How mandatory is a decent plot to you when writing erotica?...

[CorsetLvr]

Anyone can get heat out of a dick churning in a pussy. But try and get heat out of two people looking at each other. That takes artistry. That takes skill.

Amen! The Literotica master of the plot has spoken. Thanks for your thoughts.

 

[Jedikool]

Anyone can get heat out of a dick churning in a pussy. But try and get heat out of two people looking at each other. That takes artistry. That takes skill.

but.... what if we don't have skill? lol

 

[DarkBee]

but.... what if we don't have skill? lol

Then just write stroke smut.

 

[Flashlight7.5]

Yes, you need a plot

You need a plot in any story you write. It can be something that's been done 1008 times, but you still need one. Every story needs a beginning, middle, and end. I'm stunned at how many accepted Literotica pieces are missing at least one of those three.

As for descriptions and what-not, I leave most of them out. Someone posted how most people notice one or two features, and that usually all I write for my characters. I prefer to let the reader envision the character, unless the character's description is integral to the story or is referred to later.

Among Kurt Vonnegut's 8 keys to writing a good story are these gems: 4. Every sentence must do one of two things: Reveal character or advance the action. 5. Start as close to the end as possible.

Both are critical to tight writing.

flash

 

[Weird Harold]

You need a plot in any story you write. It can be something that's been done 1008 times, but you still need one. Every story needs a beginning, middle, and end. I'm stunned at how many accepted Literotica pieces are missing at least one of those three.

To be fair, Beginnings, Middles and Ends apply to stories but not necessarily to Vignettes and Essays, which Literotica also publishes.

"Stroke stories" tend to be vignettes or simple scenes -- sometimes excerpts from longer projects that have to be somewhat less explicit than erotica or porn.

Among Kurt Vonnegut's 8 keys to writing a good story ... 4. Every sentence must do one of two things: Reveal character or advance the action. ...

I disagree with this point if he's talking about anything except a short-short story; sentences are also properly used for setting the scene and setting the mood. The longer the work, the more room there is for description and exposition without bogging the reader down in big chunks of details or sticking slavishly to the "tight writing" necessary to good short story writing.

 

[Softouch911]

The older I get, the more I find that the secret of sex, for me, is not consummation, but desire. Prolonged desire is what makes consummation worth it, and the great story for me is not the one with the great fuck scene, but the one with the great glance, the great touch, the one where the very air is charged between the lovers whenever they're in the same room.

Kudos on this, Dr. M! Posters have been quoting the next sentence, but your conclusion depends on this insight ... and a couple of the other posts that follow you seem to ignore the point ....

The sexual tension between characters, as it escalates, intensifies ... is what's erotic. Just as, in sex, orgasm denial or delay can result in a mind-blowing climax, so can it in fiction ... long story or short.

Re: Vonnegut ... he taught a lot of things he didn't do all the time. The masterpiece breaks rules ... but not just that, the masterpiece makes it "work" in spite of broken rules.

Just a couple of thoughts.
ST

 

[Black Tulip]

Kudos on this, Dr. M! ...
The sexual tension between characters, as it escalates, intensifies ... is what's erotic. Just as, in sex, orgasm denial or delay can result in a mind-blowing climax, so can it in fiction ... long story or short.
...
ST

I agree. In my opinion sexuality/eroticism is for the most part brain-related.

As for the Vonnegut advise: I don't see that creating such tension has to go hand in hand with a tight story or sparse sentences.



To me writing is like painting. You can have a beautiful work of art that consists of lines and geometric forms, say Mondriaan. There are just as beautiful works of art that paint a lifelike picture, take Vermeer for instance or Rembrandt.
It's nonsense to say one is good and the other is bad craftmanship.

When I write I want to set a mood, give readers an impression of the image in my mind. Isn't that what's called a matter of style?

 

[DarkBee]

I don't know if this has been said before, but "the largest sexual organ of humans is the brain", so writing something that will first stimulate the mind, will eventually stimulate the entire body, including of course the genitalia et al.

 

[Oblimo]

The first paragraph of an erotic story should contain the promise of sex. (If you can get it into the first sentence, that's even better). That is, a promise of sex to the reader, not the characters. And, if you ask me, the more oblique, the better.

 

[DarkBee]

The first paragraph of an erotic story should contain the promise of sex. (If you can get it into the first sentence, that's even better). That is, a promise of sex to the reader, not the characters. And, if you ask me, the more oblique, the better.

I disagree. This is a site for Erotic stories, so sex will be involved, we don't need to be told that.
Furthermore, I think that an erotic story can begin just as any other story, but will eventually have (explicit) sex in it, which can and possibly will improve the story. I have enough stories stored somewhere where we get the measurements of the heroine or some similar stroke-smut intro, sometimes I just want a good story with good sex.

 

[FeistyOrchid]

...or is direct, to-the-point, arousingly constructed detail more important to you much of the time?

Personally when I search for erotica, I'm looking for something to get myself off to (surprise surprise), and often when I find myself in this mood, any boring pre-erotic plot annoys me - I want to get straight to the juicy bits; not necessarily hard sex, but simply sexually arousing situations that you know may lead on to something more.

