Archive for 2006

I’m having a bad time o’ the month. The upcoming weeks are so busy that I suppose I’m happy to have it now, but I don’t feel particularly thrilled.

I guess I haven’t really posted much here recently. The last month has been mosting dealing with stuff I’d rather not. I’m blessed to have some really wonderful supportive people around me, but sometimes some of this stuff is hard to talk about, hard to experience.

Looks like Forrest Black opened a can of worms this morning, but can’t say as I blame him.

I used to always speak my mind, but I’m so tired of the kneejerk interweb response where most people only say something to get something, so everyone always assumes ulterior motives. It is all such bullshit. Sometimes it seems like people take opinions from people more seriously when those people hide their qualifications and affiliations. It is all so backwards. I am so weary of staying silent while my culture is strip-mined. Doesn’t anybody just, you know, believe in anything for real any more? Or was I always just a chump for being a true believer and nobody else ever had any faith or sincerity?

During the immigration brouhaha protests, my car got vandalized. Not badly. But it seemed really unjust. I believe in immigration. I believe the melting pot is what made this country great. I believe that, if we don’t mean what it says on the Statue of Liberty, we should sandblast those beautiful words off of it.

Really, what I’m trying to say is, how dare the world continue spinning on its axis while someone I love battles cancer. Did you know that, after many surgeries, it is necessary to wear a drain in the wound, so that fluids do not build up and impede healing?

Did it have hands? Did it have a face? Yes? Then it wasn’t us!

I like to support indie ventures by creative people. I have a long history of hooking up new publications and such, because I feel like that gives back to the community. The downside of helping new projects is that sometimes the people running them have no track record, so it becomes difficult to separate the good and earnest people working uphill from the profiteering scumbags looking for free labor.

So here is the situation:

New magazine has done a sort of sample issue, but no real issues have come out yet. A guy who claims to speak for the mag asks me for a variety of images with very particular specifications. I have a nice chat with the guy and decide to hook him up. He keeps asking to look at more pictures and kind of seeming to want the opposite of what he described. I finally point this inconsistency out and he tells me he is ranked by some other editor who vehemently disagrees with him on most points. So he is basically giving me the excuse that he has to run it through corporate and we are talking about a small zine here. I tell him he needs to put me with the decision-maker then, so I can supply what that person wants and stop going around in circles and using up my resources scanning and printing film just because he feels like looking at my photos.

The upshot is that they take up more of my time going over image after image than ANY other magazine has ever done for a layout that size. One of the reasons magazines love me is because I am really efficient and fast when editing photos. I’ve had many hundreds of pages of my work published and I mean editing in the traditional sense i.e. picking the right images for an article or other specific need. I offered this zine first run images to their specifications. They finally pick out all previously published images which meet almost none of their specs and ask if they can use those. I let them. For free.

Now, my standard deal with people who model for me is that I like to give them a copy of any magazine an image I’ve shot of them appears in editorially. This means that I always request copies of any magazine my work is going to appear in. On a few rare occasions when magazines did not send me copies, or more commonly did not send enough, I have purchased copies for myself and the models, but that is not an option for this zine as it does not have newsstand circulation. It appears that they have done a more interesting layout with their weird photo selects than I expected, so I’m looking forward to seeing the magazine.

So supposedly this magazine comes out. They certainly make a big deal of sending out PR getting to attach my name and Forrest Black’s to the issue. Which is fine. Except then they try to coerce me into going to some release party for the magazine out in the boonies, a party they will not even be at. They tell me there will be copies of the magazine at this club, if I go. I enjoy doing charity work for the scene, so I make time for it, but I’m really really busy. And I just kind of think magazines should send copies to contributors.

So weeks go by and no magazines show up, but the editor says she has given copies to a couple of the people who appeared in it. She asks me if I want to meet up with some random person in Los Angeles to get copies. I’m kind of stunned that she is trying to waste more of my time, when the Post Office is not exactly hard to use to send a magazine from Point A to Point B, but it is moot because the person she says is in Los Angeles never contacts me.

