Erotica

If there’s one thing most people love, it’s great sex, even in this time of virtual sex, phone sex, and cybersex. Many people also enjoy reading good, hot, provocative erotica, stories that give them a steamy sensual lift, a natural buzz, very similar to that giddy feeling that comes with finding a new lover. Recently, a guest on one of the popular cable TV shows was discussing why literary erotica was reaching a wider audience, exceeding the expectations of both writers and publishers alike. He said that there was only one 
explanation: the stories are sexy, titillating, and, most of all, safe at a time when sex can be hazardous to one’s health. There was plenty of 
anecdotal evidence, the guest added, that well-written erotica can lower inhibitions, increase libido, delay ejaculation, prolong orgasm and deepen intimacy. While a good erotic tale will never be a substitute for candlelight wooing or true romance, no one can deny its potent entertainment value.

There is a long history of sex and sensuality in the work of male African American writers who have frequently used these themes to celebrate their passions, manhood, and that most human of impulses. In the past, some of the male writers used sex in their proud, courageous writing as another mode of protest against political, social and cultural injustices. Along the way, that sense of defiance can be seen in the soaring prose of writers such as Jean Toomer, Langston Hughes, Richard Wright, William Gardner Smith, James Baldwin, and Chester Himes, all of who sought to depict their own notion of sexuality and individuality. They wrote daring, challenging novels, featuring aspects of love, desire, and intimacy that defied the traditional white sexual myths and stereotypes that became ingrained in the popular culture after the release of D. W. Griffith’s incendiary film, Birth Of A Nation in 1915. No longer were black men going to ignore or blindly accept the lies and fantasies of others concerning their sexuality of morality.

This book does not co-sign those tainted, denigrating images of black male sexuality as well, but seeks to provide the reader with a few hours of fantasy, escape, and fun. These stories, while erotic and arousing, provide another opportunity to view the sexuality of our men from different vantage points, often from angles and approaches not usually seen in our literature. Editing this book, I guess for me, was another way of helping to set the record straight. As conceived, After Hours explores a wide range of black sexuality above and beyond the familiar obscene concepts of the oversexed black stud and predatory brute, offering a fresh glimpse at the modern African American man who is sensitive, alert, enterprising, and ready to take care of business in the arena of love, sex and moral responsibility. Since this is not a religious primer or a New Age treatise on “The Good Black Man in Affairs of the Heart and the Flesh,” there is a diverse look about the brothers, fathers and lovers here, with a few guys who would be classified as lusty, naughty, or otherwise “politically incorrect.” That is ok, however, because it is important to represent the wide spectrum of black men, fully developed and three-dimensional, and while “nice guys” have their place, they can often be seen as boring, nerdy, luckless in love, and one-dimensional in the manner in which they’re depicted in current literature. We make no judgments. With a few exceptions, there is something for almost everyone here, with some exceptions. 

And although some of the usual elements of erotica are present, every effort was made to assemble a multitude of voices, a strong collective view of the contemporary Black man and his carnal appetites that most African American men and women could immediately recognize and appreciate. The goal was to find the right mix of narrative styles, talent and vision to put together a collection that would be groundbreaking, challenging, and sensually satisfying. Whether it’s unbridled lust, full-tilt erotic love, self-affirmation or self-destructive obsession, these issues are examined in insightful, frank terms. Ultimately, the stories making the final cut were chosen for the art and style of the story told, the sexual heat of the scenes, and the universality of the themes and experience presented.

Every book starts with some kind of aesthetic guideline. Returning to that age-old argument about the differences between erotica and pornography, I sought out articles and books that discussed this issue clearly, thoroughly, and without bias. Since I worked during the early 1980s at the American offices of the French skin mag, Oui”, as a editor writing sexual fantasies for their letter section, I possessed some idea of where the line of demarcation between the two genres existed. What an educational experience that was! Frequently in current books and publications, that line becomes blurred and manipulated.

One article, a 1992 New York Newsday interview with Miriam DaCosta-Willis, one of the editors of the pioneering black erotic collection, “Erotique Noire,” provided me with some critical definitions and guidelines for this project. Asked about the boundary between erotica and pornography, she replied: “The difference between erotica and pornography is the difference between celebratory and masturbatory sex. I see pornography as being very carnal and I see erotica as being not only physical, but also spiritual, intellectual and cerebral. I also see erotica as being high art and pornography as being obscene art. Pornography objectifies the individual, whereas erotica bring two people together. You’re participating in a rite of union. One is commercial, one artistic.” 

Employing those words and remembering some of the works from Richard Wright, James Baldwin, Cecil Brown, and Chester Himes, I plowed ahead through the stack of submissions, looking for clues to the complex, mysterious black male sexual psyche in the new millennium. While we as a community remain conservative, very moral in many ways and deeply religious, there are stirrings of a fresh, stripped-down sensibility that runs counter to Old School chauvinistic notions of masculinity and sexuality. It’s something that has not fully reared its head totally in the media, films, books and TV shows, but its presence cannot be denied. Apart from the stereotypical images in gangsta rap videos and buppie frat flicks, there is something new and daring in how we as black men view ourselves as males and as sexual beings, in how we see our women and our collective roles in the larger world. The dialogue about love, intimacy and responsibility is increasing in frequency and substance in our community. And it’s about time!

