What was your title and short description that lead to the most views?

[StillStunned]

I don't think there's such a thing as a "stroke crowd" and a "story crowd". I reckon most people start reading a story for an actual story, and hope that the kink aligns with their own. Otherwise the most popular stories here would just be descriptions of sexual acts, with titles as simple as "Anal Outdoors" (dammit, how about "Outdoor Back Door"?).

Everyone appreciates a good framing story, I think, and the better it's written, the more likely people are to keep reading. They might be disappointed if they're four Lit pages in without any sex, but that doesn't make them a "stroke crowd": it makes them people visiting an erotica website rather than browsing the Kindle store for the latest Booker Prize winner.

 

[MK_Whimsy]

So far, my highest-viewed Title/Description is Bound Futility - Struggling to masturbate while in a straitjacket. While the title is kind of non-specific (I struggle to come up with titles), I think the description in this case gets right to the point.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Everyone appreciates a good framing story, I think, and the better it's written, the more likely people are to keep reading.

Not really, no. There are endless stories here that have an info dump, two cardboard characters, bad prose, tons of kinkiness and no plot ... and score 4.75 and up.

Certainly there are people who appreciate story and certainly there are people who read for kink but also want some plot and some development, perhaps even a little conflict, and more than just a paltry handful, but they are definitely the significant minority. One doesn't have to dig very deep on lit to figure this out.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

I don't think there's such a thing as a "stroke crowd" and a "story crowd". I reckon most people start reading a story for an actual story, and hope that the kink aligns with their own. Otherwise the most popular stories here would just be descriptions of sexual acts, with titles as simple as "Anal Outdoors" (dammit, how about "Outdoor Back Door"?).

I agree. I do believe that there is a rather large short-story crowd though - those who usually don't want to read anything that goes beyond one or two Lit pages. That's the impression I got from more than a few posters in the Story Feedback forum or even AH. The key word here is usually, I think. Reading long stories takes time that not everyone has during most of the week.
Then there are readers like myself who won't even look at anything below three Lit pages (if chaptered, it can be less than that per chapter). I am not sure how many readers fall into my group. I reckon only a tiny percentage.

 

[Writer61]

Interesting question, I had not thought to look at ratings that way.

My most viewed story with 12.1 k views is:
Summer by the Sea Pt. 01
Adam is reluctant to spend summer at the seaside.

Second, with 9.7k, is
The Fall of Laura Pt. 01
In which Laura's plans go awry.

The follow-ups to both do quite well.

 

[rebel_code]

I wouldn't have guessed, but looking through my page I see it's
Couples Massage
Four friends' "nude time", love time, and complications.
Almost 58k views. It was a contest story (2019 Nude Day) so that tracks.
(Note to self: write more contest stories.)

 

[karina_jayde]

https://www.literotica.com/s/breeding-the-duchess

Definitely not the most views overall (nor the most ratings or favorites) but just including 'Breeding' in the title skyrocketed the views on this one compared to some of my other fantasy works over a short period. This one alone has more views/ratings than some of my multi-part series.

I'm tempted to publish another breeding kink story to see if it was a fluke

 

[mirafrida]

Perhaps unsurprisingly, a good way to activate people seems to be to hit a well-trodden trope squarely on the head

My first story remains the biggest eyeball grabber, above several much better rated, and many I think are superior

"The Biggest Dick"
"Husband & wife are tested by a twisted couples gameshow"

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[ElectricBlue]

I'll Need to Change the Sheets
Bec is breast feeding. David isn't her baby.
06/10/2021 in Fetish Stories

Hot 4.82/488 96.9k 92 faves 22 comments

Got as high as No.53 in the All Time Greats, which was a nice surprise.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

I think we all have to accept that results vary widely, and they're hard to predict. There are many variables beyond our control, such as the number of other stories published on the same day that compete with ours, or where the story appears on a new story list and how quickly it gets pushed off. The unpredictability of reader response.

My most successful story, in terms of views, is more than twice as successful as my second most successful story, and I've written many stories in that category.

Don't forget contests and how they contribute to views of the entries, at least initially.

 

[MajorRewrite]

3.93 million views:

Spring Break Wife
Gary joins his mom on spring break.

67 thousand views:

The Last Wallace
Ellie inherits a unique town and learns a secret.

