Creating a dynamic, powerful rope scene can be challenging when you’re a beginner (or even for some who’ve been doing it a while, coming up with new ways to include rope in scenes can be tough). A listener writes to us to ask for ideas.

We discuss: Does what you tie matter? What are bottoms seeking? Is rope an accessory to play, or play in itself? How can you make the tie more meaningful?

Fox shares several unusual ways to frame rope practice as a scene, and Mya shares the kind of reactions you can expect from a bottom you’re tying, and how the bottom contribute to the energy of the scene.

### Let us know in the comments here below:

How do you practice your tying? Do you make your practice ‘scene-y?’ How do you do this?

After the success of Fox’s rope erotica piece, in episode 6, Mya reads one of her erotica stories from the perspective of a rope bottom.

Called ‘Damsel in Distress’, it describes some recent rope bondage play she and Fox did together to create a photo for the Ropepodcast Patreon.

What are your duties and responsibilities in rope to yourself, and you tying partner?

A listener writes in with this question, and Fox and Mya discuss four key areas:

• Responsibilities of the top to themself

• To the bottom

• Responsibilities of the bottom to themself

• Responsibilities of the bottom to the top

They discuss some controversial issues, including aftercare for tops, consent and tops feeling like a ‘rope dispenser’.

We ask you:

Do you agree with the perspectives discussed? What would you add to these responsibilities in rope? Share them with us in the comments below.

Aftercare is a critical part of a rope scene, but there are a million ways to do it. Fox and Mya explore what it is, why it’s important, different aspects that might be relevant in different situations, and share their preferred ways of experiencing and giving it, as well as plenty of other ideas for what might suit different people. They also share some personality differences they had to work through around their different aftercare preferences to keep them both happy and well after their rope scenes!

Remember: *“If you don’t have the time for aftercare, you don’t have the time to play.”*

This week, we ask you, our Dear Listeners, to comment below on:

*What’s your favorite form of rope aftercare?*

Would Austin, Texas, be a good place to go rope tourist? What’s the scene there like from an outsider’s perspective? Find out in this episode where Mya is a flying bunny, and checks out a couple of local rope groups while she attends a work conference. She shares how she found Riggers to tie with, what the differences were between other communities she’s tied in, and some logistical considerations (oh, and find out what kinky souvenir she brought home for Fox!).

Where does pain fit in terms of rope? Do we want it? Not want it? As edge play, pain can give us some pretty important signals in rope. So are there some types of pain we seek out? How do we know what types of pain to avoid and what are okay to try and bear? We talk about types of pain in rope, how bottoms can more effectively handle pain, some ideas of how to add (the right kind) of pain to scenes, and how rope tops can help their bottoms handle pain and achieve more challenging ties.

In the episode we share some techniques for how bottoms handle pain. So we ask our Dear Listeners this week to comment below on:

*What do you do as a rope bottom to handle pain in rope? Or, if you’re a rope top, how do you help your bottom handle pain in a scene?*

Heard much rope erotica? No? Us either. We try something a little bit different, and Fox reads some of his rope erotica. We're curious what you will think - would you like to hear from episodes like this? Tell us in the comments!

Want to do rope but have no-one to tie with? Fox and Mya discuss the different ways (at least five!) to find a partner, whether you’re a Rigger or a Bottom. They also discuss the kinds of rope partner you can have, or the contexts in which you might want one, how to think about your requirements (and something important people often forget), as well as what kinds of things you might want to chat to potential partners about.

This weave tie works as well for interesting bedroom bondage as it does for a full inversion suspension. We discuss how to do it (see photos on our fet handle RopePodcast), what it feels like, the risks and safety elements, and we share some scenes that we’ve used it in (including one that made Mya go ‘weeeeee!’).

How to ‘rope tourist’ in the UK - Mya travels a lot, and she shares her recent adventures in the UK where she attended two jams, a workshop and a social as a rope tourist bottom. Rigger Fox asks her questions about what she got up to, how she found a Rigger to tie with for the events, and crucial information you might need to know if you were going to rope tourist in the UK yourself.

Links to stuffs we mention can be found on our Fetlife page in the "Writing" for this episode.