sex/no sex ratio of an erotic story, what's the perfect balance?

[dzyrotica]

As the title says, I'm curious about your opinions.

 

[sr71plt]

Perfect balance for which of the tens of thousands of individualistic readers of the stories here?

Just write whatever balance turns you on and post it. Such questions as this have no universally applicable answers and pretty are much meaningless wheels spinning rather than getting it written and posted.

 

[andy_charles]

As the title says, I'm curious about your opinions.

It completely depends on the genre and/or the type of story you want to write.

For quick, five minute stuff you don't need to worry too much about this.

But everyone knows that good erotica stems from a storyline with characters and these characters need time to breathe and develop within the story, usually in a situation where they're not shagging their brains out.

Ironically, this is where quite a few soft porno flicks get it right, despite being written by someone whose last job was trying to sell lint in a tumble dryer. At least they get the ratio right.

 

[hoo_hoo_boo]

As the title says, I'm curious about your opinions.

How do you define what sex is and measure it? I've read things that don't seem to have any sex in them until the last paragraph and then, on reflection, the whole lot of it had been crafted to be entirely sexual and it hits like a bomb.

The skill of a writer is not about measuring things- it's about writing things worth reading. It's about being new and vital in one's content and approach. Formula precludes this. Often it may fail, but the courage is admired and the failure understood. In time one develops skill and confidence and the failures dissipate.

 

[PennLady]

As the title says, I'm curious about your opinions.

There is no perfect balance in general, and probably not even specifically. Each genre is different, each story in a genre is different, each writer is different and each reader as well. You'll never get a solid answer to that question.

 

[dzyrotica]

Thanks for all the replies, points taken and understood

 

[satisfy]

I think every story has it's own balance and what effect you're going for. Something arousing but not "sex" is that sex as far as your description goes? Sometimes you can't control the balance either, it just wants to be where it is most comfortable.

 

[Bramblethorn]

How do you define what sex is and measure it? I've read things that don't seem to have any sex in them until the last paragraph and then, on reflection, the whole lot of it had been crafted to be entirely sexual and it hits like a bomb.

Yeah, this. One of the things I try to do in writing is blur the separation between sexual and non-sexual.

eg: A woman's having a bad time at a work Christmas party, because her bosses are jerks and she doesn't have any friends in her office and she thinks she's going to lose her job... and that's what drives her to think "fuck it, going to do something stupid" and kiss the boss's daughter.

As to what readers want, that varies. I've had one reader complain that my stuff is too slow with not enough sex and others have said they really like the balance. Pick something and do it well; the readers who like that sort of thing will stay and those who won't will go.

(Except for areas like LW where they'll hang around whining forever, but just ignore 'em.)