Is It Possible To Learn From Fiction?

Last year, after the sudden popularity of Those Damn Books, there was a massive influx of new people in the Kinkyverse. There was also a massive influx of blogs and threads about Those Damn Books, which is why I'm not going to discuss, much less mention them here. I bet you all can guess what books I'm talking about (and if you can't perhaps you should count yourself lucky).

Now that the dust has settled a bit, some folks are taking a look at the first BDSM related books to go main-stream and asking if this new genre offers people the possibility of a positive learning experience.

We all know that it's possible to learn things from books, even fictional books, if they're well researched and written. I knew next to nothing about Scottish history and Culloden until I read Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series (which I highly recommend, BTW. They're awesome books). I picked up bits of herb-lore, the American Colonies history, uses for bat guano, and why killing a bear with a hunting knife isn't the best idea.

A good book can be a valuable tool for learning more about the world, but if I had to guess I'd guess that most people don't pick up a fictional book expecting it to be a learning tool. It's fiction after-all, if you want to learn something you pick up a text book or turn to the dubious facts on Wikipedia (especially if you think that an interesting tidbit in that great fictional book you're reading might not be entirely accurate).

So these new, main-stream BDSM books, what can be learned from them?

I suppose they're a decent place to gain exposure to new and kinky kinds of play and what that play can feel like, to read about a thing and think, "Gee, that sounds like fun" or "OMG! EWWWW! I would never!"

Maybe they're a decent introduction to the topic of BDSM dynamics. They can give folks a glimpse into what it's like to be Dominant and submissive, Master and slave, Top and bottom.

But learning about the wide, wonderful world of BDSM? No. Books may be the key that opens the door, but they're not and they shouldn't be the only resource a person depends on for knowledge. For some reason though, that's what happens: A baby seal finds those books and decides that they're the be-all, end-all for BDSM information. Fiction becomes fact and baby seals become bait for killer whales.

It's something that boggles my mind. Your average person would not pick up a romance novel based in 19th century England and expect that to offer a comprehensive or accurate view of 19th century England. So why are these books taken as the Gospel Truth about All Things Kinky?

Mind.
Boggled.

Anyways- To answer the question (if only for myself) it is possible to learn some things about BDSM from the new main-stream kinky fiction books, but it's a serious mistake to think you can learn it all, or even learn entirely accurate information from books that are written by vanilla people for their titillation value. Trying to do any serious learning from a work of fiction is a really great way to wind up harmed in some way.

So if you want to learn something from a book try one of these:

The Path of Service, Guideposts for Excellence by Christina 'slavette' Parker.
The Loving Dominant - by John Warren
S&M 101- by Jay Wiseman
Safe, Sane, Consensual and Fun - by John Warren
Screw The Roses, Send Me the Thorns - by Phillip Miller / Molly Devon