Both are IT stories.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

3.93 million views:

Spring Break Wife
Gary joins his mom on spring break.

67 thousand views:

The Last Wallace
Ellie inherits a unique town and learns a secret.

Both are IT stories.

Perfect example of how effective simply bludgeoning the stroke crowd with their kink is. The first title and description are utterly pedestrian (read: BORING AS FUCK) to anyone not into incest and tells us exactly what we're in for, and while the second title doesn't tell us anything, the description does hint at some intrigue and nuance. Now unless Spring Break was posted ten years ago and Wallace was posted last week, it's quite clear that the incest stroke crowd are not interested in any nuance and will head straight for tab A into Mom's pussy.

The factors are well isolated here, same category, same author (safe to assume by the smileys) and of course length isn't known until after the click so length is not a factor in views. Contest participation won't make that big of a difference. Even a score difference of 4.8 to 3.8 or somesuch won't make that big of a difference. All that is left is title and description.

The one that hints at a plot is a shotgun and the one that straight up tells us that Mom fucks Son is a nuke.

 

[TheLobster]

It would seem that the old adage of "sex sells" applies even when we're talking about the 35 or 60 characters that advertise an already-erotic story.

Who knew!

 

[MajorRewrite]

Now unless Spring Break was posted ten years ago and Wallace was posted last week, it's quite clear that the incest stroke crowd are not interested in any nuance and will head straight for tab A into Mom's pussy.

Spring Break Wife was in fact posted 10 years ago, but from the start it was a rocket. The Last Wallace is 2 years old.

I suspect that Spring Break Wife benefited from the word “wife” in the title, attracting some of the LW crowd as well as the IT crowd. I can’t prove that.

 

[AlexIce]

Two For Mom - Twin Brother & Sister Give Their Mom The Love She Deserves.

Published on 09/08/2024 and, at the time of posting, had 70.5K views and is also tied for my highest rated story with 4.84/5.00.

Frankly, I'm kind of amazed with how popular it became since the story lacks the world building that is present in most of my other tales. It goes straight into the action and it lasts throughout without every paragraph being a non-stop sex fest. It's also the first story I've written in which there is a threesome. Either way, it's a huge hit in the I/T category.

 

[Rob_Royale]

Mama's Beach House
A man and his best friend's mother become lovers.

This story was my first and has the most views. It's in the Mature category but I think the Mama in the title pulls in views from people searching using tags.

 

[gunhilltrain]

It would seem that the old adage of "sex sells" applies even when we're talking about the 35 or 60 characters that advertise an already-erotic story.

Who knew!

It sure does. I have a character who was a prostitute for a time, and she said that hiring a hooker is like getting 3-D, real-time porn. The point is to ejaculate (for males anyway) and then the porn image or the hooker goes away. She notes that for men who think otherwise, that there is some kind of emotional involvement because it's a real woman, are fooling only themselves.

On a side note, streetwalkers have made a comeback in New York after being replaced for a while by on-line interactions. "The Market of Sweethearts." The hooker mentioned above would find that funny, except she was active in the 1970s.

https://nypost.com/2023/07/30/resid...edy-market-of-sweethearts-red-light-district/

 

[gunhilltrain]

The Last Wallace
Ellie inherits a unique town and learns a secret.

Both are IT stories.

Sounds like a Rod Serling / Twilight Zone plot. He had several stories about unique towns cut off from the rest of the world. See "It's a Good Life," with a very young Billy Mumy, that is very unsettling.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Anyway, to answer the question, it was an entry in Loving Wives called Wayward Ellen. The tag line was "A straying wife is put back into line." 51.5 K views. The plot was simple: a guy finds out his wife is cheating (never mind how) and says he will forgive her if she accepts a spanking from him. (His uncle advised him on the issue.) However, she gets turned on by it and they wind up having sex right there in the living room.

The interesting part was the comments, which showed some confusion among the LW denizens. Some thought a spanking was too severe, although it was pretty mild by the standards in most BDSM on here. They also, of course, didn't like the reconciliation part. What do they usually like as BTB? Was he supposed to grab her, tie her up, and then break up with her immediately after the punishment? I'd be curious to submit something like that just as an LW experiment. The original story was five years ago, so I doubt that they will remember it.

(Just saying, I've written some femdom stories too.)

 

[RejectReality]

Holly Jolley Christmas - Sister's bi roomie needs some Xmas cock... And so does Sis. 467.2k

Hot on its heels...

