The Sultry Court

The Sultry Court is an erotic anthology. Authors who are invited to participate in The Sultry Court must don a naughty persona and a noble title. The Ladies are encouraged to write erotic stories that range from the tame to the extreme. Submissions to The Sultry Court must have a minimum-R rating, and the authors can write about any subject they want (as long as it's erotic) with any type of character they like (the less conventional, or the more controversial, the better).

The authors who have contributed to the first volume of this potentially exciting series are as follows: Lady Allatu Trevigne, Lady Vasi Davin-Thorne, Lady Aislynn Sanchar, and Lady Chantilly Lace. You can learn more about the Ladies of the Court below.

Lady Allatu Trevigne

http://www.allatu-trevigne.com/

Lady Vasi Davin-Thorne

http://thebattlegoddess.blogspot.com/

Lady Aislynn Sanchar

http://www.thedarkbaroness.com/

Lady Chantilly Lace

http://chantillyscorner.blogspot.com/

Excerpts from Volume I of The Sultry Court can be found on Writer's Cafe. Please read and enjoy, and be sure to leave a review.

http://www.writerscafe.org/writing/MiddleChildPress/565260/

Middle Child Press

"We Wear Our Weird on the Outside."

Middle Child Press was created in 2010. A “tree-friendly” publishing house, MCP caters exclusively to female authors of color who have faced too many arbitrary hurdles in traditional publishing venues.

Current eBook publishers do not reflect the vision or aesthetical sensibilities of Ankhesen_Mie and Amaya Radjani, the creators and owners of MCP. These ladies believe that women of color authors and readers should not be restricted to “hood lit” or the subjective designation of “speculative fiction.”

MCP publishes work by women-of-color authors for women-of-color readers. Our authors are hand-picked, so we currently do not accept submissions.

We have just published the first volume of an erotic anthology called "The Sultry Court." Erotica is merely one aspect of MCP, but eventually the publishing house will have all genres represented.

Please read more about Middle Child Press at http://middlechildpress.net/

Corruption

"Corruption" is the story of a sexy cougar named Mahogany Carroll. Mahogany's seductive focus is currently on the mail clerk who works in her building, a handsome young man named Jordan Raiden. But Jordan, who has particular inclinations of his own, refuses to be just a one-night stand.

"Corruption" will be published in the fall of 2011 by Middle Child Press.

The Velimirs

"The Velimirs" is a sci-fi fantasy epic about a black female, her alien husband, and her acculturation into his family and society on his home planet called Alvelar.

There are four books planned in this series:

Book I: Sheila & K'avir

Book II: Jaire & K'ervian

Book III: Nkenge & K'eylar

Book IV: Nicari & K'oren

The first book, "Sheila & K'avir," will be published in the winter of 2012 by Middle Child Press.

An excerpt from Book I: "Sheila & K'avir" entitled "Combat" can be found on the Writer's Cafe at

Combat | WritersCafe.org

Please read and enjoy!

A "Sultry" Video

Check out The Sultry Court at YouTube!

The book is finally here...

For immediate release

Independent Publisher Releases Debut Anthology

November 23, 2010

U.S.A - After many long weeks of writing, promoting, editing, spending, and painting, Middle Child Press is proud to present its very first eBook, The Sultry Court Anthology, Vol. 1, available from the Middle Child Press eBookstore.

http://www.e-junkie.com/middlechildpress

Penned by the ladies of MCP's Sultry Court, the book is filled with sensuous, pretty, dirty things to tempt and lure readers away from everday life...if only for a moment.

Enter the forbidden halls of the Court, where abstinence is strictly verboten.

Crossing the Pacific

I’ve been writing for 32 years. I’ve published a book, a poem and a short story. When I was old enough to understand the difference between the television, the books I read, and my reality, I shifted my writing perspective to account for that epiphany. Thankfully, that shift happened around13 years old. I just recently experienced another shift, coincidentally not too long after my recent birthday, and this one I did not expect.


I’ve been writing about black people for years because I’m black. Black women have been my protagonists because I’m a black woman. Black men have also been protagonists, antagonists and all areas in between. It’s said that you write what you know, and in my case that’s true. The only variables in my storytelling are the concept and the plot. Problem is that it does get boring always writing about what you know. But that was my world, and it still is.


This year, I met a marvelous, funny woman named Ankhesen_Mie. We didn’t know when we met that we would come together the way we did with the intent to start a literary revolution. Grandiose, you may think, but we believe in ourselves (and if you don’t believe in yourself, who will), and we put our money (literally) where our mouth is.


In this dynamic relationship, I was introduced to the Blasian world. I didn’t realize how extensive it was, and how loud the clamor is for quality Blasian fiction. I’ve always acknowledged the attractiveness of Asian men, but that was it. I never thought about including them in my novels because hey, they weren’t in my world. But understanding the theoretical perspective and the methodology behind the Blasian movement has enlightened me. My senses are wide open, and now I look at Asian men for more than just their looks. I look at them for who they are and what they represent. I see them as being marginalized by white America just like us. I see them as descendants of powerful, rich and beautiful Eastern cultures, ones I would like to study.


