Intelligent Stories that don’t insult you

[Sexecclectic]

I’ve read so many stories on Literotica over the years I’ve lost count, many of them weren’t very good. It’s really hard to find authors or stories that don’t insult your intelligence. This is a site geared mostly for amateurs, so I understand why they’re hard to find. Good authors are easier to pinpoint and I can name many who consistently deliver the goods, like Penelope Street, MelissaBaby, bi_cathy, Carson Shepherd and Chasten.

What stories have you read that were really satisfying because they were believable and well constructed?

Also, do you have any methods for searching out the best stories? I’ve found the rating system isn’t always your friend for finding top notch works. I’ve read some stories below 4 that were really good, and many rated over 4.5 that weren’t so good.

To start the thread my examples of stories that don’t insult are below. Full disclosure, they’re stories first with sex as a part of the story. But stories that are mostly sex can work, if well written.

https://literotica.com/s/the-bridge-over-wilsons-creek

https://literotica.com/s/the-corner-table-at-mickeys-pt-01

https://www.literotica.com/s/art-of-deception

 

[LoneMilf]

What do you mean by 'insulting your intelligence'?

 

[Sexecclectic]

What do you mean by 'insulting your intelligence'?

That’s a good question, making me realize that’s a pretty broad statement on my part. When portions of a story are so preposterous, far fetched that they make no sense, and disrupt the believability of the story. That’s all well and good if the story is humorous or based on outlandish concepts right from the start. For myself I generally prefer stories that are believable (even if they aren’t real) and don’t ask you to accept things that aren’t consistent with real life behavior. And I suppose even that is based upon any individual’s experience in life. Hopefully that helps

 

[LoneMilf]

It's what I was guessing you meant, but I wasn't sure. So yeah

I haven't found any way to search for 'realistic' stories on here. Maybe your thread will gather some of the writers who focus on it. It seems to be the most common remark I get for my stories at least.

 

[AchtungNight]

I like to think I create audacious yet realistic scenarios in my stories. I’d be very interested in having you review them and let me know if you agree. Similar authors I admire include Bluedragonauthor, nikki2021, sabledrake, Nick Scipio, taleserotic, and the departed Colleen Thomas. Enjoy!

 

[Sexecclectic]

I like to think I create audacious yet realistic scenarios in my stories. I’d be very interested in having you review them and let me know if you agree. Similar authors I admire include Bluedragonauthor, nikki2021, sabledrake, Nick Scipio, taleserotic, and the departed Colleen Thomas. Enjoy!

Thank you AchtungNight, I’ll check out every one.

 

[MajorRewrite]

Also, do you have any methods for searching out the best stories?

Check the profiles of authors you like. Their lists of favorite authors and favorite stories ought to lead you to lots of good stuff.

 

[SimonDoom]

When it comes to erotica, I think "intelligence" is very much in the eye of beholder. A story can be intelligent and yet far-fetched. It can be intelligent and yet be fantasy, and not necessarily very plausible fantasy at that. The key to me is verisimilitude, rather than realism, but I've found that readers' verisimilitude requirements vary widely. I get reader reactions to my stories that vary from something like, "I like how you pulled this off" to "This is unbelievable crap."

For instance, I think Douglas Adams and Kurt Vonnegut are both "intelligent" writers, but their subjects are often absurd, and they make no effort to make them believable.

I think erotica can be intelligently written while involving subjects, like mom-son incest, that are often ridiculous.

If you're trying to figure out how to find stories that fit your definition of "intelligent," then I recommend identifying the authors you think are intelligent, and then looking at their favorites and following lists and following up on them.

 

[StillStunned]

Personally, I read (and write) erotica to disengage my brain.

 

[EmilyMiller]

When portions of a story are so preposterous, far fetched that they make no sense, and disrupt the believability of the story.

I

I have a trilogy featuring a sentient, telepathic, shape-shifting, levitating giant octopus. It’s pretty gritty and realistic.

