I have ceased posting to @literotica.
While I was prepared for a backlash with the Mercy & Will, Ready to Run Story, what has happened goes beyond that.
I did not share details on Literotica because Laurel and Manu ‘dems’ good people.’
But this is MY blog and I can damn well say anything I want as long as it is true (to the best of my knowledge) and not meant to personally harm anyone.
So, I am getting it off my chest…
It all began with this feedback from, you guessed it, anonymous:
This message contains feedback for: Tara Cox
This feedback was sent by: Anonymous
Comments:
I have truly loved yours stories to this point. And I understand you were married to a black man at one point and now your not. My complaint is you are forcing me to read an interracial story “ready to run” because it is interwoven into 3 other stories you have tied together. I’m not a racist – but I grew up in detroit and have worked with alot of blacks. I have 2 female 1st cousins that married black, still are, but have told me they wouldn’t do it if they could call back time. The majority of the men i’ve worked with have no loyalty to their women. they will fuck a skank at the drop of a hat – no loyalty or support to their wife and family. And lets not even get started on their non support of their children. I’m talking about the black males. So while you are pushing you’re liberal agenda which you didn’t have to do – you are ruining a great series for a great number of your readers. Please get rid of the black/white romance you are pushing in ready to run or untie it from the rest of the series. Don’t force us to read an interracial story to read the series.
Fuckin’ hell! I don’t force anyone to read any of my stories. There was a simple solution –
Quit reading it!
Yes, you could follow Trouble Texas Style without reading Ready To Run. It might not be as clear, but it is possible.
Heck, quit reading the whole series in protest. Or better yet, stop reading me altogether.
But just because I need to get it off my chest, let me put Anon straight on somethings:
- Yes, you are a racist. A bigot. And highly prejudiced. Every word you said in that message proves that. And you were not even person enough to post this shit publically.
- White men, even rich, upper-class, educated ones, abandon their wives and children. My sperm donor was white and he did everything you say there. Never paid child support. Never made any attempt to contact us. He went out for a pack of cigarettes and never came back.
- And yes, black men, Latino men, Asian men can love and protect their partners. To make such sweeping generalization shows more about you.
There was another as well:
You said at the beginning of this story that some of the topics may offend and to keep an open mind. The topics don’t offend me – what is offensive is you are probably going to push your ideology in the story. I also see you are not letting your audience rate the story which sort of verifies what I said above. If I’m wrong please accept my apology. We will see.
I read the stories for entertainment – and you write some great stories. Please don’t get on a platform to push your political firestorms. We all have our beliefs and don’t need to be indoctrinated by your beliefs while reading your story.
This is what I was addressing in my previous blog. I have been ‘pushing my ideology’ for years. Ægir’s was about the battle and costs between traditions and modernity. Sergeant Mike is about how we treat our vets, and too many other things to name, including racism. Nothing Done In Love? Oh, come on, that one is easy.
All writers push their agendas. Even simple wank fodder has a message – it’s ok to be sexual. Some writers may claim they entertain, but they leave pieces of themselves in there, too.
And I don’t believe in indoctrination – I believe in self-reflection and civil discourse.
Which this is far from…
Since you are forcing me to read “ready to run” – and interracial story – so I understand what is going on in the other 3 Texas stories – I will give this a story a 1* and will be asking my friends to do the same. I admire you as an author – you are really really talented. What you are doing here is not fair to your fans by forcing us to read it. You are really shitting on us. Please find some ways to end the relationship of this story to the other stories. Kill Will or kill Mercy – just make it so I don’t have to read it. What you are doing is forcing your morality onto your friends. I’m not a racist – I have cousins that are married to black men. While I don’t agree with it – it’s their choice. I get along fine with their husbands – they know I don’t agree with their choice. You are perpetuating racism by making people angry because they have to read the story.
That is the message I received today and what had prompted this.
The very idea of being told to kill off an interracial couple is the height of offensive to me. And the stupidity of saying I made someone read interracial stories defies logic.
How plainer can I be?
I don’t force anyone to read my shit!
I don’t even make you pay for it.
