The Submissive

Fanfiction
Title:	The Submissive
Author(s):	Tara Sue Me
Date(s):	2009-2010
Length:	70,656 words
Genre:	het
Fandom:	Twilight
External Links:
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The Submissive is the first in a trilogy of Edward/Bella Twilight BDSM AU fiction written by Tara Sue Me in 2009. The full trilogy consists of The Submissive, The Dominant, and The Training. The series may have been part of the inspiration for 50 Shades of Grey.

Below are the descriptions from twilighted.net:

"The Training" banner used on twilighted.net

The Training by tara sue me New! Rated: NC-17 Reviews - 727]

Summary: Sequel to The Submissive and The Dominant. Edward and Bella embark on their new relationship, but who's training whom?

Categories: AU-Human Characters: Bella, Edward

Challenges:

Series: None

Chapters: 17 Completed: No Word count: 53369

Published: September 24, 2009 Updated: February 12, 2010

"The Dominant" banner used on twilighted.net

The Dominant by tara sue me Rated: NC-17 Reviews - 57]

Summary: Because every story has two sides - The Submissive from EPOV. Rated M for Adult Themes and D/s. Will make more sense if you read The Submissive first.

Categories: AU-Human Characters: Bella, Edward

Challenges:

Series: None

Chapters: 37 Completed: No Word count: 111364

Published: February 07, 2010 Updated: February 07, 2010

"The Submissive" banner used on twilighted.net

The Submissive by tara sue me Rated: NC-17 Reviews - 270]

Summary: Can Bella Swan warm and win the heart of dom, Edward Cullen, while living out her darkest fantasy? ADULT THEMES

Categories: AU-Human Characters: Bella, Edward

Challenges:

Series: None

Chapters: 37 Completed: No Word count: 70656

Published: January 27, 2009 Updated: February 07, 2010"

Inspiration For 50 Shades of Grey?

From the author about the similarities between The Submissive and 50 Shades of Grey:

"I never expected The Submissive to have the readership it gathered. At that point (early 2009) there was very little BDSM fiction in the Twilight universe. That changed quickly in the months that followed. The most well known Twilight fanfic, "Master of the Universe" (the fic that became Fifty Shades of Grey), started in September 2009 and soon thereafter the fanfic world changed forever."

"The [Submissive] trilogy has been around since January 2009. It was originally Twilight fanfic and was one of the fics E.L. James read before writing the fanfic that would become Fifty Shades.....we didn’t know her as E.L. James then. Back in the day, she went by Snowqueens Icedragon, or Icy. But, yes, we were in the fandom together. We knew of each other, of course, but we weren’t, like, BFFs or anything. I remember when she started posting Master of the Universe (which would become Fifty Shades), I got all these e-mails from people saying, “OMG, this story is just like yours!” I looked at it and disagreed. I still don’t think they’re anything alike.

Joyce: In what ways is The Submissive different from Fifty Shades?

Tara: In The Submissive, Abby is in her early 30s, has a well-established career, and (most important) applies to be Nathaniel’s submissive. She knows from day one who and what he is. She accepts that, she wants thats, she grows to need that.

Nathaniel, while being a wealthy CEO who plays piano, is also in his 30s. He only becomes involved with Abby because she has expressed interest and desire for his lifestyle.

Both Abby and Nathaniel embrace who they are as submissive and Dominant. Their lifestyle is part of who they are, not the central plot."

2009 Stats On FanFiction.Net

"1. The Training (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5394195/1/The_Training) » (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5394195/11/The_Training) reviews (http://www.fanfiction.net/r/5394195/) Sequel to The Submissive and The Dominant. Edward and Bella embark on their new relationship, but who’s training whom? EPOV and BPOV. AU/AH. D/s.Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Drama - Chapters: 11 - Words: 40,720 - Reviews: 7300 - Updated: 12-8-09 - Published: 9-22-09 - Edward & Bella

3. The Dominant (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4918631/1/The_Dominant) » (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4918631/37/The_Dominant) reviews (http://www.fanfiction.net/r/4918631/) Because every story has two sides - The Submissive from EPOV. Rated M for Adult Themes and D/s. Will make more sense if you read The Submissive first.Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Angst - Chapters: 37 - Words: 138,426 - Reviews: 17364 - Updated: 8-10-09 - Published: 3-12-09 - Complete

5. The Submissive (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4764216/1/The_Submissive) » (http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4764216/37/The_Submissive) reviews (http://www.fanfiction.net/r/4764216/) Can Bella Swan warm and win the heart of dom, Edward Cullen, while living out her darkest fantasy? ADULT THEMES. AH, OOC.Twilight - Rated: M - English - Romance/Angst - Chapters: 37 - Words: 82,465 - Reviews: 12235 - Updated: 3-3-09 - Published: 1-2-09 - Complete"

Reactions/Reviews

[Of the Fan Fic]

" I lurked in the fanfiction community for a very long time. I finally picked up my laptop and started to type when Star Trek caught me and wouldn't let go but before that, there was my Twilight love. I know...I know...don't look at me like that. Number one - The Submissive is written from the standpoint of the two beloved main characters, being all human. They are also very adult and of age. The story is extremely sexual. There is plenty of heat to go around but what caught me off guard was the author's emotional development of Bella and Edward. This has always been my fascination with the Twilight Saga and its characters. There was so much that could have been done that was not done. In my mind I don't even associate this great work with the movie or book verse. Give it a try. It's not for everyone but some of you will truly enjoy it. "

"Rated M. Really, really M.

