The Dark Side of the Moon - Rants and Raves

[badsquirrel]

this may be the only thing i have in common with Jordan, but no. she does not learn to swim.

as odd as it may seem, some people do not float. you can teach them to swim and they may be able to do it very proficiently, but if they try to swim the length of a pool, halfway through they are swimming very proficiently on the bottom of the pool.

i am one of those people. i inherited it from my father. we both know how to swim, but neither of us can do it on the surface. we have to swim in two directions at once: up and forward. it is exhausting. much like treading water ad infinitum.

and no. my father did not teach me to swim. we did not meet until i was 24 years old. i felt quite vindicated in my inability to float the first time i saw him try to swim.

after nearly drowning three times, i have learned to be very cautious with water. i prefer it in a shower or a spa. jordan shares this trait with me.

[Dogz]

Wow, really! I did not know that! I thought floating was something everyone could just.....um, do.

I love learning interesting things like this and having one of my assumptions broken. I try not to assume, but then something like this comes up and I realize that I have.

Jo

[Clj667]

I just finished reading DSM and I loved it my only complaint was that it just sort of ended....it seemed abrupt. I really hope you pick up where it left off and show us how Jordan and Sarah's lives are going to be in edgewater. The one thing that kept popping into my mind is that Jordon said she'd never kneel for anyone. I can think of one reason to kneel before Sarah and she only has to get on one knee to do it! lol keep up the great work on to your other stories!!!!!

[Guest]

I musta missed something...I thought it was Hannah who didn't know how to swim???

sthpaw30

[badsquirrel]

you are right...hannah does not know how to swim. jordan is the one who doesn't float.

did you ever notice that the vast majority of people who drown DO know how to swim?

seems a lot safer to me if you don't learn how to swim.

[Guest]

Well, at least I found it -- the part where you actually tell about the swimming and floating. After about a dozen re-reads, that part finally registered in my pea-brain. I've always been laughing about Jordan and Pete, and the rag, and rubbing his nose in the dirt, and I must have just skimmed over that part every time.

I just so happen to deal with a drowning from time to time (because of the job I do) and I can't recall any single one who was a non-swimmer. I don't guess I've ever thought much about it before, but it seems to me that you have a point.

Sthpaw30

[RhB]

Hey

I really liked it. Liked the characters, liked the set-up, liked the writing genius as well.

Got a bit of a rave though. First, what was up with the club? I really didn't get the whole abandoning the DM part. I can just about see some people leaving, even most of them but all of them? Did someone else set up shop? Did a real (ie commercial) club open up? The DM is by definition someone you trust, especially if we are talking about private parties and that sort of behaviour, especially on such a short timeline, was quite jarring for me. Plus there is the practical bit of the whole thing; if nothing new opened then you are better off keeping on the host's good side for when the shop opens up again. This is not a crowd of weekenders or vanilla couples having a quick stroll on the wild side. These are people committed to the lifestyle, surely they can wait a couple of months for such a good private dungeon.

Second, again a DM issue. How did J get away with not having a sub all this time? I can just about believe that J did not play at all in the parties (although even that is a bit out there), ie that she was constantly the DM and no-one ever saw her play (also that there was absolutely no nudity involved, again something a bit hard to imagine under normal circumstances). But not have a sub at all? Surely she would have had offers. And how did she get away from them and from the expectation of the players? Someone at some point must have wondered why? And certainly some of the dominants, especially in the beginning of the set-up, must have questioned a self-appointed DM that did not appear to be part of the lifestyle. It just looks suspicious; like this person is hiding something and something bad at that.

Third, another lifestyle issue. Clearly at some point J was part of the lifestyle and had partners. Was it in another place? Did she move and then set up the parties? If not, then what happened to those partners that knew? Were they excluded? Is the town so large that they would not have an idea of what is going on? Or did she follow some look but don't touch rule? A nudity taboo?

Ok. Enough with the rave. I am looking forward to the sequel.

