Questions, questions. One of those nights.

[Lovepotion69]

So, I'm utterly bored and it's 1:33am. As usual I think too much at this time.

In order to do something useful with my boredom, I might as well ask a couple of questions that have been lingering in my head lately.

1) When you write, do you write stories you'd like to read, or stories you think the readers will like?
I'm asking as I've gotten used to the whole "who are your readers?" question. Now I'm trying to find a balance between writing stuff I would like to read, but also adjusting plots, style and dialogue to the expectations of the readers. Especially within certain catgories.

2) Do you have too much detail, or too little?
When I was younger I always had heaps of details, explaining surroundings, people etc. It's taken me long time to cut down on that, and my awfully long sentences. Now I'm worried I am keeping things too simple. Which works best?

 

[LorriLove]

hiya

i don't write stories as yet, i have one half finished, but i do read a lot, i prefer to know every relevant detail, and i mean relevant.
if things have been cut out to save space sort of thing and it becomes obvious or makes the story line hard to follow, i hit the back button, i don't like guessing games.

as for who do you write for, well unless you're doing a request story for a specific person, i'd say write what you know about and are comfy with honey. trying to force out something you don't really know about or that isn't really your thing will destroy you as a writer eventually.

i think that maybe it's more likely that your stories have got shorter because your trying to write stuff that doesn't interest you and just want to bash it off and get it on the board for your perceived audience. fuck them!! write for your enjoyment, you'll find an audience if your story's good enough.
by what i've seen of your stuff it 'is good enough'.

lorri xxxxxxx

 

[raphy]

Never having written any erotica, I'm not sure if I should comment, but here goes anyway...

1) A little of both. I write stories that I myself would like to read, but I do find myself considering my audience too .. That said, given my usual writing style and genre, my audience generally aren't too different from me, so it's not much of a stretch

2) Detail... Well, I've never been much of a descriptive writer. I like to move my stories via dialogue, so the description I do put in is usually quite detailed, but sparse.

 

[Guest]

LP: I write for myself. For Lit. I only need to add fucks, or near-fucks. That's as much as I give for the readers here. I don't really deal with plots and ordinary literary devices, to keep them in mind is annoying, and eventually would bore me, let alone a reader. Write for yourself, dear, always.

Detail depends on the whole piece. I can put in plenty of detail to suit a character, time, place, mood, etc., or go the other way. Again it only depends on what I want to do with the piece, not the reader.

That's just me. Perdita

 

[jfinn]

When I first thought about writing smut I lurked here and at a few other groups to see what the experts thought worked. I found that most felt there should be little plot, lots of sex and very, very short. So I thought about a story and started to write. The first chapter was five Lit pages, enough plot to choke a horse, but not with a blow job because somehow I'd managed to avoid writing any sex what so ever. I posted it anyway.

Even my short stories are long with lots of plot and little sex. But you know, I do okay. People write and tell me they like my stories and that's a huge kick. I don't get the huge numbers that a lot of people do here, but I'm happy and isn't that what it's supposed to be about?

The way I figure it, the readership at this site is so huge, just about anything is sure to please someone. And if it's only myself, well, that's okay too.

Jayne

 

[The_Fool]

1. I write what I find interesting first, but occasionally through in something that is a stretch or an experiment.

2. I try to be a minimalist when it comes to detail. I want the reader to complete the picture, making the story part theirs.

 

[Sabledrake]

1.) I write the sort of stories I'd like to read. Trying to write for the readers instead of for myself results in lukewarm tales.

2.) Probably a little too much detail.

Sabledrake

 

[Svenskaflicka]

Quoting the Swedish singer Maritza Horn:

För vill man bara ge vad folk vill ha,
och strunta i sig själv,
då får det va'!
Då har man tappat sin tro...
men om man lyssnar på sitt hjärta,
får man frid och ro...

(Translation: 'Cause if you just wanna give people what they want / and not care a bout yourself / then just leave it! / Then you've lost all your faith... / but if you listen to your heart, / you'll have piece of mind...

I never write what people want to read. I write what i want to read, myself. If other people like my stories, that's a great bonus.

I think I'm rather cheap when it comes to giving details. I think that details just disturb the reader, and takes the mind off the plot.

 

[Icingsugar]

1.- It's all about me, me and me. If I write sto5ries that I think others will like, there is simply no way of knowing beforehand that ANYONE will like it at all. I'd have no chance telling wether a story that I wouldn't like to read myself would any good at all If I write a story that I can engoy reading myself, then I'll have at least pleased my most loyal fan. And hopefully I'm not alone in my aquired tastes.

2.- I tend to describe in utter detail certain things that goes on in my stories. And I also like to sidestep into observations of the world around the characters in the story, details that have avsolutely nothing to do with the stry itself, that are only there to paint a certain mood. It all gets quite prosaic after a while. But that's the way I like it. No need to rush a plot along.

