Why do so many...(writerly)

[oggbashan]

Well, they're likely to get the measurements wrong if they're making their estimations while in each other's arms. I'd like I'm reasonably good at judging, from any kind of distance, around how tall someone is.

My local police would wish that most witnesses had your eye.

They look for assailants described as "at least six foot" and arrest 5'6" ones.

Og

 

[Katyusha]

Presumably they do that because they themselves like to read that in a story. Different 9-inch strokes for different 36D cup folks. If you don't want to either write or read that, you certainly have the option to opt out of doing so.

Yes I do. I didn't post this because I got sick of reading it. I posted it because I don't understand it.

 

[Katyusha]

Well, in the 'hints to authors' it recommends that you do that. So I did in my first couple of stories. Then Jen bawled me out for it so I stopped. I think the last time I used anything resembling physical description was 'well-filled sweater'.

I have way too many weird images come to mind with "well-filled sweater" being that far out of context.

I never read the hints to authors. I was always better at using tiny bits of description here and there, rather than a laundry list that did or did not include measurements.

If people do it because it's what they enjoy reading though, then I do understand because I tend to write what I enjoy reading.

 

[Stella_Omega]

It irks me as well, especially when the measurements don't make any sense. It always makes me stop when a writer includes something like, "she was 5'7'', 100lbs" and then some large breast size. If you're that tall and 100lbs, I don't want to be having sex with you, 34DD or not.

But yeah, I usually gloss over numbers. I'd rather have a bit of a braod physical description versus a list of measurements.

Well at least the numbers say something to you, even if it's something you don't care for

When I'm reading for wank, the measuring part of my brain turns off and goes to sleep.

 

[sr71plt]

Yes I do. I didn't post this because I got sick of reading it. I posted it because I don't understand it.

But I responded to that. There are folks who get turned on by writing/reading the measurements and it's a very large-capacity Web site.

So, why don't you (and the other vigilantes here) just tend to knitting what you like and leave others free to enjoy spinning what they like?

If a writer were to ask for advice on best-practice writing, I would tell them that measurements are too much telling, not enough showing. But if they don't ask for advice I leave them the hell alone with what the enjoy writing/reading.

 

[silverstud66]

I'm new here so I still have a lot to learn; but personally I tend to provide measurements in relation to how important what they are describing is. For example if I am glancing at a girl I'll describe her as 'tall with long hair' or whatever, but only talk about her eye colour if I'm staring into her eyes - or her shoe size if I'm - as is most likely - admiring her feet!

 

[Katyusha]

I'm new here so I still have a lot to learn; but personally I tend to provide measurements in relation to how important what they are describing is. For example if I am glancing at a girl I'll describe her as 'tall with long hair' or whatever, but only talk about her eye colour if I'm staring into her eyes - or her shoe size if I'm - as is most likely - admiring her feet!

Is she wearing siren-red polish on her toenails?

 

[silverstud66]

Depends on the girl in question Red can look a bit common if it's worn by the wrong lady

 

[Stella_Omega]

I'm new here so I still have a lot to learn; but personally I tend to provide measurements in relation to how important what they are describing is. For example if I am glancing at a girl I'll describe her as 'tall with long hair' or whatever, but only talk about her eye colour if I'm staring into her eyes - or her shoe size if I'm - as is most likely - admiring her feet!

So you can tell her shoe size at a glance? That tells me more about you than her.

Which can be a good thing, actually-- I like to know what you are feeling when you tell me a story.

Check out "Fibonacci's Window" by BlackShanglan. Although there's a man telling a story about a woman, you will see that the actual story is about the narrator.

 

[sr71plt]

Does the element of description serve the plotline in some form? If not, might as well throw it out.

 

[silverstud66]

Thanks, I'll have a look at that later on this week - sure it'll be an interesting read

And meh, if her shoe's come off the chances are I've caught sight of the size printed inside it - and if I know a size from previously for whatever reason the chances are I'll remember it. In 'The Singer' for example (Woo, free plug ) I know the size of the girl I based the character on, so in that situation as narrator the size would probably be a thought prominent in my mind

Again, all just my $0.02 - I'd go with the view that if it's not relevant don't include it - but then relevance in itself is a relative subject according to the author and the reader

 

[talismania]

But like I said the most important thing for me is realism. If my characters don't think the way people actually think then I have less of a grip on them.

That's pretty much my take on it. People tend to notice things about other people. What they notice tells a lot about them. Description therefore helps to define the POV character just as much as it paints an image of the described character. It's a dandy writing tool.

As for description itself... readers will fill in any blanks according to what they want the character to look like. If I feel it's important to have nail down certain physical details, I'll find a way to slip that information into the story. If it's not important, the reader is free to customize!

There'll always be those who want to know the specs on a character, though. I'm not sure why. They just do. It's not a big problem on a site like this.

 

[SweetestThing]

I mean, my thing is still just about whether or not it can be worked in organically. Absolutely, if it's stilted and forced then it will take me right out of a story. If Betty says to Maggie "Here is my friend Joe. He is 6'4 and his cock is 8 inches long and two inches thick" then, yeah, that's a weird and doesn't work.

