How wide ranging are your tastes? Do you have deal breakers within your categories?

[AG31]

And what are the categories you check out for reading?

Note that I'm asking here about erotica, specifically stories that arouse you. If any of you think that's an inappropriate yardstick for erotica, speak up, and explain, please. There are a number of stories in Lit. that can appeal on literary grounds, but not erotic grounds. I'm not inquiring about those. What I am trying to find out is, as the title says, how broad people's tastes are, and if my tastes are unusual in their narrowness.

I'll go first.

To summarize, I'm looking for stories where a man surrenders to sexual pain and/or humiliation with dignity. I regularly look through new stories in BDSM, NC/R and Fetish.

Preferences (if these are not met, that's OK if the main criteria are very strong)
Little plot
Little attention to character
Short
A serious tone
Impersonal relationships

Deal breakers are:
- female MC
- Sissification
- Infantilization

 

[StillStunned]

I don't do NC. Reluctance is OK though. There are too many fetishes to list - mostly I like pretty vanilla stuff.

My main requirement for my own stories is that everyone has to be a sexual being. They need to accept their sexual side as part of who they are, and enjoy it.

 

[AchtungNight]

I regularly check out the Celebrity, Incest, and Group Sex categories; EC, FT, and Lesbian also when I want something smaller scale.

My writing tastes are pretty soft core. I like to weave in parody, descriptive action sequences, and character development. With a few exceptions, my MCs are proud ethical sluts with varying levels of angst. Occasionally they have awakenings to new interests. The kinks I include are particular to each story and its characters. Certain levels of depravity and dishonorable conduct are my deal breakers. Yes, characters can go above my limits, but not without appropriate karma waiting for them. I am personally not turned on by anal sex, but I will go through the motions of writing it. I feel the same regarding gay male sex, though I have yet to feature it in depth. Same generation incest is my limit- I can do role playing for other generations but not actual incest. Personal preference. My age of consent is sixteen coupled with a mature open mind (I will do background references for earlier sexual activity but not in detail, sexual and romantic thoughts are fine with me at any age). Couplings have to make sense for the characters involved, though sometimes I will fade to black and leave action to readers’ imagination.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I've written in seventeen or eighteen categories, so my own tastes are fairly wide ranging.

I won't read non-con, because I don't find the idea of non-consent erotic, similarly, mind-control, which seems to be an excuse for non-con without owning the kink. Inter-racial to my mind goes too close to racist, so I don't read there, and LW just seems too stacked with misogyny for my taste, and I don't understand cuckoldry at all.

This isn't a kink-shaming list by any means, but I don't bother reading what doesn't do it for me personally, just as I'd never think of writing it.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

I haven't actually read a whole lot, compared to how long I've been here. I've read, as far as plot and shit goes, some stuff rather deep, or similar to my writing, and I've read the low hanging fruit and juvinile stroke stor-- simple erotica stories. I usually look for what I'm in the mood for, which might be a catagory, or a tag that may lead me to any catagory, like bbw.

I don't read the femdom stuff, or the forced feminization. I know in the trans catagory, the bigger stronger woman and smaller guy trope is annoying-- sometimes the stories are good, though, and they always end up being first time because we're roommate things.

 

[MyBareTorso]

I search for "CFNM Stories", and then run through the story descriptions for what appeals. I don't enjoy hard femdom or things that are particularly dark or intense. I think that my tastes are also quite niche and clearly defined. I mainly like mild femdom where the male maintains control and enjoyment while being stripped or mildly humiliated. This is very much in my own stories too. It can be tricky but stories can usually be found that hot that sweet spot

 

[ElectricBlue]

It can be tricky but stories can usually be found that hot that sweet spot.

That's one of the best typos I've seen for a long while - "hot that sweet spot"

 

[joy_of_cooking]

Your interests don't sound unreasonably narrow. Where you might be less forgiving than me is not your interests but your aversions. My impression from what you've written in various threads here is that you actively dislike character development, plot, and relationships. Those appear in a lot of stories!

 

[AG31]

juvinile stroke stor-- simple erotica stories.

 

[AG31]

Your interests don't sound unreasonably narrow. Where you might be less forgiving than me is not your interests but your aversions. My impression from what you've written in various threads here is that you actively dislike character development, plot, and relationships. Those appear in a lot of stories!

Thanks for noticing! Yeah, but they're not deal breakers. And I do, of course, enjoy good plots and character at a literary level.

 

[M_K_Babalon]

That's one of the best typos I've seen for a long while - "hot that sweet spot"

So much could be done with that line.

 

[madelinemasoch]

My tastes are probably more niche than anyone else's on this forum. I'll say that with my whole chest, because it's probably true. Because my own writings have been central to much discussion I've participated in on the forums, I will say that I include content in my own work that I don't necessarily personally "get off" on; for example, the scat scene in Dark Love or the rapey sexual harassment in CC14. I do this because the stories call for it. I rarely if never stretch myself too far from my own interests to the point of utter disgust, though, unless it fits the scene. The art is more important than your or my pithy "tastes", from a writing point of view.

