The August Carnival of Aces is being hosted by sildarmillion, and the theme is “Asexuality and Orientation” Get your submissions in before the end of the month!
The Carnival of Aces is hosted by volunteers each month. If you would like to volunteer, please see the masterpost for instructions.
On Fridays, we will share links to news, blogs, and anything else we find interesting. We can’t catch everything, so you are invited to self-promote in the comments!
Writing
Perfect Number has been continuing her series on an ace reading of The Great Sex Rescue. Most recently she has written about the book’s discussion of foreplay and husbands depriving their wives.
Siggy shared a couple of examples of rightwing media attention on asexuality.
AZE released Vol. 6, Issue 1: Stories.
Blue Ice-Tea reviewed The Woman King.
News & Outreach
Yasmin Benoit shared her experience with Pride and getting backlash on Twitter.
This month, the ace journal club discussed
“Asexual competent practices in healthcare: A narrative review” by S. Schneckenburger et al. (2023) https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19359705.2023.2214528 (requires journal access)
The journal club meets once a month on Discord, using text or voice as club members prefer. We discuss a variety of academic works in ace studies, ranging from gender studies to psychology. Don’t worry about journal access, we can provide access. If you’re interested, please e-mail me at asexualagenda@gmail.com for an invite.
Our discussion notes are below the fold.
cn: Non-graphic discussion of sex, consent, and coercion
Initiation refers to an attempt or request to begin a sexual or intimate activity. I’m primarily thinking of sex, but this could also apply to cuddling, kissing, you name it. In a mixed ace/allosexual relationship where the couple is mutually interested in an intimate activity, initiation is basically ground zero for any discrepancies in interest. The question becomes: who will initiate?
Counterintuitive though it may be, it often makes sense for the ace partner to be the initiator. But this approach is not without its problems.
This discussion is based on my personal experience in mixed relationships, but it doesn’t reflect my personal circumstances. It contains some extrapolation, and it may be a bit hit or miss. Different experiences and alternative approaches are welcomed here.
Continue readingOn Fridays, we will share links to news, blogs, and anything else we find interesting. We can’t catch everything, so you are invited to self-promote in the comments!
Writing
Simran T reviewed Angela Chen’s Ace.
Blue Iced-Tea reviewed Turning Red.
Videos
Yasmin Benoit was interviewed on far-right TV news show Newsmax. (6 min)
News & Outreach
Femina interviewed Dr. Pragati Singh.
Aro Community Activity
The Carnival of Aros had a roundup on “Being aromantic in an allonormative world“. The next carnival is seeking submissions.
On Fridays, we will share links to news, blogs, and anything else we find interesting. We can’t catch everything, so you are invited to self-promote in the comments!
Writing
Coyote discussed a problematic plot line in Some Like It Hot (1959).
sildarmillion praises the platonic friendship in Wreck-It Ralph.
Erin Wiesen talked about their relationships, and how learning about asexuality changed them.
Videos
Embrace is a wordless animated short. (5 min)
The Take reviews the rising trope of platonic partners in television and movies. (16 min)
This month, the ace journal club discussed
“Low desire, trauma and femininity in the DSM-5: a case for sequelae” by Alyson Spurgas (2016). https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/19419899.2015.1024471 (requires journal access)
The journal club meets once a month on Discord, using text or voice as club members prefer. We discuss a variety of academic works in ace studies, ranging from gender studies to psychology. Don’t worry about journal access, we can provide access. If you’re interested, please e-mail me at asexualagenda@gmail.com for an invite.
Our discussion notes are below the fold.
On Fridays, we will share links to news, blogs, and anything else we find interesting. We can’t catch everything, so you are invited to self-promote in the comments!
Writing
Blue Ice-Tea talks about Luke Skywalker’s love interests in the original trilogy.
Perfect Number explains why she’s writing a series on The Great Sex Rescue even though the book is not “for” aces.
Rebecca Dingwell talks about connections between autistic and ace experience, through personal stories and interviews with other autistic aces.
Julie Kliegman reviewed five nonfiction books about bad sex and asexuality.
Jenna DeWitt wrote about being asexual and aromantic for Christian magazine Sojourners.
News & Outreach
Yasmin Benoit will be the grand marshal of the NYC Pride March, and there several articles about her. Here’s one in LGBTQ Nation.
Aro Community Activity
The June Carnival of Aros is seeking submissions on the theme “Being aromantic in an allonormative world”.
The Carnival of Aces for May has been posted by Perfect Number. The theme was “Changing Labels“. Please take a look!
There currently isn’t any host for the next Carnival of Aces. If you would like to volunteer, please see the masterpost for instructions.
This month, the ace journal club discussed
“Why is absent/low sexual desire a mental disorder (except when patients identify as asexual)?” by Leslie Margolin (2023). https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/epdf/10.1080/19419899.2023.2193575 (publicly accessible)
The journal club meets once a month on Discord, using text or voice as club members prefer. We discuss a variety of academic works in ace studies, ranging from gender studies to psychology. Don’t worry about journal access, we can provide access. If you’re interested, please e-mail me at asexualagenda@gmail.com for an invite.
Our discussion notes are below the fold.
 | captainheartless on Initiation in mixed relat… |
 | Siggy on Linkspam: July 28th, 2023 |
| Siggy on Linkspam: July 28th, 2023 |
 | Kae on Initiation in mixed relat… |
 | Perfect Number on Linkspam: July 28th, 2023 |
The Asexual Agenda 