Records of Outrageous Women, Inc., 1984-2008 (inclusive), 1984-1990 (bulk)

The records of Outrageous Women, Inc., contain administrative files from the creation of the periodical Outrageous Women: A Journal of Woman-to-Woman S/M: business and financial records; poetry and erotica submissions; correspondence with readers and contributors; requests for subscriptions; files on advertisers and bookstores; etc. The records document the activity of the lesbian S/M community and individuals in the 1980s, as well as related businesses, such as feminist and gay bookstores, leather bars and shops, women's music festivals, S/M mail order catalogs, etc. Subscription and other inquiries include letters from lesbians in small towns, rural areas, and foreign countries; incarcerated women and men; straight or bisexual women and men interested in S/M; etc. Some correspondence and files on certain issues evidence the differing views on S/M sexual practices among lesbian and feminist communities and businesses.

When the collection arrived at the Schlesinger Library, about half of the material was in folders or binders; the rest was incoming correspondence still in envelopes, many of the 1989 and 1990 letters had not been opened. When this mail was opened and sorted by archivists, envelopes with no additional information were discarded; postmarks were often transferred to undated letters. Many envelopes were retained, and are enclosed with the letter. In general checks or money orders included in the letters were shredded. The collection is arranged in two series.

Series I, ADMINISTRATIVE AND FINANCIAL, 1984-1995 (#1.1-5.14), includes administrative, business, and financial records of the magazine. The series includes files of Betsy Duren, as well as Adrienne Sainten, who both acted as Treasurers for the magazine. Included are a number of letters Duren wrote to Sainten in 1988 with details of Outrageous Women's financial situation. Advertising files include correspondence and sometimes photo-ready advertisements from businesses selling sex toys, leather goods, and other products of interest to readers. Outrageous Women engaged in reciprocal advertising with several other periodicals. Files on bookstores show where the publication was sold, as well as how many copies of each issue. The financial records detail the publication's struggle to break even. Careful spreadsheets of expenses and income were kept for many years. Tax records show the yearly income reported, and other files show the financial troubles that led to the demise of the magazine. Original folder titles are in quotation marks; all other folder titles were created by the archivist. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Series II, SUBMISSIONS AND SUBSCRIPTIONS, 1984-1991, 2001-2008 (#5.15-10.3, FD.1), includes material sent to Outrageous Women: submissions for publication, requests for information, subscription requests, and general correspondence from readers. Some authors requested to use pseudonyms when their submissions were published in the magazine. A file linking the pseudonyms to author's real names is closed until January 1, 2040, and names have been redacted in any related correspondence. Many submissions have editorial comments on the manuscripts or on the envelopes in which they were sent. The magazine was essentially defunct from June 1988; letters continued to pour into its post office box in Somerville, Massachusetts. Many subscribers wrote increasingly angry and desperate letters when they did not receive their subscriptions; the dearth of other similar publications is evident in their letters. Some of the requests from 1989 and 1990 are a result of ads being placed in other periodicals offering the remainder of back issues, t shirts, reprints of articles, etc. Most of this mail was not opened by Outrageous Women at all. In general, subscription and other requests are from people living throughout the United States and even internationally. Many writers include personal information about themselves and their relationship to S/M. Some express relief at finding a like-minded community. Many letters are from incarcerated women and men; one writer reveals being a transgender woman in a male prison. The series is arranged alphabetically.

Additional material received as electronic files will be reformatted at some future date. The Schlesinger Library holds all the issues of Outrageous Women. In addition it holds the records of Urania (B/U72), the support group where the founders of Outrageous Women, Inc., met.