The 2025 750 Word Story Challenge Support Thread

[Rustyoznail]

I have a few readers favourite my previous 750 word stories, so there's a definite market for them.

I have no ideas as yet, but they usually leap out and bite me when I least expect it.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I have a few readers favourite my previous 750 word stories, so there's a definite market for them.

There is indeed, and they are a good writer's exercise, even if readers don't always get that.

 

[MrStill]

I have one just about ready that is even more enigmatic than my usual competition submissions. Expecting certain of my detractors will be getting their pitchforks sharpened...

 

[MrPixel]

I just banged out my second one. Short, of course, sort of sweet, and an OMG for the last line.

Yep. That'll do.

 

[Duleigh]

There is indeed, and they are a good writer's exercise, even if readers don't always get that.

Indeed! That's why I ask writers to put a quick introduction in to explain that the idea of the story is to end at word #750

 

[NaughteeDragon]

Well, the timing on this was perfect. I've been struggling with novel-length that I've been working on. I cranked 90k words in 2 months. In the last two weeks I haven't been able to get 10k. My architect and my gardener are fighting over the ending.
So, I sat down and cranked out 795 this afternoon. A little creative editing and re-wording and we are 750. Now I just have to remember to post it in February.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Update: done one story. I'll edit it in January, but it was nice for once writing the thing, then having a spare 8 words to add some more colour, rather than editing down a longer draft.

 

[Comshaw]

For the first time, I have one ready. According to WordPerfect AND MS Word it's right at 750. We'll see when I paste it into Lit. I've been doing some polishing on it but damn is that difficult. If I take one too many out and change a passage where that word isn't needed, I have to find some place else to stick one in. Now you wouldn't think with an erotic story it would be so difficult to find a place to stick it, but a place to slide it in can be elusive.

Comshaw

 

[Duleigh]

For the first time, I have one ready. According to WordPerfect AND MS Word it's right at 750. We'll see when I paste it into Lit. I've been doing some polishing on it but damn is that difficult. If I take one too many out and change a passage where that word isn't needed, I have to find some place else to stick one in. Now you wouldn't think with an erotic story it would be so difficult to find a place to stick it, but a place to slide it in can be elusive.

Comshaw

That's what makes this challenge so challenging! Anyone can write a story about being nude all day or having sex under the Christmas tree, but crafting a good story with exactly 750 words can be tough. It's like Sudoku, once you figure it out it's addictive.

 

[Trionyx]

Well, I try to make it exactly 750 words, but I'm not gonna manually count the individual words to make sure.

Post your story, go to the expanded draft box and look at the bottom left corner. The LE word count can be seen there. Once you have the 750 count, then add the title and any notes as they don’t count towards the 750 total.

 

[Duleigh]

I'm planning on three stories for the contest. The issue with the word count is that MS Word might give you one count at 750 words, while another checker will say you have 748 words, and still another might say 751 words. I have no idea why there is a discrepancy. Word used to count hyphenated words as one word or, in the case of three words like ready-to-go, would still be counted as only one. But it seems now that Word counts even hyphenated ones, as individual words. A long dash is used to count both words on either side of the dash together. The easy answer was to put spaces around the long dash, but then it counted the long dash as a word. But it appears these days, all those hiccups have been fixed.

It seems like hyphens are the biggest things. Word counts hyphenated words as one word, Google counts them as separate words. The only one that really checks is the readers. There's a few out there that count the words and report back to me. Last year I had a writer that checked quite a few stories. He could get over the idea that it wasn't a contest.

 

[LiterallyLiterate]

My first, bare bones draft came out at 584 words according to Word, so I think I might actually have something to contribute. Trying something completely new, first person, present tense, but I think it might work.

 

[MillieDynamite]

Sometimes it does!

My first, bare bones draft came out at 584 words according to Word, so I think I might actually have something to contribute. Trying something completely new, first person, present tense, but I think it might work.

Well, I'll settle for what Word says is there. I'm sort of lazy that way. But my editor will check, however he will check.

It seems like hyphens are the biggest things. Word counts hyphenated words as one word, Google counts them as separate words. The only one that really checks is the readers. There's a few out there that count the words and report back to me. Last year I had a writer that checked quite a few stories. He could get over the idea that it wasn't a contest.

 

[MillieDynamite]

As of the last few minutes, I have three 750-Word stories ready for next year's event. I hope to get more done, but who knows if work and other issues will allow it, not me?

