Non-Human / Fantasy - Why so many werewolves and vampires?

[Paaskonijn]

Hello all,

I have a bit of a gripe that I want to discuss regarding the Non-Human and Fantasy genres on Literotica.

Now let me start of by saying that generally, I very much enjoy these genres. It appears that frequently the highest rated and most popular stories fall in these categories. In my experience, there are a large number of long series, which are not only long enough to keep you coming back, but also very well written and highly erotic.
The problem I have with the stories on Literotica, however, is the prevalence of werewolves and vampires. Now, of course writers such as JazCullen, ShyChiWriter and Elianna to name but three have written very good and well received stories that are hard to fault and at times display vast creativity within a very broadly explored theme. However, once one wants to move beyond these to other stories, it is very easy to get bogged down in just endless vampire and werewolf stories that don't seem to add anything to the genre.

I am frequently disappointed by the lack of creativity that is exhibited especially when deciding on the species of the characters. One of the central points in the stories tends to be that a human, be they male or female, comes into contact with a non-human character, and does not realise that they are faced with a non-human. The mystique and the allure thereof is, in my opinion, however a bit hard to relate to, when the stories just rehash the same vampire/werewolf stereotypes that are found on this site and in the often deplorable mainstream 'literature'.
To me, part of the attraction in the non-human stories is the mystery of what the non-human can do, feel etc. The author has a vast amount of freedom to rewrite the rules of the erotic game, but falling back time and again to the well explored options of vampire and werewolf literature, actually takes most of this freedom away again. It is, in my opinion, a lost opportunity.

Of course, there have been several interesting and creative stories that defy my generalising statements.
Angels, Demons and Alex by Bashfullyshameless, featuring, well... angels, demons (succubi) and witches, was a fantastic read. Heart of Stone by psyche_b_mused, featuring gargoyles, was interesting despite that the erotic relationship in this felt too old-fashioned and male dominated for me, and Breathless by Evil Alpaca, while featuring a vampire protagonist, was creative in including a wraith.

To conclude: I wonder if I am the only one that feels this way and if anyone has any good stories involving other species than vamps and weres that they would like to recommend.

 

[Dixon Carter Lee]

Lack of creativity in porn?

You could get the Pulitzer for this.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

perhaps...

http://www.literotica.com/s/in-death-valley

 

[sunandshadow]

I get a bit irritated by the same thing on the romance novel bookshelves at the bookstore. It's almost all vampires and werewolves. I prefer aliens, or historical fantasy with mages and dragons and that sort of thing.

 

[sr71plt]

Literotica doesn't write them or put a quota on them. If there are lots and lots of any theme here, it's because that's what the writers are choosing to write and submit. And in most cases it's because that's what they like to write.

 

[Lien_Geller]

It's because...

Werewolves and Vampires have a lot of appeal to erotic writers largely because they are at least partially erotic metaphors themselves. Dracula is a showcase of Victorian age horror at the idea of empowered female sexuality. You don’t have to look much farther than the three wives in his castle and Lucy Westenra’s fall from grace to see my point. Vampirism itself has often been likened to the transmission of STD’s. Although I don’t think you get a cool cape and the ability to turn into a bat when you catch herpes.

The shift in attitudes lately and the appeal of vampires probably stems from the sexual revolution and the embracing of sexuality as a good thing. So our amorous fanged buddies suddenly went from scary to appealing and we got a deluge of vampire erotica. Oh and we got Twilight too, but lets try to forget about that.

Werewolves are similar in that the core of any good werewolf story is about losing control to your more bestial nature. Lust is a big part of that and again writers of werewolf fiction haven’t overlooked this.

Other monsters and mythical beings aren’t often quite so ready to be taken up by authors or romance or erotica. A zombie love story for example probably wouldn’t go over too well with the fan base. ”I ran my hand up his rotting green cock and almost came when the whole thing broke off in my hand. Then he tried to eat my brains.” Not exactly what most readers are after is it? Oh and if it is? Stay the hell away from me.

That being said however, I do understand your point. I’d like to see a few more stories about angels, dragons taking on a human shape, a fae who becomes human for a day. In fact, hold on a sec, those aren’t bad! Gonna go write them down in my notebook.

