The Book

As we start this kickstarter campaign, we're more than halfway done writing A Steampunk's Guide to Sex. The book covers both Victorian and contemporary sexuality, such as:

• erotica
• sex work
• burlesque
• BDSM
• alternative sexualities
• consent
• sexual health
• sex devices through the ages
• historical attitudes on sex

and includes a great number of how-to guides covering such things as:

• DIY floggers made with bike tubes
• steam-powered vibrators
• Victorian aphrodisiacs

One of the most common reactions we get, when describing the book to someone new, is: "Oh, so you're taking this seriously?" Absolutely. We intend for this book to be fun, lighthearted, fascinating, and useful. There will be a mix of neat history and of information applicable to contemporary subcultures.

The Art

The book will be illustrated with steamy modern photos shot with the historical tintype process. The camera we're using is almost exactly 100 years old, the lens is from 1891 and the process itself is older still. Unlike the more modern negative film process, we're shooting positive, one-of-a-kind images directly onto aluminum plates.

The Series

This book is the second in our Steampunk's Guide series: first we did A Steampunk's Guide to the Apocalypse. After this one, we'll start work on our next title, Crime.

Your Money

We're a small publisher, to put it lightly, and we keep our list prices as low as possible. So we don't really have much capital. Sure, we could put out A Steampunk's Guide to Sex via print-on-demand, but we'd have to bump up the cover price for a lower-quality product. We want this book to be your beautiful reference to the kinky side of anachronistic life. So we need money to afford a print run of the books.

The Contributors

Professor Calamity is a member of the Catastrophone Orchestra arts collective, a group of authors and performers that researches and illuminates the 19th century working and criminal classes. He is the primary author and editor of the book.

Alan Moore is the best-selling author of Watchman, From Hell, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and any number of other books. He is contributing his thoughts on pornography and Victorian prostitution.

Margaret Killjoy founded SteamPunk Magazine in 2006 and wrote A Steampunk's Guide to the Apocalypse in 2007. He is an editor and designer for the book in addition to his role as the tintypist.

Luna is both a steampunk and a sex worker who writes and educates about sex work. She is a contributing writer.

Miriam Roček, better known as Steampunk Emma Goldman, is a NYC-based activist steampunk author whose work has appeared all over the internet and in print. She is a contributing writer.