Great review at Clean Sheets

Spanked got a great review by Julian Robinson at Cleansheets:

Editrix extraordinaire Rachel Kramer Bussell has rounded up twenty brisk and stinging tales that reveal the many sides of spanking, from playful erotic accent to punishing payback for a long ago wrong. Smoothly blended technique tips and how-to hints are a bonus for those looking to enhance their spanking life. Rick Roberts’ lead-off “Spanking You” boldly wanders from the buttocks to belabor the thighs, breasts, and pussy of his eager subject. Alison Tyler’s “Betty Crocker Gone Bad” begins with one of the sexiest garments of all: an apron worn by a woman wearing nothing else, and proceeds through creatively perverse applications of common cooking tools. (Do you know anyone whose kitchen walls display multiple wooden breadboards with hefty handles and whose utensil bins contain an excess number of large wooden spoons? Do they color uncontrollably at the word “spatula”? Ah hah! You’ve found a spanko.) There’s an old-time spanking game in Donna George Storey’s “A Rare Find,” in which coin flips determine who gets it, whether bare, with what, and how hard…

Aforesaid by-the-book chastisement occurs in the volume’s most elegantly literary offering, Shanna Germain’s “Perfect Bound.” A model of Victorian propriety, her erotic bookstore owner dresses like Harriet Marwood and offers a work-for-spanks program to trembling young men who dream of her firm hand raining down upon their virgin nether cheeks: “I can tell by the way they move their eyes toward me, then away, like I’m just another book on the shelf. I’ve seen boys look at porn with the same denial of fervor.” Germain’s droll, witty style harmonizes perfectly with her heroine, who has an unusual fetish for typewriter ribbon (please Google it if this is an unfamiliar term).

“Through a Glass, Sharply” by Elizabeth Coldwell employs equally elegant terse British understatement to an account of a spanking husband and wife who confound stereotypes: she’s a petite femme disciplinarian and he’s her macho testosterone-loaded bad boy. “I know it won’t be too long before he gives me another excuse to have him like this, his bottom rosy and tender from the impact of my slaps.”

The virtual book tour for Spanked is here! Win a copy from Alison Tyler

Today is Day 1 of the Spanked virtual book tour and guess what?

You can win a copy of Spanked from Alison Tyler! Get on over there to tell her your favorite spanking memory and read her thoughts on the joys of spanking. She also shows us these super-cool Spank Me panties you can buy on Etsy, and shares the definition of spanking – how hot is that? In the best, nerdy sort of way!

spank
–verb (used with object)
1. to strike (a person) with the open hand, a slipper, etc., esp. on the buttocks, as in punishment.
–noun
2. a blow given in spanking; a smart or resounding slap.

Spanking erotica interview with Alison Tyler

Here’s the third in my Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica contributor interview series. See my previous interviews with Donna George Storey (“A Rare Find”) and Teresa Noelle Roberts (“Daddy’s Girl”) here and here respectively.

Called “a trollop with a laptop” by East Bay Express, and a “literary siren” by Good Vibrations, Alison Tyler is naughty and she knows it. Ms. Tyler is the author of more than twenty-five explicit novels, and the editor of thirty-six anthologies including A Is for Amour, B Is for Bondage, C Is for Coeds, D Is for Dress-Up, E Is for Exotic, F Is for Fetish, G Is for Games, and H Is for Hardcore (all from Cleis Press). In all things important, Ms. Tyler remains faithful to her partner of over a decade, but she still can’t choose just one perfume. Visit her at www.alisontyler.com or be her friend at http://www.myspace.com/alisontyler.

Tell us a little about yourself that’s not in your official bio.

You already know everything. I like red lipstick, black coffee, straight tequila and Led Zeppelin. What more is there to life? Oh, all right. How’s this? I once slept my way through a restaurant staff–from waiter to bartender to chef to manager to brewer. But not all in the same day.

What inspired your story “Betty Crocker Gone Bad” in Spanked?

I’ve got this deep-seated fantasy in which Anthony Bourdain bends me over and paddles my ass using a wooden spoon. I think that’s where this story started.

