Blog – Page 20 – Callidus

Dreams and Delays

April 17, 2009

So, that whole “I’ll have an update this week” thing? Sorry, looks like I have to be a liar on that one. In my vanilla life, I sort of back-stepped into what is rapidly becoming a career. Things are at a crucial point right now and all of my focus is there. Anyway this week I got sidelined by some work-stuff and I didn’t get to finish my manip series as I’d hoped to. But I thought for those of you still checking my blog I’d tease you with a little preview of what’s to come.

I’m quite pleased with how this one has turned out. In some ways its quite simple in its final form but the technique and detail-oriented work that went into the actual art was very satisfying. Then there was a fair amount of time teaching myself some Flash programming to accomplish the technical aspects, but what I’ve learned has really got my imagination running wild on the possibilities for future projects.

Anyway here is a small tease of my latest work, which I should have ready to unveil early next week (for real this time).

The Room

Hope you enjoy.

Weekly Picks – The Manip Edition

April 12, 2009

So…its been a while. As much as I want to make updating here a priority I just don’t have the kind of free time I used to. Not that I’m complaining; I’m finally doing what I love and beginning to see an actual career taking shape, but building a career means putting in the time and so my life as Callidus just has to take a back seat right now. I’m not stepping away, I’m not closing up shop, I’m just saying I’m going to update as often as I can, just don’t expect miracles.

To those of you I owe an IM or email…I’m getting to them I promise, please bear with me a little longer. I’m actually way ahead of where I normally am in terms of workload this weekend, so I’m trying to squeeze in as much as possible while my inbox is mercifully empty. But now…time for a little fun.

I’ve been meaning to update my picks blog with some manips, but just haven’t had time to really check out all the new work being done at the Collective. After taking some time this morning to browse some of the latest uploads, I’m happy to say the ridiculously talented people there haven’t lost their touch. In no particular order, here’s the recent entries that caught my eye. Note: you will need a free account at the Hypnopics Collective Gallery in order to view these images.

First up is this nice bit of business from Scifiscribbler. I’ll probably be repeating this throughout, but the single most important step in manipping is choosing a good pic to start with. Personally, I’m drawn to pics that have some strange or unique quality, something not even necessarily mc-related, and I particularly like seeing the creativity that goes into spinning a non-obvious pic in an mc way. This piece also calls to mind a great story by 8-bit called Safeword, which I highly recommend.

Edwinracine is a Collective member who just recently began posting, but his work shows great promise. Again recalling my maxim on unique images, I really like the flavor of his work. His source material calls to mind corporate stock images, but twisted in a delightful way. His images contain no nudity, but are erotic nonetheless; an excellent study in less is more. Subtle, reserved, and innovative, I really like the direction this artist is going.

ooae10 likes voluptuousness and I don’t blame him/her at all. A casual glance at this artist’s gallery reveals a predilection for curvy and, refreshingly, natural women. ooae10’s work has a very classic feeling, as I’ve said before, and never fails to recall William Lee, Maddy Rose, and the other early legends of hypno-manipping that so influenced me. While the methods may vary, the theme running throughout this wonderful artist’s work is just how beautiful an entranced lady is.

My biggest problem with Jasmine is picking just one or two images from her extensive library to try and represent the broad range of her talent. While her images run the gamut from minimal and erotic to shocking and overt, her captions tie everything together in a style that is all her own. With a strong emphasis on BDSM, D/s, and humiliation there’s lots of fun fetishes accompanying the mind control in her work. Another artist who finds images I’d never think to use and spins them in a wickedly mc way.

While not trying to play favorites, I’ve got several pieces from this last artist to talk over. Although I’ve seen the name around the Collective, I’d not actually had an opportunity to check out SilverSurfer’s catalog before today and it was a very pleasant surprise to see such a talented artist with such a comprehensive gallery. A man after my own heart, there’s a bit of MD, FD, a nice selection of TTT, but the initial thing that drew me in was a gallery that contains a healthy selection of manip series, each presented as a Flash slideshow.

His work is wonderfully erotic and he makes use of graphic elements and special effects to great effect. Another artist with great source material, some of his work makes me just a bit jealous; I’d love to have a crack at some of his images. One series, that I’ve had filed away waiting for some inspiration, SilverSurfer has turned into a wonderful little spy-genre mc series. His story telling ability is obvious in these larger series and honestly I don’t think I would have done as good a job as he has. Its fantastic to see really good source material live up to its potential in the hands of a really good artist. SliverSurfer is definitely someone I’ll be looking forward to seeing more work from.

