Writer Unblocked

[Wyatt]

Hi. I have a few stories on here. I've been a member for fourteen years. I haven't submitted a story for about 8 years I think. After spending time around my daughter in law she has piqued my interest enough to lose me my writers block. Yup I find her Dee - Licious... Have a few questions if other authors can help.

1) Would a daughter in law be seen by the majority as incest? I wouldn't...but that is my personal take.

2) If I submitted it how long on average is it taking before it becomes live on site these days?

Thanks

John Wyatt

writing as Wyatt

 

[Serafina1210]

Hi. I have a few stories on here. I've been a member for fourteen years. I haven't submitted a story for about 8 years I think. After spending time around my daughter in law she has piqued my interest enough to lose me my writers block. Yup I find her Dee - Licious... Have a few questions if other authors can help.

1) Would a daughter in law be seen by the majority as incest? I wouldn't...but that is my personal take.

2) If I submitted it how long on average is it taking before it becomes live on site these days?

Thanks

John Wyatt

writing as Wyatt

Glad you're unblocked. I can only answer no. 2. It's about two days now. Sometimes one, sometimes three, but mostly two.

 

[Wyatt]

Wow! That's quick! I've known it a fortnight many years ago...cheers.

 

[RejectReality]

No matter what, it's going to be a case-by-case basis as to whether it's considered incest by the majority of readers.

In the Incest category, the farther you stray from blood relationships between people in the same household, the less interested the readers are.

In every other category, the opposite is true.

EDIT: *facepalm* It's early. Everything I just backspaced was stepdaughter, not daughter-in-law. LOL

I would suggest the Mature category, because age-difference stories do extremely well there. I think the potential pitfall is cheating rather than incest. If the circumstances are that she's a former daughter-in-law, you're all good.

Serafina is right on the posting time. There's a sticky at the top of the AH now where Laurel has been leaving posts about processing the queue. She said that any time the length of processing time changes, she'll make a post there.

 

[Wyatt]

It's a bit complicated as it's going to be a story where the girl is the wife of a STEP son? so straying farther outside the incest genre I would think? The kernel of the story is that the step father doesn't see the girl as a true daughter in law? If that makes any sense?

 

[49greg]

It's a bit complicated as it's going to be a story where the girl is the wife of a STEP son? so straying farther outside the incest genre I would think? The kernel of the story is that the step father doesn't see the girl as a true daughter in law? If that makes any sense?

Sounds more and more like a "Mature" category to me. Although I think there are such relationships in the "Incest" category, closer relationships are more the norm there.

 

[sr71plt]

I wouldn't put a daughter-in-law (and less so a step daughter-in-law) in incest. Not sure where the editor would put it. But the answer to anyone who asks if (or thinks it is) this is an incest relationship, the answer is no.

 

[RejectReality]

It's a bit complicated as it's going to be a story where the girl is the wife of a STEP son? so straying farther outside the incest genre I would think? The kernel of the story is that the step father doesn't see the girl as a true daughter in law? If that makes any sense?

Adding Step to In-Law puts it so far out on the rim that you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who would consider it incest.

There are still two potential cheating dings, though. It's a little up in the air with how people react to that.

It sounds like you're coming from the perspective of the guy, so that should keep it out of Loving Wives, where there's no ambiguity to the reaction. the LW crowd reacts to cheating with hateful vitriol.

Be prepared for some people not to like the cheating, but I wouldn't let it change your story. If both spouses are assholes, or the guy isn't married any longer and the step son is an asshole, it can even come off as a positive when the two find solace in each other.

 

[SikFuk]

What's the low age limit for Mature? 50-ish?

 

[sr71plt]

What's the low age limit for Mature? 50-ish?

Sounds about right.

 

[RejectReality]

If you're going with an age-difference story, I've found the readers in Mature will accept even a protagonist in the mid-30s, so long as the younger character is 18. It's the spread between the ages more than the age of the older character that matters.

All of mine in the category are age-difference, so I can't really comment on stories without that dynamic.

 

[sr71plt]

All of mine in the category are age-difference, so I can't really comment on stories without that dynamic.

Mine are too. But sometimes they are are both mature, as in a series I'm submitting off and on now from a book titled "Fifty Seventy."

