Sex Down South, October 13-15, 2016, was born out of a desire to create a safe space in the Southeast where folks could explore sex and sexuality. Our focus is intentionally broad, catering to a diverse range of people: from those who are curious but not quite committed, to those who have been around the block…and then some! Our mission is to create a sex-positive space for people of all walks of life to come together, explore, connect, and share knowledge and skills. It’s your exploration destination for all things sex and erotic. Our goal is to foster learning, inspiration, and wonder – and provoke conversations that matter. From sex education and sexual health, to healthy communication and relationship skills; from alternative lifestyles such as kink and polyamory, to sex and spirituality and navigating sexual trauma. We’ll look at how race, gender, class, ability, religion, and other factors influence our experiences of our bodies and our sexualities. We’ll examine how our desires are directly linked to our empowerment and satisfaction in life. Sex Down South is a space for everyday people and “sexperts” alike to teach and share extraordinary things – and for participants to leave knowing more about their own sexualities and desires than when they arrived.
Location: Hilton Atlanta, 255 Courtland Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303
Admission: $179-229 (day pass, student and volunteer discounts available)
Join me at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit for my Sex Educator Boot Camps Level2 and 3 as pre-cons on August 4. Online Registration ends on July 31 at 11:59 pm ET. If you are attending Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit, you get special pricing and must register through the Woodhull site. If you are *not* attending the Summit, please register via Eventbrite here. Tickets WILL be available at the door for both levels.
August 4, 9:00 am-12:30 pm
Sex Educator Boot Camp Level 2: Intermediate at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit
Have you begun your journey as a sex educator and are ready to get serious, streamline your business, and get paid for what you love doing? In this intermediate course, Tristan Taormino, one of the most well-known educators in the field, shares her experience, skills, and insight to help you create a vibrant, fulfilling career in sex education. You’ll learn how to: hone your mission and unique point of view; make your work accessible to diverse audiences and communities; develop and create business, branding, and marketing plans; use web-based tools and social media to connect with media professionals, other sex educators, and potential clients, employers and fans; garner media coverage in order to raise your public profile; embrace the value of your work and develop pricing structures and rates. Plus, you’ll have an opportunity to ask Tristan questions about your specific issues and concerns in an intimate environment. This course is ideal for people who have: worked as a professional sex educator or in the sex education field for at least a year; and/or completed Sex Educator Boot Camp 1: Basic.
August 4, 2:00-6:00 pm
Sex Educator Boot Camp Level 3: Advanced at Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit
with special presentation by Trina Scott, Cindy Lee Alves, and Aida Manduley
Are you a sex educator ready to take your career and business to the next level? World-renowned sex educator Tristan Taormino reveals her proven techniques for success. You’ll learn how to: write promotional materials and create media buzz about your work; build strategic partnerships and coalitions with individuals, organizations, and companies that boost your reach, credibility, and visibility; shape your public identity and boost your credibility; leverage a local/regional presence into a national one; transform a part-time job into a full time career; monetize your expertise and experience; clarify your goals and prioritize your work accordingly; stop doing work that doesn’t have a clear path toward supporting yourself; integrate your values and politics with your business practices; explore what personal blocks may be holding you back; expand your offerings, grow your business, and make your career sustainable. There will be real talk about money, community politics, and burnout. You’ll have the chance to network, brainstorm, and collaborate with other attendees in smaller breakout groups. Plus, you’ll get sample pitch letters for colleges, media, sponsors, potential employers, and more. In addition, there will be a special presentation on advancing racial justice in sex education by Trina Scott, Cindy Lee Alves, and Aida Manduley of Women of Color Sexual Health Network (WOCSHN). This course is ideal for people who have worked in sex education for at least three years and/or have completed Sex Educator Boot Camp 1: Basic and 2: Intermediate.
