Point, Backpage resisted. Smashwords was in the forefront of erotic authors resistance. Today, many are arguing it is for these reasons that the updates to FOSTA were put in place.

Backpage’s defense against Operation Choke Point lay in Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. This protection stated, “No provider or user of an interactive computer service shall be treated as the publisher or speaker of any information provided by another information content provider.” Basically, the government couldn’t hold Backpage responsible for what users of their website published from outside sources. To many, this was a legal loophole that must be closed. The updates to FOSTA do just that, standing to hold websites responsible for what users of the website publish or post. FOSTA attempts to hold websites responsible for facilitating, or making it easier, for sex traffickers to thrive.

The impact on websites like Reddit and Craigslist is easy to see. Users generating posts or content that advertises sex trafficking or its victims could easily fall into the facilitation category. What is murky however, is the role Erotica ebooks and even some Romances play in the new FOSTA regulations. It is worth noting that FOSTA overwhelmingly punishes sex workers, or platforms that can easily be abused in favor of sex trafficking. What was once safe, when abused, becomes a means or platform to do the most harm. The catch-22 situation is not as easy as legislation would like it to be.

For authors of controversial content however, there’s a fine line to walk. It’s always advisable to purchase boundary pushing photo stock from credible photo stock sites like Depositphotos or Bigstock. Controversial stories are arguably safe to publish, but that doesn’t mean platforms to do so will be plentiful. It would be difficult to assert that a story featuring controversial content facilitates sex trafficking, but that doesn’t mean people won’t make that very argument. After all, there’s always been some debate surrounding non-consent and dubious consent books, along with the ever popular BDSM titles. What was once popular, may now find itself the source of hot debate.

But do authors need to protect themselves? Not really. What is there to protect? Either your book promotes (or facilitates) sex trafficking, or it doesn’t. There doesn’t even need to be a debate surrounding the nature of free speech. While it is possible to do so, it just seems quite unnecessary. Authors don’t need to be THAT concerned about the updates to FOSTA. This opportunity though is a great reminder that the quality of your book and its content matters a great deal. Authors might consider what public good does the story contain, and write in some ‘moral to the story’ end note paragraph. This is ultimately what we would encourage our authors to consider in the wake of FOSTA. The better the quality and content of your book, the better your chances are of not having an issue with FOSTA.

When authors consider the packaging of their product, certain messages get across to potential buyers. Telling readers your book is erotic, helps to deal with the negativity surrounding the issue for those who dislike such content to begin with. A little bit of class also goes a long way to smoothing over some residual tension. Titles like, “Sex Trafficking My Hot Daughter!” probably aren’t a good idea. For authors writing dubious consent or non-consent themes, consider your titles a bit more carefully. While “Sex Trafficking My Hot Daughter!” probably isn’t a workable title, “Seducing My Slutty Daughter” is. Along with that, properly categorizing your book is even more essential. If there’s a dub-con or non-con category and it fits your book… use it!

The Lot’s Cave analysis of the FOSTA update is that its intention is to prevent and/or stop the facilitation of sex trafficking on websites mainly through advertising and eventual sale of sex trafficking victims. In no way would an erotic book do this. The FOSTA update stresses the act of actual sale, or conspiracy to facilitate a sale by way of advertising. Our platform on Lot’s Cave cannot do this, and as such, works as a preventative measure. In no way does our website endorse or encourage sex trafficking. Many of our authors will also discover their publishing platforms likewise do not find themselves in violation of FOSTA. Overall, our analysis is that FOSTA is difficult to violate as it is currently written, unless you are in fact, knowingly or intentionally, violating U.S. laws already.

In closing, it’s always a great idea to remember that fallout with controversial content is inevitable. At times, it is easy to get carried away though. Not every government crackdown is out to get us. Those pursuing new laws can get a bit overzealous, and with time, it will be sorted out. Until then, understanding FOSTA and what it intends to prohibit helps. Ensuring that your book doesn’t provoke such sensibilities is often the correct choice, and makes it all a little easier to do business. Lot’s Cave encourages all of our authors to consider quality, and the foot you put forward to the customer. At times, your customers can be your best resource… and friend.

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Please Note: This post is purely opinion and should in no way be considered legal advice. You are responsible for any action taken on this advice and resume sole responsibility. Lot’s Cave, Inc. will not be held liable.

The Value of Amazon’s KDP Select for Taboo Authors

Lot’s Cave has always been dedicated to helping authors with various publishing strategies. Right now, the big question in the market seems to concern Amazon. Do you publish with Amazon? Is exclusivity worth it? Are there options for authors writing taboo content?  The questions can seem endless to an inexperienced or new author. Perhaps the main question though has always been is KDP Select/Kindle Unlimited worth it? Well, let’s take a constructive look at answering that question for you!