After I finish my vampire and werewolf stories of course.

 

[thegreatbeast]

It's about trends and what is hot right now. Underworld, Twilight, even going back to not just Anne Rice, but to me Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Take a look at Angel; Dark brooding sexy Vampire with a soul. People will beat this horse until the stories are no longer getting the views and votes. In the end authors like Jaz Cullen will still be able to pull it off simply because she is a great author the rest will move on to the next trend. I am glad you mentioned Angels and Demons it was one of the first stories I read on Literotica and it was incredible.

 

[Grimfalcon]

I think Lien Geller pretty much nailed it on the head with his post. Both Vamps and Werewolves hold such a major part of our culture, it’s hard to get way from them.
As for me, I’ve always been into Werewolves, they’re a good metaphor for the darker, animalistic side of human nature, and in general it frightens people. I like that.
As for harping on them and beating a dead horse into the ground, maybe so in some cases, but it’s not for me. As far as trends go, I could give less then a rat’s hairy little ass about any current trend, and if it is, I’ll figure out a way to ‘un-trend’ it and make it original.
I’ve written only one Werewolf story, ‘Red,’ currently in the process of being posted it in the Novella section and that’s it, and it’s about as far off base as you’re probably going to see from any Werewolf story by the time it’s completely posted.
I think the thing that makes any genera or theme repetitive and boring, is a lack of creativity and imagination, not necessarily writing skill, of the author. And yes, there is creativity in erotica, not porn, and once you’re able to figure out the difference, you’re one step ahead of most.

 

[PennLady]

Werewolves and vampires can stand for the "others" outside of society but they can also be the misfits, in a way. You can use them in various ways. It doesn't all have to be the Alpha wolf, or old rich vampire getting the girl.

I've written four e-books with weres, vampires and witches. Three of them involve were-creatures other than wolves, mostly tigers. One was about werewolves. In the first tiger book, I centered it on a were woman who'd lost her ability to shift, and she'd been banished from her pack for it. So it was about being an outsider, dealing with family stuff, and various other things.

In my wolf story, I pretty much ignored the usual Alpha stuff. One thing that bugs me is the plethora of stories where the Alpha wolf sets hits sights on a human woman (usually, at least a non-were), and she might be the most independent woman out there, but she succumbs to him at a glance. I like the chase a bit, I guess. So in my story, the Alpha goes after a woman and is taken back when she rebuffs him.

I also wrote a story called Light and the Darkness, about a vampire and a witch, and I think I did a decent job being "different" in that one. And even if I didn't, I think it's one of my better-written stories.

So vampires, werewolves, etc., aren't boring or cliche per se - it's what's done with them.

 

[sr71plt]

I've had great fun with the few vampire stories I've written--and I haven't read anyone else's here (or anywhere else, for that matter), so I have no idea if mine are in some kind of rut or not. It's just another theme to write.

 

[Grimfalcon]

So vampires, werewolves, etc., aren't boring or cliche per se - it's what's done with them.

Exactly, it's all a matter of what you do with the material available, and how you present it. Well said.

Have to say, that Vamp stories have never done much for me, although I did get into playing 'Vampire, the Masquerade' for a year or so. Werewolf was better, though.

 

[Guybrarian]

I just love the modern fantasy genre. My first story series has been all vampires and werewolves, though I want to toss in some demons and witches into my next one. There's a ton of lore I want to explore, and those two just seemed like a great place to start off with.

 

[Firebrain]

Vampires--and werewolves, to an extent--are a good way to get away with bad boys. Female readers connect to the alpha male time and time again, and you don't get more alpha than the agressive, reclusive vampire who's been waiting xxx years for his mate, and wants her blood so much that he can't control himself. He's so "badass" that he's murdered people, done awful things...but because he's behaving and behaving vampires are sexy, he's instantly redeemed (which would not happen for a human male character). Basically, a vampire is a good excuse to write an arsehole as a love interest.

As others have said, you have to find your own take. A lot of works are massively derivative. I'm halfway through a novel now where my vampires are basically humans who need blood to survive every now and then; I like the human element. It's meant that I can write a beta hero and mock the genre a little.

