A question about sharing our personal stories?

[EmilyMiller]

The one counter-consideration one should think about when doing this is this: Is it reasonably possible that someone who knows you would read the story and identify the character as you, and then identify the other people in the story? It's fine to out oneself; it's not fine to out other people. I assume you are probably careful enough that this isn't a risk, but it's something one should keep in mind when writing stories based on one's real-life experiences.

Anyone in my stories now knows that they are in them. With one person that was after the fact - bad of me in retrospect (it hadn’t occurred at the time) - but they were cool about it.

They found the changes I made to them hilarious actually.

I guess I’m less circumspect where a character is an amalgam of a few people and so less identifiable.

Em

 

[AchtungNight]

Oh - and as per @SimonDoom - don’t include identifying details. Like I never mention which college I was attending in my stories (though I’ve been criticized that this omission makes them unbelievable ). I sometimes use real first names (or slight variants of them), but only ever made up surnames (or no surnames at all). I change some aspects of appearance, or biography.

Em

It’s also permissible to give characters names that are very common if they have such names already. “Chris Bradley” can be as popular as “John Smith” or “Chen Liu” in the right context. Famous people cameos are legally protected due to the ‘80s Supreme Court ruling in Hustler Magazine vs. Jerry Falwell. You decide what you want to do.

Simon brings up another good point- if my stepbrother wasn’t out of the closet as a gay man for over two decades, I would never risk outing him by giving Doug Ramsay a still-unnamed stepbrother who is gay. Not in a partially conservative family like mine. And if I wasn’t brave enough to out my own ethical nonmonogamy to the same family, damn the consequences… hope you get the idea.

 

[EmilyMiller]

A worked example for you…

At Whorey’s Piers isn’t quasi-biographical, but has some such elements. The titular location is based on a real place, which would be obvious to anyone who knows the South Jersey Shore. The same goes for all the other locations, down to twisted versions of a restaurant and even water park rides.

I did have a summer job as a lifeguard at at water park, and a lot of the details come from that (down to the layout of specific beaches), but the FMC isn’t me and the plot elements / sex scenes are not based on me (save of course I have had sex before ).

Given it’s a made up story, with made up characters and events, I’m OK with being specific about locations.

I never include such details in - for contrast - my early college-based stories. There is no local color and they could be set anywhere. If I mentioned local landmarks, it would identify the college pretty quickly, which could be problematic.

Em

 

[Codoc24]

Based solely on my experience with the volunteer editors, I have not had much luck. I have contacted over 10 people in the past few months, and only 1 replied. So don't be surprised if you don't get many replies.

 

[djrip]

Some writers empty the well spring in three or four stories, which is totally fine. Some die still trying to empty it.

Sounds dangerous!

 

[SimonDoom]

Anyone in my stories now knows that they are in them. With one person that was after the fact - bad of me in retrospect (it hadn’t occurred at the time) - but they were cool about it.

They found the changes I made to them hilarious actually.

I guess I’m less circumspect where a character is an amalgam of a few people and so less identifiable.

Em

The issue is meaningful consent, as it is in other contexts. If people in your stories know that they are in them and have given you the OK, then it's fine. It's not fine to write about a person in a story in a way that readers will figure out who the real person is and the real person has not given consent. The exception would be celebrity fiction, where one writes about a famous person that one doesn't actually have any personal knowledge of and the events are completely fictional.

I wrote two stories about a fictionalized version of a woman who is well known on OnlyFans. I made sure I obtained her consent to write the stories, she was cool with it, and she liked the stories. I've had readers react that they know who the real person is that the stories are based on.

 

[StillStunned]

Based solely on my experience with the volunteer editors, I have not had much luck. I have contacted over 10 people in the past few months, and only 1 replied. So don't be surprised if you don't get many replies.

I've mentioned a few times on various threads that I'm a professional editor. One thing that people often don't realise is that it's *hard* work. Depending on the quality of the text, it's like being asked to rephrase every sentence someone says, hour after hour.

I have 25 years' experience at the highest level, and I count on an average of 1000 words per hour for editing. So if you're looking for someone to edit your 8000-word story, your asking for a day of someone's work. A 40,000-word story is a week's work.

That's a lot of time and effort to volunteer. That's time an editor could spend earning money, or being with their family, or even writing dirty stories.

 

[KeithD]

it's like being asked to rephrase every sentence someone says, hour after hour.

Well, no, not really. A professional editor will be suggesting very little rephrasing of sentences. Other than that, as a professional editor, I agree with everything else you posted.

 

[StillStunned]

A professional editor will be suggesting very little rephrasing of sentences.

We probably have different remits. My work includes the whole proofreading phase. My clients are generally lawyers, policymakers, bankers and the like, and the instructions are "turn this into coherent, consistent and professional English".

But my simile was mostly meant to illustrate the level of focus that's required: thinking about every single word and its place in the sentence and the larger text.

 

[KeithD]

We probably have different remits. My work includes the whole proofreading phase. My clients are generally lawyers, policymakers, bankers and the like, and the instructions are "turn this into coherent, consistent and professional English".