And speaking of manips…I’ve got a small animated series that I’ve had sitting on the shelf for a while now that I think I’ll finally be able to put up, so be on the look out for that later this week. Until then I hope you’re all doing well and I’ll see you (sooner rather than later this time).

2008 Spiral Awards

February 28, 2009

2/28/09 UPDATED to include a link to the official Spiral Awards website which got left out of the original posting by Captain Proofread…sigh.

Looking back over my (semi) weekly picks blogs, it really struck me what a great year 2008 was for mc fiction. I discovered some new writers, had plenty of great material from my-long time favs, and discovered plenty of tasty tales along the way.

So why don’t you join me and head over to the official site of the 2008 Spiral Awards and nominate your favorite authors and stories from last year. Nominations are open now in the following categories:

• FD – Females controlling males
• FF – Females controlling females
• MD – Males controlling females
• MM – Males controlling males
• Mixed – Mixed or unspecified controllers

You can nominate up to three entries per category and nominations are open until March 6th at midnight (GMT-6). The top five in each category move on to the final vote and after that…glory everlasting.

The authors who work so diligently and so graciously share themselves and their art with all of us deserve our support. So, please, take a moment to nominate your favorite writers or stories from 2008, its just a small way to say thank you to all the talented people who give us all so many wonderful stories to share and enjoy.

Weekly Picks part deux – Flibinite & Tabico

February 18, 2009

Welcome back everyone, as I said in the closing yesterday, there’s just too much red-hot-fire to fit in a single post this week, especially since I’ve got two EMCSA updates to cover. So I’m back with another analogy-filled dissertation, hope you brought a packed lunch…

Flibinite continues to deliver regular updates to her superheroine-in-peril saga Button Pusher. Since originally talking about this story in early January, Jo has added four more chapters to her tale; and every single one just keeps getting better. “Poor” Paragon just can’t get the nefarious Addiction out of her head, or stop trying to recapture the heat of being her prisoner. Fortunately, Paragon’s friend Vision has her back; but even she isn’t immune to the seductive supervillainess.

Jo has a touch all her own; and she frequently uses it to write the most scorching bonage/mc fiction imaginable. This series is no different. Her talent for living inside the head of a character during their submission is profound. Very few have Jo’s ability to chart the ebb and flow, moment to moment, as her protagonist slips ever closer to blissful servitude. And in case I didn’t make this clear; its some of the hottest mc-fiction you can even imagine. For myself, I cannot wait to see where things go next.

Tabico dropped in this past week with a new multi-part story that will blow your eyes clean out of your head (to paraphrase her). Although its her most recent, Blue would be an excellent introduction to Tabico’s catalog simply because its bristling with so many elements of her style. Ridiculously hot/intelligent protagonists, squick-a-licious tentacle creatures, and some familiar themes from her work really serve to make this latest entry one of her finest.

In my interview with Tabico, she spoke about how one of the hottest aspects of mc, for her, was a scenario wherein a character realizes “I shouldn’t want this…but I really, really do”. All the mind manipulation, steamy-girl-love, and squicky delight strongly reinforce this theme. Indeed, the struggle for her characters to resist their own desire to be seduced and enslaved is just one of the hottest things I’ve ever read.

If you like squick, if you enjoy the anticipation that a nice slow build gives a story, and if you’re ready to risk your precious eyes over some of the hottest mc-fiction in recent memory then evacuate Pompeii…the forecast is calling for red-hot-fire.

Keep the North-folk in your prayers and I’ll see you soon.

Weekly Picks – thrall, Jukebox, and softi

February 16, 2009

I know, I know. I’m a week late. Things got busy, I got caught up…you know how it goes. However, on the sunny side, the last couple weeks have been some of the best in recent memory at the EMCSA and this weekly picks entry is busting at the seems with all the spicy goodness. So, without further delay, and in no particular order, let us proceed.

First up, I’d like to go to thrall, which I’d intended to do a couple weeks ago but I held off, wanting to read the final installments to Spy vs. Guy before I opined. When she first discussed her plans to write a James Bond-esque spy story where the protagonist gets topped by another guy, I was dubious. Not of her talent mind you, but of my reaction. I’m so uninterested in male-on-male erotica that I wasn’t sure if there’d really be anything for me to enjoy.