Information for Both Boot Camps:
Location: Hilton Alexandria Mark Center, 5000 Seminary Road, Alexandria, VA 22311
Admission: Pre-registration is strongly encouraged. Boot Camp tickets will be available at the door if space permits, but the prices go up. We are dedicated to racial, economic, and social justice: there are volunteer positions, scholarships, and sliding scale spots, with priority given to educators who represent and work with underserved communities. To get more information or a scholarship application, please email tristan [at] puckerup.com. Scholarship applications are accepted on a rolling basis through July 5, 2016. If you want to register for the Summit by the Early Bird deadline, your scholarship application must be received no later than March 15, 2016.
Registration: Note: Online Registration ends on July 31 at 11:59 pm ET. If you are attending Woodhull’s Sexual Freedom Summit, you get special pricing and must register through the Woodhull site. If you are *not* attending the Summit, please register via Eventbrite here. Tickets WILL be available at the door for both levels.
Tristan celebrated her birthday and recorded a raucous episode of Sex Out Loud in front of a live studio audience with an incredible line up of special guests. Trans icon Buck Angel, Academic superstar Lynn Comella, YouTube sensation Gaby Dunn, porn superstar Joanna Angel, and podcast host Sex Nerd Sandra did some sexy storytelling in honor of Tristan’s big day. Then authors Elle Chase (Curvy Girl Sex), Jane Ward (Not Gay: Sex Between Straight White Men), and surprise guest Cyndi Darnell played the “What Do You Know About Tristan?” Game Show where lucky audience members won fabulous prizes!
About the Special Guests:
Joanna Angel, the star of many of BurningAngel.com‘s movies and the company’s owner, has stormed both mainstream and adult media. She’s appeared on the cover of every major adult magazine and has been featured in many tattoo magazines as well. She has been featured on Fox News, Playboy TV, Fuse TV, G4 TV, KROQ Radio, as a regular on the Jason Ellis show on SIRIUS Radio, a guest on the 2008 series premiere of TLC’s LA Ink, and in a speaking role on Adult Swim’s “Children’s Hospital.” Angel has also appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, The Village Voice, The New York Press, Esquire UK, Details and Penthouse, among others.
Angel has also appeared in The New York Times, Newsweek, The Village Voice, The New York Press, Esquire UK, Details and Penthouse, among others. Heeb Magazine featured Joanna as its cover girl, naming her one of the Top 100 Up-and-Coming Jews in 2005, and The New York Post featured her as one of the Top 25 Sexiest New Yorkers in 2006. BurningAngel has brought home several awards from all the major adult shows, from AVN to XBIZ; from XRCO to YNOT. Some of its accolades include Best Porn Star Website, Best Web Premiere and Best Sex Comedy.
Gaby Dunn is a writer, journalist, YouTuber, actress, and comedian living in Los Angeles. She and her comedy partner Allison Raskin write, perform in, and produce the successful comedy YouTube channel Just Between Us. Her writing has appeared in The Boston Globe, The Huffington Post, Cosmopolitan (magazine), Salon and Slate. She leads the Peoples Improv Theater house team BIRDS, and was a producer of the independent community radio station WFMU. Her web project, 100interviews.com, was named “Best Blog” by The Village Voice in 2010.
Buck Angel is a visionary filmmaker, advocate, educator and motivational speaker. As he demonstrated in his appearances at Yale, Cornell and many other universities around the world, Buck is not only inspiring people to think outside the box, he is re-defining gender and educating an entire generation on the fluidity of sexuality and identity politics. Mr. Angel, the documentary about Buck’s life and transition from female to male has become a big hit on Netflix and his groundbreaking documentary Sexing the Transman has screened at many film festivals. Buck has been featured in nearly every imaginable international media outlet: television, radio, web, and print He has appeared on Joe Rogan Show, Howard Stern Show, Huffington Post, The Tyra Banks Show, Spike TV, The Women’s Entertainment Network, Much Music, Sirius Radio, Dan Savage,VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network and many others. He’s been written about in The Village Voice, Rolling Stone, Time Out, Maxim, New York Times, and other publications around the world. Armistead Maupin included Buck Angel in his latest book Michael Tolliver Lives. As a visionary filmmaker,advocate, educator and motivational speaker, Buck Angel launched Buck Angel Entertainment as a vehicle to produce multimedia projects that will motivate viewers to think outside the box.
