Circlet Press is a publishing house in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge beca ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. It was founded by

Cecilia Tan Cecilia Tan (born April 8, 1967) is a writer, editor, sexuality activist, and founder of Circlet Press, the first press devoted primarily to erotic science fiction and fantasy. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She also writes about base ...

, who is also its manager. It specializes in

science fiction erotica Sexual themes are frequently used in science fiction or related genres. Such elements may include depictions of realistic sexual interactions in a science fictional setting, a protagonist with an alternative sexuality, a sexual encounter betw ...

, a once uncommon genre, and its publications often feature

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged in ...

themes.

History

Cecilia Tan founded the house in 1992 after researching the markets for publication of her own stories, which combined science fiction plotlines with explicitly sexual themes. At the time, science fiction publications turned away such material as unsuitable for their audience, and most publishers of erotic material were hard-core pornographers and uninterested in any material whose plotlines extended beyond the simple formula encounter story (in which two people meet and sex ensues). The ground-breaking combination of sex-positive, woman-centered erotica with science fiction and fantasy themes came as a result of Tan's editorial vision that rather than combine the worst clichés of both genres, the mixture could instead expand the boundaries of what was possible in each. Science fiction had developed a somewhat deserved reputation for being dismissive or neglectful of human character development issues like love, lust, attraction, and family issues, while erotica was definitely ripe for something beyond the encounter formula. Placing stories into a science fictional or magical context allowed writers for Circlet Press to remove their stories from their contemporary political context and sidestep issues such as feminism, AIDS, and sexual

identity politics Identity politics is a political approach wherein people of a particular race, nationality, religion, gender, sexual orientation, social background, social class, or other identifying factors develop political agendas that are based upon thes ...

. Circlet Press has been identified with a peer group of start-up "alternative sexuality" publishers and businesses, including

Greenery Press Greenery Press is a publishing house based in Emeryville, California, specializing in books on BDSM (particularly femdom) and polyamory, with over 50 titles in print. Most titles are non-fiction, but a smaller number of fiction titles and mem ...

, Daedalus Publishing,

Black Books ''Black Books'' is a British sitcom created by Dylan Moran and Graham Linehan, and written by Moran, Kevin Cecil, Andy Riley, Linehan and Arthur Mathews. It was broadcast on Channel 4, running for three series from 2000 to 2004. Starring ...

, Obelesk Books, Blowfish, and The Stockroom). Their arrival also coincided with the burgeoning of a women's erotica movement, evidenced by the publication of many upscale trade paperback anthologies such as ''Herotica'', ''Best American Erotica'' edited by

Susie Bright Susannah Bright (born March 25, 1958) is an American feminist, author, journalist, critic, editor, publisher, producer, and performer, often on the subject of politics and sexuality. She is the recipient of the 2017 Humanist Feminist Award, and ...

, ''On A Bed of Rice'' (ed. Geraldine Kudaka), ''Slow Hand'' (ed. Michele Slung), and many others coming from the mainstream publishing houses. Lesbian bookseller Gilda Bruckman, who for years headed one of the leading women's bookstores in the U.S. (New Words, formerly in Cambridge, MA), said, in support of the idea that Circlet's efforts were part of a growing trend in women's erotica, "I think the younger generation of women who see themselves as feminists... feel that it's central to their being. It's having control of the expression of one's sexuality, not being restricted to societal norms."

Effects on the market

The effect that Circlet had on the mainstream science fiction seems to be twofold. One, the house nurtured a new generation of writers who were emboldened to use genre elements in their erotic fiction and erotic elements in their genre fiction. Two, by mapping out new territory, Circlet expanded what was possible, and acceptable, in sf/fantasy. The first tentative forays into "spicier" material by many of the mainstream science fiction imprints bore fruit in the form of strong sales and good reviews for titles such as ''Polymorph'' by

Scott Westerfeld Scott David Westerfeld (born May 5, 1963) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known as the author of the '' Uglies'' and the ''Leviathan'' series. Early life Westerfeld was born in Dallas, Texas. As a child he moved to Connectic ...

and The Black Jewels Trilogy by

Anne Bishop Anne Bishop is an American fantasy writer. Her most noted work is the Black Jewels series. She won the Crawford Award in 2000 for the first three Black Jewels books, sometimes called the Black Jewels trilogy: ''Daughter of the Blood'', ''Heir ...