But the pettiness of 1-bombing a story that was 4.8* at one point is simply too much for me to handle right now.
Yes, this does feel like ‘cancel culture.’
So, I am making it so that Anon does not have to read any of my stories. Period. (He never did.)
Yes, I may change my mind. I may do as I did with the first couple of chapters of Ready To Run and turn off voting and comments.
But honestly, I don’t make much money from my writing. I do it because it is my passion. But yes, I do appreciate the comments more than you know. So, if I have to do that to feel safe…well, it’s not any different than a woman feeling she has to dress a certain way or can’t drink with her friends.
I may also decide to continue the series here. That was my backup plan if Laurel felt this story violated hate speech rules.
Or I just might finish it for me.
What really irks me with both of these is the Anonymous thing. The US Constitution grants the right to face your accuser. But I am denied that with these Anons. They leave me no other options in terms of responding.
Yes, I know it is not fair to punish everyone for the actions of a few. But I need time to come to terms with this ABUSE…and that is what it is.
Hopefully, I figure it out soon and come up with a plan. I hope you understand… I will miss you.
Goddess bless and heal us all (yes, even racist Anons),
Tara
Tara Cox - Literary Erotica 
I have been reading your stories for years and you are a fantastic writer. You are not pushing any agenda other than telling a story about relationships. You are right when you say you write with enlightening people about your views! Isn’t that what telling a story is about? Enlightenment and introspection? It is sad to say many people do not have the ability to put themselves in another person’s shoes and understand their perspective. That’s what a great story will do for you and yours do. Ignore the haters they are small minded and will always be. They are the people that demand everyone think and act alike. I actually feel sorry for them. Imagine what a dull and anguished life they have trying to conform to their “norms”. Unfortunately the last few years have opened many people’s eyes to how racist people really are. How they must have been keeping quiet all these years. Well we have ripped the bandaid off and you are seeing the results of it. I say keep it on lit and take the rating off all the stories. Take their power away. The people that love your writing will read it anyway-for that matter even if it got a 1. If you finish the story here, they will have won.
That’s not on! I can understand why you are angry.
Even in general, I am not sure why someone would take issue with a writer’s decisions over their characters. It’s the writer’s choice to decide who their characters are, what they look like, how they act, speak, feel. When does a complete stranger decide they want to change the plot? It’s disrespectful of the effort and work a writer puts in to their creations.
I am sorry you have experienced this.
I have written you privately but let me say I am still in shock. You are a fantastic writer and I love reading your stuff. I have said so repeatedly.
Do you have an agenda? You probably do. It is called an opinion and it shapes what you write. An author’s agenda is what causes me to stumble when male (or female) characters call a female character his or her bitch, whore or other term that comes from negativity and hatred. There are exceptions, stories where the woman feels good about herself and if the heat of a sexual encounter those words are used, they are not coated with the hate and violence.
You have written a story of poor white trash, except that there isn’t a character in Mama’s family that I don’t feel good about. Feel like she will be as strong, as good and as morally invincible as Mama.
I personally like the irony of the Knight in White Armor (Will) being black. But it is a little thing and one of many things that get me to think so highly of the woman who created this story.
I don’t read sex stories, I read love stories. If I get through a couple of paragraphs and feel that the story is not going to rise above mattress springs squeaking and moans, I’m not interested. You write love stories. Please keep on.
THANKS
RRC2/Art
I love your stories! I have been following all of them and stalking Lit to see the next one posted. I completely understand where you are coming from being/feeling attacked and even though the ignorance of others should not affect you, I have seen it in the past with friends and family. Do what makes YOU happy and forget about the naysayers. It’s just a bad day not a bad life are words I try to remember when I get down. I hope you have a great support system to help pick you back up and I look forward to more of your stories wherever they are posted.
I wrote a long reply and it’s disappeared so I’ll be brief. Shocked with the outcome here, usual shit starting with “I’m not racist but…I have a black friend but…” and it’s appalling, as you say, if you don’t like it don’t read it for heavens sake! I don’t like incest, I don’t read those stories, easy as. You’re such a good writer I have no doubt those anonymous commentors are a tiny minority of your audience, please just turn off the comments and know that we’re all here in the background, constantly checking to see which story you have put up today and avidly reading it then checking again…
Whatever you do, thank you for your gifts to us all around the world.