As one episode was for Geek Pride, it has lots of big words in it, like hypotrochoid. Big words make me sound intelligent, right?

Em

Drawing by @djrip

 

[pink_silk_glove]

What do you mean by 'insulting your intelligence'?

There's a phrase that you will see often that goes "takes me out of the moment". Most of the time this is what jars people out of a story and may make someone feel 'talked down to' or insulted that the writer expected them to believe what happened.

One of the things that writers strive to do is to immerse the reader in the story. To do this you want to maintain an aura of belief. Certainly belief can be suspended but usually only so far. For instance, in Lord of the Rings when Gandalf confronts the balrog. We all know that it's not real, but suspending belief that we are accepting the context a fantasy story, putting ourselves in the shoes of the wizard in that story, his confrontation is still believable, we stay in the moment and we are able to enjoy the scene.

What the OP is getting at is that lit is chock full of stories that are just not believable. These are mostly fantasies after all, but often depicted with little skill (which is ok since lit is a place for anyone to publish). Imagine a scene where a virgin male has enough stamina to bang a virgin girl for an hour and make that virgin cum three times. Possible? I suppose. Likely? Less than winning the powerball lottery. The amount of belief requiring suspension is just too great. The reader thinks "I'm supposed to believe this? How dumb do you think I am?" You can see how one can feel like their intelligence is being insulted.

Intelligent immersive writing is a sign of a good writer. Implausible spectacle is the sign of an amateur.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

For instance, I think Douglas Adams and Kurt Vonnegut are both "intelligent" writers, but their subjects are often absurd, and they make no effort to make them believable.

You could add Rushdie to that list. His stories are unapologeticly filled with magic and his characters are wild extremes. In a slice of life story they would be nothing but an eyeroll, but in the worlds that he creates, they fit perfectly. He's brilliant at that.

 

[SyleusSnow]

Many writers here write sex stories (strokers), others write stories with sex. There's an audience for both.

If you want a list, most of the regulars here in the AH create the latter.

My stories are mostly shameless male fantasies, but with an actual plot and (I'd like to think) don't stretch suspension of disbelief too far. I prefer "intelligent" stories too, but sometimes I'm in the mood for (and appreciate) a well-crafted implausible stroker.

 

[AG31]

Interesting to see this post today. I'd just this morning posted reviews on Amazon of stories that are here on Literotica, complimenting them on being very sexy, and, at the same time, very well written. (I read them on Amazon so I could put them on my Kindle).
He says, ' "Saving Johns" (published in the marketplace under the habu name) is the tenth of a series of D.C. Vice cop Hardesty novellas. This series is slowly being offered on Lit. for free read, the most recent one being "Capital Treasures" (book six). '

He's got 461 stories here on Literotica, and I don't know how one would suss out the Hardesty series.

Is there a way to get KeithD's bell to ring about my reply here? And Konstant's? (see below)

Anyway, it got me thinking about quality writing. (I think that we may mean the same thing when you say "intelligent.") I don't find a lot of it in the world of erotica. I think quality writing involves having everything in the story work toward its intended goal. It doesn't mean you have to "like" it. As I mentioned in another thread, the works of Georges Bataille are my favorite example of writing that is acknowledged to be masterful but which I can't stand.

Here are some examples of what I consider to be outstanding writing. Most of them happen to be to my taste as well, otherwise I wouldn't have read, or written them.

The Story of O - Pauline Reage
Enslaving Eli - billierosie
All of the stories by me, AG31.... Sorry, but there you go.
Stories of Konstant here on lit @konstant

https://literotica.com/s/the-bridge-over-wilsons-creek

I'm afraid I stopped reading this story right about here (very early on). "My head moved in a nod."

https://literotica.com/s/the-corner-table-at-mickeys-pt-01

I'm afraid I'm not up for long stories on a laptop.

https://www.literotica.com/s/art-of-deception

"Her pale blue eyes made a quick sweep of my office, left to right, as though cataloging its contents to form an initial impression before she spoke."
I stopped reading here.