RB

[badsquirrel]

dear RB.

i'm glad you liked the story, however, most of your post fit more into the rant category than raving would. that's cool. you brought up some good points.

before i answer them, let me say this one thing. everything i know about BDSM i learned from books. i've known a few people who were into the BDSM lifestyle, but they would never really talk to me about it. even when i asked them directly. (must be my baby face.) i have never been in a dungeon or been to a dungeon party. i would probably wet my pants. i did try talking to submissives online, but frankly, they were incredibly rude to me. i'm pretty sure i didn't deserve it. the one dominant i tried talking with was so vague as to be infuriating. the man could not answer a yes or no question. all he really wanted was for me to come over to his place and he would help me figure out if i was a submissive or not.

ick.

i would also like to say that i approve of BDSM for those that find it rewarding and enriching. in theory. i'm pretty sure it's not my thing except for brief forays with a loved one.

point #1: while it might seem hard to believe that jordan's players would abandon her, i can see it. first of all, she states that there is a small group of lesbians that want to have regular parties. she has not been completely abandoned. second, she doesn't just close the dungeon for no reason. i would think that the fear of being outted in a newspaper would make the vast majority of people cautious. third, people assume that other people are doing things they aren't all the time. i think a lack of communication between the players could very well lead to no one hanging out with jordan because they think someone else is doing it. fourth, not being able to play at jordan's would lead to smaller, private parties at people's homes. the lack of communication with jordan would explain why she isn't aware of the parties. anyway, this is what was going through my head on that point.

point #2: i do not have a clear image of what jordan did and did not do in her dungeon. except for the fact that she did not have sex with anyone in order to protect her gender. maybe if i had any idea what i was writing about i would have explored that more. i always saw her as more of an instructor/protector than anything else. in retrospect, i could have written something about her doing non-sexual scenes of dominance/submission, but it just didn't occur to me. as i said above, i'm not a participant in the BDSM lifestyle and i'm pretty clueless.

point #3: also in retrospect, one simple paragraph would have given jordan a little more backstory. i overlooked it. i saw her as living somewhere else and then moving to anderson.

all of that said, i hope the issues you brought up did not detract too much from the story for you. if, at some point, i rewrite to clarify and expand on things, i'll have to try a little harder to get information that rounds things out better.

thanks for giving me things to think about.

[RhB]

Hey

Sorry about the false description. I was going for rant but clearly my fingers got away from me.

I don't know much about the lifestyle either. Most of my contact has been on the commercial side (the club scene, which is rather different from the private parties) of it and through discussions with others that are involved. And yeah the internet part of the world can be a bit odd at times (and rude as well), especially to the interested observer but there are some good people out there.

I really can't see the lack of communication you are thinking about but I guess I am used to a pretty close-knit community with many ties linking one person to another even in a city of millions of people. And like in most things, there would be people slinking away into the shadows as quickly as possible while others would try to tough it out. There would be players who were friends, relatives, ex-lovers, co-workers, the whole gamut of possibilities. And while I would be assuming that the majority would be terrified of being found out, some at least would be slightly less concerned for all sorts of reasons or simply they would be sick and tired of having to hide a part of their lives and ready to fight back when someone threatened their secure haven. Plus with the kind of set-up that J had created, I would assume that the community would have developed even stronger ties and lines of communication with each other.

It wasn't much of a problem while reading the story. By the time I got to have questions I was so into the characters and what was going on that the questions appeared but were sort of washed away at the time. They surfaced later when I was trying to imagine what would happen afterwards. Little things like would some of the players try to convince J otherwise? What happens with the equipment (that's a really big one, these are expensive stuff)? What happens with players or people in the life that live in Edgewater? Will it be enough for J to be in a relationship but without the community aspects?

On a hunch I would say that most people wouldn't really register these things. I certainly wouldn't have a few years ago.

Well, rants (and raves) aside, hope to be reading the sequel soon.

RB

[offhermeds]

>> everything i know about BDSM i learned from books.

Ahem. Do you have a recommended reading list?

[lynettemae]

Okay, so I took a few moments to check out Dark Side when taking a break from writing and I couldn't stop reading your fantastic story. Kudos, props, and all other forms of praise for the engaging characters and riveting plot. My hat's off to you!
Lynette

[badsquirrel]

sorry it took me so long to respond to offhermeds question. (awesome name, btw!)

here is at least a partial list of my reference books. i know i had two other ones, but i can't find them at the moment. i'm sure i put them somewhere little hands couldn't find them. which means i have no idea what i did with them.