 

[Duleigh]

As of the last few minutes, I have three 750-Word stories ready for next year's event. I hope to get more done, but who knows if work and other issues will allow it, not me?

That's way ahead of me. I have 2 planned with a third in the bull pen warming up just in case

 

[PennyThompson]

I am weirdly excited to try this for the first time, it feels like a great way to get small story ideas out of my head without feeling lazy

I haven't read very far through the vast back catalog of 750 stories...

Are readers okay with stories that have minimal (or lightly sketched) sex in favor of a proper arc, or do they expect 750 words of fuckin and suckin?

 

[Duleigh]

Are readers okay with stories that have minimal (or lightly sketched) sex in favor of a proper arc, or do they expect 750 words of fuckin and suckin?

I have actually had very good luck with minimal sex. In my story 750-03 Saturday Evening the sex doesn't even start until well past word 500. And being A forbidden May/December relationship (Therapist/Patient) the sex is quite gentle. Over the years the sex in my stories has moved to the back seat (See what I did there?) and my readers haven't minded because I try to make the stories good. I had one comment that a story was so good he skipped over the sex to get back into the story line.

 

[MrPixel]

Are readers okay with stories that have minimal (or lightly sketched) sex in favor of a proper arc, or do they expect 750 words of fuckin and suckin?

In some of my 750-word stories, the sex begins at word #751.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

One story done. My experience is they score low and comments complain 'this was stupidly short' no matter how much you put '750 Words' in the title or at the start of the body text, but as adverts for my other similar stories, they can work quite well - almost 'Liked this taster of my humour? Click here for three pages with extra filthy sex!'

 

[ElectricBlue]

Are readers okay with stories that have minimal (or lightly sketched) sex in favor of a proper arc, or do they expect 750 words of fuckin and suckin?

I've got 750 word stories with no sex at all, I've got stories with fucking. It's surprising what you can pack into a little vignette.

One of my favourites (this one: Valentines for Suzy) has a 400 word scene within the longer (longer? in 750 words?) story which might be my favourite small slice of erotica.

These ones too, are sex lite (although the follow-on chapters get there in the end):

A Girl on the Bus
Brooke Works at the Hardware Store

 

[MillieDynamite]

Three finished, one nearly completed. But I must return to paid work now. Oh, bother!

That's way ahead of me. I have 2 planned with a third in the bull pen warming up just in case

 

[Rustyoznail]

I am weirdly excited to try this for the first time, it feels like a great way to get small story ideas out of my head without feeling lazy

I haven't read very far through the vast back catalog of 750 stories...

Are readers okay with stories that have minimal (or lightly sketched) sex in favor of a proper arc, or do they expect 750 words of fuckin and suckin?

This challenge is more for the writer than the readers, and the amount of sex doesn't seem to matter. A lot of your audience won't understand the concept and mark you down. Then others really appreciate a short, sharp story and favourite them.

Edit - got a quick 983 words down. Now comes the pruning.

 

[APilgrimSquare]

Two stories finished. I like my second so much more than my first, I might give the first a full rewrite. Might even turn the second into a full blown story.

 

[Duleigh]

Might even turn the second into a full blown story

Go for it! I've done that, then I turned that story into a novel. When you get a story you enjoy that much it's a sin to ignore its calls for attention.

 

[Omenainen]

I’ve usually done this event and probably will this year too. I have a self-imposed limit of one per year, so how hard can it be? It’s like 10-15 minutes.

Just for grins and giggles, I challenged an AI engine to write a 750 word story. I let it make four attempts and I pasted each attempt into Word for an 'official' word count. This is the results:
Try #1 - 681 words (AI claimed it was 750)
Try #2 - 684 words (AI claimed it was 750)
Try #3 - 786 words (AI claimed it was 750)
Try #4 - 4,268 words (AI claimed it was 750)

THIS is why they don't allow AI in Literotica - it's freaking stupid!

The fourth was a pantser!

I dabbled in this for a couple of years, but I found it pretty unrewarding.

Good luck to everyone going for it.

It is unrewarding, but it’s also very low effort time-wise. I’ve been using 750s to knock off categories that I’ve no interest in writing anything longer, since I’m amusing myself with trying to post in every category eventually.

She has. I had one that was kicked-back because of scene separators increasing the count. I figure on calling that to her attention on the next ones.

This happened to me too last year.

Edit - got a quick 983 words down. Now comes the pruning.

I like to do it in the complete opposite way. I write, and when I hit 750 words I stop. Editing is taking one word off there and adding it here type of thing.