Part of creating the Oho Ake Books publishing and the creative universe was to get as much exposure for the work as possible. Naturally, given the market for ebooks, I would want to find a platform on the internet that would allow me to have the largest distribution across the planet, with numerous retail sellers (not just Amazon KDP) and so after a year of researching, experimenting and working with the USA tax department (which is a valued experience in patience and deciphering code that makes Alan Turing look like a pre-schooler) I found the platform, Draft2Digital. Based in Oklahoma, they ticked all the boxes for me, were an absolute pleasure to deal with, and I felt like I had found the people I needed to have the expansion of the creative project I wanted to share with the literary world. It would another step closer to graphic novels, then television and film for the books and their diverse content.
In the last few days, I have encountered resistance to the content I write about. Guidelines outlined within the confines of censorship and the perception of what’s appropriate for readers, in this case from an individual who deemed some of my work to be inappropriate, and therefore cannot be deemed publishable through the platforms, Draft2Digital and now also Amazon, who D2D have a license to distribute through. Amazon hasn’t come to the party to explain why the novel United, by Harmon Sueno has been banned, but to their credit, D2D has given me an explanation, but only after I asked for a human review, rather than an AI, algorithm, do their bidding for them. As is with these programs, its keywords that trip one up, and some of mine, within the confines of Lord Buford Somerset’s collection of short stories, The Darkness Holds Sway, that got the book denied distribution on the platform. I was told to try the retailers individually to see if I would have better luck with publishing the book with each (a lot of work, for more than likely the same result).
The Darkness Holds Sway, is an ode to Clive Barker. Therefore it is racy, descriptive, vivid, and due to the influence of the master of erotic dark fantasy and horror, very very dark. But a poetic beat moves through these ghastly tales and makes them all a collaboration of tragedy of the human soul gone to waste. All has to be put into context. The stories need to be looked at from a bird’s eye view, not from a postage stamp of sentence to sentence, word to word. For me, the most appalling truth is that real life is far more ghastly than fictitious imaginary tales could ever be (and you will see me present my case for this in the transcript I will attach to this blog). The horrors portrayed in our media, television programming, and film go well and truly beyond what I write about. The vile and grotesque behaviour behind the closed doors, of those who rule over us, goes unchallenged in fiction. This is one of the reasons why I write fictitious stories incorporated with facts. I want to have people question the nature of the thin veneer we call reality, and in the next few years, I believe that they will. What remains hidden will soon be unveiled.
So without further ado, I give you the transcript from my email to Carmen, at Draft2Digital… my replies are in Italic’s
‘Yes, an employee has indeed gone over your book, and upon your email, I have also investigated the content in this book.
It appears that in the first chapter there are references to children being “raped for their emotional responses.” This falls under the category of non-consensual as well as pedophilia. – context – In this passage, an employee is remembering the horrors of ‘supposed fictional creatures- Reptoids’ and their vile behaviors, and he’s disgusted by the memory, for it robbed him of his conscience. (one that at the end of the story he regains by turning the weapon used to kill the comedian on himself, he just can’t stand working for the CIA/DOD/NSA pick an alphabet agency, you won’t be far off the mark) So, this passage alludes to fictitious creatures (apparently) and their fictitious behavior. Yet, Amazon has published cover to cover accounts of recovered Satanists who elaborate even more vile and REAL enactments that range from children-the elderly. I can give you a list of the books I found in 30 seconds if requested?
Let’s continue…
In the section titled Narcosis, there is a sex scene between two characters, which turns sour as the woman is pulled from the scene and creature-like-woman proceeds to have sex with the character Percy against his will. The line following this scene explicitly defines this scenario as rape, stating “by all accounts asleep, gave the rapist enough time to dish out a swipe that sent Percy across the room…” As per our vendor guidelines, this is considered nonconsensual sexual activity. – Context – a demon possesses a beautiful nymphomaniac, her lover, blinded by love for her wishes to save her and is a victim of its lust for energetic siphoning from humans via the power of orgasm (ever read any clive barker? this story was inspired by a number of his dark erotic fantasy books). SHE (or more precisely it) strikes him, the creature (fictitious again) has sex with Percy, while he is searching for a way to get through to her to save her. It’s erotic dark fantasy.
In the section titled Passage, a woman is described as being asleep and awakes to the “instantly recognizable feelings of fingers being inserted into her vagina…” Based on the context clues surrounding this passage, it is considered non-consensual, as she reaches for a knife to defend herself upon the realization of what is happening to her body. – ??? It’s a murder scene. Tell me this, has D2D not published books that are riddled with real-life murders, describing the heinous crimes of the perpetrators and victims? War stories, whether in dramas, thrillers, horrors where headshots, stabbings, vile intrusions into people’s bodies with weapons, forced intercourse by soldiers (eg rape), maim, murder, kill. what’s the percentage of the best tv shows that stream which has such scenes? Game of Thrones (Ramsey Bolton – Sansa Stark) the books even more graphic. The Outsider, Stephen King, HBO about a monster that rapes and eats children, I could go on and on. In the context of the story, once again, it’s where you focus your attention.
Furthermore, the character violating her proceeds to murder her, and the text insinuates that this character had sex with her corpse, hence, necrophilia. – context, A man loses his beautiful wife to cancer in months of her discovering she is ill. He’s depressed into a stupor, one day he breaks free of his stupor and creates masterpieces of art all encapsulating her every look, profile, and emotion till he goes insane, digs up her grave in a frenzy thinking he can hear her calling his name, and dies of a huge stroke when he sees her (in his mind beautiful and alive) its a tragedy, Shakespearean in context, ancient greek in its poetry) Once again, it’s all about context, and how you perceive a story. To me there is nothing viler than everyday murder, maiming, raping that happens in real life, in war zones, think of what happened to the woman in Iraq/Syria captured by ISIS, reported by the news, no problem. It’s an inversion that works like mine can be taken out of context, but it’s about perception. Thankfully I have my website, and I will let the reader decide what they find appropriate. The description you provided for the book also mentions acts of necrophilia, which continues to support this decision that the book
The Darkness Holds Sway contains material that is considered objectional content by our vendors.
–Context, do these vendors publish books that detail real-life crimes, real-life war atrocities, and investigations into the behaviours of men/women around the world that violate human rights? I’m writing fiction, but the fact… is that ok? I found three books from recovering pedophiles for sale on Amazon and a book from a satanic cult survivor too in 30 seconds. I wish you all the best. However, it’s baffling that human behaviour far worse than what I’ve written about finds its way onto TV, the biggest networks in the world and makes millions of dollars, wins awards and no one blinks an eyelid. The world is inverted and completely mad. ‘
