Awards
Firecracker Alternative Book Awards "Best Sex Book 2000"
Synopses & Reviews
I Was a Teenage Dominatrix chronicles the real-life misadventures of a young woman who puts herself through college by working as a dominatrix.
Shawna Kenney lets us in on her unique coming-of-age as she transforms herself from young, broke, and miserable in crappy jobs ("The worst thing was my boss who stared at my chest while he yelled at me") to sucessful and empowered as a self-made professional-dominatrix-slash-college-student.
"I couldn't believe that just a month before I was avoiding bill collectors' calls and now I was walking out the door nightly with at least $300 in my hand and for what?! Spanking some man who felt he needed it? Why hadn't I learned this sooner? I was the star of these men's fantasies,and I was the dominatrix and I was in charge not them. The ruler, the queen, the BOSS. My favorite role!"
This gutsy, honest and funny book is not only a revealing behind-the-scenes look at the underground world of dominatrixes, it's also a great read.
Review
"I Was A Teenage Dominatrix breaks down the proverbial closet door, proving that 'good girls' can go 'bad,' and not only emerge unscathed but richer both monetarily and through experience gained....[Kenney] provides prurient thrills, succulent professional tidbits, and painfully funny anecdotes the accent, of course, being on PAIN (be warned that this book is probably not for the faint of heart!). This book is a page turner, a riveting romp with intellectual as well as sexual content, as well as being extremely personal in a universal way. This is no vanilla attempt at erotica or sterile study on sexual perversion the blood, sweat, and tears of real-life experience rings through loud and clear. There's something here for everyone, from fetishists to punk rockers, sex-positive feminists to curious culture-vultures. Through this exciting work, Kenney proves that the pen is mightier than the sword...or in this case, equal to, if not surpassing, the whip!" Pleasant Gehman, author of The Underground Guide to Los Angeles
Review
"Kenney's tale is lighthearted but fascinating....Her attitude is, overall, strongly woman-positive, and her spunk and enthusiasm leave a clear, fiery impression on her readers." BUST Magazine
Review
"[R]eader-friendly, sexy, and at times hilarious." ChickClick
About the Author
Shawna Kenney is a freelance writer, photographer, and an editor of Whap! magazine. Her work has appeared in Heckler, B-Side, Taboo, While You Were Sleeping and Highwire Daze. Kenney graduated from the American University in Washington, D.C. in 1995 and has worked as a waitress, nanny, librarian, copy typist, hotline operator, production assistant, receptionist, promoter, cashier, tour guide, reading tutor, swimming instructor and dominatrix. She lives in Los Angeles with her boyfriend and their snake.