Sandra Daugherty speaks, educates, hosts, podcasts and pundits. Her sex-positive teaching methods include heavy doses of physical comedy, playful insight and delightful factoids. Known the world over for her Nerdist Industries podcast, “Sex Nerd Sandra,” its loyal listenership (almost 13 million downloads) is vocal about Sandra’s impact, describing her as “inspiring” with “contagious enthusiasm” and an “awesome nerd-like ability that [she’s] not afraid to show.” Sandra can be seen on Fusion TV (The Search for Sexy), The Young Turks (Think Tank, Common Room, The Point) and weekly in your earholes.
Elle Chase is a singular voice in the sexual health community, a body acceptance thought-leader, and a sought-after sexuality expert for such outlets as TODAY SHOW on NBC, TODAY Parents, The Daily Beast, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, The Huffington Post, Men’s Healthl, Buzzfeed, Flare Magazine and The Toronto Sun. Elle is one of three women featured in the 2014 CBC Documentary Channel original documentary Inside Her Sex. Also a freelance writer focusing on sex, relationships and body image, Elle’s work has appeared in/on: The Huffington Post, Kinkly.com, Gasm.org, The Frisky, and DatingAdvice.com. Elle is the author of Curvy Girl Sex: 101 Body-Positive Positions to Empower Your Sex Life which will be published by Fair Winds Press in January 2017.
Jane Ward is professor of Gender and Sexuality Studies at University of California Riverside, where she teaches courses in feminist, queer, and heterosexuality studies. She has published on a broad range of topics including: feminist pornography; queer parenting; gay pride festivals; gay marriage campaigns; transgender relationships; the social construction of heterosexuality; the failure of diversity programs; and the evolution of HIV/AIDS organizations. Her first book, Respectably Queer: Diversity Culture in LGBT Activist Organizations was named by The Progressive magazine as a best book of 2008. Her newest book, published by NYU Press, is titled Not Gay: Sex Between Straight White Men.
Attitudes are changing about consent, and it’s time to join in the conversation. April 23rd in Seattle, WA
The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom’s Consent Summit is an all-day event of workshops and discussions on consent. Attitudes are changing about consent, and it’s time to join in the conversation. Affirmative consent, college campuses, power exchange relationships, the law and consent. It’s important enough to devote an entire summit to it!
10am – 6pm on April 23rd
@ the Center for Sex-Positive Culture, 1602 15th Ave W, Seattle, WA
Sponsored by the Seattle Erotic Arts Festival and the Foundation and Center for Sex-Positive Culture
Tristan Taormino will give the Keynote at the Luncheon from noon to 1 pm. Tristan Taormino is an award-winning writer, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio host. She is the editor of 25 anthologies and author of eight books, including The Ultimate Guide to Kink and The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure. As the head of Smart Ass Productions, she has directed and produced twenty-four sex educational and erotic films. She is the host of Sex Out Loud, a weekly radio show on the VoiceAmerica Network.
Along with Tristan, other experts including Judge Rudy Serra, consent activist Kitty Stryker, Brett Houghton, Sar Surmick, Jim Duvall, Judy Guerin, Kevin Carlson, Susan Wright and more will headline the Panel Discussions and Workshops:
Consent & the Law
Consent Activism: Past, Present and Future
Affirmative Consent and College Campuses
Negotiation & Consent
Consent in Power Exchange Relationships
Train the Trainers: How to educate about consent
Tickets:
$50 – All day event with luncheon ticket for Keynote
$40 – All day event without luncheon
$35 – All day reduced price and students
$30 – Luncheon and Keynote ticket
$75 – All day event with luncheon ticket and pay it forward
All tickets include Seattle Erotic Arts Festival admission on Sunday and 15% off the Weekend Pass for the Seattle Erotic Arts Festival. Register here: https://www.strangertickets.com/events/31789308/ncsf-consent-summit.
The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom is committed to creating a political, legal, and social environment in the United States that advances the equal rights of consenting adults who practice forms of alternative sexual and relationship expression. NCSF advances the rights and advocates for consenting adults in the BDSM-Leather-Fetish, swing, and polyamory communities. We pursue our vision through direct services, education, advocacy, and outreach in conjunction with our partner organizations to directly benefit these communities.