Incidentally, as an intern, I've seen some great paranormal characters recently: male sirens, shifters, a demonic matchmaker, hellspawn, a sexy gargoyle, a phoenix...there's imagination out there

 

[GinaTina]

I agree with a lot of the points made. Mainly, the one about many women being attracted to an "Alpha" character.

I think so many people fall back on the were/vampy charries because it's very difficult to "create" a whole new race and have them be acceptable/believable.

Most people already know the basics of vamp/were lore, so it's probably easier to write a story about one of those species without having to get into lengthy descriptions of a new race's attributes/ mannerisms etc...


Hell, I still enjoy a well-written wolfy story, even though the premise is usually the same: Lonely Alpha sees woman of dreams, Alpha says "MINE", Alpha claims said woman. :3

 

[ellynei]

To conclude: I wonder if I am the only one that feels this way and if anyone has any good stories involving other species than vamps and weres that they would like to recommend.

I'd love to recommend one of my own nonhuman stories.

"Moth":

http://www.literotica.com/s/moth-ch-001

Romance and adventure in the fantasy genre. It's a completed story and all 43 chapters of it is up on lit.



====

If you were looking for something shorter and purely erotic, I've also written a mermaid story.

http://www.literotica.com/s/a-tale-of-mermen

But that one, I must warn you, is brutal and in no way romantic.

 

[PennLady]

Werewolves are similar in that the core of any good werewolf story is about losing control to your more bestial nature. Lust is a big part of that and again writers of werewolf fiction haven’t overlooked this.

I'd have to add that wolves have a hierarchy in the wild, which translates nicely to humans. I mean, there's always a bit of a hierarchy, whether at work or even at home. But if you look up some information on wolves and their behavior, and there are alpha wolves, I think you'll find that they lend themselves to lots of different things in human life and give a different perspective on things, or allow the author to take one.

Now, for me, I find all the politics of a pack are frequently overdone and repetitive, which is why my first three were stories featured tigers and panthers, and not so much wolves. Still, the idea of others living by a different set of rules, and then an outsider having to live by those rules, can provide interesting fodder for stories.

Other monsters and mythical beings aren’t often quite so ready to be taken up by authors or romance or erotica. A zombie love story for example probably wouldn’t go over too well with the fan base. ”I ran my hand up his rotting green cock and almost came when the whole thing broke off in my hand. Then he tried to eat my brains.” Not exactly what most readers are after is it? Oh and if it is? Stay the hell away from me.

Hahahahaha. Love that. I find zombies to be a creature apart, if you will. They're not very interesting. They can be implacable, but they aren't usually rational or "thinking." Although William Gibson did a neat novella called "Flatline Virus" that took a different look at that. So for zombie stories, the story is what happens to the non-zombie survivors.

That being said however, I do understand your point. I’d like to see a few more stories about angels, dragons taking on a human shape, a fae who becomes human for a day. In fact, hold on a sec, those aren’t bad! Gonna go write them down in my notebook.

After I finish my vampire and werewolf stories of course.

There are plenty of stories like that. "The Pearl," currently in progress (and being edited by me), is about a young man that gains the power to become a dragon. There are lots of stories about angels becoming human, falling for humans -- just look. "Falling Hard," if it's still up, is an example. And then there are movies -- that one with Meg Ryan and Nic Cage, "Michael" with John Travolta, and I'm sure many others.

I've avoided angels and such myself, as I'm not sure I can bring anything new there. Yet.

I know others have done it but I've always wanted to do a story with an aquatic were. Not sure of anything else about it, but I love the ocean and marine life and things like that. I think there's lots of room for fun there.

 

[Queen_Vicki]

I have actually wrote a story involving a dragon and a witch under a different pen name its called: A very thin line. people like at first, but I stopped writing it. I am currently writing a story right now about a black female vampire being hunted down for killing a very powerful demon lord by his minions and evil awful wife. she's falls in love with a demon/vampire hunter, and another powerful demon(its going to be a menage trois thing). as of right now she and her sire are the only vampires that I have mention in the first chapters.

there will be witches, were panthers, and others creatures that I can think of. but I know for a fact that since I am not a Jazcullen, elilana, or any other popular writer that writes about this subject I will not get any readers. plus the starts off really different than most stories and it might turn off a few people. so I might finish it up and go and see if I can get publish or do it myself.