The New Bottoming Book by Dossie Easton and Janet W. Hardy
The New Topping Book by Dossie Easton and Janet W. Hardy
Consensual Sadomasochism by William A. Henkin and Sybil Holiday

i also found some excellent articles in...
OnOurBacks guide to Lesbian Sex edited by Diana Cage

in addition, i found a few websites that helped.
http://www.fetishexchange.org/
http://www.asubmissivesjourney.com/subbie1.html

i tried reading bdsm fiction as well, but OMG. that's a kind of chancy way to learn about the lifestyle. at least from my perspective. most of it seems to be completely beyond the possible in terms of physical and emotional survivability. i guess that's why they call it fiction.

i will admit, however, to reading the Beauty Books by Anne Rice (before i knew anne rice was the author) and the one that started it all....Macho Sluts by Pat Califia.

while i do not claim the bdsm lifestyle as my own, i must admit that i am very glad i did the research. it is no longer something i fear and my preconceptions were dismantled in the process.

[offhermeds]

thank you thank you!

[melktert]

Ok so I read all you stories but The Dark Side of the Moon is by far my favourite! Yip, it's hot and very very very well written. I read it in one go. Thanks and please write more!!!!!!!!!!! I love your work.

[RenegadeWolf]

Dark Side has got to be one of the best books I have ever read. Of course thanks go out to anyone who had a hand in this story to make it possible. I totally agree with everyone else there should always be more sex but don't we all? If you don't write a sequel to this one I think you're gonna have a riot on ur hands.

[cobbler3]

If you don't write a sequel to this one I think you're gonna have a riot on ur hands.

YES! A riot sounds like a great plan if we don't get a sequel

Nancy

[Courtney]

just wanted to say great book - a sequel would be excellent!

[blueinthefaceangel]

First off as a person in the lifestyle I want to apologigize on behalf of the community..Sorry.
Anyway I was so happy you worte this storie! It was pretty on point about the life style and was in a positive light. Everytime I try to find xena uber or just xena fiction with BDSM was in a negative light. so I bow to you

P.S if you have any qustion I would be happy to answer them.

[MoSeS]

Wow, really. Gotta admit this is the first time I've read anything by BadSquirrel, my excuse, I only just found the community about 7 months ago. Now I'm trying to catch up. So much reading my eyes are crossing.

Anyway, I just wanted to say IMHO, this was one of the best I've read. I started reading and couldn't stop.

I totally agree with everyone else there should always be more sex but don't we all? If you don't write a sequel to this one I think you're gonna have a riot on ur hands.

'Kay so I'm hoping there is going to be a sequel, cuz this could just go anywhere, and I can dream.


I feel like I'm gonna start babbleing now, so I'm just gonna end with Thank You for sharing. I appreciate your effort.

[ukendt001]

I'm a biiiig BadSquirrel fan and I'll state that at any given chance (!) but The Dark Side of the Moon ain't my favourite. The best BadSquirrel fic - in my opinion - is "Rumors"http://xenafiction.net/scrolls/badsquirrel_rumors1.html. The story is a touching romance, lots of fun and slightly hot at the right places. If you haven't read it yet ... you have something to look forward to.

As Rumors is my all-time favourite on-line alt romance story it was also the first story that I wrote a review on at the Fan Fiction Reviews site http://fanficrev.blogspot.com/search/label/BadSquirrel as I do wish that readers that spend time in our world of (fan) fiction gets to know about this story.

Even if the world of BDSM is not one I look for in on-line fiction I remember a couple of stories that fits this tag:

"Shadowland" by Radclyffe http://www.academyofbards.org/fanfic/r/radclyffe_shadowland.html

"Siren's Call" by Shadowriter http://www.academyofbards.org/fanfic/s/shadowriter_sirenscall.html

I found these stories rather more darkish than DSM and to be a slightly disturbing look into the culture of BDSM (if it's more than just fiction?). In these stories it seems that the line between consensual and agreeable play/sex is easily overstepped? Is it true?

I would like to think that a "balance of power" is maintained in a BDSM relationship. A balance that allow for the "play" to be fun for both parties and a balance that prevents physical and psychological abuse.

I would like to think that a "bottom" has choosen this role because it brings pleasure, and that this person has the power to stop the roleplaying. I would likewise like to think that a "top" would choose this role not only to promote a personal satisfaction but to bring the same pleasure to her partner, but I really don't know anything about the world of BDSM - so I might be on the wrong track here?

Please don't take this the wrong way - I do think that DSM did present the BDSM in a positive - if a bit fictional - light. Reading the other stories mentioned above just triggered my curiosity.

Answers - anyone?

UK