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Erotica used to fight rape culture

Alice Webb-Liddall
F Talks
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Rape culture protests paves the way for discussions about sexuality, says erotic fiction editor.

Laura Borrowdale has had enough of the taboo of sexuality.

Borrowdale is the founding editor of Aotearotica, a journal of erotic fiction established with the aim engage people in healthy sexual media.

She spoke at F. Talks on Sunday night, a female empowerment evening aiming to combat the negative stigmas of female sexuality.

"Porn is so accessible online and I wanted it not to be porn. So, to take it (Aotearotica) offline seemed a way to do that," Borrowdale said.

She believed young men were growing up in a world where women were objectified. 

"More and more we're seeing young men growing up in this culture that's dominated by readily available women and that's how they see them. They see them as consumables." 

Borrowdale hoped that through healthy expression of sexuality, the negative stigma of sex would fade and the exploration of eroticism would become more mainstream. 

Aotearotica is now collating content for its third edition, aiming to represent sexuality across genders and orientations.