The folks at Forum UK have decided to be uncommonly awesome and they have granted me permission to post the body inflation article from Forum 42.12 -- so much so that they sent me the files so I didn't even have to scan them. I can only assume it's a promotional effort, so...remember the nice people at the magazine who gave you something for free when they totally didn't have to! They don't make money giving away content for free (there are no ads in this PDF) but hopefully they'll make some friends and fans.
I'm really happy with the article. I mean, all I did was answer questions, but it's a nice, fair overview, with lots of direct quotes from CV & me. Anything people don't understand is therefore our fault! :)
Thanks to our old pal Pixel Prevert for the file prep!
Friday, November 28, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
Forum UK is out...with a tease
The issue of Forum (UK) I talked about last month is out -- Volume 42, Number 12, as stated -- and the "little article" on body inflation is significantly more than little. When I did the email interview, I expected it would be a 250-word piece in the "here's a whole bunch of little articles" up-front section that most mags have. Maybe 300 words, tops. A cartoon, pinup, or illustration, with any luck, to drive the point home.What we got was an eight-page feature and a line on the cover. See it there on her ankle?
Holy shit.
Most of the article is from my e-mail interview with the author, but Critical Volume supplied illustrations as well as added his experiences as a member of the community, how he got into it, stuff like that. It's a very non-judgmental piece; it's more "look at this unusual interest" and not the "look at these sicko freaks" approach we sometimes get.
And if you read the article, you'll see a note about an upcoming project I'm working on, and have been for over a year now. It's pretty ambitious (for me, anyway) and involves several people working together. I expect it to go live in early 2009. I'll stop short of announcing it just yet, but the project is going to happen -- and if you buy the magazine, the project's URL is right there on page 61.
Did I mention Volume 42, Number 12 of Forum is currently on sale at fine British smut purveyors everywhere?
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
The risks of creating quietly
In early 2008, someone in the community that I have known for years and respect greatly kinda hurt my feelings. The gist was that he felt I didn't really deserve to call myself part of the inflatable fetish creative community because I didn't really generate enough content.
He had a point. I'd been the curator a video website, and even though I'd captured and edited (and even morphed) some of the clips that appeared there, I'd chosen to pass the site on to someone else several years ago, in part to chase some new ideas. I was involved in Cyndi Irresistible's voice-over projects, but well, even though I instigated that whole thing, I was just the engineer and editor, not the performer or writer. I don't have the Photoshop skills to do photo morphs. I clearly can't draw. And when it comes to writing stories, my output has been very weak, maybe one new tale every two years. And I've worked on a few projects that were never announced or released -- one was a collaboration with LVKane that I still hope to revisit -- but you know, nobody knows you're creating stuff unless you actually release it, so I don't get any credit for those half-done attempts. Ditto for all the private edits I've done for writers looking for direct feedback on their incomplete stories. A good editor is, by nature, invisible, and doesn't get credit for their work.
So, looking at my visible output over the last few years, his point was, maybe I shouldn't offer criticisms to other people who were actually making new inflation content, since I'd clearly stopped making new stuff myself.
What he didn't know -- and what I didn't feel comfortable saying -- was that I was already spearheading a large project that had taken several months of development and would take several months more. But what if the project got derailed? Multiple people with different schedules are involved. I wouldn't want to have talked up a project that was so far away only to have it dissolve and have his accusations basically come true.
But I think we're out of the woods. A website has been purchased, it's now being designed, and the content to go with it is in development. I'm happy to say that I will soon be talking more freely about this mysterious creative project. And maybe I'll earn that creator title after all.
He had a point. I'd been the curator a video website, and even though I'd captured and edited (and even morphed) some of the clips that appeared there, I'd chosen to pass the site on to someone else several years ago, in part to chase some new ideas. I was involved in Cyndi Irresistible's voice-over projects, but well, even though I instigated that whole thing, I was just the engineer and editor, not the performer or writer. I don't have the Photoshop skills to do photo morphs. I clearly can't draw. And when it comes to writing stories, my output has been very weak, maybe one new tale every two years. And I've worked on a few projects that were never announced or released -- one was a collaboration with LVKane that I still hope to revisit -- but you know, nobody knows you're creating stuff unless you actually release it, so I don't get any credit for those half-done attempts. Ditto for all the private edits I've done for writers looking for direct feedback on their incomplete stories. A good editor is, by nature, invisible, and doesn't get credit for their work.
So, looking at my visible output over the last few years, his point was, maybe I shouldn't offer criticisms to other people who were actually making new inflation content, since I'd clearly stopped making new stuff myself.
What he didn't know -- and what I didn't feel comfortable saying -- was that I was already spearheading a large project that had taken several months of development and would take several months more. But what if the project got derailed? Multiple people with different schedules are involved. I wouldn't want to have talked up a project that was so far away only to have it dissolve and have his accusations basically come true.
But I think we're out of the woods. A website has been purchased, it's now being designed, and the content to go with it is in development. I'm happy to say that I will soon be talking more freely about this mysterious creative project. And maybe I'll earn that creator title after all.
