Character Body Size

[Britva415]

I just wanted to help people....

It's not your fault.

 

[Britva415]

Maybe with the wrong crowd for that, hun.

This has some real "...because we're better than you" energy to it.

 

[Erozetta]

That can be very helpful. Thank you very much!

It reminds me, I keep thinking I'm gonna write a story where a woman's breasts point in different directions, or one is larger than the other, because that's all true to life. But when I get in the heat of the moment, it slips my mind.

I get so tired of reading about "perfect" breasts...and all the other things about the perfect character.

I often don't describe breast shape because I don't want them to come off as perfect. And physical traits I largely only describe in relation to the character's view of themselves. Sometimes in comparison with another character, which is something I want to explore more in a story. Where body shapes are the entire purpose of the story.

 

[ClintonBrooks]

On-topic: I think newer authors who are getting their feet wet for the first time with writing erotica fall into the hole of rapid-fire listing out the exact dimensions of their dream woman because that is how they envision her in their minds. And if they're just writing for themselves, then why not set the exact picture that they want to read about? It's my belief that the advice of using adjectives and other stylistic devices instead of precise measurements comes from practice and a realization that if one wants others to read and connect to their work, they need to let the readers' mind do some of the legwork to encourage investment in their prose.

It wasn't all that long ago I was one of the newer authors here. Maybe I still am.

But I remember the stories I was reading when I first came here as a reader. I found stories that I did enjoy, that happened to have a woman's stats and (huge) penis sizes added and a lot of loud orgasms like, AAAAAAYYYYIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!! It's what I was finding when I searched, so it was what I learned was the "norm".

And I wrote a little of that in the beginning. I also started hanging out here more and I found authors who didn't do those things in their stories and, what do you know, I enjoyed those stories more.

I also was lucky enough to find a few mentors and kindred spirits.

So now I do my best to avoid writing about 44EE boobs and 12" cocks and Tarzan-like orgasms. I've also unfollowed a bunch of writers I used to follow.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

This has some real "...because we're better than you" energy to it.

I was thinking main character syndrome, but tomatoe tomatoh...

 

[Kelliezgirl]

I often don't describe breast shape because I don't want them to come off as perfect. And physical traits I largely only describe in relation to the character's view of themselves. Sometimes in comparison with another character, which is something I want to explore more in a story. Where body shapes are the entire purpose of the story.

I've never tried to, but in the stories I've read where they have it always feels a bit off...

 

[Actingup]

I was thinking main character syndrome, but tomatoe tomatoh...

OMG can we *please* lay off the name-calling and character analysis?? Presumably everybody here has been on the Internet more than 5 minutes. Public discussions about who's being a bitch and who isn't are almost never helpful. Take the issues offline, and focus on your creative authorial thoughts. Please?

 

[Erozetta]

It wasn't all that long ago I was one of the newer authors here. Maybe I still am.

But I remember the stories I was reading when I first came here as a reader. I found stories that I did enjoy, that happened to have a woman's stats and (huge) penis sizes added and a lot of loud orgasms like, AAAAAAYYYYIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!!! It's what I was finding when I searched, so it was what I learned was the "norm".

And I wrote a little of that in the beginning. I also started hanging out here more and I found authors who didn't do those things in their stories and, what do you know, I enjoyed those stories more.

I also was lucky enough to find a few mentors and kindred spirits.

So now I do my best to avoid writing about 44EE boobs and 12" cocks and Tarzan-like orgasms. I've also unfollowed a bunch of writers I used to follow.

I remember us talking about this. I think I suggested a few authors for you? I know you like happier stories than I write, lol.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

OMG can we *please* lay off the name-calling and character analysis?? Presumably everybody here has been on the Internet more than 5 minutes. Public discussions about who's being a bitch and who isn't are almost never helpful. Take the issues offline, and focus on your creative authorial thoughts. Please?

Well, you said almost...

And, since everyone has been on the internet for more than 5 minutes, they probably know these moments of selective performative outrage are never helpful.

 

[ClintonBrooks]

I remember us talking about this. I think I suggested a few authors for you? I know you like happier stories than I write, lol.

You offered a variety of suggestions, authors were a part of them. You've been a terrific mentor.

 

[Nynah]

I also started hanging out here more and I found authors who didn't do those things in their stories and, what do you know, I enjoyed those stories more.

AH is a very loud and vocal yet ultimately teeny tiny echo chamber; you've been around long enough to realize that the people who post here aren't necessarily your target audience. This place is for writers to kvetch and isn't at all representative of the majority of readers who utilize Lit. However, I think it's great you found friends and almost as importantly, stories that you enjoyed more.

Public discussions about who's being a bitch and who isn't are almost never helpful.

A, you know I love you, but in this instance I think it is rather helpful to call out behavior like this, especially since we all inhabit this rather small echo chamber. It helps to know who is two-faced and can go from saying something like this:

It’s amazing the connections you can make by being positive, friendly, and trying to help out. I probably spend at least 50% of my ‘forum’ time talking to peopele (1-1 or in groups) over PMs.

(link)

To this:

Maybe go fuck yourself!

When you say one thing to be performative and aura farm for kudos and attention, but then flip out on someone over something honestly so benign (I truly don't even understand what was so bad about what was said)... that's toxic and manipulative behavior and it makes this place worse. It's not the first time this has happened and very likely won't be the last but calling attention to it is something that should be done. Manipulative and emotionally expensive people are not why I enjoy this place and I suspect I'm not alone.

 

[Britva415]

flip out on someone over something honestly so benign (I truly don't even understand what was so bad about what was said)

Jus for transparency’s sake: I was busy altering the post when the flip-out came in.

I didn’t remove anything from it, I added some clarifying words and extra thoughts to it, so, the post as visible today certainly would contain whatever the trigger was. But whatever the trigger was wasn’t quoted, so, I’m as in the dark as you are regarding what it could have been.

