Romance, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Interracial or Erotic Coupling

[Kitlekyana]

I'm doing a story on pirates in sixteenth century England where there is an interracial couple who fall for each other. I'm trying to figure out under what category to put it in but I'm completely stumped because it could fit right into any of them.

After doing an informal survey I discovered that in order of popularity, readers search for stories in the following categories;

1. Incest/Taboo
2. Interracial Love
3. First Time
4. Group Sex
5. Anal
6. Exhibitionist Voyeur
7. Erotic Couplings
8. Celebrity
9. Sci-Fi & Fantasy
10. Romance

I'm almost tempted to interchange categories with each chapter. What would you do?

 

[Darkniciad]

Sci-Fi & Fantasy is out, unless that's the sixteenth century on another world. You're doing a historical fiction, not fantasy. ( Unless the Kraken or some mermaids pop up at some point, in which case, the category fits )

Erotic couplings is the catch-all, so with any other possibility, you want to avoid it.

The readerships of Interracial and Romance are comparable, and the story seems as if it would fit in either. My guess is that the Romance readers would be more accepting of historical fiction.

 

[free_and_easy]

Do you mean each chapter would be dedicated to each one of the themes you've listed, in the order shown? That would be a challenge! Make for interesting reading, though...

 

[lovecraft68]

Its Romance or interracial. To me the deciding factor is how far are you pushing the interracial aspect? If they just happen to be from two different ethnic backgrounds and the story goes from there, then romance


But if you are pushing the interracial aspect as a taboo, or forbidden love then go with that cagetgory.

I will also not hesitate to mention as I do often that "interracial" bugs me.

Black/white/asian etc... we are all of the human race.

Non human technically is interracial because those creatures are a different race then humans, but I'm pretty sure the black family that moved next door to me last week are human.

 

[Darkniciad]

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Werewolves ( depending upon the mythology ), aliens, and whatnot would be a different species, not a different race.

A race is a subset ( only of thinking beings, so far as I know ) of a species, based almost entirely upon physical appearance.

 

[lovecraft68]

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

Werewolves ( depending upon the mythology ), aliens, and whatnot would be a different species, not a different race.

A race is a subset ( only of thinking beings, so far as I know ) of a species, based almost entirely upon physical appearance.

And humans are all of one race. Color and ethnic back ground aside we are one species/race whichever you prefer.

Other categories have encounters between different races/species a werewolf is a different species than a Vampire and a Centaur is certainly a different species than a person

Race/species. Whatever, you know what I am saying.

 

[3113]

Interracial

I'm doing a story on pirates in sixteenth century England where there is an interracial couple who fall for each other. I'm trying to figure out under what category to put it in but I'm completely stumped because it could fit right into any of them.

I'd say put it into Interracial, as that's popular and seems to suit--meaning you *imply* that it's one of the main story elements. A lot of stories in that category take place back in time. HOWEVER, you might have a problem if your story also contains Incest. Although at the top of the popularity list, Incest is not to everyone's taste. Someone reading an Interracial story is likely to accept different types of sex practices like anal or group. But the minute there's some father-daughter sex, they'll freak because they, perhaps, have issues with such.

So, I recommend you go over your story and work through it bit. Keep some things in mind. Categories like "Anal" mean that those reading that category want only a story with heterosexual Anal sex. They won't care if the characters are interracial, but what they want, beginning to end, is to see anal sex. Not group or any other type. Ditto for Group. Those reading it want heterosexual Group sex, that's why they pick that category. They may not care if it's a fantasy or interracial, but they want to see people in groups most of the time. If your story doesn't focus on people having a lot of group sex, Group is not the right category.

Celebrity readers want celebrities having heterosexual sex. Period. If you don't have Celebrities from start to finish in the story, readers of that category won't like it. And Incest want heterosexual Incest. Start to finish--the story of a mom and son, the story of a brother and sister, etc. Meanwhile Erotic couplings just want an erotic encounter between a man and a woman, and Romance wants romance. While popular, do not put your story there. Romance readers will take issue with group (they want monogamy) and incest.

So the question isn't what's popular, or what kinds of sex you have in your story, but which category won't have readers saying: "Hey, there's only one scene of X in this story! Why did you put this here and make me think it was going to be all X, when there's only one scene that has X?"

