The Halloween 2024 Official Contest Support Thread!

[Actingup]

I'd say bluetooth is the answer, but that depends on your car's infotainment system. Possibly just find a way to make your phone, tablet or laptop handsfree. However, I wouldn't recommend it as a retired Highway Safety Educator/Engineer/and other related roles, you don't need distractions from driving and more importantly, how would you note where you heard "he took her beasts in his hangs"?

Clearly, you would make sure that you have a project client in the car with you to helpfully take those important notes for you, and to hear from you about the finer points of Lit authorship.

 

[DukeofPaducah]

I know I keep saying this, but if you have some facility (Word>Review>Read aloud) it's well worth it as it helps find things like travels, when you meant traveled, of errors like 'he sucked her beasts' not 'breasts' (I typed of not or and reading to yourself might miss that - I do!) It was confirmed that professional editors use them all the time. YMMV - just saying

Your editing advice is quite practical and well taken, at least by me.
However, in the case in point of your typographical letter omission, beasts and breasts are not mutually exclusive.
I’m a fan of the motorboat regatta.
Please define YMMV for me if you would.

 

[FreyaGersemi]

Please define YMMV for me if you would.

Your milage may vary. In other words, you may have different results than someone else.

 

[Nellymcboatface]

Well my story posted this morning, phew...
I think my first time in Erotic Horror, but an absolute hoot to write...
Time for a rest and read some very enjoyable Halloween offerings.
Lots to choose from...
Enjoying it so far...
Good Luck to everyone...

 

[AlexFourways]

Your milage may vary. In other words, you may have different results than someone else.

Thanks for that Freya .
It comes from my early internet days of news groups. (many to prevent flame wars - ie heated arguments)
AFAIK / AFAIR / AFAICR As far as I know/recall/can remember
IIRC If I recall correctly
ISTM It seems to me
SWMBO She who must be obeyed. alsi HID Her indoors (before PC days and when it was mostly men on line)
Lots more of which I think the only real surviour is TLA, the obvious meaning!

 

[SouthernCrossfire]

Submitted! Finally!

And to think I was wondering late last week if it would come in at under 20K words. HAHAHAHA!

 

[Agent0069]

I’ve decided to join the party and submitted a story too. 10k words and tagged with “advanced sexism”, will see if it gets posted.

 

[FreyaGersemi]

tagged with “advanced sexism”

What is "advanced sexism"? Super discrimination based on gender?

 

[StillStunned]

What is "advanced sexism"? Super discrimination based on gender?

Or discrimination against people with more extreme kinks?

 

[PrimalDual]

But sometimes, the question might be how you make them stop.... (I posted something edgy in Loving Wives....).

I'm replying to your POV a second time, because overnight I had a second Halloween contest entry published. This one was designated for Incest/Taboo.

Now, I happen to detest the Incest genre. Apologies if that's anybody's kink - kink-shaming isn't my point. But probably most here share the experience that this genre is, well, over-represented at Literotica. So I'm going to out myself here: the piece I wrote was satire, just not labeled as such. I tried to write it as badly as I could, without giving away the game too blatantly as an outright burlesque. In no particular order:

• I chose the movie Scream as the motif
• I have never seen Scream (Horror is a movie genre I also detest - so why am I entering a Halloween contest?)
  
• I spent a full 10 minutes of "research" watching the theatrical trailer and looking up a few choice quotes
• So I am hoping I got something wrong about the movie and someone will complain - "write what you know"
• I provided no erotic physical details about any of the characters, especially the main two
• Exception: I gave the dude an eight-incher, because of course. Oh, and she has big tits, because of course
• The slow-burn of the exposition was negated by the extremely fast description of the sex act itself
• The dialog between bro and sis was as hackneyed as I could come up with on short notice - so gooooooooood!
• The entire story is pretty much summed up by the title
• I invested all of 75 minutes including proofreading, and it no doubt shows

(If you find other flaws in the story, perhaps they pertain to my own writing talent, and you will be polite enough not to mention them.)

The result: in the 9 hours since the moderators approved it, the piece has gotten a larger number of votes than all of my few-dozen other submissions during the past couple of years combined, and the rating bestowed on it is above 4.0. The only comment so far is "good, but should have been longer." Yeah, no shit. I'm girding myself for more, and worse.

I had wondered, and suspected, but still wasn't really prepared. I'm certainly not going to spill the beans right there in my own comments section, lest I incur the lasting wrath of the hordes. Just between us here, okay?

It's a quick read. See if I'm lying.
https://www.literotica.com/s/halloween-blow-job-from-sister-sam
(And this isn't a trick to get people to read and rate my precious story. I already have my readership now, thank you very much!)

