The delights of the obvious.

[AG31]

I spend a lot of mental energy in the AH environment trying to clarify ideas. Often they are my own ideas, but also often they are ideas posed by other people. One of the ideas I noodled about for several years, after my re-introduction to the world of erotica, was, "What is erotica? How does it differ from sexy mainline stories?" I came upon an answer that satisfies me a few months ago, "Erotica is about sex. If a story is about something else, with a lot of sexy scenes, it's not erotica." Aha!!! I take that out and savor it regularly. I savor it for its obviousness.

Today I had another aha experience. Another question got a delightfully obvious answer. The question has been how to describe my favorite kind of erotica. It had something to do with subtle, nuanced ideas like describing things as the MC experiences them, which, I subsequently learned was "close 3rd person" narrative. But here's the obvious answer, thanks to @HordHolm, "Help the reader to understand what the characters are sensing." I expect to take this out and savor it as well in the coming months/years.

Does anyone else savor obvious answers to long standing questions? This is probably not a fruitful thread starter, but I kept thinking about this and just wanted to share.

Thanks, all.

 

[LaotianLass]

I spend a lot of mental energy in the AH environment trying to clarify ideas. Often they are my own ideas, but also often they are ideas posed by other people. One of the ideas I noodled about for several years, after my re-introduction to the world of erotica, was, "What is erotica? How does it differ from sexy mainline stories?" I came upon an answer that satisfies me a few months ago, "Erotica is about sex. If a story is about something else, with a lot of sexy scenes, it's not erotica." Aha!!! I take that out and savor it regularly. I savor it for its obviousness.

Today I had another aha experience. Another question got a delightfully obvious answer. The question has been how to describe my favorite kind of erotica. It had something to do with subtle, nuanced ideas like describing things as the MC experiences them, which, I subsequently learned was "close 3rd person" narrative. But here's the obvious answer, thanks to @HordHolm, "Help the reader to understand what the characters are sensing." I expect to take this out and savor it as well in the coming months/years.

Does anyone else savor obvious answers to long standing questions? This is probably not a fruitful thread starter, but I kept thinking about this and just wanted to share.

Thanks, all.

Yes.

 

[lovecraft68]

I try to always apply the KISS principle to any question or topic because a lot of times oeverthinking and not seeing the forest for the trees seems to come more naturally than the obvious so I push myself to try to see it as simply as I can.

 

[TheRedChamber]

My approach to writing stories is based on the philosophy of 'Just say what happened'

 

[Britva415]

Just say what

and when, and who, and where, and why, and how

 

[TheRedChamber]

and when, and who, and where, and why, and how

Stop it! You're overcomplicating things!

 

[Cagivagurl]

Erotica doesn't have to include "SEX."
Not in my mind...
For me erotica is a story based around desire, attraction, chemistry... Real people pulled together by some strange force.
It is their interactions, the expression of their needs...
The build up is far sexier than the mechanics....
Strong luscious dialogue full of emotions. Love, fear, loss, lust, uncovering secret desires, and hopes....
All of those mushed together equals erotica...
The sex act itself is totally unimportant...

In my opinion anyway.

Cagivagurl

 

[TheLobster]

and when, and who, and where, and why, and how

Who, and whom. It's erotica we're talking about.

 

[BobbyBrandt]

I spend a lot of mental energy in the AH environment trying to clarify ideas. Often they are my own ideas, but also often they are ideas posed by other people. One of the ideas I noodled about for several years, after my re-introduction to the world of erotica, was, "What is erotica? How does it differ from sexy mainline stories?" I came upon an answer that satisfies me a few months ago, "Erotica is about sex. If a story is about something else, with a lot of sexy scenes, it's not erotica." Aha!!! I take that out and savor it regularly. I savor it for its obviousness.

If your "clarification" brings you peace, I'm happy for you.

Erotica in mainstream publishing would tend to differ. The focus remains on the story "containing" erotic content. Here is what Carina Press has to say as an example:

"We DO NOT publish: ... erotica without a central romance plot... science fiction/fantasy without strong romantic elements"

If you research the Manuscript Wish List of any agents who claim to accept erotic content, you will find similar guidelines relative to what the focus of the story content should be.

Your definition of erotica is obvious in the very limited context of Literotica and similar sites. In my opinion (shared by agents, publishers, and thousands of published writers), it fails the "obvious test" in the real world of writing.

 

[onehitwanda]

Erotica doesn't have to include "SEX."
Not in my mind...
For me erotica is a story based around desire, attraction, chemistry... Real people pulled together by some strange force.
It is their interactions, the expression of their needs...
The build up is far sexier than the mechanics....
Strong luscious dialogue full of emotions. Love, fear, loss, lust, uncovering secret desires, and hopes....
All of those mushed together equals erotica...
The sex act itself is totally unimportant...

In my opinion anyway.

Cagivagurl

---

A drop of water plinked into the bath, followed shortly afterwards by its twin.

She stared at her slightly-crooked little toe, protruding from the thin, glistening sheen of bubbles. Too many years of the constraint of heels had changed it, forced it inwards until it barely seemed a toe - more a strange hitchhiker clinging to the rest of her. Amused, she twirled her foot, watching the play of light on the myriad surfaces. Then, conscious of time, she reached for the razor.

shhhk. shhhk. shhk.

The soft, rasping whisper of blade across skin - quickly arousing her as it always did, hardening her nipples, warming her belly. She hadn't had a name for the sensation at first, the bubbling, happy little fizz that formed inside her and gave such colour to her throat and shoulders whenever she pruned and neatened. It was only later, when she'd discovered porn and masturbation, that she'd worked out what the strange urge meant - the pressing need to be touched, tongued, fucked to the point of complete loss of self...

shhhk. sshk. shhhk. shhk.

Of course, she'd told nobody. Even then, innocent as she'd been in other ways, she'd somehow known that this was not something to voice. Rebecca had once admitted to liking cum on her skin, and she'd never lived it down. So... aliquid tacere as always. But sometimes, in darkness, she wished, wished that there was someone... that someone would...

shhk. shhhk.

Her legs were smooth now, her body aching. She raised the blade and applied it... elsewhere. The sound changed, a hint more steel and a deeper tone as she pared back the thin fuzz on mons and lips.

shhhk. shhhk.

Done. Not that there'd really been much to do, she was almost always smooth as glass. But the sound was part of her ritual. She set her razor on its little carved ebony tray, let the bath drain, then stood and rinsed herself clean of any potential remaining stubble. She dabbed herself dry, turned to the mirror, and inspected herself carefully.

Her lips stood proud, and she was wet as could be - eager and willing, should someone want her. Smiling, she ran a finger along herself, then reached up to dab it behind both ears - a touch of her musk, for luck.

An hour later, she was kissing a girl, moving to slow music, enjoying the way her partners hands cupped, loving the way this other girl watched her, touched her, felt against her.

And a dark, deep little bit of her mind wondered if this would finally be the one who'd shave her.

---

I am so very, very sorry.