Short Stories With Lot’s Cave

Lot’s Cave would like to take a moment to personally thank Lily Weidner for participating in another of our studies. We’d like to direct readers of this post to also check out her personal experience and perspective of this experiment in her latest post titled: Elusive Money & Indie Publishers

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Is the short story market dead? If you haven’t done so already, consider reading our last publishing experiment focusing on Amazon’s short story market. The experience proved so beneficial, we decided to try another! This time, Lot’s Cave wanted to test the viability of publishing short stories outside the Amazon system on all other possible publishing platforms. What we found was quite surprising, and many of our authors will find the confirmation they’ve been looking for.

With Amazon’s self published market becoming more popular through Kindle Unlimited, Lot’s Cave has found indie authors tending to shift away from indie publishers. Since we’re an indie publisher, this trend has been cause for concern. Many authors outside the Lot’s Cave family felt indie publishers provided no additional benefits to selling their eBooks. This sad opinion caused us to rethink how we advertise our eBook services directly to authors, not just readers. Putting our knowledge and experience at the forefront, we found there are in fact many benefits to publishing with indie publishers like Lot’s Cave.

Before discussing the experiment in detail, it’s important to note the need for indie publishers. Lot’s Cave is one of very few e-publishers specializing in controversial subject matter. Our experiment then, focused on short stories with this controversial subject matter in mind. While Lot’s Cave is an e-publisher, we’re also a distributor. We fully believe the best way to maximize profits is not through publishing only with Lot’s Cave, but embracing as many publishers as possible. With that in mind, Amazon’s exclusion from the experiment remained rooted in their refusal to accept controversial subject matter and their requirements for publishing exclusivity.

Our Publishing Objective

Much like our Amazon experiment, Lot’s Cave decided to do some prior research to accumulate as much data beforehand as possible. As a company, Lot’s Cave wanted to know what a new inexperienced author could expect by publishing and distributing short stories. Finding new authors writing in the 5,000 word range tend to make a monthly income of $20 a month on Amazon, we wanted to see what new authors rejecting Amazon’s exclusive high traffic website could make. To do so, we came up with the following criteria:

Rules for Lot’s Cave Short Story Experiment

1. All stories are to be within the 5,000 to 6,000 word range including end matter
2. eBooks must be distributed through Lot’s Cave to affiliates
3. Stories must feature controversial subject matter
4. The controversial subject matter chosen must remain consistent
5. Prices will stay at $2.99 for single stories
6. Bundles (three stories each) will be priced at $4.95
7. The Collected Set (nine stories) will be sold for $9.95
8. eBooks must feature a common cover design across all titles
9. Author will focus solely on publishing short stories acting as a new author
10. All eBooks should feature cover, front matter, formatting, and end matter standard for Lot’s Cave authors.

Preparation

Before conducting the experiment, Lot’s Cave worked closely with our author to assure the overall objective remained consistent, and in line with their own goals. Letting the author choose the controversial subject matter, Lot’s Cave then designed covers with the same overall look. Our author already had an author page established, author biography, and avatar. With everything in place, we let our author write and prepared for the first week of the experiment.

Week One

Publishing the first short story on the 27th of November, the first three shorts and volume one bundle sold a total of $51.30.

Week Two

After selling so well the first week, Lot’s Cave was happy to see week two sales total up to $69.93.

 

 

Week Three

After week three, we were starting to notice a steady trend in sales, as the total ended up coming to $56.32.

Week Four

To conclude the month’s sales, we published a complete set of all nine stories. Publishing only this one bundle set, sales still came to $55.13.

 

Summary of Author’s Income

In total, the author’s nine shorts and four bundles made $232.68. This is a significant amount. Remember, many authors new to publishing shorts within the same range on Amazon make a potential $20, even in their exclusive Kindle Unlimited program. By publishing outside Amazon’s exclusive program, authors can potentially make $212 more. For authors unfamiliar with Lot’s Cave, or the distribution process, lets take a look at the added benefits of publishing through Lot’s Cave contributing to this difference in overall sales potential.

 

 

Contributing Factors

Content: One of the biggest factors in the success of going through Lot’s Cave is the fact Lot’s Cave takes taboo subject matter. When publishing in a wide market beyond Amazon, Lot’s Cave has found this to be necessary step in attaining higher sales. Readers are not only demanding taboo erotica, but they’re willing to pay for it. This competitive pricing also brings us to our next advantage.

Higher Price Points: Notice how well our author’s bundles sold, and the prices for each. Three story volumes were priced at $4.95, while the complete set sold for $9.95. Royalty rates really make a difference with these maximized price points. There’s no reason to sell quality work for less, and Lot’s Cave knows it. Even authors new to publishing short stories will discover their books sell better at the appropriate price point.