The spanking implements used in your story are quite unusual— spatula, a board, and a rubber glove. Are items like these more fun to play with in writing than more traditional kinky sex toys?

I wear my sex-colored glasses all day long. My mission in life is to pass these shades on to my readers, you know, to showcase that sex is everywhere. You simply have to use a pinch of imagination and a sprinkle of spontaneity.

You also include the element of surprise, such as in this passage:

The sting of the unknown implement startled me. I’d been expecting the paddled feeling of the cutting board, or the smarting smack of the wooden spoon. Instead, it felt as if he’d used a crop on me. I tried to turn my head, but he placed one hand on the back of my neck and pushed me down. Next, the sting came on the backs of my thighs, a few smarting strokes in a row. I squirmed on the counter, writhing, begging through the cloth gag to know what it was he was using.

Are the surprise, and the bottom’s uncertainty, important parts for you of writing kinky stories?

In this story, yes, definitely. But each character will bring his or her personality to the situation. I’ve probably written some stories in which the bottom was more in charge than the top! (And if I haven’t, I’d better get cracking!)

Why do you enjoy writing spanking erotica? Is there anything different for you about writing spanking erotica vs. other kinds of erotica?

Spanking is one of the (many) little fetishes that fills me up. The concept, the execution, the fantasies, the situations—these just never get old to me. In my world, the question, “Do you need a spanking?” will always be answered by a blushing, nervous, stammering, “Yes.”

You’ve written many, many spanking stories over the years. How do you keep them fresh and exciting for you?

Just as each sexual encounter is different and unique—so is each story. You bring your characters’ history to the scene, but you also bring new worry, excitement, dread, anticipation, hunger, need, and arousal to every situation. I don’t believe I will ever become jaded about sex or spanking in my real life. So I don’t foresee feeling this way in my writing. To me, it would be like asking The Rolling Stones if they were ever going to get tired of Rock ‘n Roll. (You knew I was going to work in a reference to The Stones, didn’t you?)

As a reader, do you have a favorite spanking erotica story?

I have to list two favorite stories, and I’m not kissing ass to say that one is by you. Your story, “Learning Her Lesson” in K Is for Kinky is so sizzling hot, I could hardly breathe by the time I finished reading the last page. My other favorite is Carl Kennedy’s “Selling Point.” This story has everything I adore.

What’s next for you?

What time is it? God, is it 11:30 already? I think I’ve got an appointment with a paddle at 12. Wish me luck.

Here’s an excerpt from Alison’s naughty kitchen spanking story “Betty Crocker Gone Bad.” Read the whole thing in Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica.

“Pretty thing,” he said, staring at me, moving the string of the apron aside to further admire my nakedness. “How often do you cook in the nude?”

“Just when I’m baking,” I whispered, bending over as far as I could, feeling my hair tickling my toes. “I only like to bake naked.”

“So every time we’ve had cookies…”

“Yes, and cakes, and zucchini bread—”

He ran one hand over my ass, then gave me a light slap. “That seems sort of naughty to me.”

I could see the tips of his black boots, and then they disappeared from view as he walked away. I didn’t know what he wanted me to do, so I stayed where I was. Then I heard him drag the kitchen stool over to my side. In a flash, he’d hauled me over his sturdy lap.

“I’m going to give you a paddling for being such a naughty girl,” my boyfriend said. “We’ll keep it up until your timer rings.”
I couldn’t help but turn my head. The clock let me know that I had nine minutes and thirty-four seconds to go—one heck of a paddling. I took a deep breath and waited for the first stroke. He brought the rubbery spatula down hard on the left cheek of my ass, then again on the right.

Even coated with rubber, the implement had no give. Every stroke sounded loudly against my ass, and in moments, I was moaning. I knew better than to cover my ass or to beg Simon to go easy on me. So I did my best to stay still, gasping great cookie-scented breaths as the chocolate melted in the oven.

After a few more strokes, Simon had me bend over and grab my ankles, and he went to work even more ferociously, punishing the backs of my thighs, the rounded curves of my ass, making me groan as he hissed, “Such a naughty girl.

