I had NO clue that that was going to happen. None. And boy, was I shocked afterwards, to say the least. I’ve been a dancer most of my life, and am used to partnering and all that nice stuff, but WOW! that even surprised me.

At this point, I would say that EC didn’t do due diligence when they were hiring. I mean, these guys are Chippendale dancers – they’re going to do their Chip thing, and that’s that. I was laughing my butt off during the whole floor show because it seemed so hokey (I taped parts, too, so my friends at home could share in the mirth). The floor thing with the military stuff is part of the normal Chip show, and it’s just as silly there.

If someone was groped, or is in the future – please, PLEASE do something about it. No one should have their space violated in such a manner. The grope-ee should be reprimanded. End of story. I know that it’s hard to do sometimes, because I’ve had to do it several times in my life starting when I was still in middle school. You should tell someone.

I never saw elevator sex, not at all. Eeek! I don’t think I’d want to. I did, however, puzzle out strangeness and bad behavior from some guys that WEREN’T EC models at all. There was no group that was immune.

As for the rest – I’m new to the industry as a writer, but am a longtime reader, and I see so many signs that the romance industry (I’m calling it RI from now on) is splitting into parties. It almost reminds me of politics. There’s the conservative end, and the more liberal end. The new late Gen Xers/Gen Y authors have seen and experienced way different things in professional arenas than others before may have seen. I worked for an international touring performance group that frequently hosts micro erotic fiction contests in their newsletters and has bodypainted models at their parties. Corporate fetes in NYC have bikini/brief wearing go-gos at them, and no one bats an eye. These businesses do billions of dollars in trade a year, and aren’t in the porn industry.

Call it lax morals, or call it evolution. The boundary lines are changing, and there will be many that stand there and think that things are just flailing out of control. They’re not. For each author that loves RWA and it’s more formal environs, there is one that thinks RWA is absolutely the most boring thing ever, and can’t wait to get to RT. There’s not one view that’s more right than another, but one side will eventually win out and render the other obsolete or outmoded. Or, a whole other industry could be born, and there could just be wars between the sides. I think that’s what has happened, and it makes me sad.

I don’t think you guys are prudes. You have a different view. Both schools of thoughts are valid, but can there be a meeting point in the middle, without people judging others as being low, slutty, lacking in morals or breeding, or just plain bad?

I’ve seen men and women changing partners and going to each others’ rooms in the middle of the night to swap. I saw key parties and men groping women in the elevators left and right. And THESE were supposed to be good, honest, decent, lawabiding men? Yeah, right. Away from home and the watchful eye of their communities, they became a different animal altogether.

How does swapping partners make them non-lawabiding or indecent or NOT good? Honesty I can’t speak for, becuase I have no idea what they were telling their partners.
What people do in their bedrooms is between them and their partner(s). If I want to read erotic romance, that’s for me to decide.

But how does it equate with a party that obviously got a little out of hand?

I’m so sorry your sister was injured so badly, but yes — thankful she’s alive. My thoughts are with you.

MyraLuz, I wasn’t in PA so I certainly can’t speak to anything that took place there — but I want to say I had no agenda in sharing my unpleasant RT experience here at Dear Author, and even hesitated after I counted on my fingers and realized the event took place eight years ago. The experience has remained pretty fresh in my mind. But I’d seen several people asking for people to come forward and share real experiences rather than heresay or rumors, and so I felt it was important that I do so. People should want to hear the truth, rather than rumors. Truth should also bring both “sides” closer together, rather than divide them further, and I think overall, that’s happened here. I appreciate Ms. Stacy and her post.

I’ve been gone from here because my sister was almost killed in a car accident. 9 broken ribs, a broken sternum, a fractured eye socket, broken nose, and various (bad) cuts and bruises everywhere. I just got to bring her home (to my house) and I’m still stunned that she survived.

I guess I now have much more important things to worry about than being called a liar, or being accused of blowing things out of proportion.

Lori

I think it’s about time the subtleties and diversities of each subgenre is differentiated in the overall marketing approach. Event organisers, as much as authors, publishers, and us readers (the consumers) have to play our parts in shaping the industry. I applaud you, Jane, for speaking out.