I suppose I'm curious as to how many others are like this? Sorry it's a slightly vague question.



x

I totally agree. If I'm looking to get off and a story takes forever to develop characters, scenarios, and what not- I'll "click out". If I'm looking for good character development (and what not) I'll take a trip to my local bookstore.

 

[Oblimo]

I disagree. This is a site for Erotic stories, so sex will be involved, we don't need to be told that.

I prefer my stories to provide their own context. And, as you've said, a story does not need to contain sex to be erotic, it needs to be sexy.

Furthermore, I think that an erotic story can begin just as any other story, but will eventually have (explicit) sex in it, which can and possibly will improve the story.

That's not erotica, then, I suggest. That's a story spiced with sex, that is, the sex is a secondary theme and mood of the story.

I have enough stories stored somewhere where we get the measurements of the heroine or some similar stroke-smut intro, sometimes I just want a good story with good sex.

You might be misunderstanding me. Starting a story off with measurements is a lousy way to promise sex. I am only suggesting that the erotic tension of an erotic story should begin with the hook itself.

 

[HighCastle]

I don't think it's mandatory, but I do think it's fun to have a reason for all the various goings on.

The hard part, of course, is working out what that reason is. I find it best to write characters as if they know more than me (practically everyone does anyway, so it's not that much of a stretch) and that way their actions can sometimes lead me to discover the reason behind everything.

I think it's a mistake to think there has to be a plot because it can sometimes stop you writing altogether while you sit there and ponder. But as long as you have a kind of unspoken agreement with your characters that there is some ulterior motive, some grand design behind it all, it usually comes out.

And if it doesn't, who cares? Litter the piece with all manner of red herrings and wierdness and go for the 'enigmatic and mysterious' style. The readers will come back if only in the hope it will all make sense eventually.

 

[Softouch911]

The first paragraph of an erotic story should contain the promise of sex. (If you can get it into the first sentence, that's even better). That is, a promise of sex to the reader, not the characters. And, if you ask me, the more oblique, the better.

If the story is about sex, certainly I agree. But all of life has the potential to be erotic. One of the most powerful moments I recall in erotic fiction concerned the passion and anger mixed in a sudden session in a cemetery following a funeral. The funeral began the story and, since it was told in first person, the sex was as much of a surprise for the narrator as for the reader.

But if you mean the start of the story should generate tension and grab a reader by the short hairs, then of course that's true. No one wants to wade through boredom, ever, at all.

The more I think about it, I'm not sure that your rule that

The first paragraph of an erotic story should contain the promise of sex.

Certainly that is the cliche for porn, or erotica that begins and ends with sex, but as a generalization, I'm not sure why you'd insist on that.

ST

 

[Oblimo]

Certainly that is the cliche for porn, or erotica that begins and ends with sex, but as a generalization, I'm not sure why you'd insist on that.

ST

I'm not explaining myself well, I think. I'm not saying that the hook of an erotic story should contain sex, but I think the promise of sex should be there from the beginning for a good way to build the reader's interest. Here is a very lame example:

"I hate delivering pizzas."

 

[CorsetLvr]

I think this entire discussion is based on a comparison of two seperate types of stories. First you have "porn" or if you rather, "stroke" stories. Their writers have no real goal of plot or character development. They are not attempting to appeal to the intellectual interests of the readers. They are simply trying to portray an image whose only goal is masturbatory fodder. In my experience, these stories, and especially their fans, are in the vast majority on sites like LIt. "Don't bother me with a plot, I just want to get off." I would, without any statistical evidence to back it up, assume that the majority of these readers are male and are simply looking for the written version of the majority of porn vids.

Then, on the other hand, there are writers that produce erotic literature. While their stories may have "stroke" potential, the stories themselves are more complex. These stories do have some intellectual and literary content while still fulfilling the erotic goals of the purely "stroke" type story. It is going to appeal to a reader looking for more than just stroke or perhaps someone that likes a slower build up. Again, I have no statistical evidence to support this, but based on feedback I have received, I think the readership of this type of story contains a lot more women. Perhaps thay are in search of something that is a more erotic version of the romance novel that are popular among so many women. I think the men that are fans of this type of story are possibly a little more sophisticated in their erotica tastes as well.

Obviously there are some comprises between these two categories of both readers and writers. Many fall in the middle and serve as a compromise. Not every story with a plot is a novella and may include the features of both and may have a minimal amount of plot and character development. This may serve as a third category depending on your tastes. These writers may be attempting to straddle the fence and attract both types of readers. In my opinion, like any compromise, these stories end up falling short in both categories. The stroke readers don't want to wade through dialogue and plot and the literary reader is left wanting more.

Of course, this is just my opinion though. I do tend to have a very analytical way of looking at things. Obviously!

 

[Weird Harold]

I think this entire discussion is based on a comparison of two seperate types of stories. ...

Of course, this is just my opinion though. I do tend to have a very analytical way of looking at things. Obviously!

And a good opinion it is, too.

I sort of disagree with your basic assumption that everything posted in the Stories section here at Lit is a "story" -- a large percentage aren't actually "stories," they're vignettes, scenes, or essays. Those all have different structures than stories do -- notably, they don't require plots -- and they have distinct groups of fans.