Publisher Quality:  Lot’s Cave sold $72.98 out of the total $232.68. This means that as an indie publisher, Lot’s Cave sold over 30% of the author’s overall books. However Lot’s Cave also acts as a distributor, which yields our authors a unique advantage. Our books sell by author, but also by subject matter. Readers looking for taboo themed books can browse our whole catalog, increasing the likelihood of new authors selling their books. In fact, we question if such performance would have even been possible without Lot’s Cave’s prior commitment to quality.

Established Reputation: Along with publishing quality comes a benefit unique to indie publishers. Not only do authors receive a top quality book, they have access to an established customer base. Right from the start, new authors are able to present their work just as, if not better than, established authors. This goes deeper than the eBook itself, but to the company itself. Lot’s Cave has worked hard to attain the reputation as the premier publisher of controversial subject matter, and our authors see a direct benefit in their sales because of it.

Distribution Time: One of the interesting advantages Lot’s Cave learned happened to be in the time necessary for distribution. Since Lot’s Cave handles the formatting and distribution uploading, our author was free to spend the time writing. For authors this is another distinct advantage, as we’ve found many authors complain about complicated upload processes or the time investment involved. When distributing through Lot’s Cave, authors can rest assured we handle those hassles for them.

Cover Cost: Every eBook needs a cover, and Lot’s Cave recognizes the investments covers potentially pose to authors. Many authors today purchase their own photo stock, often at a minimum $40 a month. Other authors can pay an average of $25 for a quality cover. In either case, this investment comes directly out of the author’s income. Lot’s Cave has no such charge for our quality covers, making it easy for authors to not only produce their next book, but make a profit for doing so.

Quality Covers: Not only is cover cost an issue, but knowing the right design can be a challenging new step for authors. When publish to many different websites, it’s difficult to find a cover that stands out across multiple platforms. Luckily Lot’s Cave has experience in this area, and we offer all of our authors this quality cover design. As a company, we see an author’s success as part of our own success as well for new or established authors alike.

Conclusions

Starting out, Lot’s Cave wanted to see what new authors could expect in Amazon’s exclusive program, as well as what they could expect outside. We had our own ideas, but we lacked the numbers to prove it. After two months publishing on Amazon and elsewhere, we can back up our analysis with some figures. The process has been a long one, but the results have been well worth it. What we’ve found is still quite a new idea.

Lot’s Cave can only conclude any author wishing to make money is better off encompassing as many e-publishers as possible. Instead of investing in this process by themselves, authors stand to gain a huge advantage maximizing the potential of distribution sites like Lot’s Cave. What makes a distribution site stand out above the rest remains for individual authors to decide, but we’ve learned transparency and experience top the list of qualities.

As Amazon’s authors continue to compete in an exclusive market shying away from short stories, Lot’s Cave has found readers still desire the same lengths as before. The profit hasn’t disappeared, at least not elsewhere. Quality is key in today’s market, and we’re proud to show our authors produce the best story possible. While it might be difficult to believe, the numbers simply don’t lie. Our eBook market is shifting, and we’re here to help authors shift with it every step of the way.

While paying an indie publisher to distribute books may seem like a senseless waste of money, our results tend to direct our conclusion otherwise. What many authors lack in today’s market is experience, and time. These two factors contribute to sales greater than splitting the royalty fees involved. Often, these fees are minuscule in comparison to the profit authors make. At the end of it all, not all publishers are created equal, and indie publishers can still be a valuable asset to self-publishing authors of both short stories and longer works.

The Amazon eBook Market

Authored By: Samantha Zacharda
Marketing Director & Promotion
Published By: Lot’s Cave

Special Note: Lot’s Cave would like to add a special thank you to Lily Weidner for participating in the Amazon publishing experiment. The transparency required has been quite eye opening and insightful. Please check out Lily Weidner’s followup post as well, found here.

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For the last year stories have abounded regarding authors getting rich with incomes of ten to a hundred thousand per month by writing short stories. Is this possible? How much can I really make?

Ever since Amazon changed their Kindle Unlimited program, authors have been trying to gauge the eBook market. Authors, particularly those writing short stories (3,000-5,000 words) have started to wonder if the market will even support their shorts, or if a shift into longer works is necessary to earn an income. Doing some initial research, I found answers couldn’t have been more conflicting.

Usually when conflicting answers exist, one finds in them a majority opinion. With enough backtracking the answer process becomes clear. In this case however, little data could be found with which to form a starting point. What I found is the entire industry consists conceptually of a clear divide most easily represented by factions we find in the initial Kindle Unlimited program (KU), and what authors have come to call the second Kindle Unlimited (KU2). Desperately wanting some numbers to work with however, I came up with a solution–I did a study of my own. The goal was to achieve $20.00 in profit.