So, if I believe the magazine came out when they said it did, a couple of months have gone by without the magazine sending me copies for me or for Forrest or for the models. I send reminders via email, MySpace, and AIM. Here is my most recent AIM to the guy who initially contacted me:

Me: heya, do you have any idea what the holdup is on getting contributors copies of [Magazine Name Censored]?
Me: You seemed cool when we chatted before, so I’m disappointed to not have even heard from you. If the magazine came out when said, then it is crazy for featured models and photographers who didn’t get paid or anything to not have copies yet. That is such a small thing to ask and it makes me look bad when I can’t deliver copies to the people in my photographs.
[Name from Zine Censored] signed off at 11:47:02 PM.

So what would you all make of this? How should I react?

Just posted this in a community. Baddies better watch out for Dana DeArmond and the Blue Blood militia! Makeup by Alex LaMarsh. Photo of course by Forrest Black and yours truly.

Dana DeArmond on BlueBlood.com is at this link.

This is what Morrigan Hel looks like when she is on her way to the airport. At least it is when Forrest Black and I hang out with her. More on BlueBlood.com or Blue Blood’s GothicSluts.com

Additional naughtier NSFW free example from the set (which is actually my favorite of this series) at this link

Shots Forrest Black and I did of the effervescently delightful Vima already appeared on the Blue Blood Boutique and in our Marquis pages, but we just posted the first full set of her to BlueBlood.com. I bet this huge set ends up being the first of many because we had a great time shooting these and of course you can see how great the results are.

Additional NSFW shot at this link and of course the whole series appears on BlueBlood.com.

I just posted this shot from the Blue Blood Boutique in a community, but I figured my friends deserved to see it too. Trundle on over to the Boutique site for more viewing goodness. Set of this hottie posting to BlueBlood.com soon.

You can check out Voltaire’s new hair on her profile page at BlueBlood.com, but please be advised that link is erotic and NSFW.

You can also register at BlueBlood.net for free and tell Voltaire what color you would like to see her hair next, as she is taking suggestions at:
http://www.blueblood.net/boards/showthread.php?p=109960!

Image from most recent set posted to BlueBlood.com. I love how this turned out and it was really fun to create.

Additional NSFW sample image at this link.

BLUEBLOOD NEWSLETTER:
– BlueBlood.com Adds Couples Section
– Blue Blood Boutique Adds Bears & Free Photo Galleries
– Sugar Click Reviews BlueBlood.com
– JaxonJagonov Reviews BlueBlood.com
– Marquis 36 and 37
– Blue Blood Launches Popular MySpace Profile
– Fatal Beauties Launches
– Call For Writing Submissions
– Model, Designer, Event Promoter calls for Portland, DC/Baltimore, Atlanta, New Orleans
– Blue Blood Gives Back to the Community
– Contact Reminder: Jps.Net E-Mails Discontinued, West Hollywood Snail

BLUEBLOOD.COM COUPLES SECTION LAUNCHES
http://www.blueblood.com/
There is now a series of exclusive interactive photo sets on BlueBlood.com, featuring real people who are actually into each other. Amelia G says in the tour, “The original Blue Blood print magazine erotic pictorials featured only interactive sets of people who would actually have sex in real life and they were photographed doing whatever they really liked to do when the camera was not there. A significant percentage of the people who posed were either married or living together at the time or later tied the knot. None of us did it for the money at the time. It was about celebrating ourselves, our choices, our sexuality, our lives. People often ask me if I shoot softcore or hardcore. I suppose Forrest and I started off shooting interactive couples and later shot a higher proportion of pinup work. But, to me, the terminology is meaningless. There is only true and beautiful versus false and ugly. Blue Blood has always been about rejecting the notion that being artistic or different somehow means you are not entitled to the rewards of the larger society. Just because you have an unusual haircut does not mean you are not entitled to love. You deserve the same love as anyone. And maybe a bit kinkier sex.”

BLUE BLOOD BOUTIQUE ADDS BEARS & FREE PHOTO GALLERIES
http://www.bluebloodboutique.com/
The Blue Blood Boutique has recently added the only thing that could be more cuddly than a Blue Blood hoodie – a Blue Blood teddy bear! The adorable lavender Blue Blood cuddly bear is made of soft, shaggy chenille which feels so nice to snuggle up with. The little hands and feet of the bear are miniature beanbag style, so it is more fun to play with the bear. The bear has a black T-shirt just like you and it is proudly emblazoned with the Blue Blood skull logo in silver metallic paint. Also, check out the free galleries of Chaotika, Sun Karma, funkatron, junkprincess, Omen, and Alexa Hex, and more on the way. If you’ve got shots of yourself in Blue Blood gear, send them on it and you could appear on the Boutique site!