 

[Five_Eight]

I sort of disagree with your basic assumption that everything posted in the Stories section here at Lit is a "story" -- a large percentage aren't actually "stories," they're vignettes, scenes, or essays. Those all have different structures than stories do -- notably, they don't require plots -- and they have distinct groups of fans.

Well said, W.H.

My motto is: Where art will fail, there smut will sell.

I've posted 13 stories here in six weeks, only three of them are hardcore porn. What gets me is those three have ten times as many reads (but not necessarily more votes) as what I consider the more serious work in the remaining ten stories. The hardcore stuff has plot and character development because I'm not too keen on concocting vignettes that are sex for sex's sake, though I'm not knocking those who do. But when I've REALLY invested some effort with plot and character development with just enough sex to be qualified for Literotica I get some gratifying feedback (which makes it all worthwhile) and average about 4000 reads in the first month. My three sex romps got that many reads or more the first day! It is not lost on me this is a site for racy stories and I've chosen to display my work on that platform.

My dad just laughs: "Sex sells, son."

Is it snobby to deplore the thought of squandering time writing porn when you could just as easily be devoting your creative energy to mainstream plot/character driven stories you're capable of?

 

[aussie_101]

Having just found this thread and flicked through it, I'm really surprised that the majority of ppl are so strongly in favour of one or the other. Some days I'm in the mood for a quick to-the-point arouser; other days I'm in the mood for a good plot, real and likable/interesting characters, and so on.

Same goes for my writing. Sometimes I want to elaborate upon the protagonists' feelings, motivations - establish why they are where they are, what's going on in their heads, how they think and how they come to feeling what they feel. 'Fostered Care' and 'My Awful Indiscretion' are examples of such.

Other times I'm keen to write a quicker one, not just to cater to that (apparently larger) market of thrill-readers, but also to see if I can do it better than the norm: hotter, wilder, more intensity. If they just wanna read and wank, give them something really inspiring. 'A Welcome Surprise' in my index is probably the better example of such, though it's a slow build-up and requires a bit more patience (or stamina?).

Interesting topic, to be sure.

 

[Solrac]

Personal preference

I prefer a storyline of some type in order to present the situation where the erotica can take place, but most important is that it be believable. I don't like to stop in the middle of a sentence and think to myself.... no way she/he would have said that or no way that would happen..... etc. It has to be somewhat believable.

 

[JADED_ONE1969]

............

 

[dr_mabeuse]

We were talking about the difference between "pornography" and "erotica" on another thread. According to the dictionary, they're synonymous, but I think most of us smut writers think of them differently. For most of us, "porn" is literature whose primary or sole intention is to sexually titillate and arouse. Erotica is the literature of human sexuality. It talks about the human experience of sex. Erotica is porn with a story. If erotica is wine, porn is brandy: just the good parts.

Porn is easier to write, because if you can describe a sexual act, you can write porn, and a lot of people can so a lot of people do. It doesn't take much to trip a human being's switches. Bury the word "tit" in a page of the Congressional Record and see how it jumps out at you.

Writing good porn, that's another matter. Finding a way to make the same old sexual acts fresh and arousing takes a good bit of skill and inventiveness, a dose of poetry.

But then, it's also easy to write bad Erotica. You can throw a sex scene into any old story and call it erotica, and that's bad erotica.

What most people seem to like is a story that's sufficiently developed that we get to know the characters well enough to care about them and care about the sex they're about to have. The old cliche is that men are visual, women are emotional when they read. Men are satisfied to just have a picture painted of what's going on; women want to know what the characters are feeling, and that requires more story, a description of the situation.

It's funny, but in those stories we were citing that we all cite, with the physical descriptions--those are always written by men. There's no way to describe someone's personality or character that way, in that "wanted poster" style. That has to be done in the story, in the situation, the character's actions. That's where you engage your readers' emotions.

 

[Softouch911]

Having just found this thread and flicked through it, I'm really surprised that the majority of ppl are so strongly in favour of one or the other. Some days I'm in the mood for a quick to-the-point arouser; other days I'm in the mood for a good plot, real and likable/interesting characters, and so on.

.

I suspect that the concern isn't for their own reading tastes. Many posters here are writers and the distinction, for us, describes our goals and values as writers. It changes the game. And some do write both forms, but the difference sometimes help writers focus ... and even if it doesn't do that, it's certainly a marketing issue if you in fact publish.

Welcome to the group!

 

[ksheila]

erotica vs porn

its like xx rated movie vs hardcore movie

certain scenes certain situations can leave u begging for more

some incidents can be more erotic when left unfinished

an erotic situation is very very special than our usual "bang, bang thanku mam"

pls let me know if there are any such stories in literotica specially son-mom relationship. more erotic than vivid

 

[Jagged]

NO....if you look at the roleplay section

Even if the story is based on a simple fetish or idea I like to have a good story with plot and detail it is ashame so many people just want to write brief pots that amount to reading a porn script.

I like to foster creativity with my writing partners. I am not saying there are when you don't write something that is intense start to finish, but I like my erotica to be part of the story.