Levels of Plausibility

[TheNovelist2000]

@TheNovelist2000 , you're not wrong, and my response on a story by story basis might be similar to yours, but this is very much a matter of personal taste.

Some readers like a story where two people start having sex under outrageous circumstances with no explanation. I don't. I like at least some set-up.

For example:

Version 1: Mom and son sit down on a sofa to watch TV, and they immediately begin making out and then have sex, with Dad cheering them on. This would bore me.

Version 2 (my version): Mom and son sit down on a sofa, and mom sits on son's lap because of a stain on part of the sofa, and things slowly begin to happen, with a lot of reluctance and tentativeness. Dad sits unaware of what's going on nearby. He's drunk. It's still an implausible story, but most readers seemed to feel that enough was added to make it work.

I think even a simple stroke story is better with a few elements of plausibility. Obviously, though, not everybody agrees with me.

Exactly! Couldn't have said it better myself. I can't bear to read stories like the first version.

 

[Ianus4]

There has been a similar thread about this before. I think that every fantasy must have a basis in reality, which allows for immersion. The way we are, the decisions we would make in a given situation, what we consciously or subconsciously desire. Romance and erotica are so personal that we need to connect on some level.
At the same time, I think the uncanny valley phenomenon exists here too; there can be a ratio of reality to fantasy that turns you off, that upsets you.

 

[big_cane_sugar]

There has been a similar thread about this before. I think that every fantasy must have a basis in reality, which allows for immersion. The way we are, the decisions we would make in a given situation, what we consciously or subconsciously desire. Romance and erotica are so personal that we need to connect on some level.
At the same time, I think the uncanny valley phenomenon exists here too; there can be a ratio of reality to fantasy that turns you off, that upsets you.

plausible human sexual behavior​

Mine was a bit more limited perhaps but some of the same points were made.

 

[bmeyem8]

An example of attempting to be plausible but it backfires horribly: in a couple of my LW stories I focus on the real-life legal consequences of assault where the husband assaults the paramour. OMG the comments were brutal. They were passionate and vituperous.

But one of the comments I remember the most said that readers on Literotica come here for the fantasy, not the reality.

 

[alohadave]

No...no...You don't get it. There are plausible stroke stories and stroke stories where characters behave like mindless puppets controlled by the author. Imagine a story where a rich billionaire takes his girlfriend to another city on his private jet. He makes her blow him topless amidst the crew, and the crew reacts nothing. The gf reacts nothing. "Yes, dear. I am your property," she says. "Of course, I'll blow you." Then, the guy points to an airhostess to come and blow him, and she says. "It'd be an honour, Sir." Then, he lands. And steps onto a yacht. Another bitch with skimpy clothes comes in. Then, he fucks her, and she says. "Oh, this is so good."

I get it. It's written porn that exists just to have unrealistic sex scenes.

 

[AG31]

See, the thing is that I love all the stories listed above. I understand the eroticism of these fantasies, but as I read them, I kept thinking it would hit a million times harder if the authors tried to make it a bit more realistic.

I think there are stories which place weight on the set up, where plot and character claim importance. In those kinds of stories inexplicable behaviors can be a distraction.

The other kind (and, of course, it's a spectrum), focus solely on the eroticism. They will attract audiences depending on which buttons are pushed, and the setup is frankly there just enough to support the eroticism. This sort of story can be done very well. I reject the term "stroker" if it is applied to all of them. I prefer "simple erotica" for those that demonstrate care and skill in the writing.

 

[lovecraft68]

It never fails to amaze me that people act like its a bad thing when stories on an EROTIC story site feature people eager to fuck without much of a reason. Imagine portraying porn fantasy on a site full of sex stories and a readership who comes here to enjoy sexy fantasies

I think if Lit ever adds a new category it should be Literary erotica where all the best authors can showcase their incredible talents without being bothered by us pervs

 

[AlinaX]

... EROTIC story site feature people eager to fuck without much of a reason.

But isn't it the reason that makes it erotic?

 

[TheNovelist2000]

It never fails to amaze me that people act like its a bad thing when stories on an EROTIC story site feature people eager to fuck without much of a reason. Imagine portraying porn fantasy on a site full of sex stories and a readership who comes here to enjoy sexy fantasies

I think if Lit ever adds a new category it should be Literary erotica where all the best authors can showcase their incredible talents without being bothered by us pervs

No, you didn’t get the thread. I am one of the very few people who has been, and will always be, advocating for strokers on Lit or any story heavy on sex. I love them. I write them. I read them. Alright, let’s get that out of the way.

The criticism about the eagerness of characters in sex stories has nothing to do with there being too much eroticism. In fact, the criticism arose in the first place because, in my opinion, very implausible plots reduce the eroticism and heat of a story.

I don’t claim to have read all your stories, but I have read more than just a few. Not once have I seen you write about a guy who points to a girl on the street and she immediately starts drooling over him for no reason. There is logic and motivation behind your characters, and that verisimilitude sells your stories. Even your hardcore Valentine's Day cuckold story is grounded in logic. It is about a man who is really into cuckolding, and it is about an extramarital date that was pre-planned. Nothing there is jarring. Wouldn’t it be jarring if the husband had no cuckolding kink, was a hardcore conservative and devout Catholic, yet stayed in the closet simply because the author wanted him to?

Do you or do you not put effort into making your stories grounded in some kind of logic? I dare you to write a story where one of the characters suddenly starts flying like an angel mid-sex for no fucking reason, and no one in the story reacts to it. Wouldn’t that break the illusion of the story and, as a result, reduce the reader’s arousal?

 

[SkyBubble]

I have been trying out stories on the other site. You know the one with three letters. The one that must not be named.

3 letters or 2 letters and a number?

 

[SkyBubble]

No matter how ridiculous your idea, it needs to have a certain level of plausibility or at least logical sequencing, or it simply becomes nonsense.

 

[TheNovelist2000]

3 letters or 2 letters and a number?

We often quote the site here in its initials. Three letters in total.