Long time reader, new to writing. Could use a little help?

[1Mimi1]

Hi all,
As the title says, I am a long time reader but was thinking perhaps it is time to write a story of my own.
I have been looking through these forums the last couple days and have more questions than answers now.
First, is this in the correct place for this discussion?

My interests have always leaned to Blackmail with clothing and orgasm control.

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy. What I mean by that is, example, a female is blackmailed and is told her clothing will be chosen for her. Then that is the last you hear of it, I would like to hear what she is wearing, how she feels, how others react to what she is wearing. I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex. The blackmailer has all these plans but next you hear is sex in the morning, sex at night. I understand many love that and I am not judging what anyone enjoys, I would just like to see the other parts that go with it. The frustration of the female who loves sex having it withheld etc.

I would love to share my story thought in greater detail with someone to see if it is even worth writing or is it more just my fantasy alone.

Thank you for listening

 

[SerenaSteeleMonroe]

Hi all,
As the title says, I am a long time reader but was thinking perhaps it is time to write a story of my own.
I have been looking through these forums the last couple days and have more questions than answers now.
First, is this in the correct place for this discussion?

My interests have always leaned to Blackmail with clothing and orgasm control.

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy. What I mean by that is, example, a female is blackmailed and is told her clothing will be chosen for her. Then that is the last you hear of it, I would like to hear what she is wearing, how she feels, how others react to what she is wearing. I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex. The blackmailer has all these plans but next you hear is sex in the morning, sex at night. I understand many love that and I am not judging what anyone enjoys, I would just like to see the other parts that go with it. The frustration of the female who loves sex having it withheld etc.

I would love to share my story thought in greater detail with someone to see if it is even worth writing or is it more just my fantasy alone.

Thank you for listening

Yes, I believe this is the right place to find answers. I'm also new to writing fiction. I say, it's your story; therefore, write it how you want.

 

[StillStunned]

Hi all,
As the title says, I am a long time reader but was thinking perhaps it is time to write a story of my own.
I have been looking through these forums the last couple days and have more questions than answers now.
First, is this in the correct place for this discussion?

My interests have always leaned to Blackmail with clothing and orgasm control.

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy. What I mean by that is, example, a female is blackmailed and is told her clothing will be chosen for her. Then that is the last you hear of it, I would like to hear what she is wearing, how she feels, how others react to what she is wearing. I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex. The blackmailer has all these plans but next you hear is sex in the morning, sex at night. I understand many love that and I am not judging what anyone enjoys, I would just like to see the other parts that go with it. The frustration of the female who loves sex having it withheld etc.

I would love to share my story thought in greater detail with someone to see if it is even worth writing or is it more just my fantasy alone.

Thank you for listening

Welcome to the "I can't find the stories I like to read so I'll damn well write them myself" club!

 

[SerenaSteeleMonroe]

Welcome to the "I can't find the stories I like to read so I'll damn well write them myself" club!

It's a big club and not very exclusive, but we're all damn fine people other than those who are damn fucked up assholes.

 

[NotWise]

Hi all,
As the title says, I am a long time reader but was thinking perhaps it is time to write a story of my own.
I have been looking through these forums the last couple days and have more questions than answers now.
First, is this in the correct place for this discussion?

My interests have always leaned to Blackmail with clothing and orgasm control.

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy. What I mean by that is, example, a female is blackmailed and is told her clothing will be chosen for her. Then that is the last you hear of it, I would like to hear what she is wearing, how she feels, how others react to what she is wearing. I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex. The blackmailer has all these plans but next you hear is sex in the morning, sex at night. I understand many love that and I am not judging what anyone enjoys, I would just like to see the other parts that go with it. The frustration of the female who loves sex having it withheld etc.

I would love to share my story thought in greater detail with someone to see if it is even worth writing or is it more just my fantasy alone.

Thank you for listening

This might be the only place for the topic.