How else have you played when you cook?”

Read the intro and table of contents of Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica

Here’s some info about my upcoming spanking erotica book. I’ll be adding links or other information (I will not be posting anything X-rated as this site is going to be syndicated on Amazon) to this site as I go so if you have any suggestions, let me know at spankingantho at gmail.com

Spanked: Red-Cheeked Erotica as an anthology edited by Rachel Kramer Busesl coming out from Cleis Press in July 2008. Table of Contents and introduction are below. If you’re into spanking, you’ll love this book. Be sure to also check out Naughty Spanking Stories from A to Z 1 and 2. This blog will have spanking news, links, and story excerpts. Feel free to send any info to me at spankingantho at gmail.com and spankophiles, you can rejoice because there will be a sequel to Spanked coming out in 2009!

Table of Contents

Introduction: “A Fantastic Kind of Pain”

Spanking You Rick Roberts
Perfect Bound Shanna Germain
Betty Crocker Gone Bad Alison Tyler
Laser Tag Madeline Glass
A Rare Find Donna George Storey
Game, Set, Match Sage Vivant
Tied Down Andy Ohio
Through a Glass, Sharply Elizabeth Coldwell
Reunion Madlyn March
Riding the Storm Thomas Christopher
The Breeding Barn L. Elise Bland
Pink Cheeks Fiona Locke
Page by Page Laura Bacchi
Fiscal Discipline Simon Sheppard
Pre-Party Thomas S. Roche
Still Life with Infidels #56 M. David Hornbuckle
Indulgences Tenille Brown
Logan Rosalind Christine Lloyd
Daddy’s Girl Teresa Noelle Roberts
The Depths of Despair Rachel Kramer Bussel

Introduction: “A Fantastic Kind of Pain”

Just as I have a seemingly endless capacity to bare my ass and get it smacked soundly or make a squirming bottom hover on the edge of erotic oblivion with loud, ringing, stinging whack after whack, I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of reading stories about spanking. There was a time when I wasn’t sure I could say that; after all, just how much is there to say about bending over and letting a firm hand connect with a pertly offered-up bottom? Or striking a pretty pair of buttcheeks so well the person beneath you moans in ecstatic agony? Well, as I’ve learned while editing this collection, there are an infinite number of ways to talk about the pleasures of getting spanked or spanking someone. While the actions may look alike, we all experience them differently and have different motives for indulging in this beloved kinky activity.

Me? I get off on just thinking about bending over for that special someone. Maybe I’m wearing panties, and only part of my bottom is visible. Maybe I’m not, and my spanker can see everything, including my wetness. I get wet at the mere idea of offering up my entire body to a lover to play with, tease, spank, and arouse. I’ve also had plenty of eager bottoms spread before me, offering asses that just begged to be spanked, whether they speak words to that effect or not. But for me, and for many others, spanking is about much more than just the physical. It’s about what that sensation creates inside of us. Spanking breaks down our barriers in ways even sex sometimes doesn’t; it stirs up emotions; it makes us whimper or cry, or be proud of just how much we can take. It’s primal and powerful, not to mention incredibly popular. I was thrilled to see spanking make an appearance on Showtime’s Californication, where the bratty, bossy bottom of a secretary demands that her boss spank her for any office infraction. “Hit Me Baby One More Time,” indeed.

And those who bestow spankings, whether with hands, paddles, hairbrushes, or other devices, relish that power to bring pleasure and pain mixed together, to completely undo the person they are spanking with just a few (or possibly many) whacks.

The authors included here get just how intense spanking can be. Reading these stories took my breath away, and, even more so than my previous collections (Naughty Spanking Stories from A to Z 1 and 2), made me instantly horny. They’ve tapped into the beauty of spanking in a way that newbies, seasoned spankophiles, and those who are simply curious will be able to understand in an instant.