Which brings me back to Interracial. That one gives you the most flexibility. It can have anal, group, romance, couples, fantasy, etc, so long as the main protagonists are interracial. But I really, really think you should re-think that part of the story that has incest. Those that want it, really want it and if your whole story is that, to Incest it goes. But those reading other categories, aren't likely to want it and will stop reading your story if it shows up. The same goes for gay male/lesbian by the way. Readers of these other categories want their sex totally hetero, beginning to end. If there's even a little gay male/lesbian, into Gay male/Lesbian it goes.

That help?

 

[3113]

I will also not hesitate to mention as I do often that "interracial" bugs me.

Black/white/asian etc... we are all of the human race.

True enough, but it goes along with whatever people have been raised to think of as "forbidden" by their culture. Anytime you have something like that, whether it makes sense or not, it becomes a sexual fetish.

 

[sr71plt]

Maybe we should pin down interracial. You mean Caucasian and Black or Chinese/Japanese, right? If it's an Arab, (pure) Hispanic, or Persian pirate (or fair damsal), they, technically, would be labeled Caucasian.

Does it have a happy, "ever after" ending for the two? If so, probably Romance is your best bet.

 

[TE999]

Definitely Romance. That meshes with the Pirate theme. Interracial's a bogus cat IMO since we're all human beings (unless you're playing off some cultural taboo); Sci-Fi/Fantasy isn't historical fiction and other aspects such as Incest, unless it's integral to the plot, isn't the primary theme of the story ... so, Romance it is.

 

[3113]

Definitely NOT romance!

Definitely Romance.

Interrical may be bogus, but you did notice how high it is in popularity didn't you? There are plenty of readers who still go for it, however bogus it might be, especially if the story takes place in the past when interracial relations were still taboo.

As for "Definitely Romance"--sorry, no. Definitely not romance. Once the lovers have found each other, "group" is out as that isn't monogamous--in fact any sex that isn't inherently "romantic" is out. Anal has to be handled very carefully, as does Exhibitionist Voyeur.

You can believe me on this as I wrote up a romantic threesome with anal and voyeurism. I gave it to an e-publisher of romances. I have never had stricter editing done on a story than on this one. Every word and move was discussed and argued, every sex scene had to be handled as if it were made of crystal--and the anal was flat out rejected. Even when it was finished, and as tame and sweet as I and the editors could make it, many romance readers wouldn't read the story because it didn't show a monogamous love between two individuals.

Romance readers are the pickiest of all. Definitely not romance.

 

[3113]

Fantasy?

Addendum: thinking about it, if your story has magic or fantasy elements in it, like "Pirates of the Carribean" then the best place is Fantasy/Sci-Fi. That category will swallow anything. In fact, I don't think readers of that Category are afraid of anything. Incest, anal, gay/lesbian, bring it on. The Fantasy/Sci-fi readers enjoy it all.

But it must have magic in it

 

[TE999]

Interrical may be bogus, but you did notice how high it is in popularity didn't you? There are plenty of readers who still go for it, however bogus it might be, especially if the story takes place in the past when interracial relations were still taboo.

As for "Definitely Romance"--sorry, no. Definitely not romance. Once the lovers have found each other, "group" is out as that isn't monogamous--in fact any sex that isn't inherently "romantic" is out. Anal has to be handled very carefully, as does Exhibitionist Voyeur.

You can believe me on this as I wrote up a romantic threesome with anal and voyeurism. I gave it to an e-publisher of romances. I have never had stricter editing done on a story than on this one. Every word and move was discussed and argued, every sex scene had to be handled as if it were made of crystal--and the anal was flat out rejected. Even when it was finished, and as tame and sweet as I and the editors could make it, many romance readers wouldn't read the story because it didn't show a monogamous love between two individuals.

Romance readers are the pickiest of all. Definitely not romance.

Gotta disagree here, 3.

A Pirate theme involving a couple is Romantic ... it's a common 'bodice ripper' plot and those sell like mittens in January.

As I recall, Interracial romances were more 'tolerated or accepted' in many cultures back in the 16th Century than in the 19th through the 20th ... note I said many, not all, cultures. It also depended upon the races involved ... black and white were probably the least 'tolerated/accepted' ... Asian, Pacific Islander and East Indian were less 'objectionable' ... Victorian Britons were probably the most intolerant and patronizing toward all other races (White Man's Burden and all that).