With help from a Lot’s Cave author, I was able to create a test designed to take advantage of Amazon’s large eBook market size. Since Amazon’s KU program had been designed for short stories and the new KU2 program is now desgined for longer works, contrasting income performance between the KU and KU2 programs could simulate what it would be like for a new author specializing in short stories starting out with their first book. As an added byproduct–which is what this is about–I would also learn what authors face when trying to sell their eBooks on Amazon. After spending a couple of days to form the rules of this research project, I came up with the following:

Rules for KU2 Publishing Experiment

1. All stories are to be the minimum 3,000 words
2. eBooks must be enrolled in KU2
3. No additional marketing must take place
4. Stories must have a common kink
5. Prices start at $.99, and then after a week increase to $2.99
6. At minimum, author should publish two books a week (9 titles a month)
7. Titles should include subject matter metatags
8. Covers must fit their target audience’s particular style
9. After completing 9 titles, bundles must be published in varying forms
10. Stories must emphasize romance with intense but short sex scenes

First, an Amazon Author Page was created to begin the experiment. Starting our test off, progress seemed quite slow and uncertain. Week one saw a total of two sales and sixty-five page reads. Given Amazon’s current payout rate (.0005 a page) our author only made $1.02. To my surprise, discouragement over that insignificant amount was immensely high. Convincing the author to keep writing new titles wasn’t easy, but Amazon’s ninety day exclusivity trap helped. The author had already committed such a large investment to the test that persuading the author to continue for the remainder of the month was not difficult.

Thankfully, week two saw somewhat better results. Significantly, this result could only be due to the price increase from $.99 to $2.99. Page reads increased while sales increased dramatically. Taking a quick look at the numbers, week two tripled the previous week’s results. Seven sales and two hundred and thirty-six page reads increased the week’s total to $3.61. While the author remained apprehensive, I could detect a little more eagerness to move forward into week three.

To my dismay, the growth occurring in week three was quite minimal. Sales topped out for the week at nine purchases and page reads dropped to two hundred and ten. Thankfully, the author was still able to see an overall increase for the week’s profits at $4.17. By this point however, the author made it clear the process didn’t seem worth the effort. The author felt drained and expressed a feeling that writing wasn’t as enjoyable as it once had been.

Finishing up the month, our author completed the nine titles. Able to take a break from writing, the author decided to release an additional four bundles created from bundling various combinations of the nine titles. Interestingly, week four’s breakdown is rather surprising. Out of thirteen sales, only one of them came from a bundle and there were one hundred and thirty-one page reads. For the final week, the author made $8.28.

Summary of Author’s Income

• Week 1: $1.02
• Week 2: $3.61
• Week 3: $4.17
• Week 4: $8.28
• Total Month: $17.08

Before we examine the market figures, let’s examine what no other study gives… the author’s experience. Interestingly, our author became extremely discouraged. This occured despite nearly reaching the $20 personal income goal. What caused this? Well, the author felt the money didn’t merit the time and effort put into the process. Worse, the author began feeling readers didn’t enjoy the titles because some of them were no longer selling after the first week they were published.

Moving onto the numbers, the first month performance of $17.08 is nothing to shy away from. In fact, the amount is actually quite impressive for a new author starting from scratch. We can see the growth potential, after all, because no marketing was involved. What’s important to note though, remains the fact the author felt the eBook titles were worth more. Dividing the author’s income by the number of books released ($17.08/13), we find the author only made around $1.31 per book published. Sadly, this is nothing considering the figures reflect an entire month.

Worse, $1.31 per book title published isn’t even the right number when comparing income to actual sales. Lets look at the sheer number of eBooks the author sold. On the surface, we’re quick to assume the author sold thirty-one copies. However, we must calculate into this figure the number of page reads. With a total of six hundred and forty-two reads, we can figure out the real number of books this would be.

Given the average page count (according to Amazon) was twenty pages per book, that would equal an additional thirty-two eBook sales (642 pages/20 = 32 books). With a grand total of sixty-three eBooks (32+31=63), the payout rate becomes $.27 per each book sold. Can anyone blame the author for feeling their title is worth more than twenty-seven cents? Even if the author only spent three hours working on the book, minimum wage would make them $21.75. Chances are the author spent more time writing their book than just three hours, but the statistics remain quite dismal. After nine titles, there’s a potential twenty-seven hour investment. At a minimum wage job, the author could have made $195.75.

It’s interesting to note, there’s hope at the end of this bleak tunnel. The author that participated in our Amazon experiment also publishes novels with us at Lot’s Cave. These longer stories of 40,000 words each are priced out at $4.95 and distributed across multiple retail platforms. This fact allows us to compare the same amount of effort on longer titles, distributed across multiple websites. The results couldn’t be more eye opening.

Taking the author’s latest eBook alone–written during the previous month, we find the sales for that month coming in at a total of sixteen eBooks sold. While that number may seem small in comparison to their Amazon sales, this book was able to be sold at the $4.95 price. Assuming these websites payout at a consistent rate of 70%, this author made $55.44. Keep in mind, this is one book. While it may not be minimum wage, it more than doubles what the author made on Amazon.

