Story Category

[Syzoth]

Hello.

Was hoping to get feedback from other writers regarding a specific question.

So, I've already posted the first 2 chapters of an incest storyline. If I had to describe the tone thus far, I would call it "romantic and playful".

However, I'm currently working on Chapter 3, and it's going to be much darker. Without giving away too many details, it'll still revolve around an incestuous relationship, but will be heavy on nonconsent and BDSM.

My question is, since the tone of Chapter is going to be different from 1 & 2, should I still keep it under Incest, or submit it under Nonconsent or BDSM?

I do think it belongs in Incest because that's the overarching storyline. However, Chapter 3 will heavily involve Nonconsent/BDSM, and I can foresee that people who read the first 2 will think "This is not an incest story."

I've posted other stories where readers commented that they were submitted in the wrong category which I felt affected readership.

Thank you for your constructive feedback!


-Sy

 

[ElectricBlue]

Laurel generally corrals all Incest together, regardless where you want it to go. You might want to put a note up front, since non-con, by all accounts, does not go down well in I&T.

 

[SimonDoom]

Incest. 100%.

First of all, EB is right: Laurel probably will put it there anyway.

Second, Incest has BY FAR the biggest readership. It's not even close. Always post in Incest if you can because you will get more readers.

Third, although some Incest readers may not like BDSM elements, they'll be much more open to it than BDSM readers will be to incest. Incest is very divisive. Many dislike it. So always post an incest story in Incest even if it has other elements.

 

[lovecraft68]

I go with incest as its the trump category

But be prepared for some lower scores and maybe a couple of negative comments, the I/T crowd is not big on non consent, they like their family couplings fun and consensual.

Even hardcore consensual BDSM isn't widely accepted there, I earned that a long time ago with my SWB series.

 

[Syzoth]

Thanks!

Laurel generally corrals all Incest together, regardless where you want it to go. You might want to put a note up front, since non-con, by all accounts, does not go down well in I&T.

That's exactly what I was thinking of doing (submitting in Incest and putting in an "author's note" up front).

Thank you so much!

-Sy

 

[Syzoth]

Thank you!

Incest. 100%.

First of all, EB is right: Laurel probably will put it there anyway.

Second, Incest has BY FAR the biggest readership. It's not even close. Always post in Incest if you can because you will get more readers.

Third, although some Incest readers may not like BDSM elements, they'll be much more open to it than BDSM readers will be to incest. Incest is very divisive. Many dislike it. So always post an incest story in Incest even if it has other elements.

I was actually thinking the same thing as well... that incest readers would probably be more open to BDSM elements than BDSM readers would be to incest. Good to know that I was on the right track.

Thank you for your input.

 

[Syzoth]

Thanks

I go with incest as its the trump category

But be prepared for some lower scores and maybe a couple of negative comments, the I/T crowd is not big on non consent, they like their family couplings fun and consensual.

Even hardcore consensual BDSM isn't widely accepted there, I earned that a long time ago with my SWB series.

Thank you for your thoughts.

I considered not making Chapter 3 so dark, but there's a natural progression to my storyline that I want to adhere to and, without sounding too snotty, I do want to write the story that I want to tell.

I've only posted one BDSM story on Literotica, and it was received fairly well. But my noncon stories weren't. That's part of the reason why I asked for feedback on this thread.

Thank you so much, it really helps.

 

[Enchantment_of_Nyx]

...I've only posted one BDSM story on Literotica, and it was received fairly well. But my noncon stories weren't...

Counterintuitively, I'm finding that non-con readers tend not to like their stories too dark. The exception seems to be historical non-con. I recently posted a non-con story that was in my opinion only mildly dark, and I got a few complaints that it was just too heavy. One person was kind enough to leave me a comment saying that if she had rated it, she would have rated it a 2. She didn't rate it at all because she liked the writing and therefore didn't want to give me a 2. You can imagine the effect a significant number of that type of content-related votes would have on a story's score and it may explain why your non-con wasn't well received.

On the story I was referencing, I put a very specific warning at the top because I was worried about readers from my kinder, gentler series stumbling across it and being upset by it. Readers of that series are sometimes upset by the main characters having communication issues, so I had reason to worry. I hadn't anticipated that the general non-con readership would be disturbed. My warning advised that the story:

• was not about a healthy relationship
• was not about sane behavior
• was an exploration of emotions on the edge
• had the feel of non-con
• included minor violence
• included rough sex.

The warning proved inadequate, even though those were exactly the issues that the readers who felt it was too dark complained of. One reader suggested that it might help if next time, I included the word "very" in the warning. That sounds silly at first, but her explanation was reasonable. A lot of the non-con stories have a warning at the top just because it's non-con, even though it's already in that category. I though that my warning would work because it was specific about what the reader would encounter, but she said she read it and thought it was just my version of a standard warning. I doubt adding "very" would have changed much, but I could have made the warning stronger. So, if you post in non-con again, the lesson I've taken from my experience is that you can't possibly make the warning too strong, even if it seems much stronger than the content justifies.

