“To be sensual, I think, is to respect and rejoice in the force of life, of life itself, and to be present in all that one does, from the effort of loving to the making of bread”
– James A. Baldwin
“Cleopatra, queen of Egypt in the 1st century B.C., was widely renowned for her s*xual skills. It wasn’t even particularly scandalous, but quite fitting with the prevalent mores. In addition to being queen, Cleopatra was the High Priestess of Aset, which is another name for the goddess Isis. Becoming a high priestess had the requirement of having had s*xual intercourse with a thousand different men. That would normally take a while, but it is said that Cleopatra did so in 10 days. The sacred rituals a priestess would carry out would often involve s*x. One often went to the temple to have sex because it was seen as life-affirming, and s*x was seen as bringing you closer to the gods.”
This volume aims at celebrating human passion in all its multifaceted manifestations, bringing forward – creatively – sentiments that affirm love in its many different forms.
It is an attempt at exalting the virtues of beauty in both women and men, and the vital importance of pursuing free, unconstrained love and its physical and meta-physical pleasures.
The topics a poetry book on er*ticism can explore are virtually countless: from the redefinition of “western-centred” standards of beauty, to the significance of mind attraction; from an appreciation of homo- and bisexuality, to the shaping of gods and goddesses’ radiant forms within one’s individual “love cosmology”; from the appearances of the men and women one loves (or longs for), to the nuanced narration of spicy bed stories.
Even though much of er*tic poetry (and literature) deals with physical beauty, contributors are invited to redefine the canon by suggesting new concepts about love in general. At the same time, they are also encouraged to reflect upon how pleasurable and rewarding s*x can (and should) be, by subtly evoking vivid s*xual imagery. The bottom-line is that all poems submitted must emphasize the magnitude, the gracefulness, as well as the healing and liberating power of love, in its sensual and/or spiritual incarnations. And they must appeal to the largest s*xual organ: the brain…
Needless to say, no pornographic, homophobic or misogynist text will be taken into consideration for publication. The editors will evaluate what is to be considered as such, as well as the aptness to the project of all poems submitted.
This anthology aims at offering a platform to interrogate, imaginatively, love and s*xuality(ies) in a con-text of absolute creative freedom: in fact, when it unfolds at liberty in all its infinite potential, human affection transcends every possible obstacle and demystifies all stereotyped views on what “true” or “natural” love and er*ticism should be.
As writers, poets, songwriters and wordsmiths we feel that the most exciting way to express the infinitude of this potential is through words: words that flow into melodies of ardent passion, lust, sensuality and spiritual complicity…
So let us breathe emotionally and creatively, in order to be open to s*xual and er*tic candour; let us strip ourselves bare (literally and figuratively) to make the power of love be the supreme subject of our metaphorical reflections: if we succeed in doing so, then we have no doubt that this will be truly… an org*smic collection ☺
The editors
dr raphael d’abdon
Myesha Jenkins
Natalia Molebatsi
Notes for contributions
Poems submitted must be original contributions and not be under consideration for any other publication at the same time.
Contributions must be typed in font Times New Roman, 12 pt, single line spacing.
Each contributor can submit maximum 3 (three) poems.
Poems must be submitted in English.
Each contribution must also include: contact details (email address and phone number); a jpeg picture of the author; a 5 (five) lines (maximum) biographical note.
If the poems submitted have been previously published in journals, magazines, volumes, etc., the contributor must include the full bibliographical references of the previous publication in a footnote at the bottom of the page. Example:
Author: Lodi Matsetela
Title of the poem: “He strums – 340 ml”*
Footnote: *Previously published in: d’Abdon, R. (ed.), I nostri semi – Peo tsa rona. Poeti sudafricani del post-apartheid, Mangrovie, Napoli, 2007, pp. 222-227.
Contributions must be sent as an attachment to raphael_all@yahoo.it with the head title: “Submission for er*tic poetry anthology”. The deadline for submissions is 31 October 2010. Contributions which do not adhere to the above listed requirements will not be considered for publication.
More information here.
This blog is no longer updated. Please instead visit Writers For Diversity for new opportunities for women/ LGBT writers and writers of color. Thank you.