In the end, I knew I’d feel like a pretty piss-poor friend if I didn’t at least do her the courtesy of reading what she so kindly shared with all of us. So, determined to avoid the guilt-trip I knew I’d lay on myself, I dove in. And surprisingly enough, I really enjoyed it. Granted, for me, it doesn’t have the erotic heat her other work does, but thrall’s a great writer no matter what she’s doing and this story is no exception. In fact, I think her take on the actual brainwashing process in this story is absolutely one of the best in recent memory. The way Brick’s controllers use his ego, even his very sexuality against him, bit-by-bit chipping away at his mental defenses; its one of the best concoctions thrall has delivered to date.

So, if you’re at all open to the experience, I heartily recommend you check it out. Even if this is the first and only time you ever read a M/m story, I think it will be well worth your while.

Next up let’s have a look at one of Jukebox’s recent entries: Once Bitten, Twice Shy. I say one of, as Jukebox is rapidly becoming one of the most prolific authors on the Archive. This one however was really a gem for me. Poor Darla, marches up to Jane’s hotel room to reclaim her dignity (and vampire-domme status) after she slips under Jane’s hypnotic control in a brief moment of weakness. Of course, Darla knows how much she enjoyed herself the first time and Jane is all too eager to remind her and…well you can imagine where things go from here. 😉

Its a really excellent tale, full of playful trance-banter, spicy-hot-eroticism, and a healthy dose of fun. Just one of the more recent entries in this fine, fine author’s catalog.

softi has really become one of my absolute favorite authors as of late. A glance at softi’s author page shows a diverse catalog full of devious mc scenarios and wicked prose to go with it. I really can’t recommend enough that you spend some time going through his/her work, I think you’ll find plenty to enjoy.

Perfect centers around a delightfully naughty female protagonist who possesses an unnatural talent for nudging people into giving her what she wants. With her sights set on her most recent conquest, she discovers why they say if its too good to be true, it probably is. I cannot underestimate how molten hot this story is. I tend to gravitate towards stories that take place in the sub’s head because it seems so much easier to communicate the eroticism of control from there. With this superb tale, sofit has, happily, changed my mind. Seeing events play out from inside her domme’s head, seeing how sexy that same submission can be when witnessed by the one causing it…why are you still here? Go…read!

Well, I’m only half way through my list and this is already one of the longest picks blogs I’ve done. So, I think I’ll split it up into two parts for easier digestion. See you all back here tomorrow.

Weekly Picks – trilby else & softi&

January 17, 2009

Here it is almost Sunday again and I still haven’t finished my picks post from this week. I guess it doesn’t’ matter too much given that the next EMCSA update isn’t until the week after next. But that’s nothing to be sad about, because the stories in this week’s update are good enough to read twice. Lets dive in shall we?

Softi checks in this week with the wonderful Control. In this delightful tease, Kate’s struggle with her captors quickly becomes a struggle with herself as she fights to resist the devastating pleasure her kidnappers are using to control her. I call this a tease not because it doesn’t deliver the goods but because there’s more of this tale on the way and personally, I can’t wait to see what happens next.

And speaking of anticipatory expressions, that is the namesake of our next tale: I Can’t Wait. A joint effort from Jukebox and Lady Ru’etha, this tale of joy and submission is told through a series of forum postings and private messages. Its an exceptional device used to great effect here, creating the written equivalent of a fictional documentary-style film.

Everything about these entries feels authentic (and should given the authors’ real-life involvement in erotic hypno) right down to the quirky usernames; if only they could have included avatars the illusion would be perfect! That however in no-way detracts from this magnificent story; one of the finest and most unique in recent memory.

Anyone who knows me or reads here often knows that trilby else is a big deal for me. A cornerstone of mc fiction, his work has been enormously influential on me and my own work. As such, its always like a mini-christmas when I see a new tale with his name beside it. And happily, this week he’s picked up a previous thread, adding a sixth part to his ongoing series Outcall. Jaden, a high-class escort whose been hypnotized and enslaved by one of her female clients, continues to spiral (hee hee) further into Fiona’s control; as she learns just how deep she is and that there’s nothing she won’t do to please her owner.

Trilby, as always, paints with the subtle touch of a master. The artistry of his stories lies in his ability to eroticize mind control itself, rather than the consequences of mind control. Trilby has an uncanny knack for portraying the headspace of his characters; seeing the mental hooks and loops that keep them endlessly cycling in pleasure and submission. The only downside is having to wait till another update to find out what happens next…

That’s all I have time for today, thought I haven’t yet covered everything or everyone (sorry thrall) I want to. I will be back soon with more picks, more pics, and more prose. Until then everyone stay warm.

See you soon.