Rick Roberts opens this anthology with “Spanking You,” a story I’ve read and reread numerous times, mesmerized by its rendering of a man so entranced by the vision he makes when he spanks his girlfriend, you imagine he could do it all night, every night, and never tire of it. He even offers up a little bit of a how-to for those would-be spankers looking for the courage to simply turn him or her over and begin this sensual process:

I used to tease you at the beginning of every spanking. As you’d kneel before me on the bed, not a stitch of clothing on your tan body, I’d fake the first blow—stopping just short of your ass, letting the air kiss your skin—and then place an affectionate caress onto your behind. By removing the certainty of whether the next sensation would be soft or a stinging slap, I’d keep you centered in the moment, keep you waiting and vulnerable, and your anticipation for the spanking grew. I would look down at you and smile, knowing that your desire for the first slap on your ass was growing unbearable by the moment.

Part of the thrill of spanking someone is being able to dangle what they most desire before them, to see them there waiting, panting, asking for it with body and soul, to know (or at least, fantasize) that they can’t get off any other way than by the “punishment” you are about to deliver. Elizabeth Coldwell paints a portrait of a true top in “Through a Glass, Sharply,” when she writes, “You have never really known power until the man you love is at your feet, naked or very nearly so, helpless and vulnerable, while you remain fully dressed and completely in control.”

Madlyn March describes a first-time spanking in a way that will be familiar to any who have gasped, trembling, as they realized they not only can take, but crave, a whole lot more spanking than they’d initially expected:

I remembered how it felt when Mimi did it to me. At first, you’re surprised someone’s hitting you, even if you’ve asked her to. Then you’re excited. Then you’re in pain, but it’s a fantastic kind of pain. Each slap makes you want more, as much as you can take, until you can’t take any more, and you’re shaking, more than ready to have an orgasm, the kind that can only be gotten from a woman diving headfirst into you with her wet tongue licking rapidly.

Any time an author can make me hot for something that in real life actually unnerves me, I’m sold. I’m not usually a fan of Daddy/girl stories, but in Teresa Noelle Roberts’ excellent story, simply entitled “Daddy’s Girl,” she renders that role-playing relationship and its spanking potential perfectly, dissecting her characters’ motivations while maintaining the magic they each hold so dear about their arrangement.

For some people, spanking is playful, almost sillyæsexy in a way that makes you laugh as you come. This spirit is alive and well in L. Elise Bland’s “The Breeding Barn,” where a cheese paddle does double duty on the ass of an unsuspecting but happy boy bottom. And for the woman who goes by the name “Pink Cheeks” in the story of the same title, her fantasy comes true, to the letter, though in a setting she’d never have expected.

What I love most about this book is that while there are plenty of naughty boys and girls, that potentially clichéd setup never gets boring, because the authors take you right there, into the heart of a punishment spanking, letting you know that, on some level, each of these naughty boys or girls doesn’t just deserve but needs to be spanked for his or her own reasons. The authors play around with these tropes, recreating the act of spanking until it morphs into something endlessly entertaining, just as a good top can keep a bottom on the edge, smacking harder and harder, then backing off, drawing out the play.

While I’ve subtitled this book, “Red-Cheeked Erotica,” what happens on the surface of the skin is just the beginning when it comes to spanking. There’s an elegance, a poetry, a beauty to spanking that is much more akin to making love than fucking. It’s a rhythm, a beat, a gracefulness, a way two people can connect without saying a word. These elements come together in M. David Hornbuckle’s simple yet powerful “Still Life with Infidels #56,” in which a planned kidnapping is set against the sparse backdrop of a steel mill as two recently reunited lovers attempt to recover what they’d lost.

The thrill of erotic spanking is nothing new, even if each time can make even the most experienced bottom feel like a blushing virgin all over again. James Joyce wrote a series of spanking-loving letters to his beloved wife Nora in December 1909 (and for a lesson in the art of sensual, utterly kinky yet romantic erotica, look up Joyce’s naughty letters online). I cannot legally quote him here, though believe me, Joyce was a fullon spankophile according to these missives, understanding precisely what it means to submit (and to willingly struggle).

As I already told you, when it comes to spanking, I simply can’t get enough. I hope these stories turn you on, inspire you, and spark your own imagination about just how hot a spanking from someone who knows exactly what he’s doing can make you.

Rachel Kramer Bussel
New York City