What are the elements of a great erotic story?

[AwkwardlySet]

I'm just wondering what authors on this site consider to be the most important elements of a satisfying, high quality erotic story.

Tits. Lots of them.

 

[old_prof]

1. Sex scenes that are exciting and titillating
2. Solid character development
3. Interesting and imaginative plot
4. Descriptive and evocative writing
5. Originality, the ability to put an unexpected spin on a story that makes it seem fresh and unique

I would start with a precursor of 4, basic writing skills. Enough stories here lack that and it makes the story useless, n matter what else is there.

For me, after that it's

2)
3) Although I don't think imaginative is that important. Make it compelling (depends on characters usually) and I'm happy.
1) and 4)

5) can be appreciated, but is absolutely not necessary for a good or great story. If done well, it makes a story better, but more often that not, it's not done well. And I don't feel any regret in a story that doesn't do this.

Well executed 2) and 3) make a great story in mind. If there's no worthwhile sex in it, it's a disappointment, but I can still enjoy the story terffically,.
Mediocre sex scenes with characters I care about still engages me erotically.

4) in support of the other three is great and moves a good story to great and moves a great story beyond that.

 

[YmaOHyd]

You have to know what you're trying to describe or evoke. An inexperienced or low-sexed author might be fantastic at describing people, or world building, but be a poor descriptor of sex.

Possible! But I think a sufficiently skilled writer -- and we're talking about great erotic stories, not simply good or adequate ones -- ought to be fully capable of describing things that they have never experienced. We do it all the time, in fact, whenever we write from an opposite-gender POV, or from the perspective of a different race or culture. "Interesting and evocative writing" isn't just worldbuilding or character description, after all; it's about the creation of feeling.

 

[StillStunned]

and we're talking about great erotic stories, not simply good or adequate ones

The question that this raises is what makes for a great erotic story. What sets it apart from the good and adequate? When is it a great erotic story, and when is it a great story that happens to have explicit erotic content? Is there even a difference?

(I think there is: I think that, to qualify as a great erotic story, it should be about the sex, without leaning on plot or character. If you can take out the sex and still have a story, I don't think it's erotica.)

 

[AG31]

What are some great erotic stories?

I don't read enough here, because my tastes are so narrow, but I would name The Story of O, by Pauline Reage. I can't think of any others.

 

[Experimentalist]

Realism. Plausibility.

Exactly, can stretch the edges, but it’s so much hotter if it feels real

 

[LegendInMyOwnMind]

The elements of a great erotic story are, in order of their importance:

1) Anal sex
2) Anal sex
3) Anal sex
4) Anal sex
5) Anal sex

Absolutely right for the Anal category. Fine for Gay Male. Often attracts adverse reactions in Romance, it can do so in other categories. In several of my stories, I have included anal as a part of FMC wanting to give all of herself to MMC, holding nothing back. I've gotten negative comments about it every time. I wonder if it relates to readers' IRL preferences.

 

[ElectricBlue]

(I think there is: I think that, to qualify as a great erotic story, it should be about the sex, without leaning on plot or character. If you can take out the sex and still have a story, I don't think it's erotica.)

I'd be more inclined to say that's exactly what defines erotica: it's the sex and the story. If you have sex and no story, that's straight porn. If you have story and no sex, that's a story. If you have both sex and story, that's erotica. Thus, a great erotic story is top sex, top story, the best of both.

 

[StillStunned]

I'd be more inclined to say that's exactly what defines erotica: it's the sex and the story. If you have sex and no story, that's straight porn. If you have story and no sex, that's a story. If you have both sex and story, that's erotica. Thus, a great erotic story is top sex, top story, the best of both.

I agree, but only if the story is actually about sex. No matter how organically the sex is integrated into the story, if you can just fade to black instead and still have a viable romance, adventure or psychological story with what remains, for me that's not erotica.

For instance (as examples where the sex is intrinsic to the story, without claiming that they're actually great erotica):

Annie's Inhibition Removal Therapy: Over the course of three sessions, a woman learns to find a way around her sexual inhibitions. Without the sex, there's no story, no personal growth.

The Only Flower On Rose Street: A burglar is mistaken for a prostitute, and as part of the "client's" kink she has to masturbate while revealing her deepest secrets. No character development, but the sex reveals her existing character and her dark past.

The Walled Garden: A successful businesswoman is enticed by her friend into peeping at the gardener. Over the course of three weeks, she rediscovers her sexuality and her self. Without the sex, none of that happens.

On the other hand:

The Countesses of Tannensdal: A Victorian officer visits a beautiful noblewoman who sucks the life out of people with sex. With just a few small tweaks, the sex could be left out, or fade to black, and the story would still stand as a Gothic horror story.

The Rivals Ch. 01: Dark Encounters (and its sequels): Two treasure hunters develop a love-hate relationship as they deal with demons, ghosts and mages. Again, a few tweaks and the stories could be published as mainstream sword & sorcery.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I agree, but only if the story is actually about sex. No matter how organically the sex is integrated into the story, if you can just fade to black instead and still have a viable romance, adventure or psychological story with what remains, for me that's not erotica.

Our definitions differ, then.

I'm transferring content across to Theoreads at the moment. It's a start-up ebook site, with a low dollar purchase model. They've published four of my pieces so far, with more in the queue. Whilst I regard them as erotica, and they get four spices, the owner considers them as romance with heat.

It's an intriguing subtlety. It's all a bit coy, really, especially when one looks at their tags and kink themes, which are quite extensive. Strangely, they allow "incest play" (whatever that actually means), but not incest, so I've done a light touch edit on my most recent story.

 

[Hugh_Janard]

In order:

2 is vital. Without it, forget it.

3 is extremely desirable BUT it only needs the first part - "interesting". Friends-to-lovers is interesting, because most readers have fantasised about it/lived it. Ditto rescue stories, first time stories, etc. None need to be "imaginative" to hook us in, we just need to be able to relate to the characters. Hence why 2 is so important.

1. Well, yeah. Though perhaps less important than you think.

4. Mmmm. Can be good. Sometimed though you just get purple prose.

5. Readers don't want originality. Not on a site like this. They aren't coming for twists, they are coming for tropes. Speaking personally, my most original stories are my least viewed and least voted on, and that's a pattern I've seen replicated across the 2,000+ stories I've reade here. There are exceptions of course, but those are by exceptional writers. Not saying you shouldn't go for it if you have an original idea, but you can write an extremely well-received story here without one.

That's an interesting observation about originality. I think it speaks to the fact that most people are not terribly adventurous in their tastes in entertainment, and tend to gravitate towards what's comfortable and familiar. In my own case, when I'm looking for something to watch on television, I will often end up watching something I've seen before rather than take a chance on something unknown, even when the plot synopsis of the latter looks interesting. Which may explain why we see so many remakes and sequels in the film business. They are basically just giving the audience what it wants.

 

[Britva415]

Sometimed though you just get purple prose.

I feel like purpleness is the opposite of evocative. It’s too immersion-breaking to effectively evoke. I feel like that’s the exact characteristic which makes it purple.

 

[Britva415]

if you can just fade to black instead and still have a viable romance, adventure or psychological story with what remains, for me that's not erotica.

But

For me, it's the build-up. Start with an interesting but relatable premise. Then let the pressure build, preferably in stages that keep the reader wanting more. Take it further each time, until by the actual climax the reader feels neither rushed nor bored.

Do you not consider any of that to be eligible for "eroticism?"

I think a story which fades to black to curtain off the graphic sex can be very, very erotic. The build-up IS the eroticism, sometimes, and sometimes the sex (after the climax) is just an anticlimatic denouement with very little eroticism.