So once a couple 'finds each other' there's no more Romance? That's awfully cynical and definitely not realistic ... maybe after ten years, but not right away.

If you're going for 'kink' or other 'taboo' sex practices then maybe Erotic Couplings would work. We definitely need a new story cat called 'Erotic Adventures'.

Finally, Romance readers are heavily into the 'HEA' mode ... so no 'Romeo and Juliet' type of endings.

 

[JackLuis]

In a related question:
I'm writing a many chaptered story that has a lot of characters and each chapter is different. So could each chapter have different tags?

The Main character will be having sex or something with many women and ends up with two of them pregnant, yet the story is HEA, as he converts to LDS and marries both of them to give the kids his name.

I had thought that it would be primarily a Romance, but will have a range of Mature, Group, Anal, and other things, maybe not in the same chapters or with the same characters.

 

[voluptuary_manque]

I find that there is a strong strain of "Big Black Stud Makes White Girl His Slave" in Interracial. If you don't do that, be prepared for trolls. It isn't as thoroughly negative a category as LW but it isn't simply Mister Smith falls hard for sweet Lily Tsong. Not the easiest solution, after all.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I find it hard to believe that an author doesn't know what his or her story's really about. There must be some central sexual theme or angle you're playing with. The idea that anyone would write an Interracial Fantasy-Pirate First-Time Group Anal Sex story that puts equal importance on each is just kind of hard to get one's mind around.

A story can include different elements without being about them, but usually its about something. A story about a pirate having anal sex is different from a story about anal sex in which one of the people is a pirate.

If you really can't tell what your story's about, 3113's got the right idea: post it in the category most likely to offend people. Then they can't say, "Oh my God! I didn't know there was going to be Piracy/Interracial Sex/Butt-fucking in your story! It made me sick!"

 

[3113]

Gotta disagree here, 3.

A Pirate theme involving a couple is Romantic ... it's a common 'bodice ripper' plot and those sell like mittens in January.

Yes, a pirate them can be romantic, and yes, it is a common bodice ripper plot and those sell very well. But they DO NOT sell if they contain group, anal, and incest. No more than any other bodice ripper romances that also contain those things.

I mean, how much do you know about romances? Do you know, for example, that the most popular romances right now involve Amish lovers who don't even kiss? Romance readers really don't like all that extra kinky stuff in their pirate (or any other kind of) romances unless it's done "romantically" (BDSM in romance is tying up the girl with silk scarves). Otherwise, it's like ordering your favorite dish and finding that the cook has topped it with things you hate: those weird herbs, spices or sauces you can't stand. You'd send it back and tell them to give you one without those, right?

So, if this writer has all those things in this story and wants to keep them all in their story, then NOT romance however much romance readers like Pirates. They won't read past the first incest scene.

As I recall, Interracial romances were more 'tolerated or accepted' in many cultures back in the 16th Century

I guess you haven't read Othello lately. However, the one thing that was absolutely and historically accurate about about race in the past was that seeing people of other races wasn't common. So, white westerners with blonde hair could be seen as strange and exotic to those in cultures with few to no Caucasians, and vice versa. This is what interracial readers are often after--for the hero and heroine to find each other exotic, unique, different. Going back in the past allows the writer to give the reader that--a scene where the hero/heroine are simply amazed by the color of each other's skin, hair, eyes, having never seen such before. And a way to make it all exotic, even taboo, as they explore each other's radically different cultures and sexual practices. Why do you think Shogun was such a popular novel? Not just because we got to see the white man hero viewed as exotic in 17th century (year is 1600) Japan, but because he had to learn and explore what was to him a strange culture that often engaged in--to him--taboo practices.

So once a couple 'finds each other' there's no more Romance?

Did I say that? The whole romance isn't in the couple "finding" each other, it's in how they manage to be with each other, in spite of whatever is keeping them apart, like the girl being the daughter of the aristocracy, and the man being a pirate, etc. Or there being another guy in the mix vying for the girl's hand...and who knows which one she'll pick?

But yes, once they find each other and have sex with each other, they can't go "all the way" with anyone else. That would be cheating. True romance to romance readers is the romance of finding your soulmate. Why would you want to have sex with anyone else?

 

[3113]

"Oh my God! I didn't know there was going to be Piracy/Interracial Sex/Butt-fucking in your story! It made me sick!"