I look through the new stories in LW more often than any other category, just to check up on it. I also look through BDSM to scout the category as it's the main one I post to. I've perused the Trans category, too. I'm thinking of putting a story there, not just Gauntlet 7.

My taste range is incredibly narrow, so much so that I took to producing my own content in order to paint the picture I actually want to look at. I like femdom, but it's not specific enough to just say that. I'm interested in femdom that includes feminization, copious verbal humiliation, when it's more emotional/mental than physical, and cuckoldry. Within these criterion you can actually construct very, very different relationships and characters. It's only a cliche or a formula (what some fools call "tHeMes") in the mind of someone whose imagination has routinely failed them.

Preferences:
-Vibes (not vibrators but like, vibing. "Energy." The thing that drives the atmosphere and tone of the piece. The composition of the aesthetic). Shockingly enough, a lot of stories I've read here just utterly lack vibes.
-High emotion. It can be any emotion, but, sadness is my darling. My most favorite stories on this site are the ones that made me sad.
-Technical prowess. Spelling, grammar, punctuation, all of the boring shit that your third grade teacher got mad at you about. It's a must have to me. Extra points for when you can wield higher level literary devices well, like playing with subject-object relations in sentence structure and tone, actual themes (like concepts that are bigger than the subject matter and reflect real life lessons), and the art of deception between author and reader that gets you immersed into the fictional world you're reading about.
-Shorter lengths. That means I can finish what I started in one sitting, even if I don't like it. This preference only applies to stories on here, though.
-CHARACTER. DESCRIPTIONS. This is pretty much a must-have for me. I want to see them in my mind's eye. I want to be able to picture and visualize this person in intensive detail. If you don't give me the descriptive tools to do that, I won't be able to picture anything. I thought this was a no-brainer until encountering stories with literally ZERO physical description on this very website.

Deal breakers:
-Maledom. Specifically when a woman is willingly submissive. I just call it sadism and I find it disgusting.
-Anything that rings of pedophilia, I click off.
-(Too much) Androphilia (I'm basically saying too many cocks/anal sex). If it's just another gay crossdressing stint, then I don't even click on.
-Dumb female characters make me hate your story MORE, not less. It doesn't add realism if your hotwife is a trashy skank with nothing more than a high school diploma and a drug addiction.

 

[ElectricBlue]

-CHARACTER. DESCRIPTIONS. This is pretty much a must-have for me. I want to see them in my mind's eye. I want to be able to picture and visualize this person in intensive detail. If you don't give me the descriptive tools to do that, I won't be able to picture anything. I thought this was a no-brainer until encountering stories with literally ZERO physical description on this very website.

Never assume other people think like you do. For every person who says, "Give me a description," you'll find a dozen who say, "Leave it up to my imagination." It's not a no-brainer, not at all.

The art is to steer the mind's eye, not direct it. That's why I find illustrated stories problematic - in most cases, the author's taste is so far from my own, I'm gone, no matter how good the writing is.

 

[AG31]

My taste range is incredibly narrow, so much so that I took to producing my own content in order to paint the picture I actually want to look at.

Me too.

 

[joy_of_cooking]

Me three!

I guess it just goes to @ElectricBlue 's point: never assume other people think like you do.

I didn't think "femdom shoe fetish pain play + loving monogamous relationship" should be such an obscure kink, and yet here I am producing it for myself. (Sorry, everyone, I'm going to say this as often as possible in the hope that someday someone will notice me being wrong on the internet and provide counterexamples.)

 

[SeraphNocturne]

Me three!

I guess it just goes to @ElectricBlue 's point: never assume other people think like you do.

I didn't think "femdom shoe fetish pain play + loving monogamous relationship" should be such an obscure kink, and yet here I am producing it for myself. (Sorry, everyone, I'm going to say this as often as possible in the hope that someday someone will notice me being wrong on the internet and provide counterexamples.)

I've heard you joy, it's on my list. I'm slow, though, and I like writing for shits and giggles so much more than I do publishing... so bear with me, yeah?

 

[karina_jayde]

I find that my tastes are pretty broad, in terms of reading and writing. I can write and read just about any gender or sexual orientation, and even go for some of the weirder non-human stuff from time to time if the writer is good enough. I love BDSM as long as it doesn't stray too much into degradation/humiliation. Teasing/bondage/edging/control is great, just not into the really degrading stuff as a reader or writer.

The Celebrity category is one I stay away from as a reader, just not really my thing. Incest is another category I avoid, especially for stories that are contemporary. Weirdly, I'm fine with reading incest stuff if it's removed from a modern-day context. So a fantasy story about royal siblings banging might be up my alley, but not anything involving a 'normal' or contemporary family.