Final note: I'm sure none of this about the Incest genre is really a revelation to anyone here. I had fun, is all.

 

[AlexFourways]

Now, I happen to detest the Incest genre.

I also have reservations, and my two author paddles in the pool, were carefully arranged so that they were not actual incest. 1x: The Stepsister and the Gang and 1x: The Manager, the Father & Son
As the primary reason for the taboo is inbreeding, I can enjoy well written stories where that is protected against, but if there was any mention of 'breeding' I would click straight out and I hate to see comments asking for it.

It's a quick read. See if I'm lying.
https://www.literotica.com/s/halloween-blow-job-from-sister-sam
(And this isn't a trick to get people to read and rate my precious story. I already have my readership now, thank you very much!)

I will try to find the time!
I tried to rile the Loving Wives fraternity, but despite a good read level and low rating, I have not had the flood of comments I had braced myself for.1973 Adult Movie Becomes 3D Reality

 

[FreyaGersemi]

But probably most here share the experience that [Incest/Taboo] is, well, over-represented at Literotica.

Oh, my goodness!! I just checked the Literotica story search page and that genre has almost 70K stories in it. Aside from Erotic Couplings (which tends to be a catch-all for stories without a clear home), Incest/Taboo has no real rival at the top of the heap. Wow! I had no idea!! And the next closest categories are BDSM and Loving Wives (which, I think, involves a decent amount of humiliation to women -- whether enjoyed or not...). Wow! No wonder my stories about two people in love, skipping hand-in-hand, happily through the flowers aren't runaway successes.

 

[DukeofPaducah]

I'm replying to your POV a second time, because overnight I had a second Halloween contest entry published. This one was designated for Incest/Taboo.

Now, I happen to detest the Incest genre. Apologies if that's anybody's kink - kink-shaming isn't my point. But probably most here share the experience that this genre is, well, over-represented at Literotica. So I'm going to out myself here: the piece I wrote was satire, just not labeled as such. I tried to write it as badly as I could, without giving away the game too blatantly as an outright burlesque. In no particular order:

• I chose the movie Scream as the motif
• I have never seen Scream (Horror is a movie genre I also detest - so why am I entering a Halloween contest?)
  
• I spent a full 10 minutes of "research" watching the theatrical trailer and looking up a few choice quotes
• So I am hoping I got something wrong about the movie and someone will complain - "write what you know"
• I provided no erotic physical details about any of the characters, especially the main two
• Exception: I gave the dude an eight-incher, because of course. Oh, and she has big tits, because of course
• The slow-burn of the exposition was negated by the extremely fast description of the sex act itself
• The dialog between bro and sis was as hackneyed as I could come up with on short notice - so gooooooooood!
• The entire story is pretty much summed up by the title
• I invested all of 75 minutes including proofreading, and it no doubt shows

(If you find other flaws in the story, perhaps they pertain to my own writing talent, and you will be polite enough not to mention them.)

The result: in the 9 hours since the moderators approved it, the piece has gotten a larger number of votes than all of my few-dozen other submissions during the past couple of years combined, and the rating bestowed on it is above 4.0. The only comment so far is "good, but should have been longer." Yeah, no shit. I'm girding myself for more, and worse.

I had wondered, and suspected, but still wasn't really prepared. I'm certainly not going to spill the beans right there in my own comments section, lest I incur the lasting wrath of the hordes. Just between us here, okay?

It's a quick read. See if I'm lying.
https://www.literotica.com/s/halloween-blow-job-from-sister-sam
(And this isn't a trick to get people to read and rate my precious story. I already have my readership now, thank you very much!)

Final note: I'm sure none of this about the Incest genre is really a revelation to anyone here. I had fun, is all.

I have wondered myself about the fascination with the incest theme. Perhaps the forbidden aspect adds to its allure. Like the attraction of infidelity where betrayal comes into play.
At any rate there is but one incest themed tale in my favorites. ‘Mom’s Impressive Bush’ by LittleBigDaddy
tripped my overloads. Much for the fetish as anything. Ok, so I am a bit of a perv. Sue me.

 

[TheLobster]

Scores in I/T are definitely inflated compared to other categories but they are also very narrow-band.

Being merely "above 4.0" doesn't really say much because virtually any technically passable story will cross that line. But since the voting pool is so large that the final sample size which contributes to your final score ends up being quite representative.

