Friday, February 1, 2013

Blue?

And now we finish our mini series about nudity and women in fiction by exploring the sixty-nine shades of diversity called censorship...umm....personal taste.

Tongue is not planted firmly in cheek. And if you really want me to go there, I will. Just not on this blog.
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No, not that kind of blue, although I haven't been that in a few years, but the kind of blue that people would say as a clean substitute for smut, and I'm not talking about the organic kind that is a bane to most wheat farmers.

I thought I would talk about how one can get banned without even knowing about it.

The other day I was on Facebook, trolling thru other people's conversation threads and checking out my notifications, when I came across one from someone who happened to invite me to an event that he created, in which one could share their book trailers.

I clicked on the notification and found myself reading a comment put forth by the creator of the event that contained the following guidelines.

1} No nudity, except classical art.
2} If it contains even a slight hint, a warning/disclaimer must be posted.
3} He reserves the right to remove any book trailer that he deems offensive.

As you can imagine, this did not go over very well with a few people, including myself, since it would virtually eliminate everyone in the erotica genre. It certainly eliminated me, because the only nudity contained in my book trailer is my book cover.


As for posting a warning or disclaimer, I think not. If I thought something of mine was obscene for Facebook, chances are excellent that you wouldn't see it on Facebook. I have a tendency to treat people as adults (the horror!) and thus responsible for their actions. If someone doesn't like something because they think its obscene, then they don't have to watch it.

By the flip of the coin, I don't like it when someone tries to censor me because they don't approve of what I have to say. Censorship and uneven enforcement of the rules were some of the reasons why I left the chat rooms and moved over to the blogs. And by saying that you reserve the right to yank my video if you're offended by it, kind of sounds like political correctness.

In any event, while I didn't go nuclear over this particular issue (and I really couldn't because I was invited to this event), I did voice my opinion about this little hitch in the giddyup, mostly because of the censorship/sanitizing of the event.

I did mention the fact, rather emphatically, that it is very hard for someone who writes quirky erotica to find a marketing opportunity for their work. A good chunk of the time people are a little leery in allowing a person to pimp their erotica.

In the end, I politely declined the invite and gave the reason why as being the rule about nudity that was instituted.

So how about you? Have you experienced something similar to what I went through? If you've created an event such as this, would you have the same rule in place?

11 comments:

  1. I have, on more than one occasion, unintentionally offended someone who was a complete prude. And I think you know my answer about the contest!

    ReplyDelete
  2. M: You? Offend someone? Perish the thought! :D

    And you'll probably have to clarify about the contest thingy.

    ReplyDelete
  3. there's such a wide range of potential markets, advertising groups, contests, etc, that I figure if there's one that would block me out for something I've written, there's many others that would invite me in.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm not easily offended or shocked, but I've never produced any type of artwork or material that walks or crosses the line of acceptability. My personal feeling is that nudity in and of itself is not offensive.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Charles: My feelings exactly.

    I've found that if one avenue for marketing/pimping my novel is closed, it always helps to search out others.

    Case in point is my upcoming vendor gig. While my agency has rules against displaying something for personal profit in your work area, they don't have any against a person participating in the vendor program.

    Only requirements are that you use your own time and that you donate 10% of your total sales to one of five participating charities.

    A win-win all the way around as far as I can tell. I don't get into trouble for pimping my novel and a worthwhile charity gets a little free green.

    S.R.: To be honest, it takes a lot to shock and/or offend me. And like most sensible people, if I find something not to my taste, I simply won't pay attention to it.

    And I agree, nudity in and of itself is not offensive. However, the way it can be displayed can be deemed to be offensive.

    ReplyDelete
  6. As you know I am a bit of an old prude, but if something offends me I just don't look at it or read it. We all have our own censor buttons I think. As an art student who has drawn dozens of naked bodies nudity itself doesn't offend me, but sometimes how it's used does.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Joe: Excellent point.

    For me, my censor button is polar opposite of what I write.

    As you know, I write fiction that has sex in it, but in real life, I have not step foot inside a strip club and/or a "gentleman's" club. I completely understand the why and the rationale behind it, but it simply isn't my cup of tea.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Our village went into a tizzy about the nude Native statue placement on the Bluff- was on the local opinion columns for over a year! (in the '90's) As you know I sometimes do nude figure sculptures which I'm really good at- since college, so have to hide or dress pieces sometimes!
    Censorship sucks! Hope you find some better places for your trailer- Hope your sales are going well too!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Snaggle: It doesn't really surprise me that people would be offended.

    On the flip side, a good example of that would be the CCSU mascot, the Blue Devil.

    For the longest time they had in the student center a detailed nude version of the devil in blue. As soon as you walked in, there it was.

    Eventually, political correctness took over and it was moved to an upper floor where it remains out of sight to the general public.

    I find homes for the trailer, as I do post it on Facebook from time to time and I have it permanently posted on my bookg blog and permanent links elsewhere.

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  10. Good for you for voicing your opinion!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Lynn: Thankee.

    I'm always going to stick up for myself when it comes to my writing, especially when I feel that I haven't done anything wrong to bein with.

    ReplyDelete

Go on, give me your best shot. I can take it. If I couldn't, I wouldn't have created this wonderful little blog that you decided to grace with your presence today.

About that comment moderation thingy: While yes, it does say up above I can take it, I only use it to prevent the occasional miscreant from leaving thoughtless and/or clueless comments.

So remember, all of your comments are greatly appreciated and all answers will be given that personal touch that you come to expect and enjoy.

G. B. Miller

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