Just be warned, there are lemons, and then there's whole lemon tree groves. This story falls into the later category, but once you've wandered into the trees, you'll never want to see sunlight again.

"The Submissive" is a AH fic by the very talented Tara Sue Me. This fic is for mature audiences only. Edward is a the rich, handsome CEO of a Masen Industries, who has a penchant for a little S&M. He's a dom- short for dominator, looking for a new Sub- short for submissive. Ms. Bella Swan makes her interest in the position known- well, her interest in a lot of positions, really. They set out on a complex, sexually-driven relationship that begins to bleed over to the emotional, leaving both of them exposing more than just their bodies.

The reason I like this story is not just for its sultriness. When you read "The Submissive," you're forced to reflect on how accurately it reflects Meyer's original coupling. From the beginning of Twlilight, Bella always is dominated by Edward's boundaries, and it's not until Breaking Dawn that that role reverses and then equalizes. Tara Sue Me plays out this binary relationship in a way that will leave you both breathless and enthralled. This is one of those stories you'll stay up all night reading."

"hmmm... Dominant Edward. Interesting. At least that's what I told myself when I prepared to read 32 chapters about a D/s relationship between Edward & Bella. I know a little about this kind of relationship even though it's not entirely my thing, and was thinking that because of the D/s element, this could easily be another smut-filled waste of time. (yes, there really is such a thing) But I was really surprised with this one. It's well written and even if you don't 'get' the dynamics of this kind of relationship, you're going to love the way Edward & Bella interact with one another. It's sweet, it's smart, and yes, it's got some delicious lemony goodness to get your toes curling. Written from Bella's POV. And Domward... well lets just say he's very, very interesting. And fucking hot."

"You must read The Submissive and The Dominant. Read The Submissive first at http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4764216/1/The_Submissive Most people have read these two and let me warn you they are steamy. I am hooked too on fanfic and currently reading CWAIA. Love it. Thanks for posting!!"

"In two days, I've completely made my way through "The Submissive" and I've gotta say, I'm impressed. You've combined two different lifestyles into a manageable, pleasurable whole. I was hesitant about reading this at first because it isn't really my "thing," but I fully plan on continuing through the series. You're just brilliant."

[Of the Published Version]

"I have to say I prefer 'The Submissive' and I had already queried with other readers whether FSOG could face a copyright issue as it was very similar. It was almost as though FSOG was a fanfiction of 'The Submissive' and not Twilight but that is only because I read it first, had I read FSOG first I would be thinking the same of the Submissive." I feel 'True Sue me' could be justified in saying 'Hey, at least give me a shout out' but I have witnessed E L James giving support to writing friends online. She got lucky... ok the edit was shit but I'll come to that in my review of FSOG which I'll post after as a separate blog. So whilst people say The submissive should get a cut of the money, both are so close to Twilight that Stephanie Meyer should have a piece of the royalties. I have friends who couldn’t get into the Submissive or FSOG as it was too Twilight."

"Overall, I found The Submissive to be quite well written and certainly entertaining enough to keep my attention. If a reader is looking for a book that offers the same elements as 50 Shades of Grey, but is more strongly written, I’d say The Submissive is up your alley."

"It's really no secret in the community that Fifty Shades was 'inspired by' The Submissive and The Office (another Twilight fanfic) when they grew to ridiculous levels of popularity. Even past that, you can find dozens upon dozens of influences in Fifty Shades that harken back to other popular fanon (trends, not rooted in canon, that were created by the collective).

screencap of the line by line comparison between Twilight fanfic Midnight Desire to 50 Shades; a possible source of the "Inner Goddess" theme of 50 Shades

Even Bella's "Inner Goddess" is pretty obviously 'inspired by' Edward's "Inner Monster" in Twilight fanfic darling, Midnight Desire, an erotic parody of Midnight Sun. The 'inspiration' is clear: https://imgur.com/a/DrGVb, ^{Archived version}

There isn't anything in Fifty Shades that can't be traced back to either Twilight or some other fanfic.

If the foundation of Fifty Shades was mostly Twilight, and the plot and sexual fantasy elements were mostly The Submissive and The Office, and the more minor details were either collectively created fanon or blatantly taken from other fanfics, then it makes you wonder..."

"Actually... though the authors of The Submissive and The Office ended up publishing their works, Fifty Shades was officially published first. By the time the other works became published (The Submissive more so than BB), Fifty Shades had already become popular and fulfilled every single demand that The Submissive might have supplied. It didn't do well. At all. The general sentiment was, "Oh god, not another one." However, even though I feel badly for Tara that Icy stole her ideas and capitalized first, I'm not going to sit here and say that's the biggest problem. I'm against the monetizing of fanfiction, period. Tara et al only published because they realized someone else was profiting off their own ideas. Had Icy never published, no one else would have. TwilightZoner, for example, had absolutely no recourse here. Their fanfic parody was such that the serials were unfileable. It still exists as simply fanfic."