Authors - Biggest Pet Peeves?

[32aa]

Over, and repeated, use of "I", "He" and/or "She" in the narrative, depending on if the story is written in the first or third person.

By repeated, i mean like every other sentence.... "I (he, she) slowly unbuttoned her blouse. I ran my tongue across her hard nipple. i sucked as much of her breast into my mouth as i could get."

 

[KeithD]

I get a lot of manuscripts sent to me--mostly mysteries--for betta-read comment. I find too many, including ones that actually get published, with the formula of the woman protagonist going to confront the villain directly when she has strong evidence of his guilt and then having that inevitable final physical confrontation rather than contacting the police instead and figuring out a more creative and unique closing.

 

[KeithD]

Stephen King said in his book about writing "I believe the road to hell is paved with adverbs." Say what you will about the man's writing, he is damn successful, so his style aligns pretty closely with popular American fiction. It's definitely the 'done thing' to cull them. My poor babies (affectionately holds adverbs to bosom).

King doesn't practice much of what he warns against in his book on writing.

 

[yowser]

Measurements.

Unless the story involves chemists in a lab, architects, or professional bra fitters (ie, has importance to the story.)

 

[KeithD]

Why is there so much emphasis on cuckoldry, excessive sluttiness, humiliation even to the level of enduring and endorsing nonconsensual unenjoyable

Here on Literotica isn't it because that's what high scores are given for? Which leads to a pet peeve of mine here that I try just to "oh, well" about. Literotica readers, in the aggregate, aren't very sophisticated readers in discerning the craft of writing. Most of them seem to be here just to be titilated by content (which is OK--it just doesn't make me care that much about what Literotica readers in the aggregate think of my stories).

 

[MrPixel]

My pet peeve? Pedants in forums thumping their worldview in TL;DR posts.

 

[KeithD]

One of my pet peeves on a writing siteis using acronyms like "TL;DR" (which I still don't know the meaning of) rather than writing it out.

 

[MrPixel]

"Too long; didn't read."

Happy?

 

[AG31]

It's not really a peeve, because as soon as I see it I'm out - but the first five-hundred words being an irrelevant, meaningless, turgid info dump. The opening that goes, "When I got back home for the summer break, to the town where I blah blah blah and blah blah blah." I simply do not care what you did before, just tell me what you're doing now.

You stole my fire. (Is that a thing? Can you steal fire? Am I thinking of a different idiom?) Anyway, ditto to every sentence.

 

[AG31]

I don't like King's novels much but I still find his words invaluable. There is something very inspiring about hearing other authors talk about their craft

I just discovered King's non-horror, non-supernatural books a couple of weeks ago. Unlike you, I happen to love them, but like you I take delight in his observations about writing. In my case it's not a book of his about writing, it's always seamlessly embedded in the fiction.

 

[AG31]

Second, why do you have to push your debauchery to a degrading level? Why is there so much emphasis on cuckoldry, excessive sluttiness, humiliation even to the level of enduring and endorsing nonconsensual unenjoyable sex? Selfishness is not always attractive, and there’s a reason why people hate the “my way or the highway” types, male or female. The idea that you have to deal in lies to be attractive, or put on excessive makeup or plastic surgery is equally revolting to me. Natural beauty exists and it’s far more attractive. Seek and appreciate it. And don’t be afraid to reject harmful ugliness either- in stories or in life.

People can't control what pushes their buttons. Some read and write stories you find distasteful because they enjoy getting their buttons pushed.

 

[AG31]

An author's style or skills can do nothing to save such appalling plotting.

Motive, people. Learn some motive.

This is an erotica website. Horniness is a reasonable primary motivator. Maybe that's not to your taste, but it shouldn't be dismissed as not-good-writing. May I recommend Making a Case for the Use of the Term Simple Erotica.

 

[AG31]

In addition to info dumps, I wish all authors would double check their use of lay and lie and their various tenses. I'd be surprised if many of us can get it right every time without double checking. Double checking these verbs should be a writer's rule.

 

[SimonDoom]

In addition to info dumps, I wish all authors would double check their use of lay and lie and their various tenses. I'd be surprised if many of us can get it right every time without double checking. Double checking these verbs should be a writer's rule.

One could probably cone up with a list of 20 mixup that constitute the majority of mixup instances. Loose and lose is another.

 

[samhasstories]

In addition to info dumps, I wish all authors would double check their use of lay and lie and their various tenses. I'd be surprised if many of us can get it right every time without double checking. Double checking these verbs should be a writer's rule.

Lay and lie is a hazy one for me, I'll admit. I would be very surprised if I wasn't guilty of that mistake a few times through my work.

 

[onehitwanda]

my current pet peeve - the Etruscan alphabet is not in Unicode.

 

[CatGirl69]

I've only recently learned about the adverbs things. Why are adverbs bad?

 

[alohadave]

I've only recently learned about the adverbs things. Why are adverbs bad?

They aren't bad. The issue is when you overuse them.

Like anything else, using them in moderation is a good idea.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

If you’re not into a story’s characters, fine, but don’t shame them for having their fun. Who says they have to explain their lusts?

because any character can be horny. In fact, in erotica we expect that the main characters at least at some point will be horny. Characters who are horny for no reason or no explanation show absolutely nothing to separate them from the massive throng of horny characters out there. This makes them boring cardboard cutouts and little more than plot devices instead of actual living breathing relatable people. When I read these characters it's an immediate 'been there, done that' and my experience goes straight 'bored to death'.