Depending on how you emphasize aspects of the story, it could be a NonCon story, Mind Control, or Fetish. There could be other categories as well. The slate is blank, and it's yours to fill.

Welcome to the club.

 

[1Mimi1]

Thanks for the welcome to the club, it is great to hear I am not alone.

After writing the story I assume someone from Lit will review it before allowing it to be seen by the public? Do you know, if the category is not correct will they notify me or just adjust it?

 

[StillStunned]

Thanks for the welcome to the club, it is great to hear I am not alone.

After writing the story I assume someone from Lit will review it before allowing it to be seen by the public? Do you know, if the category is not correct will they notify me or just adjust it?

Laurel the site owner will put it in a different category if she thinks that it will do better there. If there are any other issues with your story you'll get a rejection notice.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

Thanks for the welcome to the club, it is great to hear I am not alone.

After writing the story I assume someone from Lit will review it before allowing it to be seen by the public? Do you know, if the category is not correct will they notify me or just adjust it?

There's also an editor's forum where you can get some help with your (nearly) finished text. And some of us here are willing to pre-read and offer advice.

 

[Davidbeer1]

Hi all,
As the title says, I am a long time reader but was thinking perhaps it is time to write a story of my own.
I have been looking through these forums the last couple days and have more questions than answers now.
First, is this in the correct place for this discussion?

My interests have always leaned to Blackmail with clothing and orgasm control.

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy. What I mean by that is, example, a female is blackmailed and is told her clothing will be chosen for her. Then that is the last you hear of it, I would like to hear what she is wearing, how she feels, how others react to what she is wearing. I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex. The blackmailer has all these plans but next you hear is sex in the morning, sex at night. I understand many love that and I am not judging what anyone enjoys, I would just like to see the other parts that go with it. The frustration of the female who loves sex having it withheld etc.

I would love to share my story thought in greater detail with someone to see if it is even worth writing or is it more just my fantasy alone.

Thank you for listening

"I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex." There's a reason for that. Most contributors write short stories, publish longer works in short sections. It isn't a good idea to post whole sections with no sex, or to introduce the sex more than half-way through. Your criticism is certainly valid, but when writing stories it's a good idea to use literary devices, such as flashbacks, to ensure that each section contains a good mix of background, narrative, dialogue and sex.

 

[ElectricBlue]

Thanks for the welcome to the club, it is great to hear I am not alone.

After writing the story I assume someone from Lit will review it before allowing it to be seen by the public? Do you know, if the category is not correct will they notify me or just adjust it?

You choose the category, but on occasion the site Editor (Laurel) will change it to a category where she thinks it would run better. She's been vetting stories for 25 years, so I'd trust her on that. She probably wouldn't tell you.

If you're unsure in the first place, you could ask her to select the category for you - but to submit, you'll have to nominate a category first.

Your story description leans towards Non-con or Mind Control, because it sounds like there's coercion.

 

[Voboy]

I realize there are a lot of stories with these components but they seem to stop short with the parts that I enjoy.

This is why I started writing here: as a longtime reader, I felt like I was running out of stories that "did it" for me.

Do it! Write what you'd want to read. You'll find an audience. I think I would be inclined to submit that story as Mind Control, but as others have said Laurel will move it if she things she needs to. Category matters a good deal, but it's not everything.

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

Welcome to the "I can't find the stories I like to read so I'll damn well write them myself" club!

Members: Pretty much all of us, lol.

 

[Bramblethorn]

"I find in many ways the story goes too quickly to sex, sex, sex." There's a reason for that. Most contributors write short stories, publish longer works in short sections. It isn't a good idea to post whole sections with no sex, or to introduce the sex more than half-way through. Your criticism is certainly valid, but when writing stories it's a good idea to use literary devices, such as flashbacks, to ensure that each section contains a good mix of background, narrative, dialogue and sex.

