April 29th
“Tell Me What You Want, What You Really Really Want” (New workshop)
Often, when we try to tell our partners what we like or want, those words are filtered through things like expectations, projection, fear, shame and verbal shortcuts. Expand your creativity and verbal skills beyond “I like flogging” or “anything you want” through an interactive game and exercise. Learn how creative communication and courageous risk-taking can make your relationship and play more intimate, satisfying and fun. Communicate fantasies in a way that will inspire reality; say what you mean, and mean what you say – and make it seductive.
Center for Sex & Culture
April 30
“The Way of It: Establishing and Maintaining a Protocol”
The Citadel
May 1
“Too Kinky for Words: Playing Way Off The Edge”
Description: Everyone loves to claim they play on the edge, or their style of being kinky is somehow greater than the average pervert. Yet even among the uber-kinky, there are those of us who have fantasies – or play styles – which seem to be beyond what is considered “acceptable.” Is your kink really “OK”? How can you tell? Are there boundaries to fantasies? Should there be? Should we/can we own our most unmentionable ones? How do you share fantasies with a partner if they make you uncomfortable? his workshop is more of a guided discussion group on the process of identifying, naming, sharing and potentially enacting our scariest fantasies. It’s not about being outrageous to shock others – it’s about fear of community mores, worries about personal responsibility, shameful eroticism and secret joys. participants must come prepared to write down a fantasy or playstyle (anonymously, if they wish) and turn it in to the presenter.
Center for Sex & Culture
May 2
Special “Marketplace Maven†Event
This is your chance to sit down with the author of the Marketplace series and dish the dirt. Get all the inside scoop: how the series was developed, the characters created, the storyline expanded. Ask *anything* from background details to future plans; share your own feelings about the way things have gone and where you think they will, should and shouldn’t go next. Get a look at the Marketplace Codex and timeline, and review the sometimes hilarious suggestions fans have made for the mythical movie. Then hear an excerpt from the upcoming book. And maybe win a signed and numbered first edition of one of the books!
Tickets are available in advance
Femina Potens, 2199 Market Street f
May 3
“Tops Are From Gor, Bottoms Are From Roissy” (New workshop)
Description: We frequently draw our relationship models from fictional universes, forgetting that those universes don’t always work the same way. What happens when concepts like “master,†“slave,†and “service†are filtered through the Marketplace, Gor, Roissy, or other fictional universes? Laura will help separate fantasy from reality, discuss effective communication of roles, and explore how to borrow from fiction honestly while we craft our relationship styles. There’s good stuff in our fiction as well as bad – be prepared to laugh at the unrealistic expectations, smile at fond memories of our dearest inspirations, and grimace at how we can turn something we did as a lark for a few years into a colossal waste of time.
The Citadel
May 4
Keynote address, International Ms. Leather. Enjoy a weekend with leatherwomen and those who love them.
May 4
“Revenge of the Middle-Aged Guard”
Description: You’ve been there; you’ve done that. So why do things seem so much more complicated now? If you remember when “my space” meant where you took a hot date after dinner, links were for chains and poly was followed by “ester” you may be feeling your age a bit. Laura sure is; her bed time bears a suspicious resemblance to the time she used to go out to SM clubs. This round table is designed for those who aren’t ready for old fart status and aren’t sure if they’re want to be added to a Facebook friends list, either. Limited kvetching allowed, but more designed to discuss what our experiences have taught us and what we want to do to enhance our personal and community relations. No one under 32 allowed! Go to a dang TNG meeting or have a mocha soy latte with a shot of mango and text your BFF on how unfair the world is.
Center for Sex & Culture
More information about Laura Antoniou (best known for The Marketplace series) is available from her website.
Tagged as:
kink,
sex
Gallery Carre
