When I was 16 years old, I came across a man selling old science fiction and fantasy paperbacks, in the middle of the street. I looked through his collection and found a book by one John Norman, Assassins of Gor. It seemed a hefty read and for less than a dollar, my 16-year-old self was quite happy to give it a try. What followed was a surprise awakening of my own, unrealized and already thoroughly suppressed, dominant sexuality. I realized I very much liked the idea of beautiful, naked slave girls crammed into cages, looking up at me with collars stamped with my name around their throats, and my brand on their lovely, bare thighs. I had, for better or worse, become a fan of all things Gor and Gorean.

Ever since, I’ve began writing Gorean style fiction. Just little stories here and there of beautiful, young women being captured, broken, and completely sexually dominated. It was just something I did on the side until a few years ago, when I began writing Gorean style fiction and putting it up on online.

Several years and 27 titles later, it has been my delight and privilege to write for the reading pleasure of many other fans of Gorean style writing. I get questions every so often about how I write these books, so I thought it about time that I wrote a little guide for authors who would like to try their hand at this, and for the enjoyment of Gorean readers, as well.

What follows here is the first of a series of articles on how to write Gorean style fiction. These are just my observations. There are no set rules, and the best work is an experimentation where the writer will follow their story, wherever it goes. Not everyone will follow, but some will, and they will appreciate that you shared it with them.

 What is a Gorean Book?

H. P. Lovecraft had such an impact on horror that he created a sub genre, Other writers, both his contemporaries and those who came after, emulated his work (with mixed results) produce Lovecraftian writing, themselves. It has been many decades since Arkham Press’s reprints of his work revitalized horror writing. Time enough that we now also refer to the sub genre as not only ‘Lovcraftian,’ but also ‘Cosmic Horror.’ There has been time and space enough for a generic label to emerge.

That generic label has yet to come to Gorean writing. How else does one describe John Norman’s erotic, Sword and Sandals fantasy writing? It has no antecedents (though Edgar Rice Burroughs and Robert E Howard were casting about in the same room). It has very few successors. Until such a date that Gorean fiction has established itself securely across a range of authors and many works, it is best to call it simply, “Gorean.”

What, then, is a "Gorean" book?

A Gorean work is about completely dominating sex slavery, in a setting where that taboo has been completely normalized. It is a mental playground where a writer (and by invitation, a reader) is completely free to do anything they like, to the sexual conquests of their characters.

This complete freedom to explore, is important. The domination sexual kink is specifically about dominating sex slavery. It is not something a writer or readers can discuss with non-fans! It is the most guilty of taboos; a Gorean book must then serve as a an outlet for its exploration.

It may seem at first that Gorean books are really just about BDSM. However, while the two may look similar, BDSM it is very much a different creature. It refers to a specific and careful set of guidelines, knowledge, and safety practices between consenting adults that guarantees the power and safety of the submissive. It is "real world," and as such is tempered by the considerations and values of our time, as much as any other activity is. That is hardly the same thing as a sexual kink about completely dominating, sex slavery. There is no room for "real-world" examination of such a thing, and those drawn to Gorean stories would probably be quite disturbed by anyone who did tried it in real life, like a computer gamer on meeting an actual mass murderer. The Gorean kink can have practitioners but never those practiced upon.

As such, the three key components of a Gorean book, game, or other such creative output are:

• -Sex slavery.

• -The unfettered exercise of sexual domination.

• -A world where these two are completely normalized

Supporting these must be a setting where Gorean sex slavery makes sense, and storylines that must be about, or at least largely feature, completely dominating sex slavery.

 Why Write (or Read) Gorean Style Books At All?

Why play an open world video game where you can kill without any moral or otherwise meaningful consequences? Because it is deeply enjoyable. Playing Grand Theft Auto doesn't make you a murderer, or any more likely to be one. If anything, the opposite is true.

It is the same with Gorean writing. It is deeply enjoyable. It doesn't make you a slave-trading predator. Gorean works are fun, safe, sexual explorations that no one should get hung up about. The bulk of Amazon Kindle sales are by white, middle-American women reading stories about women cuckolding their husbands to have sex with billionaires, dinosaurs, or billionaire dinosaurs. There is nothing wrong with this. It is a sexual kink and perfectly natural. So, stop feeling bad about getting turned on at the idea of a beautiful young slave on their hands and knees at your feet, kissing them and calling you master. You are Gorean! Happy reading :-) .

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