 

[AG31]

This makes them boring cardboard cutouts and little more than plot devices instead of actual living breathing relatable people.

Not if the really important and interesting and enjoyable human experience of eroticism is portrayed in an expert, memorable way. Did you look at my post about Simple Erotica?

When I read these characters it's an immediate 'been there, done that' and my experience goes straight 'bored to death'.

Too bad. You're missing a lot of enjoyment.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The examples you use do sound a little overwrought, but I for one believe horniness can be a pretty powerful motivator. If two people like each other believably there isn't a reason they can't have sex believably. Maybe you consider it a weak story with no plot (my latest for the 750 challenge is an example) but some of us like the simple things.

I know that it is staggeringly popular, but just like hundreds of bad songs have gone #1 and hundreds of bad movies have grossed 9 figures, it doesn't make for good writing.

Also, you say that "two people like each other believably". Providing reasons why they are into each other and making their actions consistent with their desires is the most effective way to make it all believable.

We as writers and readers of erotica have to understand that our world is different than the non-erotica world. In the non-erotica world readers' priority is to read good stories. These readers are into character depth and development, immersive settings and motive driven plot. Here in the erotica world, the priority for many or most readers is to fantasize/masturbate, and too much character depth, immersion and plot only gets in the way of that priority. That is why boring cardboard unicorns are so popular. They cut straight through all the prose and get right to the kink, and in that sense they are not real characters but literally just hollow lifeless plot devices.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Literotica readers, in the aggregate, aren't very sophisticated readers in discerning the craft of writing.

Could not have put it better myself.

Here in the erotica world, the priority for many or most readers is to fantasize/masturbate, and too much character depth, immersion and plot only gets in the way of that priority.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

This is an erotica website. Horniness is a reasonable primary motivator. Maybe that's not to your taste, but it shouldn't be dismissed as not-good-writing.

Just because I'm in the minority around here doesn't mean that my observations are wrong in any way, and it certainly doesn't invalidate my own peeves.

Ok sure, it is possible to write an interesting or even gripping erotic tale with no plot, no tension and thoroughly cardboard characters, but the author's skill would have to be monumental and it would have to be written from a spark of pure genius inspiration. One in a million maybe.

Think about it. If your characters lack depth and have zero development, the setting is an afterthought, there is no conflict between the characters, and you purposely skimp on descriptions to 'let the reader imbue his own images' (which is a staggeringly popular 'technique') then you have really written nothing so far and all that you have left to wow the reader with is style, flow and maybe some dialogue (that hopefully isn't too cheesy). You're giving yourself a very tough hill to climb to reach any level of quality. One can certainly argue that this is not good writing.

 

[StillStunned]

They aren't bad. The issue is when you overuse them.

Like anything else, using them in moderation is a good idea.

The biggest issue with them, I think, is that they can almost the very definition of "telling" rather than "showing". They tell you how something is happening, how someone is speaking, how someone looks.

So as long as you use them judiciously, you're fine. The trouble is that all these writing courses don't make that distinction. They just put a blanket ban on all adverbs, because one person has learned it from another, who learned it from someone else, who probably got it from Stephen King.

 

[HordHolm]

I'll start. This might not be my biggest, but recently and off the top of my head it's the one that comes to mind. Beware - this is an (informative) rant.

Over the top or incorrect dialogue tags.

I cannot stand when in dialogue every SINGLE dialogue tag is changed to some more specific verb - instead of just "saying" something, characters cry, shriek, argue, confess, joke, urge, bluster, accuse. If a character is confessing something we should KNOW that - we don't need to be told "they are confessing now." Same goes for jokes, urgings, accusations, etc.

In moderation, strong verbs can work well. They are sharp and set the tone of a character's speech. But authors are encouraged away from adverbs so much, and encouraged to find the right word so much, that their verb choice sometimes swamps their prose; it starts to read like a storybook designed to teach children vocabulary.

"Said" is the chef-d'oeuvre of dialogue tags. USE IT. In moderation, adverbs are your friends. USE THEM. Dialogue tags are often redundant due to narrative context and the physical actions characters perform. Don't be scared to DROP THEM.

Similarly, some verbs are NOT dialogue tags at all. Specifically actions that are separate from speech. You cannot smile a sentence. You can say a sentence and smile, but the smile does not form the words. Nor does a grin, or a giggle, or a wave.

Unless a verb specifically relates to the vibrating of vocal chords and thus the formation of speech, the dialogue does not belong to that verb. Put a period in or before the dialogue, not a comma.

"Okay." She smiled.
She smiled. "Okay."
"Okay," she smiled.
She smiled, "Okay."

If a dialogue tag does not immediately precede or follow a sentence, use a period and not a comma.

She leant across the table. "Someone might be listening."
She leant across the table, "Someone might be listening."
"Lower your voice." She leant across the table. "Someone might be listening."
"Lower your voice," She leant across the table, "Someone might be listening."

On top of that, if a line of dialogue has prose in the middle you only use commas when it is one sentence split up by prose. If the first clause of dialogue concludes a sentence, use a period before starting the second.

"Lower your voice," she said. "Someone might be listening."
"Lower your voice," she said, "Someone might be listening."
"Did you ever hear," he said, "about the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise?"
"Did you ever hear," he said. "About the tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise?"

Is this excessive and pedantic? Yes, but that's why I made this thread.

This may all be correct in US English, but UK English plays by different rules...