But my simile was mostly meant to illustrate the level of focus that's required: thinking about every single word and its place in the sentence and the larger text.

Most of my book editing has been for mainstream publishers. They made a determination that the manuscript was publishable before sending it to me to edit. If every sentence needed to be rephrased, they would not have accepted the manuscript. Editors should be leaving as much of the author's voice as possible, and in the mainstream book publishing world, the content needs to be in good shape before it goes into editing. There, changes in wording are suggested by the editor, not imposed.

I've done some editing here. If I had to rephrase every sentence, I wouldn't be accepted the task.

 

[MillieDynamite]

I don't believe I need to share anything here. It seems most, if not all, of the bases are covered. So disappointing to have something tidbit to push my way into the conversation.

Write, share, enjoy!

 

[EmilyMiller]

Based solely on my experience with the volunteer editors, I have not had much luck. I have contacted over 10 people in the past few months, and only 1 replied. So don't be surprised if you don't get many replies.

When I started out I got a rejection which said to contact a volunteer editor. I looked up ones that matched my story and must have contacted over a dozen. Only one replied and that my stuff wasn’t their kink, despite search finding them.

Better to make friends and then wait for someone to volunteer.

Em

 

[EmilyMiller]

The issue is meaningful consent, as it is in other contexts. If people in your stories know that they are in them and have given you the OK, then it's fine. It's not fine to write about a person in a story in a way that readers will figure out who the real person is and the real person has not given consent. The exception would be celebrity fiction, where one writes about a famous person that one doesn't actually have any personal knowledge of and the events are completely fictional.

I’m close to certain that you couldn’t track down anyone from my stories. I may be blonde, but I’m not totally dim . Explicit consent from all major characters (one after writing as I say - that was naivety on my part). There are some background characters who might be very loosely based on real people but who are not drawn in any identifiable way whatsoever.

For example, some of my early stories feature a sex shop near a bar - and a private room behind it. The owner appears in some.

IRL that wasn’t the actual location and the owner of the place had a different name and different character to what I wrote.

I wrote two stories about a fictionalized version of a woman who is well known on OnlyFans. I made sure I obtained her consent to write the stories, she was cool with it, and she liked the stories. I've had readers react that they know who the real person is that the stories are based on.

I did the same with an actual pornstar. Though consent was via a third party and I only saw a screen shot of the conversation. It seemed kosher. And I don’t identify her at all.

Em

 

[AchtungNight]

Based solely on my experience with the volunteer editors, I have not had much luck. I have contacted over 10 people in the past few months, and only 1 replied. So don't be surprised if you don't get many replies.

I’m a volunteer editor but I have limited time for it. So I request that people do as I do and, before contacting me, use a spell/grammar checker AI and a detached editorial personality or two (these can be your peers or just yourself pretending you’re someone else, like say your feminine side or a character in your story, a fan, a hater, or even an extreme case of some kind- I pretended I was Cat Osterman for “Two Cats in Heat” and tried to imagine myself as ok with what some weirdo fan of mine who went to my alma mater but doesn’t actually know me was doing, same for the other athlete I was femslashing- the need to do this has declined over time). And understand I will be a beta reader more than a writer- I am not looking to rewrite anyone’s work. I can make plot suggestions but not demands.

I also reserve the right to back out of any story I can’t handle. I need a week to review anything, and my other life issues take priority. Sometimes there are also incompatible kinks involved- I can’t stand nonconsent, an excessive amount of humiliation kink, bukake, karma houdinis, or certain other things- and if writers expose me to these issues, they need to find another editor. I’m helping voluntarily, and I wouldn’t read such stuff even for a salary comparable to Elon Musk’s wealth. People can accept that, I hope.

 

[Codoc24]

I've mentioned a few times on various threads that I'm a professional editor. One thing that people often don't realise is that it's *hard* work. Depending on the quality of the text, it's like being asked to rephrase every sentence someone says, hour after hour.

I have 25 years' experience at the highest level, and I count on an average of 1000 words per hour for editing. So if you're looking for someone to edit your 8000-word story, your asking for a day of someone's work. A 40,000-word story is a week's work.

That's a lot of time and effort to volunteer. That's time an editor could spend earning money, or being with their family, or even writing dirty stories.

Oh yes. I totally and completely understand that it's hard and a lot of work. I bow before those who offer their valuable time and expertise. My complaint is that when a person volunteers, and then when they don't have the time, are too busy, or whatever, I just wish they would drop me a quick DM and say, "Sorry, I can't help you at this time." I also just wanted to give the OP a little insight that he may have a hard time finding an editor. A woman who has been editing for me sometimes takes weeks to edit my stories, but I've never complained because I know she has other things going on in her life that are a LOT more important than my story.

 

[Black_Knyght]

Tonight my wife and her best friend tried to branstorm and write up a brief description the primary trio they plan to write about in her story(s). Is there a place to share that so they can get some kind of feedback on their initial descriptive basis and efforts?