Rant: Your Skin Isn’t Smooth its Just Out of Focus

January 8, 2009

While not the update I had planned, there’s something that’s bugging the hell out of me and I need to vent. So…buckle up. I spend a few minutes every day searching for new photo material to then process into spicy manips. Now the cynical among you will call that looking at porn, but its not…okay? Its not the same…remotely.

Anyway, here’s my point: while looking at…potential manip material I came across a set of pics that seemed to have possibilities. So I saved them, dropped them into a folder, let them sit a few days, and since I have a little free time this evening, decided to have a closer look to see what I might make of them.

It was at this point that my eyes began to bleed.

Apparently the skin you were born in isn’t good enough any more; you need professional help. ‘That’s why the almighty lord created Clinique’ I hear you interject…well you’re wrong so stop interrupting me. Evidently, you need help from a professional photoshop warlord to solve that whole ‘your skin has pores’ problem.

I understand the pressure for women to be beautiful, I understand the desire of websites and publications to market a glorified and idealized portrayal of female beauty. I don’t agree with it, but I understand it. What I don’t understand is when the line was crossed where it became desirable to destroy color and pixel information to the degree that a photograph looks like a paint-by-numbers panel executed by a thumbless gorilla during an earthquake.

Maybe I’m overstating it, and its certainly not the poor gorilla’s fault she has no thumbs; they were probably ripped off by beauty nazis who think opposable digits are out of style or something. What really bothers me is the complete lack of skill or originality that goes into shoddy work like this. The ‘Maxim look’ we’ve all been assaulted with over the last few years isn’t my cup of tea but I appreciate the skill and technique involved in getting something that looks “natural.”

This pile of defecates looks like someone who knows nothing about photography paid someone who knows nothing about photoshop to ‘make it look better’. The second stooge in this two-man play of misery then sat down and started working their way through the filters menu in photoshop till they hit the Smart Blur effect then stood with fists pumping in the air over their blunt-skull shouting, “why work when photoshop does the work for me?”

Deep breath. Blue air goes in. Red air goes out.

Beauty obsessed culture?: I can deal with it. Skin polished to plastic perfection? I have stress toys for these type of things. Mistaking Photoshop for the Easy Button? I have two stress toys; one for each hand itching to close around your throat. However, piling all three of these offenses on top of me at once forms a trifecta of pain that will surely drive me to homicide…your homicide. Think about your family, think about your future, think about all those gorillas you need to ‘help’ with your “Eight Digit Makeover” reality-tv show.

Francis Bacon once said that “There is no beauty that hath not some strangeness in its proportion.” And I’d like to think he and I share some common ground on this topic. Every woman I have ever loved has had some quality that she hated about herself but that I found to be absolutely delightful. The things that make us different make us unique.

And unique…unique is truly beautiful.

Weekly Picks – Lady K, Flibinite, and Jukebox

January 5, 2009

An exceptional update at the EMCSA this weekend; loads and loads of good stuff. First up we have Lady K’s surrealist An Appointment to Keep. This tale of seduction and surrender hooks you from the opening paragraph, pulling you in with hints of what has already happened and what is about to. Imaginative and inspiring, this tale eschews the darker tones that I personally gravitate towards (most days at least) in favor of a warm and heartfelt resolution that nearly had me in tears (not kidding). Many authors describe control as a state of utter bliss, but very few manage to convey it in as profound a way as Laky K does here.

If she’ll forgive me the crude analogy, Flibinite is a bit like a bartender mixing a cocktail of superheroes, constriction, aromatic-eroticism, and mc that (like any correlating beverage) will put you on your backside, wondering what happened, and thrirsty for more. Ham-fisted simile aside, Button Pusher is filled with all the delightful trappings of Flibinite’s work; heat, humor, and a molten-hot supervillianess to tempt and torment her “poor” heroine. Jo leaves the door wide open for more fun so if we’re all very lucky this may be just the first in many installments to follow.

If you’re not reading thrall’s blog…well slap yourself for not reading her blog. Beyond that, one of the authors she’s been talking about lately is Jukebox who, I’m sorry to say, I’m not nearly as familiar with as I should be. So, taking her reccomendation, I checked out Jukedbox’s superb addition to this week’s update: Two Tickets to Paradise . I must say thrall (as usual) was right: Its a fantastic story; a simmering build of erotic heat full of mystery and molten possibilities. If you’re down with squick, you don’t want to pass this one up.

