How do you choose a category?

[nyte_byrd]

Hello all

I'm one of the "newbie writers" here and this is a real problem for me right now. My first story was fairly easy to select the right category for (although I have had one fellow say I should have chosen "First Time" instead), but now I'm stuck with one more finished story sitting on the desk and another that's about halfway done, and both are going to be just wickedly difficult to place. Both are also WAY different from what I first submitted, so I know that that alone is going to shock some folks who have been e-Mailing me and asking for "more of the same".

So my question is; what do you do when your work encompases more than one Lit. category and you absolutely know it's going to cause a grumpy stir from some readers no matter which one you chose? Should I just put these stories away somewhere and not submit them at all?

 

[3113]

So my question is; what do you do when your work encompases more than one Lit. category and you absolutely know it's going to cause a grumpy stir from some readers no matter which one you chose? Should I just put these stories away somewhere and not submit them at all?

Think of the readers. Keep in mind that readers have their own favorite categories, and a lot of them will scan category first, picking out stories that fit into those favorite categories. So a reader might read all the romance stories, but not many first time stories. This doesn't mean that they don't like *any* story that's first time--to the contrary, they may like it fine. It just means that they want a first time story that's romantic rather than quick and sexy.

I have a story that features two men. One is young, one old (that's Mature). One is black, one is white (that's interracial). There is some fairly mild but unmistable BDSM in it (so, BDSM, right?). But I knew full well that most readers of Mature, Interracial and BDSM were going to be looking for a heterosexual relationship and, on going from category to looking at title and description, would decide against reading this story. So into the Gay category it went.

The story *could* have gone into any of the other categories, but it would not have found its way to the right readers, ones who would want to read it and could best appreciate it, if I'd put it in any of the others.

So the question you need to ask is, "What category would be right for the story? Which one would give it the readers who would appreciate it the most?"

Don't, by the way, worry about grumpy readers. THAT is what your one-sentence description is for. I made sure gay readers knew in that one-sentence description that there's be BDSM, interracial and mature. So I got no grumpy responses. No gay reader went for that story thinking it was going to be about two young straight guys experimenting with gay sex for the first time.

Think less about what's in the story (an interracial couple, a first time experience, a ghost) and more about the FEEL of the story. If it's a very, very romantic story that really delves into the characters and ends sweetly/bittersweetly, then even if there's a ghost, you might want to go Romance rather than "inhuman."

Interracial wants the story to focus on the physical and/or cultural attraction of the "other." Erotic couples is usually for readers who want the focus on the sexiness of connecting, as compared to the romance readers who really want to see a relationship. Horror wants something that's a bit scary or weird or freaky; inhuman is a place for stories where the object of affection is not-human, but not scary either (a friendly spirit or angel or fairy), and Sci-Fi/Fantasy readers usually expect to visit another time and place.

So what is the primary feel of these stories? The one that tops all the other elements and that readers will notice first and formost? Which kind of readers would be MOST satisfied by these stories? And remember, you don't get ONLY a category. You also get a one-sentence description to warn the reader what they'll be getting if they read the story.

 

[nyte_byrd]

Thank you, that does give me a lot more insight on how to handle this, and I've at least narrowed one down a bit. I have been reading Lit. for about a year, but I tend to select stories from only 2 or 3 categories when doing so. The story I already have published fit into one of them, so was no problem. However, the next time I started writing, what came out was.. well, I don't know *where* these two came from ("It wasn't me, really"..hehe). I need a better understanding of these new categories. One of these fits snugly into 3 cats.; masturbation, loving wives, and possibly anal. I've heard the LW category is a bad one to post to though, so intend to stay well away from that. This brings it more solidly into the masturbation category BUT what I'm wondering is:
#1. Are people in that cat. looking for stories about girls doing the deed? This one is a guy.
#2. Will readers of that cat. be offended by the description (the act isn't really being done) of anal in it?

Would I be better off putting it in masturbation and using the description line to warn about the anal content, or vice versa?

