Academic Whores and Publishing Pimps by Mark John Isola

It is difficult to express the anxiety that accompanied the writing of this article. I found myself rewriting it several times, and I wondered if I would even submit it. The reasons behind my concerns are numerous, but they are sufficiently represented by a recent headline from Adult Video News, which reported the fate of a text based erotic web site: “Red Rose Stories Shutdown by FBI.” What does the closure of this text based web site have to do with me? Everything, for not only do I believe in free speech, I also believe in free erections. I represent the silent majority of Americans, whose presence can be detected behind every dollar that constitutes America’s porn industry, who appreciate erotic and pornographic material. Not only do I enjoy erotica, I also produce it. I write erotic fiction and manage an erotic website, and over the past several years, while pursuing a graduate degree, I have managed some publishing success. My fiction enjoys an online reading community of over eight thousand readers a month, and I can only imagine my readership is nearly as large via my print publications. Before you review my byline and think about your favorite bookmarks and anthologies, let me assure you, you do not know me, or you might, but you will not recognize me under my this—my academic identity. Given the recent events surrounding the closure of Red Rose and the growing determination of the Bush administration to create the Meese Report sequel, the decision to write this article from my academic perspective was simply made. It is safer to be an academic than it is to be an erotica writer. Think about it—would you rather face a tenure committee or the FBI? Sure, they will both probably be comprised of men in black, but one is decidedly more likely to be carrying a gun. Herein lies the difference Louis Althusser posited between an ideological and a repressive state apparatus. more..