This Friday, Tristan Taormino welcomes Jaclyn Friedman to Sex Out Loud – they will be together in our LA studio LIVE, so call in and join the conversation! 866-472-5788
Jaclyn Friedman is a writer, speaker and activist, and creator of the hit books Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape (one of Publishers’ Weekly’s Top 100 Books of 2009, and #11 on Ms. Magazine’s Top 100 Feminist Nonfiction of All Time list) and What You Really Really Want: The Smart Girl’s Shame-Free Guide to Sex & Safety. Her popular podcast, Unscrewed, is paving new paths to sexual liberation.
As an undergraduate, Jaclyn thought she was too smart to become a victim of sexual assault – until another student proved her wrong. That experience eventually led her to become a student and instructor of IMPACT safety training. At IMPACT, she helped bring safety skills to the communities which most need them, including gang-involved high school students and women transitioning out of abusive relationships.
Friedman’s work has popularized the “yes means yes” standard of sexual consent that is quickly becoming law on many US campuses. She has also helped redefine the concept of “healthy sexuality,” starting with two landmark pieces: the interview “F*cking While Feminist” and the highly personal polemic “My Sluthood, Myself,” which together inspired thousands of responses and explorations across the blogosphere and beyond. Her insistence that authentic sexual liberation is a necessary condition to end the systemic sexualization and violation of women led Lyn Mikel Brown (Co-founder of SPARK and Professor of Education and Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Colby College) to call her “this generation’s version of Dr. Ruth.”
Friedman is a popular speaker on campuses and at conferences across the U.S. and beyond. She has been a guest on the Today Show, Nightline, PBS News Hour, the Melissa Harris-Perry Show, and numerous other radio and television shows, and her commentary has appeared in outlets including CNN, Time, The Washington Post, The Nation, Jezebel and The Huffington Post. She is a SheSource expert and a Progressive Women’s Voices alumna, and was named one of 2009’s Top 40 Progressive Leaders Under 40 by the New Leaders Council. Friedman is a founder and the former Executive Director of Women, Action & the Media, where she led the successful #FBrape campaign to apply Facebook’s hate-speech ban to content that promotes gender-based violence. Friedman also holds an MFA in creative writing from Emerson College.
Tune in Friday, April 1 at 5 pm PT / 8 pm ET to hear this show. Join the discussion on Twitter where we livetweet each week. Sex Out Loud airs every Friday, you can listen along on your computer, tablet, or phone, find all the ways at SexOutLoudRadio.com. If you missed any part of the episode or want to listen again, you can listen to every episode on demand here.
Announcing the Explore More Summit! A 10-day virtual summit January 28-February 6, 2016 hosted by Dawn Serra. Explore More Summit features intimate interviews with 30 experts from around the world on all things sex, relationships, and self-love including Allison Moon, Amy Jo Goddard, Ashley Manta, Barbara Carrellas, Bianca Laureano, Charlie Glickman, Conner Habib, Cyndi Darnell, Dan Savage, Devi Ward, Elena Lipson, Feminista Jones, Erin Lee Kaufmann, Gina Senarighi, JoEllen Notte, Karen B.K. Chan, Lauren Marie Fleming, Dirty Lola, Meg John Barker, Nadine Thornhill, Mark Michaels and Patricia Johnson, Marlene Wasserman, Reid Mihalko, Sophie Delancey, Stacey Herrera, Sunny Megatron and Ken Melvoin-Berg, Toby Hill-Meyer, Victoria Rosa, Virgie Tovar, and me, Tristan Taormino! Trust me…these talks are PHENOMENAL.
All of the talks air for free on their designated day. If you register for the summit before January 28, you’ll also get a free workbook emailed to you each morning during the summit with all kinds of prompts and questions that build on the talks. Get all the details about the free interviews, bonuses, and upgrades!
