Which bit of a story do you enjoy most?

[Shuntwell]

I want to know what part of an erotic story you enjoy both as a writer and a reader. I would break up a story as follows:

1. Set Up. Non-sexual stuff, character background, scene setting, establishing the world we're in.

2. No Sex to Sex. Getting characters from not having the sex, to having the sex (or whatever sex-adjacent activity).

3. The Sex. The nuts and bolts of sexual acts, the full ins and outs.

4. Aftermath. The consequences, if any.

Personally I would say no. 2 is where my main interest lies, both as reader and writer. How people go from not being involved sexually to being balls deep (metaphorically speaking) is very satisfying for me. The less likely they seem to be able to get together, the better. Some stories just have people who want to do it and then do it because there's nothing to stop them and I find those kinds of stories kinda dull.

I'd say no. 1 is the least interesting for me when it comes to erotica and when people here focus too much on that I skim through it.

 

[LiterallyLiterate]

Depends on the story, tbh. I would say 1 and 2 together, especially if it’s a story or storyline I know will continue. The set-up will often provide details you’ll appreciate later on, if the author is any good. Some level of connection to the story and the characters is necessary, I think.

That said, 3 is also important, though to a lesser degree if the build-up is good and leads you on. I very rarely, if ever, pleasure myself as I read, it’s just a very good way to get in the mood.

That, or watching my wife undress. That works too.

 

[alohadave]

If the story is written well, I enjoy all parts.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

When it comes to sexual content I mostly enjoy the buildup, the erotic tension and seduction that not many writers here know how to do right.
When it comes to non-sexual content, a writer's imagination is what impresses me the most. I like reading interesting character arcs, and imaginative world-building. The plot doesn't even need to be spectacularly clever if you do those two right.

 

[Voyeurkenneth]

I'm interested in the way an author starts a story with their first paragraphs. It's like a first impression, to see how they've intended to capture a reader's attention. If it feels unique (and ideally aligns with my kink interests), then I feel more invested, buckling my seatbelt to go along for the ride.

 

[SimonDoom]

I probably enjoy the setup most, but I would characterize it a little differently. I enjoy the EROTIC setup. I enjoy reading and writing erotic stories, which focus on an erotic desire or experience, and I enjoy a story where the erotic focus is skillfully introduced and developed. I don't need a lot of non-erotic setup in an erotic story. I enjoy reading (and writing) about the introduction of the erotic theme and the way tension or drama are created around that theme. I like a well written sex scene, but usually not as much as the depiction of the erotic buildup and tension.

 

[APilgrimSquare]

1 and 2 are usually most interesting to me, followed by 4. 3 can usually be skipped, more often than not, unless it’s an extension of 2 (I.e. it invokes feelings of surprise and delight that we’ve moved to sex). Reading about the specific mechanics of vanilla sex is usually just not that interesting to me.

 

[yowser]

Arousal of course is our modus operandi here, and I don't end up seeing stories divided out as you suggest. There is no reason the 'set up' cannot also have an erotic charge, which absolutely does not mean a story should have sexual activity in the first paragraph. The main thing I am looking for is skill in the writer, which involves a perceptive approach, sensitive to nuance, willing to tease out the various elements of erotic interest in their tale. A good story will have an erotic undercurrent throughout.

Arousal in characters is not always the easiest thing to portray, and it only works if characters are three dimensional. I appreciate a writer who takes time with their characters, doesn't resort to shortcut descriptions and shallow motivations, and lets me into the minds of their characters so that I feel their interest growing. The best stories are fairly tightly integrated.

 

[GlennJenko]

I agree that most good stories combine one and two in some kind of way, though if I had to pick one I would say two. I love seduction stories where the reason why the sex is so good is because the tension has been built up so well in the "no sex to sex" phase. I think it's also why the most fun I've had writing erotica thus far was the real build up in the first story I published here, where a large part of the story is centred around the seduction.

Three can often be skimmed, as the parts I most enjoy are the immediate beginning and the near end to end of the actual sex. Reading the climaxes in particular I love. Four can also be great, but if the first three haven't enthralled me I often don't care. And yet more stories end pretty much straight after the climax (in more ways than one).

 

[AG31]

Erotica (what I look for in Lit) - Sex, but I agree with @yowser that "Arousal of course is our modus operandi here,"
and I agree with him that arousal need not be confined to the explicitly sexual parts.

Non-erotica - whatever part is done the best.

 

[AwkwardMD]

My favorite part about writing a story is when I see the view count go up.

 

[StillStunned]

My favourite part is editing my draft into a finished story. It doesn't really matter what's going on.

 

[PennyThompson]

My favorite part about writing a story is when I see the view count go up.

The real money shot is that first positive comment

But fr though, I agree that those story parts can and should bleed together in erotica. I'm promising a climax of some kind, it doesn't have to be explicitly sexual (though it usually is), but there has to be an emotional and physical buildup to that moment, or there's no satisfaction for me.

 

[AwkwardMD]

The real money shot is that first positive comment

Even years later, if someone writes a paragraph about my 40k word story, I'm a happy puddle.

 

[Nynah]

I also enjoy the build up from no sex to sex the most. Sometimes that's the most difficult part of the writing process for me (I'm a pantser if that's not plainly obvious) but when I manage to get it just right, that feels so gratifying to me as a writer.

Oddly enough the fastest part that I can usually get through is the initial setup of the story but that's because I usually have a pre-determined vision of how I want things to start and it's just a matter of getting it all in place before the action starts happening. But I wouldn't say that that's necessarily more fun than parts 2 or 3.

Since I primarily write chaptered stories, part 4 is usually just setting the stage for the next one, but I would like to try writing some standalone works this year, so maybe I'll enjoy wrapping everything up.

 

[AchtungNight]

3’s important but 1 and 2 have to set things up right and sell the characters for me to really enjoy 3. And if 4 sucks, well, that can ruin the whole story, no matter how good it was.

 

[Belegon]

I'd say 2 is what is most important for me. I really want to see how the characters get to the point where things are inescapable. I like a slightly slower burn, than a rollicking good rumble in the hay. If the build-up is on point, your sex scene itself gains the benefit of the good will of a deserved payoff.

 

[LisaMayTurner]

You missed off which bit of a story I like best, and it's the most important bit of any story. Without it, points 1 to 4 fall away into utter nothingness.

 

[HeyAll]

Generally speaking, toward the middle tends to be my favorite part.