Hope everyone had a great weekend, I’m prepping another post for this week with some work-in-progress stuff that I think you’ll enjoy. Until then…

Weekly Picks – The Return

December 22, 2008

In the spirit of trying to get back to updating regularly, its time to unleash some new picks for the week of Christmas. Some stories are new, others aren’t but all have caught my eye and held my attention and I hope they do the same for you. First up is a new tale from the always-talented sara castle. Enciphered is a slow, anxious build that only brings everything into sharp focus in its final moments. Set in one of sara’s characteristically dystopian futures, the plot plays with time to a truly fantastic effect and the heat, as always, is steaming.

Next up is a story that’s been on the EMCSA for a while but its become one of my favs and I’d like to show it a little love. In Chris Chris’ tale of solitary submission, Place Your Hands on the Grips, Jessica struggles against the mind-control “sex toy” she’s plugged herself up to, realizing only too late its much more real and dangerous than any of her mc fantasies. She resists but, of course, fantasizing about being brainwashed and enslaved is what put her in this situation to start with and where the story goes from there is every bit as molten hot as you’re imagining right now. Go…read. You won’t be sorry.

This next one might seem a bit self-serving but blogging is a business of lies and self-promotion (just like show business). Thrall has posted Ethna Redux, the story she mentioned in our recent interview and I’m here to say, its a great read. Filled with all the great twists and turns one would expect from her work, Ethna also delivers on thrall’s promise to play nice with her male protagonist this time. Of course, when there’s winged-tricksters involved “nice” is a relative term, but I don’t think Lord Kerovan is in any position to complain. Its another great tale, from one of the finest authors we have: red-hot, humorous, and even a little romantic.

And speaking of thrall, I need to give credit here for her recent post which announced the return of another mc-fiction heavyweight: Sara H. Sara, as you may know, has been away for a while and requested her stories be pulled from the Archive. She’s recently returned and her catalog as been reinstated at the EMCSA.

This is the fourth time I’ve started this paragraph, trying to figure out how to say what I really want to say… I’ll settle by simply telling you that Sara is one of the finest authors to ever grace mcstories.com and that her work was particularly integral to me picking up photo manipping. Sara was, in fact, the very first author I ever worked up the nerve to email and one of my very early manips, Training CD’s, featured a little shout-out to one of my fav stories from her: Harmonic Conversion II – House O’ Wrist. I guess want I want to say is that I’m really glad she’s back, and I’ll leave it at that.

So, in closing, I hope everyone has a happy Christmas, a spectacular New Year, and if you don’t celebrate one or both of those festivities then I’ll wish you a wonderful holiday, whatever it may be. And if you’ll permit me to interrupt your live television broadcast and do my best Bill Murray impression: FAH LA LA LA LAAAAA LA LA LA LAAAAAAaaaaaaAAAAAAA!

I love you all, see you next time.

We Now Return to Our Regularly Scheduled Program…thrall interview is live.

December 6, 2008

If you’re anything like me, you’re getting tired of all my excuses for not updating things here more often. Everyone’s busy, I just don’t handle it as well as most people I guess. Having said that I have been quietly working behind the scenes trying to keep things moving forward. To that end, one of the updates I’ve had in the making for several months is now online.

I’m very pleased to announce that a brand new interview with seminal mc author thrall is now live in the interview gallery. An influential force in erotic mc fiction by any standard of measure, thrall is smart, funny, and delightfully honest about her kinks. So grab a cup of your favorite winter-time beverage and settle in for an entertaining and insightful talk with this marvelously talented lady.

Click here to read my interview with thrall.

Speaking of gracious and talented ladies, I would be remiss not thank another of mc erotica’s finest talents and that is my dear friend Sara Castle. In addition to wowing all of us with her own spicy blend of mc fiction, Sara shares my love for the interview and has her own chat with thrall posted at MC Garden.

In our many correspondence, Sara and I have established that we share more than one or two favorite authors. So, its no surprise that we find ourselves sitting down to talk with many of the same people. What I do find surprising is how closely our line of questioning matches sometimes. While we have never shared notes on our interviews and I kept myself from reading her talk with thrall until after my own interview was concluded, I’m now laughing myself silly that we’ve managed to ask almost identical questions in several instances.

In any case, I want to thank Sara for being so gracious and allowing me to “share” interview subjects with her. 😉

Thanks everyone for the continued support and encouragement through my long, dry spells. I don’t get to post here nearly as much as I’d like to but I do have some tasty things in the works and am eager to share…soon I hope.

Until next time.

Callidus

Mind Control Fetish Art