Host Tristan Taormino recorded this two-part episode in front a of a live studio audience at the world-famous Pleasure Chest in West Hollywood. Her amazing line up of special guests includes: the reigning 2015 AVN BBW Performer of the Year April Flores; sex educator and host of the Sex Nerd Sandra podcast Sandra Daugherty; writer, teacher, and former porn performer Conner Habib; and current Southern California Leather Master titleholder Orpheus Black. In Part 2, guests talk about everything from fat girl fantasies and dominance to the myths of the Great Dick/Brain Divide. We take audience questions about Master/slave relationships, BDSM beginners, diversity in sex education, and more, then share our resolutions for the New Year.
About the Special Guests:
Sandra Daugherty punches sexual shame in the face. Also known as Sex Nerd Sandra, she speaks, educates, hosts, podcasts and pundits. Her sex-positive teaching methods include heavy doses of physical comedy, playful insight and delightful factoids. Known the world over for her Nerdist Industries podcast, “Sex Nerd Sandra,” its loyal listenership (almost 13 million downloads) is vocal about Sandra’s impact, describing her as “inspiring” with “contagious enthusiasm” and an “awesome nerd-like ability that [she’s] not afraid to show.” Sandra can be seen on Fusion TV (The Search for Sexy), The Young Turks (Think Tank, Common Room, The Point) and weekly in your earholes. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she is an avid traveler and lover of big questions. Find her on Twitter @SexNerdSandra.
April Flores is a muse, model, and erotic performer but that’s not even scratching the surface. A fearless voluptuous star with scarlet hair, proponent of the queer community, feminist, sex-positive activist, outspoken advocate of body diversity, glamorous art model, avid kink fan, sub and dom both, and all around powerful woman. April is the first ever BBW to win two consecutive AVN Awards for her groundbreaking work. She has also graced the covers of Bizarre and AVN Magazines, among others, modeled for dozens of fine art photographers, appeared in countless adult films in every genre of the adult industry (from mainstream to queer to kinky to artsy), and spoken out about body image and sexuality at countless venues. She is @TheAprilFlores on Twitter.
Orpheus Black, Southern California’s Leather Master/slave titleholder, is also a published author and erotic educator that specializes in hierarchical dynamics, non-monogamous relationships, and erotic meditation. This two-time Bawdy Storytelling champion has been traveling the country teaching his fun and light-hearted educational events for more than a decade. During this time, Orpheus has become one of California’s most respected educators as well as a favorite interviewee and contributor, lending his expertise to shows such as “Chocolate Radio,” “Night Calls,” “Love, Sex, and Hip Hop,” “The Sex Nerd Sandra Show,” “The Dr. Susan Block Show,” and “The Inner Circle with Neil Strauss.” Orpheus is also a regular presenter at DomConLA and is the founder of Cirque de Sade—a high profile Dominants group whose mission is to advance the art of BDSM through a commitment to innovation, excellence, and active leadership in the D/s, Ms and fetish communities. When not teaching, counseling or performing, Orpheus can be found enjoying his 20-year polyfidelitous, polyamorous relationship with his life partner Indigo Black. He can also be found teaching Urban Survival classes and self defense/MMA classes in his local park.
Conner Habib is an author, a lecturer, and the Vice President of the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee. He’s probably the only person alive who’s won awards for writing, teaching, and porn. He lives in Los Angeles, and his twitter is @connerhabib.
Host Tristan Taormino recorded this two-part episode in front a of a live studio audience at the world-famous Pleasure Chest in West Hollywood. Her amazing line up of special guests includes: the reigning 2015 AVN BBW Performer of the Year April Flores; sex educator and host of the Sex Nerd Sandra podcast Sandra Daugherty; writer, teacher, and former porn performer Conner Habib; and current Southern California Leather Master titleholder Orpheus Black. In Part 1, they discuss the power of humor in sex ed, mainstream representations of kinky sex, what a plus-size activist can teach us about sexual confidence, and the importance of curiosity in sex. Guests are put to the test when Tristan asks them about their most important sex advice, plus they talk about their favorite sexy gifts to give and receive. We take thought-provoking questions from the audience about consent, anal sex, erotic boundaries, and more.