Now it’s important to note that longer novels have a very unique distinction from short stories. Longer novels have staying power while sales on short titles drop off quite quickly. This means the most this author will ever make on Amazon from their titles is that initial $17.08. No future sales income can be expected. Yet this author’s longer novel will continue to earn sales for several years, adding to the $55.44 amount. While the author may have felt discouraged at their efforts from putting out nine titles, the author did not feel that way about publishing one full lenght novel with Lot’s Cave.

While not every novel will sell sixteen titles a month, the opportunity cost to other authors following in these footsteps is important to consider. Amazon authors are invested in their shorts taking off immediately, if they fail to perfom, there’s no back catalog to make up the difference. If the worst happens and a novel does not take off however, consider having the benefit of having a back catalog that still sells alongside the future new release. In order to make the $17.08 Amazon monthly figure, an entire back catalog of multiple novels would only need to sell five titles. With a full month’s time span, five additional sales seems entirely reasonable. The back catalog becomes an almost guaranteed source of income the author can depend on. So, what happens if an author wants to go down this path and shy away from Amazon’s market?

The very first thing an author should do if they wish to publish outside Amazon’s market is examine their short stories. Because of Amazon’s market size, we can see how many authors feel they run an output treadmill. This output treadmill has caused many authors to diminish the quality of their short stories. If this is the case, authors need to invest in revamping their stories. Before publishing elsewhere, consider doing a general read through for errors.

After revamping the story, formatting remains the most important issue with eBooks coming from Amazon. For authors formatting their own books, reading up on the latest formatting requirements is a time consuming investment. This is a necessary investment however, one readers highly notice and value. Taking time to add the appropriate formatting can really set an eBook apart from the rest.

Another important difference is pricing. Amazon authors choosing to list their eBooks on multiple websites often find pricing uncomfortable. When authors are accustomed to charging $.99, selling the same eBook later for $2.99 can be quite unnerving. With the new price point comes a new change for author’s accustomed to Amazon’s market, slow sales. Instead of selling a book every day, authors can wait two or three days before seeing a single book sell. The benefit of this however is the higher royalty rate balances out the sale’s rate.

Lastly, any author looking to publish across multiple websites should factor in time. On Amazon, the results of sales is immediate with a sixty day lag period for payout. When authors choose to list books across multiple websites, this can be a significantly longer progress. Payouts have been known to range from a month to six months, or longer. Keeping this in mind will help authors looking for immediate results; sometimes authors just need to set a time length and stick to it beforehand.

In closing, the Amazon experiment was a grand success. The marketing insight I gained for Lot’s Cave has been exceedingly helpful for both Lot’s Cave authors, and those coming in from Amazon. While each market has its own difficulties, it’s important to remember different systems work for different types of authors. The main thing to note however is this, authors can still make the same, if not more money, by skipping Amazon’s eBook market. There’s no need to feel trapped or held over a barrel.

How to Enhance Your eBook

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With so many authors trying to make a transition away from Amazon, there’s an apparent problem. The challenges many authors face remains rooted in the fact Amazon was a market of its own. There were facts, data, market techniques authors learned to navigate Amazon’s market. Sadly, authors are having to realize these techniques do not work outside of Amazon. Successful authors upload their books only to realize there’s no sales. If there are sales, authors become disappointed seeing their small profit. Many authors remarked that Amazon was, “an easy gold mine” one that has dried up paying out a potential half a cent a page. Taking a moment, authors will notice a few necessary techniques in the market outside of Amazon.

Amazon Means Cheap: Many authors have never made this association themselves, but Amazon eBooks have become cheap. With Amazon being seen as a, “potential gold mine,” many authors put up whatever they could to make a small fortune. This growing quantity of eBooks lowered prices below the standard $2.99 to a surprisingly low $.99 even bundles of 30 books were offered for this $.99 price. The eBooks readers got for their $.99 drove them to alternative sites like Smashwords. Readers that enjoy good quality eBooks would rather pay the $2.99 then settle for these bad quality $.99 eBooks. Because of this, today’s market is filled with readers that avoid Amazon looking books, and yes, they can tell. This means that if authors want to sell their eBooks on sites outside of Amazon, they need to shed their “Amazon identity” and present a better quality product.

Text Based Covers: These covers with full text are a sure way to turn off readers. There’s nothing more distracting than an image covered behind blocks of text. Covers are made to appeal readers, and initiate their interest. When all readers are left with is a blur behind bold often off colored neon text, that doesn’t say much about a book’s potential story. Some of the best selling books in the market today have one word titles. These intriguing titles combined with sexy cover images really excite the reader’s curiosity. Authors coming off of Amazon will find their block text covers will not appeal many readers. This directly impacts sales, leaving some authors to feel discouraged. The market has potential buyers, they just happen to know what they want. Text based covers are not what readers want.

