Alternate Pornography Options for the Intrepid Explorer
Disclaimer: We advocate only for consensual, safe, sane and ethical porn here.
Are you tired of typing ‘porn/sex videos’ into your Google Search box? and then finding videos about men with giant members slamming into tiny, perfect hairless vaginas and not feeling the slightest hint of arousal? The woman orgasms as soon as he penetrates her, screaming in ecstasy, looking adoringly up at the guy who does not appear to care about her feelings or sexual experience. Zero foreplay or affection. Not even a little downstairs action. Zip. Nada. That’s traditional porn for you. But maybe they’ve all become meaningless cartoons at this point, each video indistinguishable from another, working to fire neurons in your brain till you reach another unfulfilling orgasm. If this sounds like you, do read on 🙂
Let's find out more about ethical pornographies:
The good news: This is only because you don’t know what’s out there, my friend! Other than Pornhub, (which has serious child abuse and violation of consent allegations against it, and may make you consider taking your business to another website) there are many websites that cater to a variety of sexual tastes and preferences, which this article aims to introduce you to.
Two points before we begin.
First, the type of porn we watch can be simplistically divided into 2 types: films that reflect and further the cis-het male gaze, and women/queer made films (among others). The identity of the director actually makes a big difference- for example, many (if not most) man-created films involved no foreplay and focused almost exclusively on intercourse while the woman-created film had four of 11-minutes devoted to foreplay, oral sex and then intercourse.
Second, this has an effect on the watchers. In the same study, women reported more negative emotions, such as aversion, guilt, and shame, in response to the man-created compared to the woman-created films, with questions regards to
(a) consent,
(b) comfort, and
(c) the interaction between the actors on screen, and
(d) how the sexuality and agency of the woman onscreen were portrayed.
This is just to make us understand that viewing porn involves many subtleties that may differ according to the type of porn we are consuming and the identity of the viewer. Women and men respond differently to sexual stimuli. For men, visual cues are very important, while for womxn, arousal can be a complicated creature. And if you’re becoming tired of mainstream porn ( understandably so), there are a few alternatives you could consider, that may appeal to all your senses.
Written Erotica
Chances are, you’ve already heard of this and read some. Fifty Shades of Grey, anyone? But in case you haven’t, let me introduce you to a few. They can involve romantic stories, BDSM, multiple partners, pretty much any fantasy/kink you can think of. Reading them is an experience, and you are left with a beautiful knowing of what exactly you like in bed, how you can expect a responsible and fun partner in bed to behave, and ways to go about setting your expectations and making them known.
- If you like novels- Here are some new women writers you are absolutely going to adore. Sylvia Day ( Crossfire Series), Maya Banks, P.C Cast (Goddess Summoning Series), Cherise Sinclair ( Club Shadowlands series), Lorelai James, the list goes on.
- If you like shorted fiction pieces, these websites have absolute gems waiting to be discovered. Foxy Roxy Hart, Literotica, Kinkly, Novel Trove, Lush Stories, BDSM Café, etc. Many women’s magazines also have columns dedicated to categorising erotic fiction, like this article here.
Pay-Per-View Porn
This type of porn became famous again with the rise of OnlyFans. It’s a content-sharing website, where content creators can earn money from users who subscribe to their content—the “fans”. It allows content creators to receive funding directly from their fans on a monthly basis as well as one-time tips and the pay-per-view feature. You have the satisfaction of knowing your content is made with consent and also paying the creator.
Feminist Porn
As a writer on Glamour Magazine so succinctly puts it “ Finding hot masturbation material (should not come at the cost of feeling like an object”. For some good feminist porn, check out the following websites: FrolicMe, Bellesa, Indie Porn Revolution (as they proudly proclaim, the oldest running queer porn site on the internet), DaneJones, Lust Cinema, MakeLoveNotPorn, Spit ( again queer porn) and Lady Cheeky ( for sexy GIF’s).
Conclusion
Real sex can be messy, bumpy, awkward, but most of all, it should be fun. Something you enjoy participating in, that makes you appreciate your body and that of your partner(s). Similarly, what we watch online should reflect that. Audio porn and written Erotica can be amazing experiences that you could find yourself trying out of curiosity, only to discover something that arouses you to no end. Have fun exploring!
Cover Illustration: Healthline
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