It's the "Piracy butt-fucking" that turns stomachs. Much more horrific than regular butt-fucking.

 

[sr71plt]

I find it hard to believe that an author doesn't know what his or her story's really about.

Unfortunately, I don't find that hard to believe that about a big slug of "authors."

 

[Cruel2BKind]

I'm doing a story on pirates in sixteenth century England where there is an interracial couple who fall for each other. I'm trying to figure out under what category to put it in but I'm completely stumped because it could fit right into any of them.

After doing an informal survey I discovered that in order of popularity, readers search for stories in the following categories;

1. Incest/Taboo
2. Interracial Love
3. First Time
4. Group Sex
5. Anal
6. Exhibitionist Voyeur
7. Erotic Couplings
8. Celebrity
9. Sci-Fi & Fantasy
10. Romance

I'm almost tempted to interchange categories with each chapter. What would you do?

One other thing to keep in mind... The editors have the final say.

A little while back, I wrote a story about a young virgin slave girl who is lovingly and gently deflowered by a kind master. I wanted to put it under 'first time' but when it came out, the editors had changed it to Noncon/reluctance.

http://www.literotica.com/s/the-slave-girl-2

Whatever your intentions, the editors might cock it up anyway

 

[Stella_Omega]

It's the "Piracy butt-fucking" that turns stomachs. Much more horrific than regular butt-fucking.

A few years back, that was the only kind of butt-fucking I was writing... never achieved a wide audience, so perhaps you're right.

 

[estragon]

If it's a series, you can put each chapter in a different category, if the story fits. DG Hear, MFG, just did that with his series "A Thousand Bucks", a five-chapter production that did quite nicely, and he only twice used the same category.

 

[Feotakahari]

Also note that if a category is more frequently searched for, that just means it gets more readers. There are no implications regarding the readers it gets. For instance, posting a story in Transsexuals will get you twice as many pageviews as posting it in Sci-Fi, but will usually get you a similar number of votes, comments, and favorites. (Presumably, Transsexuals attracts a lot of readers who're there for a quick stroke and don't bother with anything else.)

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I mean, how much do you know about romances? Do you know, for example, that the most popular romances right now involve Amish lovers who don't even kiss? Romance readers really don't like all that extra kinky stuff in their pirate (or any other kind of) romances unless it's done "romantically" (BDSM in romance is tying up the girl with silk scarves). Otherwise, it's like ordering your favorite dish and finding that the cook has topped it with things you hate: those weird herbs, spices or sauces you can't stand. You'd send it back and tell them to give you one without those, right?

I don't know anything about romances. But I do know about romantic porn, and I know that publishers make a distinction between Romance, Porn, and Romantic Porn, and specialize in one or the other, and for exactly the reason you say: they don't want to offend their Romance readers with squicky sex, or disappoint their squick-seeking readers with bland Amish hand-holding.

I'd assume, though, that anyone who comes to a site called Literotica looking for Romance understands they're going to get Romantic Porn.

But the rule that applies here is the Maximum Squick Rule, and as Cruel2BKind says, that's how the editors will categorize your story. They'll list it under the category with the most potential to offend the unsuspecting reader. For instance, if you've got a story that combines First Time sex with Incest, they'll list it under Incest, because Incest has the most squick potential.

It would be interesting to see the categories listed by squick factor. I'm not sure where Interracial would fit, but no doubt Incest rates pretty high.

Too bad no one's written a story about interracial incest...

 

[3113]

I'd assume, though, that anyone who comes to a site called Literotica looking for Romance understands they're going to get Romantic Porn.

You're quite right. My example of the Amish romance wasn't perhaps the best example for what I was trying to emphasize. Which was that unlike straight-up erotica readers who view the sex as the meat of the story and something like romance as the spice, romance readers see romance as the important part. So much so that many can do without sex scenes if there's enough romantic tension and drama.

But, as you say, those that come here undoubtedly do want their romance spiked with sex. And the actual point was, as you say, a matter of squick. What kind of sex will turn off a reader even if the story is in their favorite genre.

In regards to romance readers, I can pretty much predict that if the story opens with a pirate captain butt-fucking his daughter and calling in the first mate so that he can watch his daughter suck another man's cock while he butt-fucks her...romance readers will not only stop reading, but post nasty comments. Even those who love and adore erotic pirate bodice-rippers will hate it.