My subsequent speculation about it wasn’t projection, it was just brainstorming. I imagine it’s probably wrong but my imagination isn’t rich enough to fill in this mysterious blank. Or maybe it’s my emotional intelligence, fiik

 

[EmilyMiller]

Your "what-if" takes longer to perceive than an opening with a stats card and zero characterization. So, if someone nopes-out because there wasn't enough lampshading at the beginning to indicate that this is the character's "emotional" (please.) interior rather than the author's lack of putting emotional content into the story, then, they missed their chance.

A matter of authorial skill? Or just a matter of the reader being shitty? Merely listing stats is not characterization. I'm skeptical that a skilled author who wants to write a story about such a character would fail to show in any way at all that early in the story that there's more going on than just an author being, how was it put, shallow and superficial.

Maybe you aren't.

I misread “Maybe you aren’t” as being an attack on me as an author, as in “maybe you aren’t a good author.”

It’s been a difficult few days - nothing to do with this thread, which has zero IRL relevance.

I’m also over-sensitized by the motivated shit that gets posted about me as a matter of course (many examples on this thread). But I can now see that wasn’t what you meant. So my bad.

I’m going to edit my response, not to sanitize, but to highlight I made a mistake in my reading and saw red.

I think the feeding frenzy this has led to tells its own story. I’ll let others draw their own conclusions about people’s motivations. They are pretty transparent.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

And yet they persisted ...

 

[Stanfield2025]

On-topic: I think newer authors who are getting their feet wet for the first time with writing erotica fall into the hole of rapid-fire listing out the exact dimensions of their dream woman because that is how they envision her in their minds. And if they're just writing for themselves, then why not set the exact picture that they want to read about? It's my belief that the advice of using adjectives and other stylistic devices instead of precise measurements comes from practice and a realization that if one wants others to read and connect to their work, they need to let the readers' mind do some of the legwork to encourage investment in their prose.

I've said it before, but I've gotten complaints for being vague with my descriptions despite my attempts to involve the descriptive adjectives in the prose. One reader even asked for exactly how much taller one character was than the other. I've also talked to people who do like seeing the stats. Plenty of stories with exact character dimensions and whatnot get good feedback. So it isn't black and white. Some readers need this stuff spelled out for them.

This isn't bad advice, but it does admittedly frustrate me to see it because it's this exact advice I was following that discouraged me from being clearer than I was with the characters' physical appearances. While I still refuse to put precise dimensions in my stories, I have drifted away from just letting the readers' minds do the work.

 

[KittyOfSteele]

Sorry, Clinton. You accidentally stumbled onto one of the AH landmines. All you did was post a link you found helpful for visualizing. It had the vaguest hint of writing statistics into a story opening, and a lot of folks knee-jerked to opposing that instead of responding to what you actually posted.

Your link could be quite useful for someone who has been writing stat cards for descriptions and wants to change that. Hopefully, they can find it buried under all this muck.

Letting people see how wrong they are about the numbers they put to a character versus real people with those numbers is absolutely helpful.

https://www.007b.com/breast_gallery.php. Is also a good resource for real breasts presented in a non sexualized way.

AH, you're going to tank my writing if I end up going back to scripting comics and making graphic novels. Stop being so motivating in this thread!

*All of those projects fizzled out, don't listen to her.*

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

Some readers need this stuff spelled out for them.

Some folks like their food chewed for them too.

 

[ClintonBrooks]

Some folks like their food chewed for them too.

Oh, so we're gonna talk about kinks now?

 

[Stanfield2025]

Some folks like their food chewed for them too.

You joke, but people do like soft foods, processed foods, etc.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

You joke, but people do like soft foods, processed foods, etc.

So, if the MMC gets tied up and slathered in baby food, which the FMC proceeds to eat off his body.
What category does it go in?
How clear do you have to be that it is just baby food, and no actual babies are involved to avoid triggering the age detector?
Do we need a precise number for his height and weight so an autistic reader can calculate the number of bottles of baby food required and tell us we had the wrong number in the comments?

 

[ClintonBrooks]

So, if the MMC gets tied up and slathered in baby food, which the FMC proceeds to eat off his body.
What category does it go in?
How clear do you have to be that it is just baby food, and no actual babies are involved to avoid triggering the age detector?
Do we need a precise number for his height and weight so an autistic reader can calculate the number of bottles of baby food required and tell us we had the wrong number in the comments?

Sounds like fetish to me.

The Finger Lickin' Good kind of fetish.

 

[Kelliezgirl]

Sounds like fetish to me.

The Finger Lickin' Good kind of fetish.

That might bring up some kind of copyright thing, would it throw us into Fan Fiction?


The Scary Spice prepared the ropes as Baby Spice began undressing the Colonel.
"The mashed potatoes and gravy are almost ready," Posh Spice called out from the kitchen.
"Now we just have to wait for the Herbs to arrive," Sporty Spice said before seductively licking her lips.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I've said it before, but I've gotten complaints for being vague with my descriptions despite my attempts to involve the descriptive adjectives in the prose. One reader even asked for exactly how much taller one character was than the other. I've also talked to people who do like seeing the stats. Plenty of stories with exact character dimensions and whatnot get good feedback. So it isn't black and white. Some readers need this stuff spelled out for them.

As with many things on Lit and in life more broadly, there's no pleasing everyone on this topic, so you're probably best off doing whichever is more enjoyable to write.

 

[anthrodisiac]

Oh, so we're gonna talk about kinks now?

Pre-chewed food is helpful for your chicks before they really get around to ripping off chunks of meet from the slowest juramaia.

 

[anthrodisiac]

I also now want to write a story where every attribute is highly specific but for in-universe reasons