I don't want to put you off posting something dark in non-con. There were plenty of people who left positive comments on my story, and my score was still in a decent range. Going dark has an impact, though, and I'd suggest doing whatever you can to warn off sensitive non-con readers.

 

[davet_1_1]

It's also worth considering if you're concerned about such things, posting in a different category can have an impact on ratings, likes etc. I've pivoted a recent chapter from NC/reluctance to exhibitionist and voyeur, which ironically seems to be generating significantly fewer casual views

 

[WoodmanStark]

I considered not making Chapter 3 so dark, but there's a natural progression to my storyline that I want to adhere to and, without sounding too snotty, I do want to write the story that I want to tell.

Nothing "snotty" about that. You're the writer; it's your story to tell.

 

[Syzoth]

I think your counter-intuation is correct!

Counterintuitively, I'm finding that non-con readers tend not to like their stories too dark. The exception seems to be historical non-con. I recently posted a non-con story that was in my opinion only mildly dark, and I got a few complaints that it was just too heavy. One person was kind enough to leave me a comment saying that if she had rated it, she would have rated it a 2. She didn't rate it at all because she liked the writing and therefore didn't want to give me a 2. You can imagine the effect a significant number of that type of content-related votes would have on a story's score and it may explain why your non-con wasn't well received.

On the story I was referencing, I put a very specific warning at the top because I was worried about readers from my kinder, gentler series stumbling across it and being upset by it. Readers of that series are sometimes upset by the main characters having communication issues, so I had reason to worry. I hadn't anticipated that the general non-con readership would be disturbed. My warning advised that the story:

• was not about a healthy relationship
• was not about sane behavior
• was an exploration of emotions on the edge
• had the feel of non-con
• included minor violence
• included rough sex.

The warning proved inadequate, even though those were exactly the issues that the readers who felt it was too dark complained of. One reader suggested that it might help if next time, I included the word "very" in the warning. That sounds silly at first, but her explanation was reasonable. A lot of the non-con stories have a warning at the top just because it's non-con, even though it's already in that category. I though that my warning would work because it was specific about what the reader would encounter, but she said she read it and thought it was just my version of a standard warning. I doubt adding "very" would have changed much, but I could have made the warning stronger. So, if you post in non-con again, the lesson I've taken from my experience is that you can't possibly make the warning too strong, even if it seems much stronger than the content justifies.

I don't want to put you off posting something dark in non-con. There were plenty of people who left positive comments on my story, and my score was still in a decent range. Going dark has an impact, though, and I'd suggest doing whatever you can to warn off sensitive non-con readers.

I've also noticed that non-con readers often don't like their stories very dark. I thought it was just me! And I include a lot of warnings before my stories to warn people about topics or scenes that they might not be expecting, ie- a bit of noncon or BDSM in a story that I submitted under "Romance" for example, but you're right; it often may not help, or may I just need to make the warning stronger, like you recommended.

And I give kudos to the reader who explained why she wanted to give you a 2, but didn't. I have so much appreciation for anyone who tells me that they may not have liked my story but complimented me on my writing skills and imagination, or vice versa. I get a lot of comments like, "I read the first sentence of your story and hated it so much that I gave it a 1". Of course, they're probably just being trolls on purpose, right?

Anyway, I don't want to ramble. Thanks for your feedback!

-Sy

 

[Syzoth]

I agree!

It's also worth considering if you're concerned about such things, posting in a different category can have an impact on ratings, likes etc. I've pivoted a recent chapter from NC/reluctance to exhibitionist and voyeur, which ironically seems to be generating significantly fewer casual views

I know this sounds silly, but when I first started posting on Literotica, I didn't truly appreciate how crucial submitting under the correct category is. I submitted a story called "A Woman Scorned" that was quite personal to me because it was about an actual friend of mine. I submitted under "Romance" and it probably should've been under "Noncon". I have a feeling that's why it didn't rate very well with the readers...

... or maybe it just wasn't one of my better-written stories!

Thanks for the input!

-Sy

 

[Syzoth]

Thanks!

Nothing "snotty" about that. You're the writer; it's your story to tell.

I hate to admit it, but when I first started writing, I often wrote what I thought people would want to read, which wasn't always necessarily the story I wanted to tell. I think a lot of that had to do with confidence and pride... I never wanted to see a low rating on my stories. But I take it all with a grain of salt now and just write from the heart.

 

[sideshowlepke]

Thanks!

Lots of great insight in this thread, my gratitude to the OP and everyone that took the time to respond. Important stuff I did not know!