About the Special Guests:
Sandra Daugherty punches sexual shame in the face. Also known as Sex Nerd Sandra, she speaks, educates, hosts, podcasts and pundits. Her sex-positive teaching methods include heavy doses of physical comedy, playful insight and delightful factoids. Known the world over for her Nerdist Industries podcast, “Sex Nerd Sandra,” its loyal listenership (almost 13 million downloads) is vocal about Sandra’s impact, describing her as “inspiring” with “contagious enthusiasm” and an “awesome nerd-like ability that [she’s] not afraid to show.” Sandra can be seen on Fusion TV (The Search for Sexy), The Young Turks (Think Tank, Common Room, The Point) and weekly in your earholes. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she is an avid traveler and lover of big questions. Find her on Twitter @SexNerdSandra.
April Flores is a muse, model, and erotic performer but that’s not even scratching the surface. A fearless voluptuous star with scarlet hair, proponent of the queer community, feminist, sex-positive activist, outspoken advocate of body diversity, glamorous art model, avid kink fan, sub and dom both, and all around powerful woman. April is the first ever BBW to win two consecutive AVN Awards for her groundbreaking work. She has also graced the covers of Bizarre and AVN Magazines, among others, modeled for dozens of fine art photographers, appeared in countless adult films in every genre of the adult industry (from mainstream to queer to kinky to artsy), and spoken out about body image and sexuality at countless venues. She is @TheAprilFlores on Twitter.
Orpheus Black, Southern California’s Leather Master/slave titleholder, is also a published author and erotic educator that specializes in hierarchical dynamics, non-monogamous relationships, and erotic meditation. This two-time Bawdy Storytelling champion has been traveling the country teaching his fun and light-hearted educational events for more than a decade. During this time, Orpheus has become one of California’s most respected educators as well as a favorite interviewee and contributor, lending his expertise to shows such as “Chocolate Radio,” “Night Calls,” “Love, Sex, and Hip Hop,” “The Sex Nerd Sandra Show,” “The Dr. Susan Block Show,” and “The Inner Circle with Neil Strauss.” Orpheus is also a regular presenter at DomConLA and is the founder of Cirque de Sade—a high profile Dominants group whose mission is to advance the art of BDSM through a commitment to innovation, excellence, and active leadership in the D/s, Ms and fetish communities. When not teaching, counseling or performing, Orpheus can be found enjoying his 20-year polyfidelitous, polyamorous relationship with his life partner Indigo Black. He can also be found teaching Urban Survival classes and self defense/MMA classes in his local park.
Conner Habib is an author, a lecturer, and the Vice President of the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee. He’s probably the only person alive who’s won awards for writing, teaching, and porn. He lives in Los Angeles, and his twitter is @connerhabib.
Here’s your chance to be part of a live studio audience! Join host Tristan Taormino as she records a special holiday-themed episode of Sex Out Loud at the world-famous Pleasure Chest in West Hollywood. Joining her will be an amazing line up of special guests including: the reigning 2015 AVN BBW Performer of the Year April Flores; sex educator and host of the Sex Nerd Sandra podcast Sandra Daugherty; writer, teacher, and former porn performer Conner Habib; and current Southern California Leather Master titleholder Orpheus Black. The guests will give you their naughty and nice sex tips, top holiday gift picks, and answers to all your questions. There will be refreshments and amazing prize giveaways to get you in the holiday spirit. You do not want to miss this!
All the Details:
December 16, 2015, 8:00-10:00 pm
The Pleasure Chest, 7733 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90046
Free and open to all on a first come, first served basis so arrive early to reserve your spot!
About the Special Guests:
Sandra Daugherty punches sexual shame in the face. Also known as Sex Nerd Sandra, she speaks, educates, hosts, podcasts and pundits. Her sex-positive teaching methods include heavy doses of physical comedy, playful insight and delightful factoids. Known the world over for her Nerdist Industries podcast, “Sex Nerd Sandra,” its loyal listenership (almost 13 million downloads) is vocal about Sandra’s impact, describing her as “inspiring” with “contagious enthusiasm” and an “awesome nerd-like ability that [she’s] not afraid to show.” Sandra can be seen on Fusion TV (The Search for Sexy), The Young Turks (Think Tank, Common Room, The Point) and weekly in your earholes. Born and raised in Los Angeles, she is an avid traveler and lover of big questions. Find her on Twitter @SexNerdSandra.