SUGAR CLICK REVIEWS BLUEBLOOD.COM
http://www.blueblood.com/
http://www.blueblood.net/boards/showthread.php?t=6055
http://sugarclick.com/2006/03/16/blue-blood/
The extremely awesome hot writer Audacia Ray reviewed BlueBlood.com for hot new blog SugarClick. She called Blue Blood “Hands-down, the premier site for Gothic pin-ups” and went on to say, “Amelia G and Forrest Black have been steadily building their gothic porn empire since the print magazine Blue Blood was launched in 1992. BlueBlood.com is like the granpappy of all goth porn – it houses Barely Evil, Gothic Sluts and Rubber Dollies, which combined have tens of thousands of pictures of gothic hotties. The site also features up-to-date writings on Gothic subculture and other topics, plus a massive archive of the same . . . And the girls. Sigh. Forget spitting on it – these girls will get naked on your grave, or for that matter, Johnny Ramone’s grave . . . Blue Blood’s volume and quality of both models and photographs cannot be beat. Add that to the fact that the site is still run the way it was in the beginning and hasn’t sold out to any big-bucks temptations . . . The photos are typically nice and big so you can get up close and personal, and while some models stay quite chaste, others show you the goods . . .”

JAXONJAGONOV REVIEWS BLUEBLOOD.COM
http://www.blueblood.com/
http://www.blueblood.net/boards/showthread.php?t=6160
http://www.jaxonjaganov.com/reviews/BlueBlood.php
Some of what Jaxon Jaganov had to say about BlueBlood.com was: “It’s a great deal that gets my highest recommendation … For a long time now – over a decade – Amelia and Forrest have been steadily producing print mags and websites devoted to covering the goth/fetish/whatever-you-want-to-call-it scene and they’ve done it with the heartfelt authenticity of real fans. Their models are the real thing too – they’re tough punk babes, slinky gothic sirens and in general, they’re psycho women who’d be all too happy to take your poser face and ram it through a pane of glass. No suburban mallrats here. This is the real shit – lowbrow punk-goth porn royalty for life … Membership gets you access to one of the best collections of alt-goth-punk-fetish photographs on the web at a great price compared to other softcore photo sites and erotic art photo sites.”

MARQUIS #36 & #37
http://www.blueblood.net/boards/showthread.php?t=5568
http://www.blueblood.net/boards/showthread.php?t=6129
You need to hit the newsstand quickly if you want to get one of the last copies available of #36 before #37 hits the stands. For Marquis #36, Amelia G wrote in-depth profiles of Jax, Sun Karma, Toxic Toons, and the wild Zodiac Party. Big in America features beautiful Forrest Black and Amelia G-lensed photos of Jax, Sun Karma, Scar 13, Dana Dark, and Masuimi Max. Marquis #37 will feature Amelia G’s writing about such seemingly disparate topics Kristen Tercek’s plushes and Mistress Abigail De’Ath, as well as hot newcomers Eva Victoria and Vima, and designers Anisse and Venus Prototype. Scar 13 modeled Tercek’s Creature from the Black Lagoon plush and built a cool swamp set for it, just because Amelia really wanted a swamp. Awesome.

BLUE BLOOD LAUNCHES POPULAR MYSPACE PROFILE
http://www.blueblood.com/ms/
http://www.myspace.com/54646620
Although many members of the Blue Blood crew have had MySpace profiles since the beginning, Blue Blood as an entity never did . . . until a couple of weeks ago. The profile already has more than 15,000 friends. Thanks to everyone who already added the Blue Blood profile and, if you are on MySpace, please check it out.

FATAL BEAUTIES LAUNCHES
http://www.fatal-beauties.com
Blue Blood’s Forrest Black just finished up the kickass sexy tour for the newly launched Fatal-Beauties.com. Fatal-Beauties features high end artistic and sexy photography and a most impressive members area feature set, including blogs and forums and selecting your favorite artwork. This site is stocked full of sensual underground alternababes. Photo sets include all sorts of interesting settings and unusual and creative lighting. If you like cute tattooed girls from industrial towns, you will definitely like Fatal-Beauties.com.