Long Book Titles: Similar to the issue of text based covers are these long book titles. A book’s title should never take a full cover to display. Often, this problem arises because there’s too many keywords in the book’s name. This stems from Amazon having a weird way of using metadata or a book’s keywords. Authors could literally write anything in the keywords, and it’d have little to no effect. Outside of Amazon this issue doesn’t occur. Readers will find a book based on a catchy title, along with those keywords typed in the appropriate box. It’s painful to see good titles off Amazon drowned in layers upon layers of the book’s keywords. Readers are not accustomed to this on outside sites, and many associate this with lower quality eBooks now. If authors want to improve their book instantly just edit out these keywords from the book’s title.

Quality Cover Images: Now first off, I know not everyone is a cover artist or can afford to pay for covers. Amazon books however are well known for extremely lower end covers. These are covers using photos that are often quite frankly terrible. Often, these images will have very little to do with the book’s story at all. When the image does pertain to the story, it’s off colored, neon colored, out of focus, stretched, or even appears photoshopped. Put bluntly, these covers do not further a book’s sales. However, it’s worth noting these bad covers are better than some books with no cover images whatsoever. In the end, a book should have the best cover it can. Whether that means being creative with ideas, or just knowing how to put an average but good cover together. A well put together cover will sell an eBook, but a poor one will not.

Certain Kink Advertisement: Outside of Amazon’s market, there’s a realm devoted to the controversially kinky. While menage might be the highlight on Amazon, it’s standard elsewhere. Authors should note certain kinks are not in high demand outside of Amazon. This includes (with exceptions) Billionaire Romance, Alpha/Breeding, Menage, Tentacle/Monster Erotica, and Pseudo-Incest. While these categories in many instances will appeal to some readers, they aren’t the selling point authors think they are. Many times this has to do with the content Amazon excluded that outside sites allow. Pseudo-Incest can be replaced for outright Incest, Billionaire Romance can be BDSM, Monster Erotica often gets turned into Bestiality. The market can be quite different when listing kinks… in the keywords.

Pricing: The last change to note has to do with pricing. Many books on Amazon have become cheap to seemingly compete in the market. However, these lower prices actually harm books outside Amazon. Readers want to pay for good quality works. Authors often remark, “$2.99 was the going price, but it’s too much now” this is far from true. $2.99 is still the going rate for a short. Longer works can get as high as $5.95, but they have to be good quality. Remembering that price can communicate quality, authors will appreciate a reader’s willing to buy their properly priced works. Please take note, this does include bundles. Series books as a whole set should never be priced at $.99. Nor should books be given away free just to promote a series. These tactics worked mainly in the heyday of Pulp Fiction, but not anymore. Readers honestly associate a price with a book’s quality now.

While this post in no way should be taken as an end all fix all, it stands as a starting point. Authors who have shifted to an Amazon only focus and are now confused. They’ve forgotten what the market continues to be, though it’s only been a year. An author’s knowledge of the market continues to be a critical advantage. Taking a moment to fix a few of these changes will result in a better sales potential. Every author wants to succeed in the market today, and Lot’s Cave understands this. We hope this post might give a few authors a starting point. In time, authors can then learn the critical marketing information we’ve acquired as a company over the years. The Kindle Unlimited program’s fate may be uncertain, but that’s no reason to panic. Just take a deep breath, and try something new. It might not be so bad after all.

The Biblical Case for Incest

Examining the biblical cases of incest is not an easy task. For years, Christians have dealt with the conflicting standard of incest within their religious history. Today, incest is seen as a necessary evil, something that was done, only until it was no longer relevant. There seems to be a divide between Old Testament allowance of incest, and the new standard implied today within the New Testament. Still, when it comes to the importance of biblical stories, incest is always at the forefront. If one were to take away the inclusion of incestuous stories within the bible, the foundation of the faith would dissipate. In fact, the founder of the three Abrahamic Religions, was involved in an incestuous relationship, as were many surrounding family members. Interestingly enough, this means that the world’s three most influential religions all involved a standard of incestuous behavior at its foundation.

Abraham’s incestuous relationship with his sister, Sara, is actually an intricate part of the biblical story. For many faiths, Abraham is seen as the founder of the Jewish people. To put it bluntly, the people chosen by God above all others, has a blatant history of incestuous behavior. Abraham and Sara, Lot and his daughters, Nachor and Melcha, Isaac and Rebecca, and Jacob and Rachel are all incestuous relationships. Interestingly enough, when God is asked to identify himself to Moses, God identifies himself through such incestuous relationships. The Old Testament God would have been known as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, especially in the time of Moses. To cement matters further, Moses, the deliverer and precursor to the symbolism of Christ’s relationship to his people,  is also a product of incest himself.

