Story writing

[redzinger]

That extra stuff might be called 'flavor'. And a pr0n tale might have no plot to develop, only a string of hot events, and players as disposable cartoons. Every story has its own pulse. Let's say a gal fucks her favorite classmates bye-bye on graduation night. She doesn't HAVE to, to support the rest of the story; but hey, this is pr0n, so of course she does, described in some detail to satisfy one-handed readers.

I add words to tell readers what I think they should know for the story to make sense. Trimming too many words leaves a skeleton.

If it does add flavour and depth, it adds something. That's what I meant.

 

[KeithD]

I often try to put in little details that seemingly don't add anything, but they actually do mean something important.

 

[ThisNameIsntTakenYet]

I often try to put in little details that seemingly don't add anything, but they actually do mean something important.

It's a clever technique, if you manage to do it well. Even if the reader doesn't understand or even remember them, they can hold on to them on a subconscious level. It can help make them suspicious of a character, set up their expectations, or it can make a random event feel more plausible because there were earlier hints towards it. It also makes the second read a lot more exciting, because knowing where they story is going they will now pick up on all the little hints and breadcrumbs they missed the first time around.

 

[eroticstoryspinner]

Late to the party, but one thing I would add is read the story out loud to yourself. Not only is that a good editing trick, but it seems to catch pacing problems.

 

[redzinger]

Late to the party, but one thing I would add is read the story out loud to yourself. Not only is that a good editing trick, but it seems to catch pacing problems.

Yep. Was Twatting with someone about this a couple of days ago - she hadn't enjoyed listening to a book, and had been told by others that she, 'should've read it first'.

 

[Abbafan]

Asked how he managed to write stories that rattled along at pace, the late Elmore Leonard said that he simply left out the bits that he felt readers would skip over. There is worse advice.

I do not want readers skipping a single word that I have bothered to write, and so I tend to follow the Elmore Leonard method. However, there are 1,001 different kinds of readers here at Lit – including some for whom quantity is the all-important dimension.

I suggest that you just write as much or as little as you would want to read.

Good luck.

I like Leonard. He spent very little time on description. I think for the kind of story this site features, a little more of that is needed, but it's important not to overdo it.

 

[Hypoxia]

I like Leonard. He spent very little time on description. I think for the kind of story this site features, a little more of that is needed, but it's important not to overdo it.

Check the most popular stories on LIT. How many skimp on description?

 

[WoolyWorm]

The thought of erotica by Elmore Leonard somehow doesn't seem that appealing.

 

[michie]

Find motivations for characters that make sense within the context of the story.

Find your voice and apply it. Readers will be more than willing to read long winded sections provided they are done with care from a speaker they wish to get to know. This means to get your personality into the narration. If done successfully, many of the other conventions can be laid by the wayside. This avoids formulaic patterns and allows for more engaging characterizations.

 

[KeithD]

Or have a character or two do something wacky or out of character and put your imagination into showing why they did it logically.

 

[Hypoxia]

Find motivations for characters that make sense within the context of the story.

I call this "create players and set them loose with a few plot points." Each character has their own voice and kinks. It's easier if you picture them as people you think you know. Then twist them to suit your nefarious ends.

 

[Handley_Page]

If you writers would permit a comment from a reader ?
I've read stories which have the most intricate detail of, say, baseball.
I don't have much of a problem with it except that the author seems to assume that the reader understands the game; this reader doesn't.
What is a 'short-stop' anyway?
There was one about Tennis, but the story featured few if any of the tiny details of the game.

 

[tomlitilia]

Sometimes there is an event that's important for the plot or character description, but it's not necessarily interesting on its own. One thing you might want to try is to let characters have a discussion about that event. Conversations are often a lighter to read, and the characters can bring up the essentials without going in to tedious details.

 

[Hypoxia]

I've read stories which have the most intricate detail of, say, baseball.
I don't have much of a problem with it except that the author seems to assume that the reader understands the game; this reader doesn't.
What is a 'short-stop' anyway?

I can name baseball team positions, some US football and basketball positions, and about zero hockey, rugby, soccer, polo, or volleyball positions. Do most of those have a center? My most recent story featured a football fullback. That is all I said -- he's a fullback who got his head smacked. Game details were irrelevant.

There was one about Tennis, but the story featured few if any of the tiny details of the game.

I'd have to look up any details of tennis.

It's always dangerous to assume your audience knows 1) nothing, or 2) anything about your area of interest. I deal as simply as possible with dense subjects. But anything can boast impenetrable jargon and hoo-haw.

Oh, the shortstop loiters in the infield between second and third base and is usually chosen from the fast and nimble. I named my pet hamster after a shortstop. But I can't disclose that.