I don’t comment often. I don’t even feel comfortable writing in Christmas cards. But I really want to thank you for sharing your stories with us on Lit. I check the site daily for the next chapter to be posted. Your stories give me an escape to a happier world where the good guys win. Unfortunately the real world is smothered with judgemental people like “Anonymous”. They seem to have forgotten that they have a right to choose. Read the story or don’t read the story. It’s that simple. I’m sorry that you feel unwelcome posting your stories now and hope that you do continue writing.
I am sorry that this happen. People can be so narrow minded and small focus that they lose site of the larger pictures. I love your writing and have been following you for a while now. I am looking forward to this series but I totally understand why you need to take time. Please take care of your self and know that your writing does mean a lot to a lot of other people.
Thank you.
wow, those were some shitty (and totally racist) comments. I’m sorry you had to read those. I love your stories, and I very much appreciate you gifting them for free. I understand completely if you don’t decide to put them on lit anymore (though selfishly I’ll be sad if I don’t get to read the endings). I think you have many more fans than haters. I’ll be checking in here for updates!
I am sorry to hear that you have decided to leave Lit, not because of the move but because the negative and smallness of some of the people who use the site.
I have been thinking of writing for Lit and as one of the people I read and very much like, seeing the bastards “win” is disappointing and discouraging.
Please continue writing to please yourself and I’m sure you will be read and appreciated.
I hope you find time and inspiration to add to the series I was reading at the time of the break, “Tight Fittin’ Jeans”. I’m hooked.
J
I have been against ANON for years now, and my thoughts are well known.
I read for the entertainment, and the chance to read some very nice works from good authors, yourself included.
As an example, I sorely miss Dreamcloud who quit due to theft. I found Mark still publishing on Wattpad but they are getting strange as they now want to charge for everything.
I hope you carry on with your writing. You are very gifted.
Wayne Jacques
aka CalgaryCampers.
I am so sorry that the trolls got to you. Your stories are inventive and your characters interesting.
It seems that in today’s society, a small group of vocal dissidents controls all debate. I believe everyone is entitled to an opinion, no matter how bigoted and rancid their thinking might be, but they stifle all other opinion and close down any intelligent discussion. Civilized debate seems to be a thing of the past.
While I understand your decision, I hope you reconsider. Please let us know if you finish your series. Publish it as an e-book on Amazon. I’ll buy it!
Have you ever heard Stan Freburg’s recording of “Ol Man River”? Unfortunately as timely and appropriate as when it was originally done.Sent from my T-Mobile 4G LTE Device
Arthur – I was not familiar with Stan Freburg until I looked up your reference. In the 60’s I saw his routine as a musical performed at Six Flags Over Texas outside of Dallas. As you know, this was decades before the term “political correctness” had first been uttered. I was in elementary school at the time, but it has always stuck with me. Thanks for the memory!
Actually, if I can correct myself, the Freberg rendition of “Ol Man River” from Showboat is entitled “Elderly Man River.” Freberg starts with a zing calling it an authentic American folk song when it was actually written by Jerome Kern. And if you have never heard the Freberg Presents the United States of America Part 1 (the whole album) or Green Chri$tma$, you are missing some great stuff.
I was disappointed to learn of this development for my own selfish reasons. I was getting heavily invested in finding out how the different stories were woven together and thought the interracial thread was handled very diplomatically. It was an ambitious project for the author and I was looking forward to following it through to the end.
I wish Tara all the best and want to let her know that I support her efforts.
Thanks, Tangled. And the series continues. Just here and not at Lit. I hope that you and others will continue to follow.
i dont no where to find your stories i have read all of your stories i am up set i love your wtiting help me so i can read them
Connie – You have found the right place. The Trouble Texas Style series is current on this website, with a couple new chapters. I have time and date stamped each of the chapters so you can read them in order if you wish. I am also posting the edited versions of my finished books to the Books page. Just follow the tabs at the top of the page. And enjoy.