Arguing against incest, especially from a religious vantage point, almost seems impossible. Many Christians like to discount the cases of Old Testament incest, arguing that it was a necessity. When it comes to the New Testament though, a standard for incest is actually quite lacking. The way the New Testament is written, there isn’t a similar standard of law like there is within the Old Testament. As such, the debate between different Christian groups in regards to many matters continues. While one could hope for a solid line in the sand to appear, it’s just not going to. When a moral standard depends on ones own personal interpretations, things get a little hazy to say the least. The one standard that people can all agree on for the New Testament however, is Jesus Christ himself.

If one takes any short amount of time to trace the biblical genealogy of Christ, one will find a history of incest. At the very least, one has to wonder why the savior of us all, is the product of incest. There isn’t just one incestuous occurrence in the family line, but many. Anyone would find the chances of arguing for incestuous relationships with the bible are actually quite good odds. Jesus is said to be the product of incest, God’s chosen people are the product of incest, and the founder of the faith was at the very least, involved in an incestuous relationship. Everything about the Christian faith focuses on this same standard, as the New Testament is consistently linked with the Old. There simply isn’t a way around the incestuous relationships, or the inclusion of such a high biblical standard for such permissible relationships.

When it comes to the biblical case for incest, there are many different avenues one can choose. Christians as a whole, have a difficult time with the biblical cases of incest within their holy book. As society as a whole chooses to examine the depths of our sexual morals, the religious standards can’t help but be brought up. Taking a step back, we can start to examine where our ethical values started. If they happened to start with a nomadic tribe that practiced incest, we may need to take that into our consideration. While we may not often like to think of Christ as the product of incest, we cannot argue the fact isn’t true. The implications of such a fact though, are often up to the individual.

Highlighting Taboo Erotica

Over the years, erotica has become a growing industry. Publishers can afford to publish only erotica eBooks, drawing an author base easier than before. With such a presence growing within the industry, many authors have found certain topics taboo. The boundaries within erotica have become increasingly shortened, leaving many wondering what happened. Taking a brief step back, consumers can see the gaps within the growing market. Missing in the erotica market are some surprising categories many readers would never be opposed to buying. Examining at quick glance these left out categories, we can better understand the need for such materials. Whether publishing companies decide to include such topics remains up to them, however, no publishing company should be censored to not include a topic they wish simply because it’s taboo. In fact, many of the categories would be quickly accepted, were it not for such extreme efforts of censorship.

Barely Legal is a category that given the society we live in, is surprisingly unrepresented in erotic eBooks. Taking an honest look, this really shouldn’t have to be a category. Authors are find it increasingly more difficult to involve younger adult characters, especially involving relationships to older partners. This is a relatively new distinction, one that was never expressly forbidden, but actually quite accepted within publisher guidelines. The reason for the censorship regarding this topic often leaves authors frustrated. Many authors are more than eager to stick strictly within company guidelines, especially within legal parameters, but yet this legally permissible topic has become an erotic eBook taboo. For those curious about this erotica topic, or just want to see what books of this nature include, check out the following books.

       

Incest erotica is a category that has recently taken off, and become increasingly popular. Unlike pseudo-incest stories, the incest category focuses on consented sexual acts committed by biological family members. The censorship regarding the topic of incest could never be greater, with almost every publishing company forbidding it outright. Manuscripts that so much as mention incest are instantly rejected. What’s so confusing, is the market for incest erotica could never be greater. Many cultures have even come to accept incest, leaving it outside the taboo category. For the United States however, incest continues to be taboo and extremely censored by publishing companies. If you’re looking for some incest erotica, try the following titles published by Lot’s Cave. .

        

BDSM is a massive category covering a wide range of subjects. Over the years, this topic has grown in popularity. What’s surprising is how different aspects of BDSM are getting censored. While the category could never be stronger, or more relevant, the scope is slowly being narrowed. Topics like mind control, reluctance, and sadism/masochism still carry a taboo stigma. While readers are consuming these eBooks at an ever increasing rate, the market is seeing a stand still. The stand still is not due to a lack of authors, but merely censorship of publishers. If you’d like to explore the many different scopes of BDSM check out the following titles.

         

Questioning the Ethics of Incest

When it comes to the topic of incest erotica, nothing could be more forefront than parent-child relationships. There’s no relationship more debated or controversial than that of parent-child. In the public perception of incest, parent-adult child relationships bring only negative connotations. Often, such relationships are perceived as abusive, and many picture younger children forced into sexual acts. In erotica however, only consented parent-adult child incest is allowed and published. So why then, is the relationship so controversial? Parent-adult child incest should be a topic that is debated freely, expressed freely, and certainly published without negative consequences. Something about such an incestuous relationship however, often leaves only consequences and a cautious approach.

The main objection to any parent-adult child relationship, biological or not, is an abuse of position. A parent is supposed to do what is best for the well-being of their child. In most situations, a sexual relationship is seen as contrary to that standard of well-being. Taking a closer look however, the situation isn’t always as clear as society would like. In most cultures and societies, the age of consent, particularly with this kind of age difference, is around eighteen. Conveniently, eighteen is also the age where a child becomes a legal adult. Many children leave for college, live on their own, and start pursuing a more serious avenue for their future. To what degree then, does the responsibility of the parent to their child change and should there be the same standards regarding sexual relationships?