 

[ThisNameIsntTakenYet]

If you writers would permit a comment from a reader ?
I've read stories which have the most intricate detail of, say, baseball.
I don't have much of a problem with it except that the author seems to assume that the reader understands the game; this reader doesn't.
What is a 'short-stop' anyway?
There was one about Tennis, but the story featured few if any of the tiny details of the game.

Yeah this annoys me too when it happens. Some writers handle it well though. Most recent example I read would be NotWise's Nude Day story, Watch Me!. It goes into a bit of detail of both ballet and photography, both subjects I am very unfamiliar with as far as terminology is concerned. Yet it didn't annoy me when I read it. He either used very simple terms that were obvious from the context or explained shortly after, or it wasn't very relevant to the plot to understand those things when two characters did discuss something in some more detail. In the latter case, it didn't last long and there were enough other things going on to keep my attention.

 

[Abbafan]

Check the most popular stories on LIT. How many skimp on description?

They usually are pretty good at giving you some "flavor" while not dwelling too much on details.

 

[SamScribble]

They usually are pretty good at giving you some "flavor" while not dwelling too much on details.

It's probably time that I re-read Molly Bloom's soliloquy again.

 

[oggbashan]

I have used three basic techniques to speed up a story:

1. Write from first person POV

2. Use present tense when describing sexual action

3. Make paragraphs, sentences and words shorter

They work for me, sometimes.

 

[SimonDoom]

I have used three basic techniques to speed up a story:

1. Write from first person POV

2. Use present tense when describing sexual action

.

Can you expand on that? Why does 1st person POV speed up the story? Why do you feel the tense used changes the speed of the story?

 

[oggbashan]

Can you expand on that? Why does 1st person POV speed up the story? Why do you feel the tense used changes the speed of the story?

1st person POV involves the reader more than a 3rd person account.

If you have been using reported speech and the past tense, changing to present tense makes the story more immediate at that point.

But they are only suggestions of techniques I use. Some comments show that an individual has been thrown, or distracted, by the change of tense.

 

[Hypoxia]

Another, older method: Learn at the feet of the masters, like art students copying masterworks to learn the techniques. Here, read stories you like or are popular, study their tricks, and copy them, but in your own voice, which develops as you write.

 

[yukonnights]

1st person POV involves the reader more than a 3rd person account.

If you have been using reported speech and the past tense, changing to present tense makes the story more immediate at that point.

But they are only suggestions of techniques I use. Some comments show that an individual has been thrown, or distracted, by the change of tense.

I'll second this. I just finished a complete rewrite/conversion of a long story from 3rd POV to 1st/present. The story as originally written just languished in some mysterious dead zone (e.g. it was slow and grew boring). The First POV moves it along at a much quicker pace—even now after reading it so many times. The sex scenes are more intimate, the non-sexual action more immediate, etc. It's not an unheard of opinion about First POV pulling the reader into the story more since they are closer to the characters...ideally they 'feel' one with them, etc.

The tricky part on this one was what to do with all of the interior thoughts/emotions/feelings of the main characters w/o head-hopping and confusion. Since I tend to spend a lot of time inside the emotions, I couldn't just toss them. It required breaking the segments out into numerous small sub-chapters with a clear break ***** and sub-title so each character could have their moment in the limelight, etc.

 

[Hypoxia]

We can go pros-vs-cons of 1st vs 3rd POVs. 1st is immediate; 3rd-omniscient can be all-inclusive; 3rd-limited can almost be both. But 1st isn't necessarily 'faster', not if the MC meditates a lot. 3rd can whip right along if desired. No formula exists here AFAIK. But try swapping 1st and 3rd POVs. You get to decide which works better.

 

[Voboy]

Another, older method: Learn at the feet of the masters, like art students copying masterworks to learn the techniques. Here, read stories you like or are popular, study their tricks, and copy them, but in your own voice, which develops as you write.

This.

Nobody's a perfect writer, and there's always someone who writes better than you do no matter who you are. So find that someone and use their expertise to expand your repertoire. Respectfully, of course, and without being derivative or plagiaristic.

 

[TarnishedPenny]

If you writers would permit a comment from a reader ?
I've read stories which have the most intricate detail of, say, baseball.
I don't have much of a problem with it except that the author seems to assume that the reader understands the game; this reader doesn't.
What is a 'short-stop' anyway?
There was one about Tennis, but the story featured few if any of the tiny details of the game.

I must admit to having been bored stiff by one otherwise-good writer pouring out detail about his muscle car, with full specs on the type of carburetor, transmission and so forth. It might be interesting to him, but I didn’t get past Page 2; had it been less detailed, I (and others like me) makes get have read it through. My point is that too much detail can limit one’s audience.

Edit. I guess the key point I missed is that the elaborate details really contributed nothing to the story. Had they been slashed, it wouldn’t have affected the plot or the characterization in the slightest. Had they been necessary, it might have been different. In this case, the protagonist just got into his car and drove somewhere. Pointless detail, ie.