Written Punishments Tribute Essay by WP2

WP2 wrote this lovely piece for the 5th Anniversary Task which I recently organized to celebrate the group's anniversary. I love his straightforwardness and honestly regarding how he got into written punishments. And the end gives me a warm, fuzzy smile every time I read it.

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The list has benefited me greatly and affected my outlook. I have had in interest in Written Punishments as part of the wider ‘scene’ and used to enjoy the stories in magazines or more recently on line where a miscreant was given lines to complete.

The use of lines as a punishment, for me, does not have any connection to my schooldays or any similar experiences. Whilst lines were one of the punishments that my school used, I was quite a model pupil and neither received lines or detention during my 5 years at senior school. It was later on in life as I became aware of my latent sexuality and the appeal of punishment that I found myself drawn to lines.

My first experience was just after leaving college and I was living in a shared house in a new city. I had to study for my job, I had to care for myself for the first time so had to do my washing/cooking and the rest. At this point I had begun buying adult magazines and although I had a girlfriend, she was many miles away and I was alone in a strange place.

There was an article in one of the free newspapers that was delivered to the house and it had a picture of a young lady in a swimsuit. The picture was well taken and I used the picture to take pleasure. I hadn’t bothered to read the article and was quite surprised to find that the young lady was just 16 years of age and was the youngest woman to win a grant for her swimming. At the time I was around 23 and felt quite ashamed that I’d used her picture to pleasure myself. I was, by this time, indulging in self bondage but this was really more of a pleasure than a penance. I felt I needed punishment and something that would be a punishment rather than a pleasure. I had read stories of submissives undertaking physical punishment, activities, chastity and lines. Physical punishment was not realistic in a shared house, chastity devices were not easy to get outside London I guess (I had no idea where to go anyway) and so I ended up deciding that I should be punished by lines and physical activity. I wrote on several pieces of paper number ranging from 50 to 500. I had decided on the line to be written, it was the number that needed to be determined. I also made and a list of activities such as walk to X, wash my clothes by hand, clean the kitchen floor, etc.

Writing lines I found quite an escape is it involves a simple, repetitive task yet it has a purpose. I think my first punishment was 200 lines and used words that would not be appropriate for this group. As my collection of adult material expanded, I found the inclusion of lines, as a punishment was quite rare. Since living in the shared house, I moved onto my own place and moved house again but always had an interest in lines. The problem is getting someone to set them and take the punishment seriously. Setting lines for myself and by introducing elements of chance using cards/dice/etc did appeal and I had quite a few offences that deserved punishment but the aspect of self punishment that fails is that of accountability.

I have had a couple of real time Mistresses and tried to introduce lines as a punishment that can be issued at the end of a session, to be completed, examined and chastised for in the future. Generally I have found the interest in lines punishment was lacking. Mistresses would set 25 lines ‘I must not be a naughty boy’ or similar when I was looking for a greater challenge and one that reflected some of my adult confessions rather than it being an after thought over something 'school' focused.

When I found the group on line I was very pleased to discover that it wasn’t just me that had an interest in lines. I have found some of the punishments set to others more than I would be able to face. For me, I wish my lines to reflect the deeds I have confessed to and the lines to be many repetitions of a short instruction, such as I must not XXXX or it is wrong to XXX etc rather than some of the lines involving copying chunks of Shakespere, The Bible, Phone Directory or the like.

It interesting to see the wide range that the narrow field of written punishments can reach. The main reason I haven't given myself to a written punishment previously via the group was that I’m seeking punishment for certain matters that are outside the terms of the group plus my work life and domestic situation is quite hectic at times, therefore a deadline of a week can easily become unrealistic. Whilst it’s reasonable to ask for extensions, sometimes it’s a matter of holding back for a while and returning. The group rules of expulsion if a task isn’t completed is, for me, too much of a risk to take as I really enjoy reading others punishments.

I contacted Mistress Magick via the WP forum and have exchanged several e-mails with her about the reasons I am seeking punishment and she has, graciously, listened to my situation and agreed to issue written and other punishments. I am very pleased to have found someone who appears to understand my position both in life and towards punishments. My only regret is that the Internet wasn’t around when I first began experimenting with written punishments. Well, that and not being able to present my lines to Mistress Magick in person or to receive my next punishment whilst Mistress looks into my eyes.