April Flores is a muse, model, and erotic performer but that’s not even scratching the surface. A fearless voluptuous star with scarlet hair, proponent of the queer community, feminist, sex-positive activist, outspoken advocate of body diversity, glamorous art model, avid kink fan, sub and dom both, and all around powerful woman. April is the first ever BBW to win two consecutive AVN Awards for her groundbreaking work. She has also graced the covers of Bizarre and AVN Magazines, among others, modeled for dozens of fine art photographers, appeared in countless adult films in every genre of the adult industry (from mainstream to queer to kinky to artsy), and spoken out about body image and sexuality at countless venues. She is @TheAprilFlores on Twitter.
Orpheus Black, Southern California’s Leather Master/slave titleholder, is also a published author and erotic educator that specializes in hierarchical dynamics, non-monogamous relationships, and erotic meditation. This two-time Bawdy Storytelling champion has been traveling the country teaching his fun and light-hearted educational events for more than a decade. During this time, Orpheus has become one of California’s most respected educators as well as a favorite interviewee and contributor, lending his expertise to shows such as “Chocolate Radio,” “Night Calls,” “Love, Sex, and Hip Hop,” “The Sex Nerd Sandra Show,” “The Dr. Susan Block Show,” and “The Inner Circle with Neil Strauss.” Orpheus is also a regular presenter at DomConLA and is the founder of Cirque de Sade—a high profile Dominants group whose mission is to advance the art of BDSM through a commitment to innovation, excellence, and active leadership in the D/s, Ms and fetish communities. When not teaching, counseling or performing, Orpheus can be found enjoying his 20-year polyfidelitous, polyamorous relationship with his life partner Indigo Black. He can also be found teaching Urban Survival classes and self defense/MMA classes in his local park.
Conner Habib is an author, a lecturer, and the Vice President of the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee. He’s probably the only person alive who’s won awards for writing, teaching, and porn. He lives in Los Angeles, and his twitter is @connerhabib.
The LA Academy of Sex Education presents Opening Up: An Open Relationship Intensive Workshop with Tristan Taormino on Sunday, November 15 from 1:00-4:00 pm at The Stockroom in Los Angeles. How do people create nontraditional partnerships that are loving and fulfilling? There are few established scripts or visible role models for open relationships, so people in them can often struggle without support and guidance. In this four hour intensive program, sex and relationship educator Tristan Taormino shares some of the key principles that can help your open relationships succeed. She will review some of the most common styles of open relationships, from partnered nonmonogamy to solo polyamory, and discuss how to customize them to meet your individual needs and wants. She will share wisdom from the over 100 people she interviewed and profiled in her bestselling book Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships. The workshop will address common issues and problems including: new relationship energy, time management, sexual and emotional safety, boundary setting, agreement violations, and coping with change. Through creative exercises, you’ll discover how to unpack all the different elements of jealousy and identify what triggers your jealousy and how it manifests for you; learn to develop coping strategies and find access points to the practice of compersion. Learn how to tackle challenges including: communicating about highly-charged topics, conflict resolution skills, the art of re-negotiation, roadblocks to fulfillment, and confronting fear. Whether you’re a newcomer or veteran to the world beyond monogamy, come discover strategies to help you nurture and grow your open relationships. Open to people in all kinds of relationship configurations as well as solos and singles of all genders and sexual orientations. Seating is limited and pre-registration is strongly encouraged.
Location: The Stockroom, 2809 1/2 Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90026.
Admission: Register at Eventbrite. Open to people in all kinds of relationship configurations as well as solos and singles of all genders and sexual orientations. Seating is limited and pre-registration is strongly encouraged.
We have several different ticket types available:
Regular $100
VIP $125: priority seating, personalized signed copy of Opening Up, gift bag
VIP + Dinner $200: priority seating, personalized signed copy of Opening Up, autographed DVD, luxury gift bag, dinner with Tristan after the workshop