As a result, there is generally a world of difference between, say, a 4.4 and a 4.6 story. The regression to mean also means (heh) that the very best stories won't have nearly as good scores as those in different categories; the top of I/T doesn't cross 4.9, for example, whereas e.g. the top of LGBT categories does so handily.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Oh, @TheLobster, why the ever-loving fuck---haven't I entered a lez story in a Halloween contest? I ask you, why haven't I? Couldn't possible get one done now though!

Scores in I/T are definitely inflated compared to other categories but they are also very narrow-band.

Being merely "above 4.0" doesn't really say much because virtually any technically passable story will cross that line. But since the voting pool is so large that the final sample size which contributes to your final score ends up being quite representative.

As a result, there is generally a world of difference between, say, a 4.4 and a 4.6 story. The regression to mean also means (heh) that the very best stories won't have nearly as good scores as those in different categories; the top of I/T doesn't cross 4.9, for example, whereas e.g. the top of LGBT categories does so handily.

 

[TheLobster]

Oh, @TheLobster, why the ever-loving fuck---haven't I entered a lez story in a Halloween contest? I ask you, why haven't I? Couldn't possible get one done now though!

You still have one entire (*) day to go! You can do it!

(*) The length of remaining is subject to local timezones, laws, and regulations. Void where prohibited.

 

[PrimalDual]

Scores in I/T are definitely inflated compared to other categories but they are also very narrow-band.

Being merely "above 4.0" doesn't really say much because virtually any technically passable story will cross that line. But since the voting pool is so large that the final sample size which contributes to your final score ends up being quite representative.

As a result, there is generally a world of difference between, say, a 4.4 and a 4.6 story. The regression to mean also means (heh) that the very best stories won't have nearly as good scores as those in different categories; the top of I/T doesn't cross 4.9, for example, whereas e.g. the top of LGBT categories does so handily.

As an analytically-minded sort myself, I fear your breakdown threatens to trip my overloads, as Duke above eloquently phrased it. I'm trying hard not to take that mindset with Literotica, unlike other aspects of my life. I'm just here to get a backlog of decades-old second- and third-drafts, dating back to the demise of alt.sex.stories.moderated on Usenet, off of my hard drive and into presentable enough shape to show in public - plus the occasional newly-minted piece when something inspires me like this week. Numerical ratings just don't matter (I keep reminding myself) even if they are an interesting artifact of an aspect of the human condition. No, the modest goal is to attain a readership of sorts, which Literotica doesn't even make all that easy to assess, success or failure. And I really don't even intend to keep posting in the forums incessantly, despite present appearances. LOL.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

You still have one entire (*) day to go! You can do it!

(*) The length of remaining is subject to local timezones, laws, and regulations. Void where prohibited.

you forgot the YMMV...

 

[SouthernCrossfire]

Wow! Laurel is on the ball today! Less than three hours from submittal to approval. Thank you, Laurel!

My entry, "Once Again, That Feeling," will premiere tomorrow in Mature.

 

[Agent0069]

*Banging head against the wall*
Only after my story got approved have I noticed that there's a typo - in the story title of all places!

Oh well. Will probably wait for it to get published to submit edit request.

 

[Rustyoznail]

*Banging head against the wall*
Only after my story got approved have I noticed that there's a typo - in the story title of all places!

Oh well. Will probably wait for it to get published to submit edit request.

(Nods head wisely) Yup. Know all about that. I also left out an absolute zinger of a twist in my April Fools story, and people noticed it! I edited it after the comp because it bugged me so much.

I cudda been the champion!

 

[WriterPerson314159]

I'm excited because I finally managed to finish a story for a contest on time for the contest and not, y'know, months later.

Someday, I'll even write a story and then, maybe, have someone read it before I publish. Or proofread it. Or something. But that's for another day!

I've been writing for a little bit here...just dipping my toes into the forums. Fora?

Hi!

https://www.literotica.com/s/the-sound-my-brain-makes

 

[WriterPerson314159]

I have wondered myself about the fascination with the incest theme. Perhaps the forbidden aspect adds to its allure. Like the attraction of infidelity where betrayal comes into play.
At any rate there is but one incest themed tale in my favorites. ‘Mom’s Impressive Bush’ by LittleBigDaddy
tripped my overloads. Much for the fetish as anything. Ok, so I am a bit of a perv. Sue me.

For me it's a lot less about the incest itself (because when I think about it, like in reality, it's really not my thing) and more that there's some great super slow-burn stories there, and that's what I really like.

 

[Actingup]

I'm replying to your POV a second time, because overnight I had a second Halloween contest entry published. This one was designated for Incest/Taboo.
(...)