So we don't agree about what constitutes "intelligence" or "quality." But that's interesting, right? Thanks for the post.

 

[SimonDoom]

.

Here are some examples of what I consider to be outstanding writing. Most of them happen to be to my taste as well, otherwise I wouldn't have read, or written them.

The Story of O - Pauline Reage
Enslaving Eli - billierosie
All of the stories by me, AG31.... Sorry, but there you go.
Stories of Konstant here on lit



I'm afraid I stopped reading this story right about here (very early on). "My head moved in a nod."

I'm afraid I'm not up for long stories on a laptop.


"Her pale blue eyes made a quick sweep of my office, left to right, as though cataloging its contents to form an initial impression before she spoke."
I stopped reading here.

So we don't agree about what constitutes "intelligence" or "quality." But that's interesting, right? Thanks for the post.

This is why I think it's somewhat fruitless to ask others what's intelligent. Your opinion is your own. You are better off doing your own searching based on what you like rather than on what others like.

For instance, I don't think Story of O is great writing. I just read the English translation, so I don't know anything about the French version. It's a novel book for its time, but I found its treatment of the main character unsatisfying and the ending a disappointment. Obviously, others disagree.

 

[Altissimus]

Wow, this one is extremely subjective IMO.

With everything I write, I try to make my characters' behaviour consistent, believable, and aligned to that specific character/role/place in the story. But knowing the works of a fair few of the authors active in this AH, I expect we could all make that claim. And rightly so.

Thinking back on other stories I've read on here - present company excluded - if I consider a story to be 'well written' then 'character believability' tends to get thrown in for free. So does the little red H for that matter, because, more often than not, it is primarily a measure of writing quality. (Caveat: LW seems to have its own rules, which I make no claim to understand.)

I know, for example, that many of us spend ages researching subject matter on stories we write. I recall spending hours reading up and searching on Google when writing about something of which I don't have first-hand experience, just to get the content of one specific line or paragraph correct. Despite this, we've all met that extremely critical chap Anon who likes to state that such-and-such isn't believable - even when others who have lived that experience first-hand come forward and say 'yes it is, actually'. This happened twice on my latest story, for example, on two different aspects of that story. Does this mean that story isn't intelligent? Dunno. It's hovering around the 4.8 mark though, so maybe my readers are dumb - and, if so, probably a lot happier for it, bless them all.

I like to think the stuff I write is intelligent. But at the end of the day, there's a modicum of 'artistic licence' and 'willing suspension of disbelief' that crops up somewhere - after all, what we do is Art. It's not an article in The Economist.

And then finally, when you write a fantasy, sometimes it's fantastical. That doesn't mean that characters can't/don't/shouldn't act according to their true nature (as determined by the author, of course) but it can mean that the reader's interpretation of how such a fantasy should go isn't the same as the author's. We see that quite a lot too. It's another great example of where Anon likes to comment, explaining very kindly to the author in question that their story was very well written, the premise was great, the sex was sizzling, but it only warrants a '3' because if he'd written it he would've done that instead.

Learning opportunities abound.

 

[AG31]

It's a novel book for its time, but I found its treatment of the main character unsatisfying and the ending a disappointment. Obviously, others disagree.

But it's fun to explore different people's perspectives. I had a fairly intelligent reviewer compare one of my stories to "old fashioined writing" like "French classical erotica." It was the absence of detail about O's larger life that she complained about. Words to the effect that "readers today want to know how the main character feels."

But this illustrates what I would like to say about the difference between "quality" ("intelligence") and taste. Did Reage achieve her goal of spare, "pure" erotica, where self reflection doesn't interfere with the depiction of the action? I do believe that was her goal.

It may not be to your taste, but did she do it well?

To be honest, I don't remember the ending.

