Nifty Erotic Stories Archive
| Available in | English |
|---|---|
| URL | nifty |
| Launched | 1993 |
| Current status | Active |
Nifty Erotic Stories Archive, also known as nifty.org and Nifty, is an extensive semi-curated website of erotic literature established in 1993.[1][2]
Background[edit]
The site collects LGBT stories, straight stories and bisexual and lesbian themed stories by amateur writers as well as "General Erotic and Educational Information",[3][4] with stories categorized by theme and subject matter such as "first time", "interracial", fan-fiction, missionary experiences,[5] and other categories.[6] Fan-fiction historian Laura Hale has noted that "Historically, this archive is not viewed as a home to true fan fiction but rather celebrity based erotica which was absent the fannish fan fiction context".[1]
As of February 25, 2023, the site contains over 300,000 stories.[7] The site accepts direct submissions and is independently hosted, but mirrored at the Alt Sex Stories Text Repository and many other sites, in several countries. In 2000, it was recognized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service as a tax-exempt, nonprofit 501(c) organization.[8] The site is free and maintained by volunteer labor only, and relies on user donations. Nifty does not have a registration process, an aspect that has drawn criticism, as the site does not require users to verify that they are over the age of 18.[9]
In 2012 online payment company Stripe suspended Nifty's account due to the site hosting stories featuring bestiality, which Stripe believed would violate Visa and MasterCard's brand protection rules.[10] Nifty contested this action, stating that it violated their First Amendment right to freedom of speech, and the decision was later overturned.[11]
In academic research[edit]
Nifty.org was used as a source for one million words of gay male erotic narratives, and a comparison million words of lesbian erotic narratives, by Paul Baker of Lancaster University, in a study of "the identity constructions and language use of those who are viewed as ideal sexual partners; important themes or narrative patterns within the texts which reveal the discourses of sexuality that the authors have accessed; [and] the language that gay consumers/creators of erotic texts find to be sexually arousing".[12]
In 2000 OutProud published data from a survey they had conducted with Oasis magazine where the intent was to find ways to improve communication with the target communities they served.[13] OutProud discovered that a large amount of their survey respondents (51%) had found the survey through Nifty or a Nifty-related link, which surprised the surveyors as they had not approached the site for assistance with the survey.[13] The surveyors also found that the Nifty respondents fit more accurately into the target communities they were trying to approach, as they found that other sources did not represent all of the communities OutProud and Oasis were hoping to receive surveys from.[13]
Sections[edit]
Several identical subcategories appear in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual sections. They are:
- Adult Friends
- Adult Youth
- Athletics
- Authoritarian
- Beginnings
- Celebrity
- College
- Encounters
- High School
- Incest
- Interracial
- Masturbation
- Science Fiction or Fantasy
- Urination
- Young Friends
In addition, some subcategories appear only in the gay and bisexual sections:
- Camping
- Historical
- Military
- Relationships
- Rural
The Bestiality section of the website has not been discontinued despite coming under heavy criticism.
| Section | Subsections[14][15][16][17] |
|---|---|
| Bisexual |
|
| Gay |
|
| Lesbian |
|
| Transgender |
|
References[edit]
- ^ a b Hellekson, Karen; Busse, Kristina, eds. (2006). Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet: New Essays. McFarland. p. 55. ISBN 9780786454969. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Spinner, Jenni. "Femslash: Erotica meets fan fantasies". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on 2014-08-26. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Humble, Nicola (2012). The Cambridge Companion to Popular Fiction. Cambridge University Press. pp. 99–100. ISBN 9780521513371. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Baker, Paul (2005). Public Discourses of Gay Men. Routledge. p. 157. ISBN 0415349737. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Argetsinger, Gerald S. (2013). Latter-gay Saints: An Anthology of Gay Mormon Fiction. Lethe Press. p. 14. ISBN 9781590212646. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Bale, John; Vertinsky, Patricia Anne (2004). Sites of Sport: Space, Place, Experience. Psychology Press. p. 156. ISBN 0714682810. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Nifty home page Archived 2023-02-25 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ http://www.nifty.org/nifty/about.html Archived 2015-05-26 at the Wayback Machine, verified at https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/ Archived 2017-08-29 at the Wayback Machine on 2014-08-23: listed as Nifty Archive Alliance Inc., White Plains, NY, EIN 31-1737358
- ^ The Advocate. The Advocate. May 13, 1997. p. 54. Archived from the original on 5 July 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Opshal, Kurt; Reitman, Rainey (2 November 2012). "Payment Provider Stripe Upholds Free Speech, Reactivates Nifty Archives". Economic Freedom Fund. Archived from the original on 14 February 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ Bousquet, Mark. "EFF Wins Battle for Erotic Fiction Against Internet "Gatekeeper"". CBLDF. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
- ^ "Querying Keywords Questions of Difference, Frequency, and Sense in Keywords Analysis", Journal of English Linguistics, Vol. 32, No. 4, December 2004, pp. 346-359. This study included by Pat Baker, under the title "As big as a beercan. A comparative keyword analysis of lesbian and gay male erotic narratives", in Public Discourses of Gay Men, London, New York, Routledge, 2005, ISBN 0415349737, reissued unchanged in 2013, ISBN 0415850223
- ^ a b c Kryzan, Christopher (September–October 2000). "OutProud/Oasis Internet Survey of Queer and Questioning Youth" (PDF). OutProud: 3, 5, 10, 11, 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
- ^ "Nifty Erotic Stories Archive: Bisexual Stories". Nifty.org. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ "Nifty Erotic Stories Archive: Gay Male Stories". Nifty.org. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ "Nifty Erotic Stories Archive: Lesbian Stories". Nifty.org. Archived from the original on 14 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ "Nifty Erotic Stories Archive: Transgender Stories". Nifty.org. Archived from the original on 8 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
Further reading[edit]
- Kruger, Steven F (2010). "Gay Internet Medievalism: Erotic Story Archives, the Middle Ages, and Contemporary Gay Identity". American Literary History. 22 (4): 913–944. doi:10.1093/alh/ajq064. S2CID 144036114.