The Bambi Investigation
Remember last post when I suggested that Bambi's lack of response was weird, and might be a sign of the economic hardships? Um, wow, was I wrong -- and I've never been so sorry to hear the truth: Someone reported Bambi to the authorities -- falsely -- for child pornography. Bambi explains.
This is not even remotely amusing. I don't know if someone did it as a prank, as revenge, as a way to kill her business...doesn't matter, really. Actually, it matters in that the motive might lead to the culprit. But I think the authorities are already on that.
Every so often the words "inflation fetish" and "child porn" get lumped together, and it's usually because of the Violet scene in Willy Wonka. "Eew, they're into little girls!" they cry. No, you're wrong; we're not into little girls, we're into the expansion and transformation. You're being disgusted by the completely wrong thing. And we've always worked hard to nip that in the bud when people try to make the connection, since it's so wildly off-base.
But Bambi? I mean, look at the videos. There are no kids in there. There are no suggestions of kids in there. There are no mentions of kids in there. There is nothing at all to do with children, childhood, underagers, NOTHING. All of the fantasies are of an adult nature and they have never even flirted with the things they were accused of doing. (The authorities now know this, as Bambi cooperated and was cleared; the investigation into who is wasting the sheriff department's time is now the focus.) It's a claim without any merit whatsoever -- and it horrifies me to think that someone made that baseless allegation, came close to ruining someone's life (thankfully, she's not giving up or giving in), and might actually get away with it. They are currently looking for the anonymous tipster with the spoofed internet phone call who started it all.
It's not fucking funny. If you know who placed the internet tip call, please, come forward and tell them. This isn't the least bit acceptable. This is not what our community is about.
But at the same time, I want to remind everybody that it's not a witch hunt, Please don't throw around more baseless allegations in the form of hunches; only come forward if you have information that can legitimately help. I'm sure they're already up to their eye teeth in "you know who I bet it was" and "I wouldn't put it past this person" stuff, and I'm sure they have a list of suspects. But what they need is the perpetrator.
If you can help, I implore you to do so.
This is not even remotely amusing. I don't know if someone did it as a prank, as revenge, as a way to kill her business...doesn't matter, really. Actually, it matters in that the motive might lead to the culprit. But I think the authorities are already on that.
Every so often the words "inflation fetish" and "child porn" get lumped together, and it's usually because of the Violet scene in Willy Wonka. "Eew, they're into little girls!" they cry. No, you're wrong; we're not into little girls, we're into the expansion and transformation. You're being disgusted by the completely wrong thing. And we've always worked hard to nip that in the bud when people try to make the connection, since it's so wildly off-base.
But Bambi? I mean, look at the videos. There are no kids in there. There are no suggestions of kids in there. There are no mentions of kids in there. There is nothing at all to do with children, childhood, underagers, NOTHING. All of the fantasies are of an adult nature and they have never even flirted with the things they were accused of doing. (The authorities now know this, as Bambi cooperated and was cleared; the investigation into who is wasting the sheriff department's time is now the focus.) It's a claim without any merit whatsoever -- and it horrifies me to think that someone made that baseless allegation, came close to ruining someone's life (thankfully, she's not giving up or giving in), and might actually get away with it. They are currently looking for the anonymous tipster with the spoofed internet phone call who started it all.
It's not fucking funny. If you know who placed the internet tip call, please, come forward and tell them. This isn't the least bit acceptable. This is not what our community is about.
But at the same time, I want to remind everybody that it's not a witch hunt, Please don't throw around more baseless allegations in the form of hunches; only come forward if you have information that can legitimately help. I'm sure they're already up to their eye teeth in "you know who I bet it was" and "I wouldn't put it past this person" stuff, and I'm sure they have a list of suspects. But what they need is the perpetrator.
If you can help, I implore you to do so.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Inflation, recession, and videos
The economic downturn is a matter of public record now. I figure the first thing to go is luxury purchases like custom pornography. I know I've had to adjust my habits and be pretty critical of how much I'm spending on things that aren't rent and gas. I would not be surprised if we see an upswing in bartering between storytellers and artists and whatnot -- the "let's swap cheap thrills" approach has always been popular, way back to the mid-90s when I got involved. But while people can swap text files or JPGs with just personal effort and basic gear, the original video content in our community isn't something that's usually traded that way -- it's traditionally been pay content, and for good reason, with all the production and editing and props and equipment that goes into making that stuff. So I got curious as to whether that relatively new aspect of the community is established enough to make it through, say, a year or more of hard financial times. I visited both of the main purveyors of inflation video to find...very different situations.
Things look pretty healthy at TaylorMadeClips lately. Every two weeks or so there's been at least one new inflation clip, and usually more than one. They've got a belly prop now and they're using it often; it's not quite as slick as Bambi's gear -- you can see wrinkles in the belly prop in the early inflation stages, so it must be built differently -- but it's a pretty big jump from where Taylor was even a few months ago in regards to inflation vids. The close-up camera work is still a good trick, I think, and it helps sell the scenarios. I hope to see less food-oriented vids (and more logic -- why are Doritos a source of inflation?); I still don't like the mixing of weight gain with inflation. I know some folks don't have a problem with that, and there was certainly imagery and phrasing in those clips (like "Bunny Will Not Burst" and "Roly Poly Irresistible") that made me happy as an inflation fan. I still haven't seen the scene of my dreams from Taylor but I'm not sure what that clip would or should be, so I can't complain. As has been stated many times, they're open to ideas, so maybe I should get off my ass and offer some. But at least they're still in business and showing healthy signs.