I can't agree with this. I have one series with a no-sex chapter along the way, and another where the first chapter is all background with no sex, and both of those have done pretty well. You're never going to please everybody, but there are plenty of readers willing to read a no-sex chapter here and there if there's enough story to hold their interest. Especially if that content is building anticipation for the sexual content to come later.

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

I can't agree with this. I have one series with a no-sex chapter along the way, and another where the first chapter is all background with no sex, and both of those have done pretty well. You're never going to please everybody, but there are plenty of readers willing to read a no-sex chapter here and there if there's enough story to hold their interest. Especially if that content is building anticipation for the sexual content to come later.

I would humbly suggest that for folks who are just starting out and haven't built an audience yet, it's a much more dangerous proposition to go too long without at least some kind of sexy stuff in a story. If your audience knows you, knows they'll get the payoff eventually, they'll stick with it. But if they don't, and you're trying to get your feet underneath you, I think it's probably best to get at least some kind of sex scene within the first 5k words of your story.

 

[SimonDoom]

You are definitely in the right place, and your "long-time reader/new writer" status is familiar to many of us. Welcome.

I started reading Literotica stories sometime around 2002 or so. I don't even remember exactly when. I didn't publish my first one until December 2016. So I had a long, long time to figure out what I liked and to think "I can do that" and "but I'd like to do it my own way."

Don't take anything we say about how we think it "should" be done too seriously. Write the stories you want to write, and then, and only then, figure out how and whether you want to break them into chapters and what category they should go in.

This is my ONE piece of advice that I strongly recommend: start small. Don't start with a 20-chapter novel. Start with a short (under 12,000 word) manageable story that you can actually get done, polish to your satisfaction, and submit without too much bellyache. Feel free to ask questions. Do you homework. By that I mean read other authors and figure out what and whom you like, figure out the content rules of the Site, how categories work, and read some of the helpful "how to" guides. Then, fully stocked with the advice, wisdom, and examples of others, throw it all out the window and write your own story.

 

[SinclairGroupLLP]

This is my ONE piece of advice that I strongly recommend: start small. Don't start with a 20-chapter novel. Start with a short (under 12,000 word) manageable story that you can actually get done, polish to your satisfaction, and submit without too much bellyache. Feel free to ask questions. Do you homework. By that I mean read other authors and figure out what and whom you like, figure out the content rules of the Site, how categories work, and read some of the helpful "how to" guides. Then, fully stocked with the advice, wisdom, and examples of others, throw it all out the window and write your own story.

Simon is correct. Listen to him. Only a masochist would start writing a 20-chapter novel as his intro to Literotica.

<walks away whistling>

 

[ElectricBlue]

This is my ONE piece of advice that I strongly recommend: start small. Don't start with a 20-chapter novel. Start with a short (under 12,000 word) manageable story that you can actually get done, polish to your satisfaction, and submit without too much bellyache.

@1Mimi1 Absolutely this!!

Especially if you've not written much of anything before. Do an apprenticeship first, walk before you run; learn your own style, how you write, what works for you, what kind of writer you are, what type of writer you're not.

Too many new writers, I think, assume that everyone's writing process is the same, that there's "only one right way to write". Nothing could be further from the truth.

There are "plotters" who plan their stories down to nth degree, and there are "pantsers" who don't do that at all, who just write, and the story is finished when it's done. Neither process is superior to the other, neither will get you a better story, but generally speaking, you're one or the other. I don't think I've met anyone yet who is both.

 

[1Mimi1]

Thank you all for your thoughts and ideas.
My story is currently at 4K words and is not finished. So I can get a feel for it's size, how many pages would 4K words be on a published story?
Are there people here that proof read stories, especial someone's first one to see if it just all wrong in format or close? I realize there all different tastes but the story basics like the format or the story flow should be the same with many stories.
I am wondering if I shouldn't have my story read by an experienced poster to see if I am on the right track before I go much further?

 

[SpermBankHoliday]

Try reading your story out loud, it will help you catch run-on sentences. Also, print it out, and then read it sentence by sentence backwards. This will help you catch sentence fragments.

