Late Wife's Daughter

[Rob_Royale]

I was asking if a predictable plot is a problem for the erotica genre

Sorry, I missed it.
Of course it's a problem, if you want people to finish your story. The expectation of a final epic sex scene isn't enough to keep people interested. The story has to be there and it has to keep peoples attention. The reader has to want to find out how things end. If they have already figured it out, why finish the story?

 

[VerbalAbuse]

Sorry, I missed it.
Of course it's a problem, if you want people to finish your story. The expectation of a final epic sex scene isn't enough to keep people interested. The story has to be there and it has to keep peoples attention. The reader has to want to find out how things end. If they have already figured it out, why finish the story?

there are genres, and there are genres.

people jacking off to cuckold fantasies don't expect a surprise twist. they just want to keep reading how pathetic the wimp was.

 

[SirCharles01]

Could there be a story here.
A man lost his wife 2-4 years ago. He is finally able to move on but there's a knock at his door. He opens the door and a young lady is standing there who looks identical to his late wife. She ask for her, but sadly, he tells her what happened. The man remembers his late wife telling him that she gave up her baby for adoption before she ever met him.
They want to keep in touch. The young lady wants to know her mother through her husband. As they spend more time together, they begin to have feelings for each other. Ultimately they fall for each other and have sex.

That could be very hot. Mixing in real sexual tension and dominance elements.

 

[TheArsonist]

The reader has to want to find out how things end. If they have already figured it out, why finish the story?

As others have pointed out, most popular stories have Happily Ever After endings, to the point where they are pretty much a requirement in the romance genre. In fact, many romance stories are more or less entirely predictable, yet it's still the most popular genre in books today.

For LitErotica, I just don't think empirical evidence supports the idea that a predictable plot is a problem. I personally think a degree of surprise and unpredictability makes for a more satisfying story, but I wouldn't say this case is a concept that needs some major narrative twist (like the one I proposed).

 

[Husky_Embrace]

I agree with the others. Having a predictable end does not mean it is a no-go. It is the journey to it that matters.

A great example is LotR. If you managed to skip the movies and the books so far, you can feel it'll have a happy ending. What keeps you reading is how they overcome the obstacles on their road. It seems hopeless. They are outnumbered against much stronger foes, and even the land itself will eventually attack them. Where every scenario spells doom, unless they take the most unlikely of chances and throw a ring into one specific volcano in the heart of enemy territory.

People read and re-read the books, or rewatch the movies. It doesn't matter if they know the outcome the second time. They want to make the journey the media presents.

A journey most often has obstacles to keep readers interesting. A reader can know what kind of story it is and can guess the ending, they want to see how it happens. It is why in so many books and series there's these tortured reasons for drama. The writers know drama is what keeps people interested, so they manufacture it however they can.

So it being obvious isn't a problem, as long as the journey to it isn't obvious thanks to the obstacles. No one wants to read the leisurely afternoon stroll, just after second lunch, of a hobbit to throw a ring into a volcano and be back in time for tea.