My, My Obscene Comic

In my latest newsletter, I reveal what happened when I set out to post an X-rated comic I created several years ago online: “My, My Obscene Comic.”

Well, maybe I’ll publish the comic in my newsletter, I thought. But then I started to wonder if doing so would get me banned from Substack. “We don’t allow porn or sexually exploitative content on Substack,” read their Content Guidlines, although “We do allow depictions of nudity for artistic, journalistic, or related purposes, as well as erotic literature.” So, I wasn’t sure.

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What the Web Used to Be

There's a first time for everything 💁 The scorpion/cocoon is mine! 🦂💪So much pain...😂 * * * Thank you @onyx_w for showing me an entry that was doable 💕#yesastripper #poledance #poledanceusa #poledancenation #pdscorpion #pdcocoon #xpole #polefit #polefitness #fitness #fitgirl #addictedtopole #strength #flexibility #8inchheels #pleaserheels #pleaserusa #stripperheels

58 Likes, 10 Comments - Christyna Mills (@christynamills) on Instagram: "There's a first time for everything 💁 The scorpion/cocoon is mine! 🦂💪So much pain...😂 * * * Thank..."

It used to be that the internet was a great place for voyeurism. You could peer into people's private lives (blogs), you could find things nobody else had ever seen (rule 34), you could be transported somewhere else through something that felt new and fresh (see: whatever turned you on in the beginning). Now it's harder to do that. Lifestyles are curated brands. Blogs have been eaten by corporations. People have turned into performances. It's filtered, it's curated, it's packaging. For some reason, I feel like I see more intimacy on Instagram now. It's where I find myself wandering when I want to find what I haven't seen already (and, let's face it, for me, that's pretty much everything). Anyway, I came across this video of a woman on a pole today. It's just a flash of her life, her exploring what she can do, and, of course, above all else, it's fascinating because it's beautiful to witness that. 

I can't figure out if it's possible to embed an Instagram video on Squarespace. Watch the video here. 

No.

Pulitzer for Invest. Reporting for anyone willing to dive into this, Austin's real housing crisis: https://t.co/En2qbgyKfb

— Sarah Wambold (@Sah_Raw) March 18, 2016

Rejection, Reconsidered

I get rejected, a lot. These days, actually, you're more likely to get ignored than rejected. Silence is the new no thanks, the muted good luck placing your work elsewhere, the digital version of please keep us in mind in the future. In any case, this week I received a rejection that was, well, different. To wit (in part, it read): "[Redacted] raised worries about the variety of emotional reactions (and toxic feedback) that it might generate from readers." So, the internet lynch mob is working, I guess. Apparently, editors are shuddering from the chilling effects of invisible morons clambering around social media to create a shit storm about whatever something or other that's offended them lately. Too bad. Life is more exciting when you offend a little, when you knock someone hard enough in the jaw that their head turns and they're forced to see things spinning newly.

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GOMI

The only authentic thing on the internet: @gomiblog

— Susannah Breslin (@susannahbreslin) July 14, 2014

Archer Gone Wild

The TV show "Archer" is promoting its new season by posting nude ads to Reddit's GoneWild.

[Gawker]