 

[Voyeurkenneth]

Thank you all for your thoughts and ideas.
My story is currently at 4K words and is not finished. So I can get a feel for it's size, how many pages would 4K words be on a published story?
Are there people here that proof read stories, especial someone's first one to see if it just all wrong in format or close? I realize there all different tastes but the story basics like the format or the story flow should be the same with many stories.
I am wondering if I shouldn't have my story read by an experienced poster to see if I am on the right track before I go much further?

4K words would be just over 1 Lit page. Average is somewhere between 3500 and 3750.

You can ask someone here in the AH. They might be kind enough to beta read, especially if your story aligns with their interests.

 

[SimonDoom]

As for story length: There's no "one" right length. Sounds like you are on a good track of trying something that's not going to be too long and too involved. That way you can just get it submitted, see what happens, and then plan to write again.

My first published story was about 4000 words. It was a great way to "get my feet wet."

You may have trouble getting editors or beta readers, especially until you get to know some of the authors, their stories, and get a feel for what is compatible with your style. There are some good authors here whose advice would be completely worthless to you, because they have different ideas about what a good story should be.

4000 words is a very normal length for a standard published story out there in the "real world." Many famous short stories are around that length, or a bit shorter or a bit longer. Lit readers seem to like, on average, stories that are a bit longer than that. 8000 to 15,000 words is a good "sweet spot" for reaching numbers of readers AND getting good scores. But to start, don't worry too much about that. The point is to write what you want, get it published, and then take stock of it. My experience was that I was a bit disappointed in my first story and its reception, but it really spurred me on to keep writing, and over the next year I had a lot of fun and was satisfied with the results I saw.

 

[1Mimi1]

Thanks again, I have reread what I have a couple times and have found something each time that needed some attention, all minor things.

Thanks SimonDoom, I am thinking I will find a spot where it can be ended for now but continued with another chapter if I want to add more at a later date.

 

[Cagivagurl]

My opinion...
Write... Forget about the advice you're offered. Some will be good, and others not so much.
It's your story, if you enter into it to tell your story, or your fantasy. Then do it...
Ignore all the noise, just do it.
Somebody else said you cannot please everybody. I agree whole heartedly.
If you try to please everybody, you will turn your story into a soup of nothingness.
Write... What you want ton write.
Stories with little or even no sex are still popular here. I have posted stories with very little sexual content, and they've done OK...
Enter into it with small expectations, and don't be afraid. If it's not popular, who cares it's your story... If you like it, then mission accomplished...

Advice... Have fun...
More advice... Ignore me... I don't know any more than you...

Cagivagurl

 

[1Mimi1]

Thanks Cagivagurl, I hear ya and appreciate your thoughts. As a noob it is so helpful to hear everyone's advice and thoughts. I agree, it would be a messy soup of a story if I try to please everyone. I will write what I like and hope others will as well. I am already enjoying my story just writing what I have.

Mimi

 

[TarnishedPenny]

Welcome @1Mimi1! You've embarked on a journey of some frustration and uncertainty, but also one of great satisfaction, but it's like a cat learning to swim; there's only one way to experience it. Write it to suit yourself and put it wherever you think appropriate. If it matters, the classic bit of advice on selecting categories is @Tx Tall Tales' Love Your Readers: Categories.

Generalizations are always suspect (including that one), but in general, when it comes to stories here, men tend to lean more towards the action and women tend to lean more towards the feelings and emotions. That doesn't mean men don't enjoy romance nor women raw sex, but it seems to be tilted that way. Your wanting stories with more than just Tab-A-in-Slot-B sex is, in other words, perfectly normal.

The good news is that there are lots of the other kind here; it's just a case of finding them. You can simply ask for recommendations and you can try female writers' stories. I found one good tactic was to find an author whose works I liked and then look at their favourites.

And, yes, this is the perfect place for such questions. Good luck!