CALL FOR WRITING SUBMISSIONS
There are once again opportunities for additional writers with excellent skills and lively personal styles. If you are an experienced writer and would like to do a column or occasional feature for Blue Blood, please email submit@blueblood.net with information on your past experience and areas of expertise and pitches for specific articles you might like to write. Blue Blood is looking for entertainment pieces for a mature but not necessarily adult audience. Subject of interest include music, culture, glam, gothic, gothindustrial, deathrock, psychobilly, punk, street fashion, fetish fashion, science fiction, noir, clublife, scene reports, events, conventions, rpgs, horror, etc. Please use the subject line WRITING PITCH for priority filtering to the right reader.

MODEL, DESIGNER, EVENT PROMOTER CALLS FOR PORTLAND, DC/BALTIMORE, ATLANTA, NEW ORLEANS
Travel season is coming up again and that means Blue Blood will be on the road, kicking ass and taking pictures. Blue Blood would like to hear from interesting local clothing designers and shops who are interested in getting product placement and press coverage. Event promoters in those areas are also invited to contact Blue Blood for possible sponsorships and media exposure. Among other things, Blue Blood’s Forrest Black and Amelia G are shooting for http://www.blueblood.com and http://www.bluebloodboutique.com and Marquis. Prospective models ideally are interested in both fashion and nude modeling. Models must be rockin’ one or more of the following looks: gothic, punk, fetish, good tattoos, other damn weirdo individual. Models are ideally comfortable modeling at least topless and must be clear on what your personal limits are. For models, these are mostly either paid gigs or content trade gigs if you have your own site. Please write to submit@BlueBlood.net and send a picture(s) of yourself or a link to a picture(s) along with what magazines and web sites you are most interested in appearing in, what levels of nudity and/or explicit actitivy you are comfortable with/interested in doing on camera, and say which city you are convenient to and whether you have your own site. Photos do not have to be professionally shot and do not have to be nude even if you are applying for nude work. They may not, however, feature a blurry webcam photo and a snapshot with heavy Photoshop filters applied. If you submitted to sadistintern@blueblood.net, please resubmit. Blue Blood receives hundreds of model submissions a week and it will not be possible to go through all of them, especially once on the road, so please put the city name and MODEL SUBMISSION in the subject, so your message will be treated as priority when the Blue Blood crew is in your city.
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REPOST THIS MODEL CALL TO MODEL LISTS, YAHOO GROUPS, BOARDS ETC.

BLUE BLOOD GIVES BACK TO THE COMMUNITY
If you are scraping to keep a site going which supports the scene, Blue Blood may be able to give you free hosting. Send Amelia an email inquiring with info on your site to get hooked up.

CONTACT INFO REVISITED
You probably all know this by now, but, if you still have any of the JPS.net e-mails in your address book, delete them as they have been discontinued. Do not attempt to get in touch using Maryland, Virginia, Georgia, or Beverly Hills contact info. All swag, contracts, review materials, requests for interviews, invitations to conventions, contest giveaways, etc. should be sent to:

Blue Blood
8033 Sunset Blvd #4500
West Hollywood, CA 90046
USA

Thanks!

–AMELIA G & FORREST BLACK

So I got an instant message a couple hours ago from a friend about shooting. Lately I’ve been online on that timeline more than I probably should be.

Tonight, I overslept for a 10pm fetish ball. Ended up going with wet hair, no makeup, and normal (for me) clothes.

Was still fun, once I woke up a bit.

So the rainy weather cold snap we had in Los Angeles is done and these annoying college kids who live near me have their basketball hoop in the street again. I really wouldn’t care, except they feel compelled to scream at the top of their lungs and clap during the games and they tend to play for many many hours at a stretch. They will literally sometimes start at sunup and go until shortly after sundown and they act pissy if I say want to drive somewhere and they have to stop blocking my driveway for a minute.

If I had a bunch of my friends out there playing music at exactly that volume, I don’t think it would take long for the police to be called by someone. But I can’t quite work myself up personally to call the police on these guys.

I could call the police.

I could throw water balloons at them.

I could get a paintgun.

I could continue going outside and asking them politely to please play without the shouting. I think, no matter that I say please, it pisses them off that I am not blinded by their desirability with their shirts off. Because generic haircuts and faces so average they are interchangably forgettable are totally made up for my sporto bodies for me, especially when someone is being an inconsiderate twat. Or not.

What should I do?