My husband and I attended the BDSM Writer’s Conference two weeks ago in New York City. This four day conference was founded and hosted by Dr. Charley Ferrer and was attended by both authors and readers of the BDSM genre. In the spirit of the conference, those in attendance were brought together, were presented with information on the various aspects of BDSM, and were allowed to grow and learn in a comfortable and open setting.
Throughout the entire conference I met others who were excited to learn more about BDSM and were open to sharing their own experiences. Whether an author, a reader or a participant in the Lifestyle– I have never met a more accepting group of people. I was left wondering if it is the nature of the subject matter that makes them more open and accepting? I believe it to be so.
During those four days, each person I spoke with volunteered their help and support to me on my journey to become a published author, and I thank them for that. Dr. Charley Ferrer, Rose Carole, the authors, the vendors, those who did live demonstrations, supportive spouses and the other readers, all shared their thoughts, their feelings and their excitement for the genre with me.
On the night before the conference officially began, I attended the Author Buddy Program where I met many of the authors in a more informal setting. I had a chance to speak one on one with an author, Roz Lee, and her advice to me was invaluable – thank you Roz.
Each day of the conference was filled with workshops on numerous subjects, from classes on how to write a more believable male submissive to demonstrations of the various tools used in the BDSM lifestyle and many, many more. One of the most enjoyable was the Kinky Confessional, hosted by authors Joey W. Hill, Jennifer Kacey, Miranda Baker and Robin L. Rotham. Throughout the conference, participants were invited to place our most secret fantasies in a birdhouse to be shared during the “confessional”. Imagine a group of, mostly, strangers having their fantasies read to them by their favorite authors. The authors then shared with us if they, too, had that fantasy. Needless to say, we were no longer strangers after that!
During the conference, we invited to go to two actual BDSM clubs–one on an evening it was closed and one as invited guests of a local BDSM group on a night they were in attendance. These trips were invaluable to me as a writer. I now know what the inside of a BDSM club looks like and have now seen, first hand, actual club members pursue their passion for the lifestyle. I thank Dr. Charley and the owners of the clubs for sharing that experience with us.
The lovely Lady Sabrina brought along sexy toys, beautiful clothing and fun accessories for us to purchase in her on-site boutique. She is such a warm, helpful and generous person and it was great to finally meet her. I appreciated being able to try on a piece before making a purchase–I ended up with two gorgeous skirts!
The on-site bookstore provided us with an opportunity to purchase books from some of our favorite authors and have them sign them on the spot. I came home with five books!
I believe the conference was one of the best experiences I have had and I look forward to attending next year. My husband enjoyed the conference very much, it was a wonderful opportunity to attend the classes and workshops together—one he would not have missed.
I left the conference with a renewed passion for seeing my dream become a reality. Just being with others who have worked so hard at making their dreams come true, has inspired me to work that much harder toward my own. I want to say thank you again to Dr. Charley Ferrer, to Rose and to all who worked so hard on the conference. You should be proud of your accomplishment.
Arlee Scott
Aspiring Author