Looking at the standards applied to a non-biological parent, while often not advised, a sexual relationship is allowed to take place upon the child turning eighteen. Society is often quick to shake their heads in disapproval of the relationship, but it is still legally permissible. The relationship of biological parent to their biological child is under the same standard of societal rules. If the only issue with parent-adult child incest is the sex itself, then one has to wonder, what is expressly so wrong? Just because a sexual act is a cultural taboo, does not mean it should be legally impermissible. When it comes to parent-adult child incest however, that’s exactly what we find. There is a different standard placed on incestuous relationships, simply because of the cultural sensitivity to incest.

Incest erotica tries to often examine this different standard, even in the smallest of ways. Erotic eBooks try to make the reader think, and challenge common perceptions or ideas. Out of all the incestuous relationships, parent-adult child incest sells far better. What part of readers wants to examine this cultural taboo? Perhaps there is the acknowledgement that something within society doesn’t quite make sense. A story that allows societal norms to be challenged can only make such a society better long-term. Erotica not only examines the parent-adult child incest, but it examines the relationship itself. Authors often try to capture what for some people, is a mental struggle of sexual desires and ethical behavior.

While parent-adult child incest may not be approved of, that isn’t the end of discussion. Examining the cultural taboos, whether in writing or in conversations, can only add value to the situation. The bonds between a parent and child are often absolute, yet extremely complicated. Once a child becomes an adult, feelings of intimacy and love don’t simply cease to exist. Examining the responsibility a parent has to their child’s well-being will always be a critical part of better understanding incestuous relationships. Until society starts to open up though, the most common place to gain a better understanding will be incest erotica. This is why authors need to have a place to publish their work, and publishers need more awareness of the many censorship issues for such business topics. in the end, we have to do a better job of starting such discussions.

Genetic Sexual Attraction: The New Oedipus Complex

Many times, there are words to describe the more commonly known taboo subjects. Psychology has long sought to label our most intimate of sexual attractions, no matter how controversial those labels may become. Take for example the Oedipus Complex, a term so defined that it has found its way into everyday speech. While many would shy from conversations which discuss the sexual attraction of a child for their parent, such attractions do happen and are necessary to discuss. If the forbidden act of incest was so far-fetched, so uncommon, it would more than likely never need discussing. The fact we keep coming back to this taboo topic, proves that there’s more to it than just sexual desire. Whatever that “more” factor may be, psychologists are starting to seek it out, if only to better understand.

Genetic Sexual Attraction (GSA)  has become the new Oedipus Complex, though many don’t even know such a concept exists. The key to GSA has become a separation point between biological relatives, who later, find each other. At its most basic level, GSA tries to label the sexual attraction biological relatives feel when they reunite. What’s startling, is given this separated situation, relatives have a 50 percent chance of feeling such strong attractions. When individuals have GSA like feelings, there’s the startling label of them being stronger than normal sexual attraction. Because of this growing understanding, people are finally starting to discuss at length, their personal situations.

What makes GSA so relevant is the growing break up of so many families today. No one, as of yet, has examined the degree of separation necessary for GSA to happen. Consider a situation where a child sees their parent once a month, for only a day’s time, would such sexual attractions build up? Increase or decrease the time spans at will, because no psychologist has examined it. In today’s society, there are numerous children in various degrees of separation from their parents. One would be blind not to come to the same conclusions. Worse yet, examine the number of children that only meet their parent, later in life, after establishing themselves as their own unique individual. This is the growing reality within the society we live in, and it’s only becoming a more pressing matter.

Examining the statistics of this phenomenon, let’s use a few examples. If we take a sample of the population, say an average 100 couples, we can get a clear understanding of the odds involved. With divorce rates now above 50 percent, we can assume at least 50 of our couples will divorce. If each couple averages two children per family, then the likelihood of an incestuous attraction existing in that family exceeds 100 percent with 50+ children experiencing Genetic Sexual Attraction. Thus in any given family, the rate of GSA caused attraction exceeds 50 percent. Out of any given 100 couples, at least 50 children will be inclined to commit an incestuous act. It may seem like an extreme number, but if our calculation is correct, the odds of the incest taboo being broken become so high then shouldn’t incest be considered normal?

With such high odds, it makes the need for taboo erotica ever more necessary. If individuals can find a place to explore the dynamics of such relationships, can see the potential reactions and better understand themselves, why would anyone forbid that? Taboo desires are expressly that, forbidden, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a curiosity, a thought, or even a need to feel just a bit sexy for having those desires. Erotica does that for its readers, and it allows the sharing of ideas. Taboo based books allow a bridge to build discussion in families, and promote a better more open communication and relationship.