 

[Bamagan]

Tonight my wife and her best friend tried to branstorm and write up a brief description the primary trio they plan to write about in her story(s). Is there a place to share that so they can get some kind of feedback on their initial descriptive basis and efforts?

There's a forum for that, although I can't tell you what kind of reception you can expect, having not frequented it myself.

 

[KeithD]

Tonight my wife and her best friend tried to branstorm and write up a brief description the primary trio they plan to write about in her story(s). Is there a place to share that so they can get some kind of feedback on their initial descriptive basis and efforts?

No, not at Literotica. Only completed/submitted/posted stories accepted here.

 

[Black_Knyght]

There's a forum for that, although I can't tell you what kind of reception you can expect, having not frequented it myself.

Thanks for that. I'll let her know and share it for her, and we'll cross our fingers for positive feedback over snarky responses!

 

[Black_Knyght]

Okay, here's the CORRECTED link to the characters they'd like to revolve their story(s) around - https://forum.literotica.com/threads/looking-for-constructive-input.1597643/

 

[ElectricBlue]

Okay, here's the link to the characters they'd like to revolve their story(s) around - https://forum.literotica.com/threads/looking-for-some-constructive-input.1597641/

The Feedback Forum is for stories that have been published; that is, they've been reviewed by the site for content compliance.

Strictly speaking, in terms of the Forums, you really should be in "Story Ideas" or the "Editors Forum", because you're seeking a lot of input from strangers.

 

[Black_Knyght]

Sorry, I misunderstood where I thought I was being directed. It's now corrected and the above link is revised

 

[Black_Knyght]

Okay, tonight my wife and her best friend say they've completed her/their first collaborative story. Apparently they've been working on it off and on for quite a while.

So what do we do next? I've reached out to about a half dozen Editors for her but haven't gotten any kind of response back from any of them.

She's eager for us to take the next step here, but I'm honestly not sure what all the possible options for a next step might be. Pardon my ignorance here, but I've never dealt with any of this before and until she decided she needed to write something I never expected I would.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Okay, tonight my wife and her best friend say they've completed her/their first collaborative story. Apparently they've been working on it off and on for quite a while.

So what do we do next? I've reached out to about a half dozen Editors for her but haven't gotten any kind of response back from any of them.

She's eager for us to take the next step here, but I'm honestly not sure what all the possible options for a next step might be. Pardon my ignorance here, but I've never dealt with any of this before and until she decided she needed to write something I never expected I would.

Finding an editor to check over your work is hit and miss. They're all volunteers. The thing is though, checking by an editor is not mandatory.

If you think the story is grammatically okay (doesn't need to be perfect), and your spelling and punctuation, especially dialogue punctuation, is competent, then you can submit the story to the site. Go to your Control Panel (top right of this page) and select New Story. Follow the instructions. You're best off copy pasting into the submission box on the Form and pressing Preview. That way, you can see what the text will look like when published.

Don't forget Tags (you get ten), and decide whether you want comments on or off (I'd always say On). Decide what category you want, and if it's Loving Wives, I'd strongly suggest sampling a few stories and their comments first - the category no longer matches the label on the box, and it can be hostile.

Good luck - and if you have any more questions, the Authors Hangout is the best place to ask.

 

[StillStunned]

I suggest you proofread it for your wife. I've read several of your posts, and you have a firm grasp of spelling, syntax and grammar. While you're at it, highlight any clunky phrasing or idioms that are repeated too often or too closely together and suggest that she rephrase them.

Then use the Read Aloud function in Word to go through the text word for word. This can be boring, but it's one of the best quality controls. It's what I do as a professional editor and proofreader.

Then just upload the story. Don't worry about it not having been looked at by a volunteer editor. I'm pretty sure most of the stories here haven't had a second pair of eyes look at them.

Make sure that you go through the upload process correctly. The story will upload in plain text, so use HTML tags for formatting (italics, bold). Give it a title and a short description (there are character limits for both - 35 and 60, respectively, if memory serves). Select your category and language. Don't bother with any note for the Admin, unless you're entering a contest. Check the age box and submit your story.

Then you'll see a preview. Make sure that the formatting is OK. If you've used HTML tags, you'll notice if you forgot to close them. You'll also see any "walls of text" - go back and break those up. Apparently most readers here read on their phones, so any paragraph that's more than two or three sentences will seem interminable to them.

If it all looks good, submit your story and go back to your control panel. You'll see that it's been added to Pending. If it's in Drafts, you've not submitted it properly, but don't worry, you can just submit it now.

Then wait a few days. Some people here say that a first-time writer's story will take up to a week to be approved, but mine was approved within a few hours and published the following morning. I think it depends on the category.

As long as your story meets the guidelines - no underage sex (even implied), no bestiality, a standard of English that isn't atrocious (assuming you're writing in English), and no AI-generated text - the grey "Pending" tag will turn orange at some point and say "New", with a date in the future above it. That's usually the following day, and that's when it goes live. In Europe that happens around 8am, sometimes a little later.

And that's it. Good luck to you, your wife and her friend, and enjoy it!