The second story is still in the works and may never hit Lit. at all. It's an action/adventure thing with a twisted plot and a couple of killings (thus Horror), plus girls forcing the men to pleasure them (Non-Consent) and these girls are somewhat bullies about doing it (BDSM), a couple of them are different races (Interracial) etc., etc. I think it needs it's own category called "Anything Goes" (haha!)

 

[3113]

One of these fits snugly into 3 cats.; masturbation, loving wives, and possibly anal. I've heard the LW category is a bad one to post to though, so intend to stay well away from that.

You might want to give LW a second look before you jump ship there. It is one of two categories that gets the most readers. The problem people have with it is that the readers are very vocal and often picky. They get very involved with characters and will write dissertations on what they think of the story line. That said, there are writers who swear by this category.

This brings it more solidly into the masturbation category BUT what I'm wondering is:
#1. Are people in that cat. looking for stories about girls doing the deed? This one is a guy.
#2. Will readers of that cat. be offended by the description (the act isn't really being done) of anal in it?

You need to be clearer. Is this a guy giving a girl anal sex with some item, or a guy giving himself sex by incerting something into the anus? At a guess--and this is REALLY a guess--the masterbation readers want a guy playing with his dick or doing something to a girl, while the anal folk are happy with anything anal no matter whether it's a guy doing it to a girl or to himself (...unless it's anal sex between two guys in which case you're in gay male territory).

It's an action/adventure thing with a twisted plot and a couple of killings (thus Horror), plus girls forcing the men to pleasure them (Non-Consent) and these girls are somewhat bullies about doing it (BDSM), a couple of them are different races (Interracial) etc., etc.

Stick it in non-consent. Readers of horror might not find it "horror" enough, and BDSM folk often take offence to non-consent. There's another post here about a non-con story posted in BDSM that got comments about that even though the author put up a disclaimer. This is because there is an emphasis in BDSM that the relationship be consentual. Putting it another way, most non-con readers can accept BDSM, but some BDSM readers are uncomfortable with non-con.

 

[nyte_byrd]

You need to be clearer. Is this a guy giving a girl anal sex with some item, or a guy giving himself sex by incerting something into the anus?

Neither one. In this scene a guy is masturbating, following along with a girl's very descriptive directions of how she would give him anal. It still would be ok in the masturbation section maybe? I will consider LW too, as you suggested, but will have to seriously think about it for a bit longer before I decide between the two categories. This whole story is part of a fantasy that his wife weaves for him in order to save their marriage, which it does. What turned me off to the LW category all together was hearing that so many seemed to want *cheating* wives portrayed there, and mine isn't doing that.

I totally follow what you're saying with the second story, so it does make sense to me now to have that one in Non-Consent. Thank you *very* much for giving me a better idea of what each of the reader groups are looking for and/or offended by. I will feel much more at ease when I get around to posting that one now.

 

[Weird Harold]

So my question is; what do you do when your work encompases more than one Lit. category and you absolutely know it's going to cause a grumpy stir from some readers no matter which one you chose? Should I just put these stories away somewhere and not submit them at all?

One thing to consider when choosing a category is the "Least Squick Rule" -- choose the category that will offend the fewest number of readers.

However, the main consideration for chosing a category is the overall theme of the story -- if your overall theme is the romantic relationship between the main characters, then it's a Romance story even if it contains a lot of cheating, BDSM, Anal, Same sex action, and other scenes that would fit in other categories.

Erotic Couplings and Novels/Novellas are the "catch-all" categories where fans sort of expect anything to happen.

 

[gauchecritic]

It sounds to me, from your description, that masturbation is the right cat. Remember though that the site managers sometimes decide for you, whichever cat. you pick.

My last story had first time, mature, a loving wife (which I picked), exhibition/nudism and eventually the wife's mother gets shagged by the husband. I don't even consider that to be incest, but that's where they put it.

 

[Selena_Kitt]

It sounds to me, from your description, that masturbation is the right cat. Remember though that the site managers sometimes decide for you, whichever cat. you pick.

My last story had first time, mature, a loving wife (which I picked), exhibition/nudism and eventually the wife's mother gets shagged by the husband. I don't even consider that to be incest, but that's where they put it.

Yeah, that was a bizarre switch!?