Meanwhile, Bambi Blaze's network of sites have been quiet to the point of being worrisome. The clips have been infrequent (one BE clip and one belly clip in two months' time -- and since they appeared on different sites, that means there was an entire billed month with no content in each arena) and worse, no information is coming out as to the source of the delay or an ETA on new content. It's starting to get a little heated in the forums at bambiblazebelly.com. I was asked not to link to her sites so I will respect that, but you can find it yourself if you are curious -- it's the thread called "Goin on a month now...." I hope the economic downturn isn't to blame -- she'd just set up a new studio, which had to be an expense, so I wonder if that turned out to be bad timing. Maybe it's time to consolidate all the subscriptions into one site. No real insight here, as very little has been said. I hope it gets resolved soon. The good news is that there are new props in her videos -- a butt/thigh apparatus that makes for some killer hourglass shapes in the previews -- and that could spark some fun new creative stories. I don't think the slowdown is intentional; I'm betting it's some unfortunate circumstance. One forum post suggests that it may be a computer problem combined with a move into a new house. Certainly plausible, but still -- why not call someone and ask them to post on your behalf? Seems like the customer base just wants to be updated.
[EDIT: Good news. Bambi released a new video on the belly site on November 12. There still wasn't any posting to suggest what the delay was or if anything is wrong. With any luck there isn't, and I hope it's one of many regular releases in the works. But the lack of communication is still weird.]
Meanwhile, I do encourage people to keep circulating new content; if you make or write something original and release it, that can in turn inspire someone else to do the same thing, and the free cycle of smut continues on. I spotted several new stories at BodyInflation.org this weekend, which made me happy. I haven't taken my own advice, mind you, so I have no new stories to share, but I conveniently have excuses. I have been stupid busy with work and a second job, but I've got something unusual in the queue that will hopefully see the light of day next year.
Things look pretty healthy at TaylorMadeClips lately. Every two weeks or so there's been at least one new inflation clip, and usually more than one. They've got a belly prop now and they're using it often; it's not quite as slick as Bambi's gear -- you can see wrinkles in the belly prop in the early inflation stages, so it must be built differently -- but it's a pretty big jump from where Taylor was even a few months ago in regards to inflation vids. The close-up camera work is still a good trick, I think, and it helps sell the scenarios. I hope to see less food-oriented vids (and more logic -- why are Doritos a source of inflation?); I still don't like the mixing of weight gain with inflation. I know some folks don't have a problem with that, and there was certainly imagery and phrasing in those clips (like "Bunny Will Not Burst" and "Roly Poly Irresistible") that made me happy as an inflation fan. I still haven't seen the scene of my dreams from Taylor but I'm not sure what that clip would or should be, so I can't complain. As has been stated many times, they're open to ideas, so maybe I should get off my ass and offer some. But at least they're still in business and showing healthy signs.
Meanwhile, Bambi Blaze's network of sites have been quiet to the point of being worrisome. The clips have been infrequent (one BE clip and one belly clip in two months' time -- and since they appeared on different sites, that means there was an entire billed month with no content in each arena) and worse, no information is coming out as to the source of the delay or an ETA on new content. It's starting to get a little heated in the forums at bambiblazebelly.com. I was asked not to link to her sites so I will respect that, but you can find it yourself if you are curious -- it's the thread called "Goin on a month now...." I hope the economic downturn isn't to blame -- she'd just set up a new studio, which had to be an expense, so I wonder if that turned out to be bad timing. Maybe it's time to consolidate all the subscriptions into one site. No real insight here, as very little has been said. I hope it gets resolved soon. The good news is that there are new props in her videos -- a butt/thigh apparatus that makes for some killer hourglass shapes in the previews -- and that could spark some fun new creative stories. I don't think the slowdown is intentional; I'm betting it's some unfortunate circumstance. One forum post suggests that it may be a computer problem combined with a move into a new house. Certainly plausible, but still -- why not call someone and ask them to post on your behalf? Seems like the customer base just wants to be updated.
[EDIT: Good news. Bambi released a new video on the belly site on November 12. There still wasn't any posting to suggest what the delay was or if anything is wrong. With any luck there isn't, and I hope it's one of many regular releases in the works. But the lack of communication is still weird.]
Meanwhile, I do encourage people to keep circulating new content; if you make or write something original and release it, that can in turn inspire someone else to do the same thing, and the free cycle of smut continues on. I spotted several new stories at BodyInflation.org this weekend, which made me happy. I haven't taken my own advice, mind you, so I have no new stories to share, but I conveniently have excuses. I have been stupid busy with work and a second job, but I've got something unusual in the queue that will hopefully see the light of day next year.
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