 

[theWollstonecraftWoman]

Being that most of my stories are about voluntary cuckolding, I don't think I ever wrote something believable. My other tale, a three-part series, is about a female vampire. Are vampires ever believable? Is erotic horror believable? For the most part, despite the preponderance of stories out there, cuckolding is a fantasy most often held by a husband with the wife totally in the dark. I don't post to LW because it's a total minefield.

 

[SimonDoom]

But it's fun to explore different people's perspectives. I had a fairly intelligent reviewer compare one of my stories to "old fashioined writing" like "French classical erotica." It was the absence of detail about O's larger life that she complained about. Words to the effect that "readers today want to know how the main character feels."

But this illustrates what I would like to say about the difference between "quality" ("intelligence") and taste. Did Reage achieve her goal of spare, "pure" erotica, where self reflection doesn't interfere with the depiction of the action? I do believe that was her goal.

It may not be to your taste, but did she do it well?

To be honest, I don't remember the ending.

It's been a while since I read the book, but I recall thinking that the specifics of O's character, personality, and background were so lacking that I was less interested in her than I would have been otherwise. I also would have enjoyed more introspection and reflection by her on what she was doing, and the tension that it obviously would have caused. It all seemed rather fast and automatic to me.

The author Molly Weatherfield wrote what was basically an updated, Americanized version of Story of O with Carrie's Story, which I thought was more fun. The character in question was a UC Berkeley grad student, so she was intelligent and introspective and far more reflective about her experience.

 

[AG31]

I don't post to LW because it's a total minefield.

Sorry... relatively new as an active forumer. What's LW? And how is it a minefield?

 

[AG31]

It's been a while since I read the book, but I recall thinking that the specifics of O's character, personality, and background were so lacking that I was less interested in her than I would have been otherwise. I also would have enjoyed more introspection and reflection by her on what she was doing, and the tension that it obviously would have caused. It all seemed rather fast and automatic to me.

The author Molly Weatherfield wrote what was basically an updated, Americanized version of Story of O with Carrie's Story, which I thought was more fun. The character in question was a UC Berkeley grad student, so she was intelligent and introspective and far more reflective about her experience.

Yes, you've zeroed in exactly on what makes The Story what it is. I think of it as "pure erotica." One of these days I'm going to get my thoughts together to post about "pure erotica." That is, a story where everything contributes to arousal, without the distraction of personality and self reflection.

 

[theWollstonecraftWoman]

LW is Loving Wives, and the description says it is about wives who cheat, and the husband knows. But the followers break into three groups: people with the fantasy (total minority), those who want reconciliation, and those that want the bitch burned. You can't win with the diversity there.

Sorry... relatively new as an active forumer. What's LW? And how is it a minefield?

 

[holliday1960]

Being that most of my stories are about voluntary cuckolding, I don't think I ever wrote something believable. My other tale, a three-part series, is about a female vampire. Are vampires ever believable? Is erotic horror believable?

I'd answer yes to both points. Yes, Anne Rice made her Vampire characters totally believeable. Cuckolds? Voluntarily, do exist.

 

[AG31]

There's a phrase that you will see often that goes "takes me out of the moment". Most of the time this is what jars people out of a story and may make someone feel 'talked down to' or insulted that the writer expected them to believe what happened.

What the OP is getting at is that lit is chock full of stories that are just not believable.

Intelligent immersive writing is a sign of a good writer. Implausible spectacle is the sign of an amateur.

Yes, I very much like the test of letting you stay "in the moment." Elsewhere in this thread I mentioned that I'd just started the Hardesty series by @KeithD . I complemented them for exhibiting good writing, but I sure hope (believe?) that they don't accurately represent the milieu of the D.C. Vice department. I believed the plot was implausible. But I was swept up. Never out of the moment.

 

[theWollstonecraftWoman]

I'd answer yes to both points. Yes, Anne Rice made her Vampire characters totally believeable. Cuckolds? Voluntarily, do exist.

You'd have to read mine to know whether they are believable. I don't recommend it, though. I don't think I'm a very good writer yet.