Rim Fire - Breaking the bro-code with best friend's little sister. 446.7k

 

[WeShallUnclench]

They also, of course, didn't like the reconciliation part.

I have not come across any LW content so far as that's not really my stomping grounds, but purely through what I hear from you guys, that crowd seems to have a bit of a fixation with "morality" and "justice"? I would think with a subject essentially about transgression, said transgression would be seen in a more lighthearted way. Instead, it sometimes sounds like that's stories people specifically read to get angry...

 

[gunhilltrain]

I have not come across any LW content so far as that's not really my stomping grounds, but purely through what I hear from you guys, that crowd seems to have a bit of a fixation with "morality" and "justice"? I would think with a subject essentially about transgression, said transgression would be seen in a more lighthearted way. Instead, it sometimes sounds like that's stories people specifically read to get angry...

I rarely read any of the stories there, but I like to look at the comments sometimes. Yes, it's like the "two minutes of hate" in 1984, a way for people to vent their anger by confronting something they don't like. They all seem to be males. There are some theories about their motivations: they were cheated on themselves, they have a problem with women in general, etc. You can see such people writing or commenting on "red-pill" or "mano-sphere" sites.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

that crowd seems to have a bit of a fixation with "morality" and "justice"?

I think it really fits into the phenomenon of story vs fantasy.

A story has plot built on conflict and some sort of emotional up and down. A fantasy is just a perfect world scenario where everything works out the way that it should (how the reader thinks it should).

Stroke readers generally aren't interested in your plot. They don't want conflict, they just want the perfect world.

Guy has a problem in his real world. He has trouble getting laid. Women aren't very interested in him. So his fantasy becomes a hot girl who is totally into shagging him. For what reason? Who cares? She just is. So the story that he wants is the plotless unicorn.

Girl has a problem in her real world. She can't find commitment and her happily ever after is nowhere in sight. She's not a bad person. Things should just work out for her. So her fantasy becomes, two nice deserving people facing hardship of none of their own doing are joined by destiny for a happily ever after commitment. The only conflict is in the setup. What little plot simply removes all of the obstacles perfectly. Any semblance of actual plot is entirely predictable (which defeats the purpose of plot). The story that she wants is a (boring af) template romance.

Girl has a problem in her real world. She loves receiving golden showers but very few people are into giving them. In fact if she even confides in her pee fetish, most people will run for the hills. So her fantasy becomes meeting someone that she confides her fetish and BAM! They're into it! What luck? So the story that she wants is just that, lucking into a golden shower - no conflict, basically no actual plot.

Guy has a problem in the real world. He's scarred by infidelity or even a divorce and he is certain that his pain is 100% her fault. He is convinced that he can't be happy unless she pays the price. His world is unjust. So his fantasy becomes a world where she (specifically) or women (in general) pay the price for infidelity. It is a world where men win and women lose in every way. It's perfect justice - his definition of it of course. Just like the template romance, the only conflict is the setup, the aftermath of the split. Any semblance of plot is simply 'righting' all of her 'wrongs'. So the story that he wants is the BtB template.

In all of these cases, people are reading for fantasy only, not plot at all. It is 100% escape reading. They're not interested in characterization. They're not interested in plot twists or surprises. They're not interested in setting nor world building. In fact if you give them too much of these things they will be bored. The only theme is the fantasy itself.

There's nothing wrong with any of this, but ... hate to say it ... it is the lowest level of literature. I'm not being snobby here (I did just say that there's nothing wrong with this). This is just the truth. Those who really do love to read (fiction) love new ideas, new worlds, new emotions, the ups and downs of plot twists, exploring themes, etc. These reading experiences expand your mind in some way and that's why avid readers love to read (whether they know it or not). Escape fantasy does none of this. It just reinforces the same old emotions over and over and never explores anything new and never broadens anyone's mind.

This is also why it can be quite difficult to find an actual good story on lit. 70-80% of the stories here are simple escape fantasies. They are all the same story. The unicorn fantasy, insert your unicorn and kink and away you go. The romance, insert your two saint characters and write the same old predictable story. The BtB, insert your characters, method of catching her and your fave bad end and write the same story over and over. They're all literally fill-in-the-blank templates. Reading these over and over will never give one a new experience. It is the very lowest level of literature.