Even though this photo turned out blurry and has some blemishes, I like it. It feels like I do lately. Flawed, imperfect, but trying. I was gifted a new-to-me camera body from a darling reader recently. He saw I was crowd funding on Kofi for a camera, since due to many different circumstances beyond my control, the camera we’ve been using is no longer available to me. It’s a Canon Eos 50D and it just needed a lens. I’ve always loved photography, but haven’t had many chances to practice the hobby. I’ve mostly been in front of the lens, not behind it. So I’m relishing the opportunity to indulge.
For me, it is a bit of an indulgence, but it’s also work. As many of you know, I create content to sell. I have an account with Just For Fans where I post photos and videos. Though a lot of people who consume this type of content don’t care if you take snapshots on your iPhone, I would like the option to create high quality content. Even if I’m only charging a few bucks per month for someone to view it. I want to be able to offer prints for sale. I also want to offer my services to other women in the future who aren’t comfortable with male photographers, or the dreaded man with a camera (MWC) who is ever present online.
I say all of this to say, the direction I want this newsletter to go is a little different than how it started. My intent at the beginning was to share links to my Medium stories and I’ll admit, I’ve dropped off from that. Life, as it’s wont to do, got in the way, a lot. Things have been shaken up more times than I would have liked and rather than wallow in that, I’ve decided to go with that flow and shake things up, too. I will continue to publish on Medium, as it’s the main source of my income and I need and enjoy it. However, I want to provide myself many streams while keeping myself healthy and as happy as possible.
This newsletter will still be about my writing, but I want it to be a little different than what you get on Medium if you follow me there. I want you to feel you’re getting value beyond the $5 a month you pay to the Medium gods. If you’re not a member already and you want to read everything I write there, please consider subscribing under my account. It won’t cost you anything extra, it’s an affiliate link. It just affords me half your subscription fee instead of giving it all to Medium. Pretty good deal.
I was inspired (as I am often) by Mysterious Witt and what she’s doing with her newsletter, Sugar Cubed. Witt writes about her sex struggles and triumphs and is also a former Professional Dominatrix. Like Witt, I talk a lot about my sex life, not just now, but from when it first started, during my first marriage, after, later, as a swinger, as a member of a polyamorous couple, as a sex worker, and so much more. There’s a lot there to work through. I’m not saying I’ve had every kind of sex there is to have, nor am I saying I’ve lived through every kind of scenario where people don’t have sex. But I do have a lot of experience with a lot of different situations that my readers have told me they understand or they want more information about.
So, what I’d like to do is take the conversations out of the comment section. Not for my benefit (though I will get some as well) so much as for yours. For those who indulge in a paid subscription, you’ll be afforded access to reply to me, via email and engage in respectful conversation. You’re also still more than welcome to leave comments on the post here on Substack if you choose. But I’d like to give you the benefit of privacy if you’d like. Only paid subscribers can do this, simply because I don’t have the time, nor the bandwidth to reply to everyone who is a member of this list. My hope is by spending a little coin, it will also cause you to think before you speak and cut down on the replies I get now where people feel they have the right to waste my time with proposals of a sexual nature.
Yes, I talk about sex. Yes, I post photos of a sexual nature. Yes, I talk about having sex. That does not mean I want to discuss having sex with you. It’s nothing personal. That’s just not why I’m here. I’m here to commiserate with those who have been through similar situations to what I write about. To help those who are struggling in their relationships by offering words of advice as to how to communicate better with their partners. Not to get you off because you’re not getting off at home. If that’s what you’re after, that’s a whole different service you can pay for at a much higher price somewhere else. Yes, I offer it. Just not here.
If you feel called to support my work, in whatever iteration you enjoy, please check out the subscription offerings as they’ve changed. Anyone who is already subscribed will reap the benefits at their current level until it’s time for renewal. I hope to see you in the comment section or email soon. If there’s anything you would like to see, like to talk about, please let me know.
I wish you a lovely holiday season, however you celebrate.
xoxo-Demeter