I also find it hard to get into 'stroker' stories or ones that are all sex. I prefer a bit of build-up to the sex, and it's always preferable if there's a compelling relationship arc or a thrilling adventure as a backdrop to the sex. If a story starts off with a sex scene on the first page I almost always back out of it (unless the story is a later entry in a series and the sexual dynamics have already been established in earlier entries).

 

[ElectricBlue]

Me three!

I guess it just goes to @ElectricBlue 's point: never assume other people think like you do.

I didn't think "femdom shoe fetish pain play + loving monogamous relationship" should be such an obscure kink, and yet here I am producing it for myself. (Sorry, everyone, I'm going to say this as often as possible in the hope that someday someone will notice me being wrong on the internet and provide counterexamples.)

My comment to @madelinemasoch was more in the context of the way minds are different, whereas you and @AG31 are talking about content preferences. I, for example, am a very visual person, and don't need, indeed usually don't want, a highly descriptive portrayal of characters. Give me some hints or clues and that's enough, I'll run with my own imagination.

I was surprised that Madeline automatically thought people would want the same level of description she does - my default would be to assume the complete opposite. One look at folk in the AH would tell you, "people don't think the same."

 

[SimonDoom]

My tastes are extremely broad. Nearly limitless. If it's well done, I can enjoy almost any subject matter. I'm nearly unsquickable.

I'm probably different from most erotic story readers in that for me it's more a matter of how it's done than what the subject matter is. I think anything can be erotic if it's done the right way.

 

[MyBareTorso]

That's one of the best typos I've seen for a long while - "hot that sweet spot"

I like it hot...maybe a bit too much.

 

[ElectricBlue]

My tastes are extremely broad. Nearly limitless. If it's well done, I can enjoy almost any subject matter. I'm nearly unsquickable.

I'm probably different from most erotic story readers in that for me it's more a matter of how it's done than what the subject matter is. I think anything can be erotic if it's done the right way.

You should go try lesbian scat in a barrel porn, which is a whole sub-genre (in the "who knew?" "WTF?" kind of way) and report back. I bumped across that some eight years ago, and I'm still scratching my head about that!

 

[SimonDoom]

You should go try lesbian scat in a barrel porn, which is a whole sub-genre (in the "who knew?" "WTF?" kind of way) and report back. I bumped across that some eight years ago, and I'm still scratching my head about that!

Even I have some limits. I suppose theoretically someone could write a scat story that I would find erotic, but I haven't read one yet. On the other hand, I'm working on a pee story.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Even I have some limits. I suppose theoretically someone could write a scat story that I would find erotic, but I haven't read one yet. On the other hand, I'm working on a pee story.

Pee is easy, but yeah, I'm like you, not easily squicked, but that whole barrel shit thing, whoa, that was weird!

I came across it (no, I most definitely did not!) after someone faved one of my odder fetish stories, which features a girl doing a neat little poo into a handkerchief. One of the aforementioned fans obviously found that story, and, as you do, I took a look at their list of stories, favourite stories and authors, and that's where I went down the rabbit hole. I never reached the bottom, that's for sure! It was my own bloody fault though, so I'll own it.

 

[SimonDoom]

Pee is easy, but yeah, I'm like you, not easily squicked, but that whole barrel shit thing, whoa, that was weird!

I came across it (no, I most definitely did not!) after someone faved one of my odder fetish stories, which features a girl doing a neat little poo into a handkerchief. One of the aforementioned fans obviously found that story, and, as you do, I took a look at their list of stories, favourite stories and authors, and that's where I went down the rabbit hole. I never reached the bottom, that's for sure! It was my own bloody fault though, so I'll own it.

I don't think anyone has to apologize for exploring stories. They're just stories. If you confuse fantasy and reality, that's another thing.

Poo has never done it for me. Like many, I've seen "Two Girls One Cup," and I thought it was disgusting but also hilarious, and not at all erotic. One of the best things I've ever seen on the Internet is the video that shows Kermit the Frog watching it, and then the follow up video where he invites his friend Rowlf the dog to watch it with him.

 

[Euphony]

It's always about context.

Characters need to treat each other decently and with understood compassion and care (even if the activities don't read that way on their face)

While certain categories lend themselves to content that would run afoul of this minimum, the most incredible content here to me is that which takes category conventions and upends them, weaving in people who clearly like/care for one another and use that establishment as a springboard to exploring themselves, others, fantasies, wants, vulnerability, humanity, etc. etc.

I dearly love fetish stories where the act/object itself doesn't move me in the slightest yet the characters using their vulnerability to strengthen their pair bond through something outside the usual norms. Relationship negotiations do far more to enrich my learning experience than seeing perfect couples having perfect sex perfectly. Real life is messy. Help me better navigate its mess.

An author that subtextes humanity and our general connectedness through acts/in ways I've never really considered capable of doing so is a storyteller of the highest order to my mind.