In After Hours, you meet brothers who offer for your nocturnal reading enjoyment a juicy gathering of reflective stories, lusty stories, funny stories, fantastic stories – all stylist written sexual adventures that will entertain and excite, inform and ignite. Some are within normal limits while others sail over the top. Opening the collection is a short gem, “Cultural Relativity” by National Book Award winner and MacArthur Fellow Charles Johnson, a story that tantalizes with a strong sense of anticipation much like two teenagers on a first date, their faces close, but afraid to give into the magnetic pull of passion. While it may lack the overt eroticism of some other entries, it is a taut, teasing display of ideas and imagination in its updated version of “The Frog Prince” tale. The next excursion into sexuality, “Twisted” by Jervey Tervalon, immediately raises the bar quite high for kinky erotic expression and re-defines the term, “coupling” with a tale that explores the outer boundaries of sexual roles. In “Once Upon A Time: an excerpt from the novel, “Rest for the Weary,” noted novelist and educator Arthur Flowers adds a little hoodoo flava in his modern fable of a conjureman trying to seduce a formidable female love interest in the Crescent City. Up-and-coming novelist Brian Peterson puts a hot, quirky spin on love and desire between two horny yet cautious young black professionals in his fast-paced story, “1-800-Connect.”

The thrills and moans continue with a gorgeous mystery woman and a randy Romeo amid the sandy beaches and towering palms of exotic Hawaii in Earl Sewell’s “Rock Me Baby.” Fans of veteran noir writer Cole Riley will not be disappointed with his latest sizzling yarn of torrid Mexican nights, bad choices and, moist sheets, “If It Makes You Happy.” Kenji Jasper, author of the critically acclaimed novel, Dark, revisits the arty boho scene in “Up,” a story of an ambitious poet who wants the big time and all its sensual perks. The question of what to do when the sexual charge runs low in an otherwise solid marriage is answered in a bitof erotic trickery laced with sensory treats from the pen of Eric E. Pete, “Cayenne.” Journalist-novelist Curtis Bunn contributes one of the collection’s true gems with his insightful recounting of a couple’s ravenous thirst for passion and time away from the children in “Home Alone,” not to be confused with the dull movie with the mop-topped Culkin kid. If Prince can blend the sacred and secular, so can Tracy Grant, the author of the popular novel, Hellified, who pulls no punches in his tale of sanctified sexual play among the holy and the fallen, “The Apostle Charles.”

Laughs, loads of them, compete with the unrelenting sex romps of Brian Egleston’s hilarious “Wallbanging,” his chronicle of a sex-crazed American couple bent on enjoying one more session of love on their tour schedule at the Great Wall, even if it gets them in trouble with Chinese authorities. Lust and humor also play a big part in the legendary John A. Williams’s excerpted story, “Odell,” as a quiet, well-meaning guy discovers the busty woman of his dreams is a TV junkie during a frustrating evening at home. Sexual obsession can only end badly for a buppie with a mind-numbing attraction for a pretty TV talking head in Kalamu Ya Salaam’s timely “The Roses Are Beautiful, But The Thorns Are So Sharp.” In “The Rumor,” Alexs D. Pate uses a dash of magic realism to dispel the complaints of naysayers in a black community about the power of love and physical bliss. The trials and travails of an African American man seeking to lose his virginity in his late twenties with mixed results is the subject of horror writer Brandon Massey’s “The Question.” A woman celebrates the 15th year of an ongoing affair with her energetic lover in a public display of lust in Bobby Adams’s (delete – provocative) “Where Strangers Meet.” Clarence Major, a leading African American wordsmith and one of the early pioneers of black erotica, offers a sensational tour-de-farce in a sexual stream-of-consciousness hymn to oral gratification, “Anita,” excerpted from his groundbreaking 1969 Olympia Press classic novel, All Night Visitors. Gary Phillips, the creator of the popular Ivan Monk PI series and the Martha Chainey mystery novels, contributes a very hot yet bizarre story of anything-goes-sex, black mail and murder in a noir caper, “Wild Thang.” For fans of the Monk stories, you’ve never seen the sleuth like this before. Closing the collection is Colin Channer’s lyrical yet highly erotic meditation, “Revolution,” the story of an elderly white author surreal infatuation and ruthless pursuit of the beautiful mistress of reggae legend, Bob Marley.

Erotica, especially black erotica, can hold a mirror to the mores and morals of a people, a culture, or a generation. While reading After Hours, you may find yourself discovering some new personal and sexual truths between the moans and aftershocks produced by the words and images. It’s alright to think, dream, and fantasize about these things. But the bottom line here is that it is better to live, love and enjoy all that life offers. Come, read, and enjoy what a few gifted black men have to say about love, sex, and intimacy! Have fun! - Robert Fleming