journalist's question

Ah. Sci-fi, then.

I can't help much here, inasmuch as "female" and "desire" are more or less mutually exclusive concepts to me, but to the broader topic of desire, a note: At some point, you'll bump into the "immersion / augmentation" dialectic. It matters because SL is a shared storytelling realm for some, and a kind of 3D match.com for others, and most of us travel back and forth along that continuum.

It may be that "desire" in its essence is most easily distilled from the behavior of the most extreme immersionists--those for whom an interaction intends to entail no reality whatsoever. This does not preclude "desire"--quite the opposite, in fact.

Further to that point, it may be striking just how primitive Second Life encounters appear. Avatars are clumsy charicatures, at best. But this medium is much less impoverished than many of its predecessors (IRC, say) that were (at least) as successful in evoking desire between participants.

Desire is an emotion. The paleocortex is easily fooled when we set our frontal lobes to it. But of course writers should know that more than anyone, it being the basis of their craft.

why just women? what about the men who are stumbling around looking for the same thing. I may be very cynical when I stereotype the humans behind those avatars but there are actually men in here who are also trying to explore these facets of themselves as well.

or does girl on girl fantasies/female erotica sell better than the idea of men trying to connect on an emotional level?

Don't answer that, I already know.

If it was a female writer she would probably be curious about men in those areas..
This is a man curious about woman in those areas i am thinking..

Going into SL would really be a good step though, I'd even suggest hooking up with some good explorers, and have a tour of a few hours. You don't even need to see a night club or anything like that to get a feeling for the potential of SL.
SL is about communication, but it is also about senses. People could start a random animation in the middle of nowhere and pretend to have sex, but that isn't the idea.

SL allows one to create a setting and an atmosphere that he or she desires. Not as realistic as in the real world, but definitely easier.
A romantic walk in the woods or on the beach is only 1 teleport away in SL, provided you know where to go. Totally unlike real life, where you have to drive to the forest or the park, and the sun doesn't shine or whatever it takes to make the experience less memorable, almost everything can be made just perfect.
Add to that the slightly lower inhibitions people show online (almost everybody starts out hiding in anonimity, doing and saying the things that are REALLY on their mind, which they might not dare in RL yet) and you have a situation that feels safe and good at the same time.

Anyway, just to get a grasp of this made world, that allows one to set sceneries and atmospheres, any experienced explorer would be able to help. That would even include Marianne McCann, yes. The idea is to get a feel for the potential of SL to set moods, not to get randy right away.
At the same time, I've spoken some Second Life escorts who were very seasoned explorers while not doing their bussiness as well. I'd have to search my inventory to see if I still have their notecards.

In reality:

I get off reading about people's romantic and sexual on-line play in virtual worlds. Please help me to get my rocks off by giving me details of your encounters in sl.

Many thanks

I once dressed like a nun in latex and beat my neighbor with a ruler while my pet took her from behind with a strap-on.

THUD!

Somebody get the smelling salts...

The Blackberry has an enter key.

I'm kind of surprised that so many seem so ready to talk with this man. Not that he isn't professional or has any hidden agenda. But if you're going to open up and tell all or let him follow you around, you might take a look at his published work so you know what kind of frame your portrait might end up in.

.

I think Desmond's response to this thread, explained the phenomenon quite nicely.

I'm just tired of SL being misrepresented by people that take a glance and feel they understand this world when they barely scratch the surface of orientation..

Some come in alone and look around for a short time and learn with their eyes not giving their minds a chance to take a dip..

I'm not saying the OP is here to hurt SL..It doesn't sound like it.. It can happen unintentionally..

I only offered to help because i have a few days off..It's 90+ and humid outside so i'm not going out there lol
Plus SL needs to be seen in a fair and honest way..There are so many phases of life in here that talking to someone 30 days old and married twice already is just gonna do the same thing as all the past articles..leave a bad taste and cause an influx of 10k new users lol

I'm not worried about reading past works from the Op myself..I'm pretty confident in my experienced in reading the people..
That and it could be fun and interesting..

The OP has gone worryingly quiet. Did those offering to give him a guided tour of SL drop him into some cesspit of pr0n, never to be seen again?

It's a 3 day weekend in the States. He could be in a RL cesspit of pr0n.

You *are* naive . . .

Pep ( . . . but I'm not going to be the one to disabuse you. )

That's the subbies job!

Pep (Writers write; editors edit!)

/me waves a plate of cheese beneath Pep's nose and whispers, "Eds hit the delete key if the writer can't be bothered with paras..."

Same ol' same ol' then?

Pep (He's not looking for cliched stuff like that, surely?)

Wimbledon, Pep. Wimbledon. Get Mrs Pep to dish out the strawbs and cream. Relax.

Wimbledon used to be good.

Pep (Now it's full of old women of both sexes who stand at the back of the court and wait for their opponent to get more bored than they are.)

My Mum watched Arthur Ashe and Jimmy Connors play live at that phenominal final in 1975 (?). I seen film of it. I think I agree with you.
It was 102 F. in centre court that day and it was the greatest match ever played.

Nah! I saw the 1975 final and it doesn't even approach McEnroe v Borg 1980.

Pep (Best that *I* have seen, but I didn't see last year's final which has its advocates.)

No way. Borg/McEnroe never matched Ashe's talent - he died too soon.

Yes, I confess, it was tennis that kept me away from my desk all morning and into the afternoon, though I'll refrain from saying who I was rooting for -- don't want to alienate any potential teachers. Anyway, I may have gone silent, but I've definitely been following the conversation and learning what I can.... Thank you