. Tan spoke on many panels at science fiction conventions such as the

World Fantasy Convention The World Fantasy Convention is an annual convention of professionals, collectors, and others interested in the field of fantasy. The World Fantasy Awards are presented at the event. Other features include an art show, a dealer's room, and an ...

World Science Fiction Convention Worldcon, or more formally the World Science Fiction Convention, the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS), is a science fiction convention. It has been held each year since 1939 (except for the years 1942 to 1945, during ...

Philcon Philcon, also known as the "Philadelphia Science Fiction Conference", is an annual three-day science fiction convention held at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Cherry Hill, New Jersey (formerly the Crowne Plaza Hotel). The convention is run by t ...

Arisia Arisia is a Boston-area, volunteer-run science fiction convention, named for a planet in the Lensman novels by E. E. "Doc" Smith. The name was chosen in response to an older Boston-area con, Boskone, which took the typical ending for a conve ...

, Boskone, and Lunacon about mixing and cross-pollinating genres. With erotica forging the way, the influx of romance into sf/f was not far behind, as writers like

Catherine Asaro Catherine Ann Asaro (born November 6, 1955) is an American science fiction and fantasy author, singer and teacher. She is best known for her books about the Ruby Dynasty, called the Saga of the Skolian Empire. Biography Catherine Asaro was ...

and

Laurell K. Hamilton Laurell Kaye Hamilton (born February 19, 1963) is an American fantasy and romance writer. She is best known as the author of two series of stories. Her ''New York Times''-bestselling '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' series centers on Anita Bla ...

built readerships that included sf/f readers, mystery readers, and romance readers. Hamilton's " Anita Blake" books have grown sex-focused and explicitly sexual, and legions of "paranormal romance" writers and readers have followed in her wake.

Honors and awards

Reviews praising Circlet's efforts appeared in

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

, Lambda Book Report, '' Feminist Bookstore News'', and many other publications. Circlet Press's books have been nominated for the

Lambda Literary Awards Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted ...

, Independent Publisher Book Awards ("IPPY" awards), the Benjamin Franklin Awards, and the Spectrum Awards."2002 Best Other Work Finalists." Spectrum Awards. 2002. Spectrum Awards
Spectrumawards.org
.

Writers

Authors published by Circlet Press include: *

Laura Antoniou Laura Antoniou (born 1963) is an American novelist. She is the author of ''The Marketplace'' series of BDSM-themed novels, which were originally published under the pen name of Sara Adamson. Antoniou is also known for her work as an editor and pi ...

Hanne Blank Hanne Blank, also known as Hanne Blank Boyd, is an American historian, writer, and editor. Her written works include ''Virgin: The Untouched History'', ''Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality'', and ''The Unapologetic Fat G ...

Francesca Lia Block Francesca Lia Block (born December 3, 1962) is an American writer of adult and young-adult literature. She is known for the ''Weetzie Bat'' series, which she began while a student at UC Berkeley. Early life Block was born in Los Angeles to a p ...

* Lela E. Buis *

M. Christian M. Christian is an author and anthologist working in a variety of genres including horror, science fiction, erotica and crime. Much of his work combines sexual themes with the horror or science fiction genre. Selected bibliography Among his wor ...

*Amelia G * Evan Hollander *Raven Kaldera * Nancy Kilpatrick a.k.a. Amarantha Knight * Midori *

Mary Anne Mohanraj Mary Anne Amirthi Mohanraj (born July 26, 1971) is an American writer, editor, and academic of Sri Lankan birth. Background Mohanraj was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka but moved to the United States at the age of two and grew up in New Britain, Co ...

* Yvonne Navarro * Carol Queen *Lawrence Schimel * Simon Sheppard *Dave Smeds, aka Reed Manning *Jennifer Stevenson *

*TammyJo Eckhart

Notes

External links

*{{official, http://www.circlet.com/
Feminist SF EroticaSpeculative Literature Organization referenceStrange Horizons profile
a dialogue between

and Cecilia Tan
Nerve.com essay
Companies based in Cambridge, Massachusetts Book publishing companies based in Massachusetts Small press publishing companies Science fiction organizations Erotic publishers Science fiction erotica Publishing companies established in 1992