It's a quick read. See if I'm lying.
https://www.literotica.com/s/halloween-blow-job-from-sister-sam
(And this isn't a trick to get people to read and rate my precious story. I already have my readership now, thank you very much!)

Final note: I'm sure none of this about the Incest genre is really a revelation to anyone here. I had fun, is all.

Haha! I took the bait and read it, and thank you for the background briefing. I think it's a much more enjoyable story knowing that you're taking the piss (and of course, it's very well written with that in mind). Had I not known, I probably would have just rolled my eyes and whined about the quality of Incest these days. I think that's why it hasn't generated many comments yet - because you're imitating the mediocre too closely and people just aren't certain if they're allowed to laugh. And I now know to pay more attention to what @PrimalDual is doing.

In my case, I'm being a bit more blatent, and that's why all the comments. My latest LW effort has a premise that is frankly and deliberately bananas - two couples swapping households every month to a) get pregnant faster and b) indulge their swapping fantasies, and of course a lot of the readers hate it and are very keen to tell me why that's unrealistic, the women are idiotic sluts and the men are stupid cucks, and what about the poor children? I further compounded that by not having the marriages dissolve in a hail of bullets when the inevitable happens, when clearly a certain percentage of readers wanted that. I wasn't really intending to troll so much as have fun with some of the LW tropes, but it turned out that many readers are really committed to explaining why they don't like it. Which is fine, of course - it's great that they stuck out the story, even if one of the comments had the names and relationships wrong and clearly had only skim-read so that he could pretend he'd finished before telling me how bad it is. And of course some of the comments are perfectly lovely and lots of people have favourited it, so it's really nice that some readers enjoyed what I was doing. And also, of course a lot of the criticism is absolutely fair, particularly if the reader was expecting the characters (or the author) to make wise choices.

 

[PrimalDual]

Haha! I took the bait and read it

That is because I am a master baiter, yes I am. Ah ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! I slay me. Hee hee. Ahhh.

I think that's why it hasn't generated many comments yet - because you're imitating the mediocre too closely

The story has even existed for only four days, two of which were in moderation, and maybe I am kidding myself to call it satire after the fact I could argue that good satire needs to check three boxes

• it picks a worthy target (check, IMO)
• it will be mistaken by some number of readers for a completely serious work (check)
• it contains an unmistakable indication that the author is in on the joke too (ummmmmmm....)

The piece was conceived simply to find out what it is like to attract a lot of eyeballs. So I purposely omitted any explicit indication that I was having a laugh (whether at someone else's expense or not). The only indication really is the overly-on-the-nose title to the piece.

Indeed, despite my earlier comment, it probably is more of a burlesque than a satire. Wait, not even far enough out-there to be burlesque. Middle-of-the-road burlesque? An unkind reviewer might just call it obviously, purposely bad, and leave it at that. And such reviewer might not be wrong. An actual satirist should not be afraid of hurting the feelings of the target individual or group. In my case, I had no intention of holding a mirror up to anyone (nor am I sure I have the right to). I simply wanted to know what it takes to get a massive readership. Now I think I know. And I defend myself by claiming that my heart wasn't in it, thus making it somehow satire, but that's bogus and I'll stick with the WIWAW you are seeing here. Thank You For Coming To My TED Talk.

I note that you kindly left a comment to the story itself, but I probably won't comment there in response, as I really don't wish to poke the dragon any more than I already have by posting the story at all.

In my case, I'm being a bit more blatent, and that's why all the comments. My latest LW effort has a premise that is frankly and deliberately bananas - two couples swapping households every month to a) get pregnant faster and b) indulge their swapping fantasies, and of course a lot of the readers hate it and are very keen to tell me why that's unrealistic, the women are idiotic sluts and the men are stupid cucks, and what about the poor children? I further compounded that by not having the marriages dissolve in a hail of bullets when the inevitable happens, when clearly a certain percentage of readers wanted that. I wasn't really intending to troll so much as have fun with some of the LW tropes, but it turned out that many readers are really committed to explaining why they don't like it. Which is fine, of course - it's great that they stuck out the story, even if one of the comments had the names and relationships wrong and clearly had only skim-read so that he could pretend he'd finished before telling me how bad it is. And of course some of the comments are perfectly lovely and lots of people have favourited it, so it's really nice that some readers enjoyed what I was doing. And also, of course a lot of the criticism is absolutely fair, particularly if the reader was expecting the characters (or the author) to make wise choices.

Your piece achieves its literary aim far better than my joke submission does. I haven't read yours thoroughly, merely skimmed as you suspect others have, but I expect I will like it when I finally give it the time it deserves.