Why? Because I want to know them. I want to have a new perspective in my writing. I want to reach a broader audience. I refuse to have my work potentially pigeon-holed just because I’m a black woman who just happens to have grown up in ‘da hood.’ Nothing I write is anything close to the bullshit of ‘hood lit,’ because even though I grew up in the hood, the hood didn’t grow up in me. I’ve always been a visionary and my vision has grown (quickly) to include Blasian methods. Ankh is surprised and pleased at my rapid conversion. So am I. It was like a punch in the face.


So, like any true author, I’m studying now. I’m learning as much as I can about the Blasian culture because I intend to write about it. I’m absorbing as much as I can to expand my perspective, because this culture, too, will be something I know, and thus, can write about.

The Sultry Court Anthology

Here are a few excerpts from the upcoming Sultry Court Anthology, to be published by Middle Child Press this fall. Click, enjoy, and please be sure to leave a review...

http://www.writerscafe.org/writing/MiddleChildPress/565260/

Learning to Love My Hair

I’m a full grown adult, but my hair and I just met recently. When I say “my hair,” I mean my natural hair. I’ve been getting my hair relaxed since I was old enough to stand the process. Prior to that, I got kitchen perms (or the hot comb). It was standard practice for any girl my age; no one wanted to be seen with nappy hair.


I’ve spent maybe thousands on hair care and products over the years, and I know I’m not alone in this. I’ve also spent many hours sitting in salon chairs and fighting my hair at home. Repeated abuse of one’s hair leads to hair rebellion and my hair started falling out.


I got tired.


Last summer, I got my hair braided and kept it that way for three months. When I took out the braids, I had about three inches of new growth and made the decision not to put another relaxer in my head. That was stressful, because it is difficult to style half a head of relaxed hair while the other half is natural. I knew that I wasn’t ready to cut it at that time. So I got my hair pressed for a few months to let it grow out some more. Hair pressing, or the use of a flatiron, is reminiscent of those old-school kitchen perms I used to get when I was a child. The only difference is that the stylist didn’t burn my ear the way my mom would sometimes. However, all of that direct heat made my hair thin out even more, even though it was really long.


I was concerned about my hair’s health more than anything else. It was difficult to manage because I couldn’t make it look presentable and I wasn’t ready to hack it all off. My head looked like a rat’s nest. I didn’t know what to do. So I was advised by several ladies I know to use hair products specifically geared towards natural hair.


One lady told me, “You can’t use on your natural hair the products you used on your relaxed hair. You don’t even know your hair yet.”


Simple, yet profound. She was right; I didn’t know my hair. I discovered that my hair had two different textures. The top and sides were relatively straight and the back is extremely thick. She told me that I would have to experiment with several products to find what works best for my hair. She also said that because I have dual textures that I may have to use two separate kinds of hair products to treat both.


Since then, I’ve been experimenting with various natural hair care products. I recently hacked off seven inches (yes, seven) to rid myself of the last of the relaxed hair so that I could really see the difference.


The ironic thing is that my mother had naturally curly hair that I always dreamed of having. She could wake up and walk out of the door and do very little to maintain it. What a surprise it was to discover that my natural hair is as curly as my mother’s was. I still have two textures (that won’t change); the top and sides are loose spirals and the back is tight coils. The products I’m currently using are designed to bring out the curls and I’m pleased so far with the results. I love touching my hair. I haven’t used a comb in almost six weeks, nor have I spent any of that time underneath a hair dryer. I feel so liberated!


I just got rid of my wigs, weaves, phony ponytails and curlers. I gave my sister-in-law all of my shampoos, conditioners, moisturizers and sprays. I intend to give her my curling irons and flatirons. I have no need of and no use for them anymore. I was amazed at the amount of space I freed up in my closet. Yet another liberation of the natural.


Don’t get me wrong; natural hair care products aren’t cheap. The products I use are expensive and I am still experimenting. Healthy hair costs money, no matter if it’s relaxed or natural. What my natural doesn’t cost me is time, and that’s worth the money I’m spending.


I absolutely love my hair. I can’t keep my fingers out of it. It’s a cap of short, tight spirals and not at all what I’m used to, but I will adjust. The main thing is that my hair is healthy. It will grow, I’ll get better at maintaining it, and I will never ever have another hair rebellion.

Combat | WritersCafe.org

This ficlet is an excerpt from a much longer work tentatively entitled "The Velimirs." This sci-fi fantasy epic about a black woman's life on an alien planet called Alvelar will be published by Middle Child Press in the winter of 2012. "The Velimirs" is just one of many soon-to-be published works by Amaya Radjani, co-founder and Creative Director of Middle Child Press. Please read and enjoy.

Combat | WritersCafe.org