Posting a story without sex in "Erotic Couplings"

[SOMEthinBLOOMin]

All,

My last story "Coconut Oil" has no sex per se in Part 1. There is nudity and kissing but no sexual acts between two people. The idea is for the tension to build up before this takes place in a subsequent part.

My first story "Hot Springs", which had a sexual act although not full-blown sexual intercourse, got 5 comments in the first couple of days whereas Coconut Oil did not get any.

My questions to the community.
Should I not post a story until there is sex involved if I want to get comments and a higher rating?
Will you even read a story titled with the suffix "Part 1" if there in no Part 2 yet?

I am trying to figure out the writing etiquette and the system and appreciate any feedback I could get.

Thanks guys and girls.

 

[nakdsub]

Once again...

Give the story 110% of your effort, do a good job, then let the chips fall where they may knowing you did your best.
You can not out guess your readers, you can only give them your best.

 

[Ellafun]

Are you only submitting your story for ratings? Or because you love the story and want to share it? I guess it depends on why you are posting the story.

I couldn't care less about the votes, since most readers don't bother to vote anyway. It's a great place to launch your writing and have it read. Just my opinion.

 

[sun_sea_sky]

... most readers don't bother to vote anyway.

One percent.

Funnily enough, that's about the same percentage of people who download Shareware who pay for it.

 

[TxRad]

It might also be the category, EC is kind of a catch all for things that don't quite fit anywhere else. Or are a little hard edged for some other categories and yes, EC readers expect sex. If it's not there then the story should be some place like Romance.

 

[PennLady]

As Ellafun noted, few readers vote and even fewer leave comments.

If you have a multi-chapter story in EC, you may get away with no sex for a bit, but I agree with Tx, I think most readers expect sex in an EC story, which they might not in Romance. However, erotic doesn't necessarily have to mean sex (although on this site it usually does). If you have a lot of sexual tension, or something like that, you may do just as well.

 

[Bramblethorn]

My questions to the community.
Should I not post a story until there is sex involved if I want to get comments and a higher rating?
Will you even read a story titled with the suffix "Part 1" if there in no Part 2 yet?

I haven't tested for myself, but from comments on other stories I get the impression many readers don't like reading all the way through in search of a sex scene that isn't there. You might still get comments, but they won't be the sort you want to get...

Also, some authors will post a Part 1 that's all setup and then never get around to finishing and posting Part 2, which leaves readers wary of that sort of thing. You're probably better waiting until you've got the second part written and then posting them as one installment.

 

[Cinner]

My experience has been that readers want sex and lots of it on this site. If it's not there then you get comments complaining that it's not there and inviting you to leave the site.

The saving grace is that the people who do read your story for the literary content may recognise what you're trying to do and contact you privately. In my experience they often give tips on how you can polish your work for the future.

All the best with this! I look forward to reading your work.