 

[oggbashan]

1. I try to write stories that I like but I find it easier if I have a particular audience in mind. I trawl through Yahoo adult groups for minority interests and then try to build a story that will appeal to that group.

I failed on hairy armpits because I found another Lit author has a whole raft of stories about them. I couldn't match her skill and interest.

My most successful stories in terms of views and votes have been for the Literotica themed competitions - Earth Day and National Nude Day.

Most of my stories are in the Fetish category because those were the Yahoo groups I found first and facesitting/cunnilingus is very popular with nearly 200 groups.

When I write for myself alone the stories don't get finished.

2. I put too much detail into the plot and its development and not enough into the sex.

As I have said before, with most of my stories I could take the sex out and still have a readable story. That is a major flaw for a Literotica writer.

Og

 

[Lovepotion69]

Hi,
Some interesting replies so far. I agree that one should write mainly for yourself, no fun otherwise. But, I guess I was more thinking bout the whole angle thing. Blame it on the journalistic tendencies. I kinda pictured Lit like a magazine store. Those who are into women's mags go to that corner, those into cars buy those mags, music, men's mags, knitting, etc etc. You get the picture.
Now, naturally the person buying the men's mag has expectations on what type of content he wants. As a writer for that magazine, I have at least to try to adhere to those expectations. I doubt you'd be able to take an article published in a women's mag, and just copy it into a men's mag without alterations. That's what I mean by writing for the reader.

When it comes to the details, another Lit writer once told me that she used to put a lot of effort into writing detailed descriptions. She ended up getting lots of feedback asking her to please cut down on it a bit. The readers wanted to leave a little to their own imagination, not have it all served on a plate.

 

[deliciously_naughty]

1) When you write, do you write stories you'd like to read, or stories you think the readers will like?

2) Do you have too much detail, or too little?

1. I write for myself first and foremost. Even when it's something I might not have chosen to write (example...entries for the survivor contest in categories I wouldn't write for normally) it's to stretch myself as a writer and an attempt to find something erotic about the category. I enjoy the fact that I have readers, but if they all dissapeared tomorrow, I would still write.

2. I think I find a good balance for details. Of course, I get the occasional neanderthal who sends the "less talk/detail/background, more sex" and I roll my eyes in their general direction.

 

[raphy]

When it comes to the details, another Lit writer once told me that she used to put a lot of effort into writing detailed descriptions. She ended up getting lots of feedback asking her to please cut down on it a bit. The readers wanted to leave a little to their own imagination, not have it all served on a plate.

I'm fairly draconian when it comes to descriptions and detail - If I do describe something, I'll do it in detail, because it's my story, dammit. I want the box to be red, not blue, and it's not up to your imagination to determine whether it's blue or red.

If you want a blue box, you write the story and put a blue box in it instead of a red one..

(you, being the general 'you' directed at the reader, of course.. Not anyone on these boards in particular, hehe)

 

[Chicklet]

1) When you write, do you write stories you'd like to read, or stories you think the readers will like?

Actually, neither...I wouldn't read my stories, and I don't write my stories with my readers in mind. I write what I like to *write* - no "reading" involved.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I think I'd make a distinction between content and style here.

When I write, I'm seeking to express my own feelings and understanding of what it is I'm writing about. If I fail to communicate that, then I think the piece of writing is a failure. If your were supposed to know that Abigail was angry with Rodney and that didn't come across, then I've fucked up. If the passage in which I intended the language to sing and carry the reader along with it comes off as clumsy or, worse, silly, then I've fucked up again. I didn't achieve what I'd set out to achieve, and I want to know about it so I can see if I can fix it. It's simply a matter of wanting to learn how to master your instrument.

So communication is extremely important to me. I want to know if I've succeeded in communicating what it is I'm trying to say, otherwise why bother publishing your stuff at all?

All that concerns the "style" part; the mechanics of communication.

As to the "content", I'm not sure. I've done a lot of stuff by request, but usually the requests go no farther than describing a certain erotic situation. My earlier stuff was designed more to be sheer stroke fodder, lately I've taken to new directions. But I never find myself thinking in terms of what wil please the most people, if that's what you mean.


---dr.M.

 

[Guest]

 

[TheEarl]

I write what I can. This may sound silly, but I'm not the most fluent of writers. If I have an idea and I can finish it, then I write that. Most of my stories appeal to me, but they're not written for me.

I always end up with way too little detail. I see the characters and scenes in my head, but I never describe them unless I force myself to.

The Earl

 

[Chicklet]

Character Detail

I don't think that characters need to be described very much. I leave most of my characters to the readers imagination, giving them personalities through my writing rather than physical descriptions. Stories that spend two paragraphs giving stats on the looks of the characters bore me, and I usually click "back"