 

[lovecraft68]

I would put it in mature. The age difference works whereas in incest the "in law" is not going to go over great.

As an incest fan(at least of brother sister stories) I can tell you that for me in law and even step relations are to incest what non alcoholic beer is to the real thing, some of the taste, but none of the bite.

 

[Hypoxia]

Non-blood relatives (step and in-law) may legally be considered incest-close in some jurisdictions, but not by LIT readers. Even 1st cousins are right at the limit here - your blood aunt or uncle has more DNA in common with you (up to 1/4) than does a 1st cousin (up to 1/8).

Step-siblings MIGHT be considered as incest-close IF they were raised together since childhood and consider each other as siblings. But in-laws? Nope, not at all. Depending on age difference, I'd put a DIL story in Mature, or Erotic Couplings, or Group Sex or BDSM or whatever, as appropriate -- but not Incest, not if I wanted favorable reactions.

 

[sr71plt]

Non-blood relatives (step and in-law) may legally be considered incest-close in some jurisdictions,

Oh? Like where? (especially in-law).

 

[Hypoxia]

Oh? Like where? (especially in-law).

I ran across a Texas legal code equating certain step-kin and in-laws as EQUIVALENT to incest when determining nepotism -- relatives by affinity. As I read this Wikipedia article I see in-law relations as illegal in South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, and Brazil. Some of those laws are worded to prohibit relations or marriage between kin BY BLOOD OR ADOPTION OR MARRIAGE within N degrees of affinity.

 

[sr71plt]

I ran across a Texas legal code equating certain step-kin and in-laws as EQUIVALENT to incest when determining nepotism -- relatives by affinity. As I read this Wikipedia article I see in-law relations as illegal in South Africa, Taiwan, Turkey, and Brazil. Some of those laws are worded to prohibit relations or marriage between kin BY BLOOD OR ADOPTION OR MARRIAGE within N degrees of affinity.

Ah, well, Texas and the third world. Thanks (but is nepotism really criminally illegal? Like a sex crime?)

 

[Serafina1210]

To revive one original theme of this thread, writer's block: there's a "Draft" column in today's NY Times by Bill Hayes called "On Not Writing"--an inspiring story about how Hayes beat a bad case of block. (I don't know if it would actually help a blocked writer, but you never know.)

 

[CeasarBoobage]

For what it's worth, the category in question is called "incest/taboo".

While many things here on Lit are all about taboo topics, I do think the "in-law" fits perfectly fine. I've seen many good stories there, and I am not a fan of incest. It's not my thing, no big deal, but I will scroll through that category for the _IL content. It is taboo, which gives it that spice.

All that being said, from what I read, this story would probably fit equally well in EroticCouplings, LovingWives, or Mature. Maybe the OP can decide where to post it based more on the potential eyeballs or comments. Or lack of hateful comments (LW).

 

[sr71plt]

That's a good point--that in-law sex could be considered for the taboo category.

 

[RejectReality]

That's a good point--that in-law sex could be considered for the taboo category.

By the category description, yes.

But you know how that goes. The "Satire" part of Humor&Satire is completely overlooked in the category, and "Taboo" is the same way in Incest.

It's perfectly legitimate to post them there, but you have to go into it knowing that the overwhelming majority of readers are going to ignore or trash it. When there's another equally valid option, it's best to take it.

 

[sr71plt]

My own view is that 85 percent of the incest readers won't know that in-law isn't incest.

 

[RejectReality]

My own view is that 85 percent of the incest readers won't know that in-law isn't incest.

Most of them don't even consider 1st cousins incest

 

[Hypoxia]

Most of them don't even consider 1st cousins incest

I wrote my first BLACK & WHITE story to involve two 1st cousins and their aunt. It did well vote-wise, but a closer relationship was requested. I wrote another version with the kinship changed to siblings and mother. That did rather better. (And making it tri-racial was tricky, I tell ya!)

I agree that most readers don't see in-laws as incest.

 

[karaline]

I'm about to go off on a bit of a tangent here and I hope I'm not going to insult you OP, I really don't mean to.

--

but just wanted to suggested that you think about the situation you might be putting her in