Advice on writing

[mfan2112]

Same here! Although the document I asked it to read had underscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscoreunderscore...

Did I ask you to read one of mine? I do that between sections.

 

[PoisonPen33]

Unless you take Elmore Leonard's advice (and who wouldn't?): 'Never start a story with the weather.'

'The night was moist.'

 

[SamScribble]

'The night was moist.'

Given that 'moist' regularly tops lists of words that people - especially women - dislike, I probably wouldn't go there.

 

[yowser]

Read an essay not long ago (cannot remember where - NYT? TLS?) about the most dreaded, viscerally unpleasant words in the English language. Started with 'membrane' and I think 'moist' was in there too.

But the Grand Winner for the author was: Upgrade.

 

[Hypoxia]

'Moist' is banned on a prominent website. It can only appear in GIFs. Yikes.

EDIT: Now I've been banned from that site so fuck-em.

 

[SimonDoom]

Read an essay not long ago (cannot remember where - NYT? TLS?) about the most dreaded, viscerally unpleasant words in the English language. Started with 'membrane' and I think 'moist' was in there too.

But the Grand Winner for the author was: Upgrade.

It's different for everyone. I can imagine situations where "membrane" or "moist" might be OK.

For me, "utilize" and "utilization" are nails on chalkboard. The achieve nothing that "use" and "use" don't do better. The ultimate words to find in a corporate memorandum written by a company bureaucrat who confuses the length of a word with its value.

But, on the other hand, I use the word "incentivize," to which some object on the same grounds. But that's because its substitute "incent" is a word I never actually hear in practice, and so it sounds strange to me.

 

[Superjeebus65]

I'm not a writer and I am sorry for piggybacking on this thread. Nevertheless, I was wondering if there was a bank of authors on the site that would write other people's story ideas?

 

[Superjeebus65]

On this forum: Story Ideas, people can share their ideas and suggestions

Thanks RubenR, PERFECT!

 

[Wifetheif]

https://www.literotica.com/storyxs/writ_stor.shtml

Page down a little for many links to authors' resources and how-tos. Have fun!

I drifted into erotica after publishing a well-received nonfiction book mainly to work on dialogue. Fiction was completely new to me but I knew the basics of telling a story. Sesame Street taught us that a story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. The beginning part is usually the easiest to tackle. You should at least have a general idea of where your characters are going on their journey. Is it a romance, a short hot fuck, a meeting of cultures, or just a simple meet-cute that turns into something else? That is really not important, you have to know where you want to end up. HEA? Part as friends? Blackmail? Ships that pass in the night? As to endings. Sometimes you know where you are going from page one. I find, however, that endings can change as you write. They may become more poignant, more melancholy, or come completely out of leftfield. Sometimes they are the hardest thing, but when you get it just right!\

Hope this helps! Wifetheif

 

[Hypoxia]

...I knew the basics of telling a story. Sesame Street taught us that a story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. The beginning part is usually the easiest to tackle. You should at least have a general idea of where your characters are going on their journey. Is it a romance, a short hot fuck, a meeting of cultures, or just a simple meet-cute that turns into something else? That is really not important, you have to know where you want to end up. HEA? Part as friends? Blackmail? Ships that pass in the night? As to endings. Sometimes you know where you are going from page one. I find, however, that endings can change as you write. They may become more poignant, more melancholy, or come completely out of leftfield...

I've mentioned my 3 basic approaches to storytelling:

• Have an entire script laid out, such as a journal. Embellish as needed.
• Create a situation and players and set them loose to live the story.
• Start with an ending and build the story to reach that conclusion.

Recall a truism: If you don't know where you're going, you'll probably end up somewhere else. Think of the effects you want, the feelings you wish to implant in readers. A memorable story digs into minds. Exercise that power with care.

 

[MColton84]

New to this. I have so many ideas and I've read so many stories. I want to bring my ideas to life here but I don't know where to start.

Can anyone help me with the basics. I have a huge imagination but struggle to get it down on paper. What I write doesn't match what I want it to be.
Any help would be appreciated.

The best advice I can offer is to write by trial and error. Put your work out there and see what people think. I carefully read every comment that someone leaves. I am then able to identify my strengths and weaknesses, making the changes in my next work. I would also suggest participating in threads about writing. Even if no one agrees with your thoughts, you can learn and grow from theirs.

 

[SamScribble]

I carefully read every comment that someone leaves. I am then able to identify my strengths and weaknesses, making the changes in my next work.

I'm not sure that I can endorse this approach. Some of the comments by some of the readers are just plain loopy.

 

[BuckyDuckman]

New to this. I have so many ideas and I've read so many stories. I want to bring my ideas to life here but I don't know where to start.

Can anyone help me with the basics. I have a huge imagination but struggle to get it down on paper. What I write doesn't match what I want it to be.
Any help would be appreciated.

Step #1:
Start by giving yourself permission to be bad at writing, to truly suck, to absolutely fail - and then write something just for you or your partner or whoever you want.

Write it to make YOU hot and bothered. If it feels too long, then write something shorter. If it feels too short, screw it. Just write it down.

Step #2:
Put it in a drawer, file folder, whatever. And leave it there for no less than one week, then open it back up and cringe (or celebrate, your choice). But more importantly, fix the damn thing. Start by fixing all your typos. Make some notes about the parts where you went too fast or too slow.

Step #3:
Rewrite it. Not from scratch, just with fresh eyes and new thoughts.

Step #4:
Repeat Steps #2 & #3 until you feel like sharing it with someone. If you're lucky enough to have a beta reader, let them read it and listen to them. You don't have to agree with them, just listen to them and decide for yourself if you want to make those changes or not.

Step #5:
When you're done fixing it to the best of your ability, submit it! You don't get to call yourself a writer if you don't share it. Literotica offers a great platform for beginners and veterans alike.

 

[gunhilltrain]

As for the OP's question: it's surprisingly difficult to describe how to write. One way to look at it is that the characters and settings are the most important, and the sex is going on within those parameters.

It used to be that TV shows and movies (and before that, novels), could implicitly tell you what was going on and yet they were forbidden from taking that last step and putting it in the open. In Sunset Boulevard it's obvious that Joe Gillis is banging Norma Desmond, and there is something odd going on with her ex-husband Max von Mayerling who is so obsessed with her that he gave up his career as a director to be her butler.

It's your job as an erotic writer to take a situation like that and make it explicit.