And then I plagiarized 50 Shades... only flipped around... HELP!

So I haven't been active on the forums for two months on account of wrestling with a demon called REUTORS BLAUK.

Now, I have run up against this question.

I am anxiously ambitious about writing the story of a woman with femdom fantasies, in a relationship with a great guy... who simply cannot play long.

Then, in a second narrative strand, we have a man with maledom fantasies, in a relationship with a great gal who -- you guessed it: cannot play along.

The crunch is this: the femdom girl and maledom guy do not end up together. They do not fall in love, navigate and negotiate a truce of kinky power relationships. In fact, they hardly meet despite a few close calls.

Ultimately the story is about something very different: how sexual intimacy is not the only, or even necessarily the most honest type of intimacy.

QUESTION/PROBLEM:
In my own head this sounds like a wonderful idea, and a challenging spin on existing erotic (perhaps it's actually a romance) with the potential for candidly broaching painful themes, such as anxiety about sexual fulfillment. The problem is that I worry about losing readers in the first two stages described above. I look forward to the third stage, and I am excited about writing the first two... but I worry that it will feel like ANOTHER 50 Shades knock-off.

Now I feel like abandoning the project altogether... and all I have is 600 words.

HELP!

Good points all (as a major Pratchett I can imagine your pain Bacchus).

Your both right. I should just soldier on.

My worry was that I would lose readers through stages one and two. But imaginative solutions are always available, probably more so to those who persevere.

Super good luck with manga and comic fantasy. Hope halfway has become finished.

DancingMaenid said:

BDSM is a big subgenre that existed long before 50 Shades. Yes, 50 Shades is probably the most well-known example at the moment, but I don't see any extremely strong similarities between 50 Shades and your idea, let alone plagiarism (which is actually stealing someone's work, not just writing something that's a little similar).

If you're concerned about the parallel plots not being connected, could you make the main characters friends?

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Thanks. Yeah, I used "plagiarism"as a hyperbole. I was watching a TV series with a lame character reading his own short story on vampires, and suddenly felt so bored I considered painting face tattoos on the back of my nails. Then I thought... what if readers don't give my story enough time to realise how different it is from 50 Shades.

Having read through the very bolstering replies so far, I feel much better. All of you have reminded that comparisons to 50 Shades could actually work to my advantage -- I need to formulate ways of eliciting standard expectations for a BDSM story and then subvert in ways that are 1) still meaningful and enjoyable and 2) that speak to the ideas I really want to write about.

Cobalt Jade said:

I wouldn't worry about the comparison unless one of the characters:

* Is a billionaire
* Is a virgin, or nearly a virgin
* Dickers endlessly and needlessly over a BDSM contract
* Has a 'dark secret' in his or past that caused him/her to adopt the BDSM lifestyle
* Whose BDSM leanings are depicted as a character flaw, not something he/she does because they are turned on by it

There! Solved it for you

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Well.. yeah, you did just solve it. None of those match. Ironically they are also some of the (many) aspects of 50 Shades that I find distasteful.

Well done.

A veritable font of wisdom and beacon of hope (brought to you by Sincere Platitudes R Us).

StoryofWoe said:

But...is your book a romance? From the description in the OP, it doesn't sound like you'd be sharing much of a readership with Fifty Shades, which seems to predominantly consist of romance readers who happen to enjoy a little kink. Your average casual reader may think of Fifty Shades every time they hear about a BDSM book, but for those who have long enjoyed the subgenre, it's simply the book that made it mainstream. Most diehard BDSM erotica readers I know don't even like it. Like DancingMaenid pointed out, Fifty Shades is hardly the first BDSM novel.

It's a little outdated, but this trend-related post from RWA 2015 may help put things in perspective (bold = mine):



There's a readership out there for BDSM books of all flavors of emotional and social complexity. I wouldn't worry too much about crossing over with Fifty Shades readers, since the focus of your book wouldn't be the central romance. It's a completely different animal.

FWIW, I think your idea sounds really interesting.

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Thanks StoryofWoe

That cogent perspective was precisely what I needed reminding of. This is my own little Sisyphus' stone - I sabotage an idea early on. It has been one of the most edifying advantages of this forum to pick up some sorely needed perspective.

You are correct in the sense that I would not be aiming for the same readership (assuming that I finish this and that it gets picked up at all).

My sincere thanks again, especially for indicating interest in the concept. Recently, I have watched so many movies and TV series with dysfunctional love interests who nevertheless maintain a vibrant sex life - often referred to with that dried up old word: passion. Sure it's narrative technique - fly paper for overworked minds at the end of a long day; I'm sure serves its purpose and can be used meaningfully. Even so, there should be space for alternatives. Perhaps this dissatisfaction resonates with others.

Now I just have to commit to getting it down.




Brilliant tag line, by the way... Poe is me.