But in a story of mine I introduce a character who is a basketball player first by being described by someone who is a basketball fan. And I know enough about basketball to know that A) describing a basketball player as "tall" is no good as they all are and B) fans will frequently talk about the height and weight of their favourite players in specific terms. Bang. With one simple, realistic sentence you know how tall character A is and that character B is a big enough basketball fan to know how tall character A is.

These things do come up from time to time. If I want to borrow a dress from a friend and I ask her how big she is and she describes herself as "The merest slip of a girl, seemingly likely to blow away with the gust of a strong wind" then she would not be being helpful or responding like people.

 

[Stella_Omega]

I mean, my thing is still just about whether or not it can be worked in organically. Absolutely, if it's stilted and forced then it will take me right out of a story. If Betty says to Maggie "Here is my friend Joe. He is 6'4 and his cock is 8 inches long and two inches thick" then, yeah, that's a weird and doesn't work.

But in a story of mine I introduce a character who is a basketball player first by being described by someone who is a basketball fan. And I know enough about basketball to know that A) describing a basketball player as "tall" is no good as they all are and B) fans will frequently talk about the height and weight of their favourite players in specific terms. Bang. With one simple, realistic sentence you know how tall character A is and that character B is a big enough basketball fan to know how tall character A is.

These things do come up from time to time. If I want to borrow a dress from a friend and I ask her how big she is and she describes herself as "The merest slip of a girl, seemingly likely to blow away with the gust of a strong wind" then she would not be being helpful or responding like people.

Descriptions often tell us a lot about the person doing the describing.

 

[amicus]

Well what the hell, I am always wrong regardless of what I write....so here I go again...

Women with small breasts feel inferior. (Note the television program, "Me and my small breasts), not to mention that breast enhancement has been a factor in surgery for a long, long time.

And if you think the psyche of a guy with a five inch flaccid penis is the same as a guy with a one inch stub....well...write as you may.

I think Ogg got the closest....

Talllness or shortness...seldom is a woman seen with a companion shorter than herself...and seldom is a man seen with a woman taller than he....look around when you mingle with the masses.

I have a story that has been bubbling for months....a tiny little girl in college, I mean really small, not a dwarf or anything, but just diminutive and small, everywhere, ahem.

But...she has an affinity for really big guys, brutes, six foot six and big, heavy, 250 pounds of solid muscle, athletes, sorry Ogg, I don't have a clue to the ratio between your system and mine. This lil gal has in her mind that the big guy must have a BIG doodad and every time she spots a big guy, her eyes go right to his crotch...

Size doesn't matter my bony ass....it does...in everything!

Fire away...my armor is in place.

amicus

 

[oggbashan]

Well what the hell, I am always wrong regardless of what I write....so here I go again...

Women with small breasts feel inferior. (Note the television program, "Me and my small breasts), not to mention that breast enhancement has been a factor in surgery for a long, long time.

Some women with small breasts can feel inferior. They can feel much better about themselves in later life when some of their much larger-breasted sisters are suffering back pain from supporting sagging bra-busters. There are men who like small breasted women. There are several Yahoo Adult Groups about them. How do small-breasted women meet men who like small breasts? I'm not sure. Are there as many men who like small-breasted women as there are small-breasted women? Again, I'm not sure.

...But...she has an affinity for really big guys, brutes, six foot six and big, heavy, 250 pounds of solid muscle, athletes, sorry Ogg, I don't have a clue to the ratio between your system and mine. This lil gal has in her mind that the big guy must have a BIG doodad and every time she spots a big guy, her eyes go right to his crotch...

Size doesn't matter my bony ass....it does...in everything!

Fire away...my armor is in place.

amicus

I agree. Size matters.

I understand six foot six and 250 pounds. Not all of Literotica's readers will. Some will recognise 2 metres and 115 kilos better.

If you edit your description to read:

...she has an affinity for really big guys, brutes, very tall and big, heavy, masses of solid muscle, athletes..., This lil gal has in her mind that the big guy must have a BIG doodad and every time she spots a big guy, her eyes go right to his crotch...

I think that the revised description works just as well without a number in sight, and is international. It works for those who know feet and inches, for those who think in kilos, metric or any measurement system.

Size can be expressed without numbers. Numbers can make understanding MORE difficult, not easier, and dress sizes are an international nightmare.

Og

 

[driphoney]

Check out "Fibonacci's Window" by BlackShanglan. Although there's a man telling a story about a woman, you will see that the actual story is about the narrator.

That's a great little piece and I enjoyed a second spin through it. Unique and well-deserving of its green E.

And your comment, Stella, regarding it saying something about the person doing the narrating is good in a couple of directions. Don't you think this can be especially true in erotic writing? I can find a flawed character, or one I wouldn't normally be drawn to in real life, quite attractive because of the fondness portrayed by the narrator.

 

[ishtat]

Well what the hell, I am always wrong regardless of what I write....so here I go again...

I have a story that has been bubbling for months....a tiny little girl in college, I mean really small, not a dwarf or anything, but just diminutive and small, everywhere, ahem.

But...she has an affinity for really big guys, brutes, six foot six and big, heavy, 250 pounds of solid muscle, athletes, sorry Ogg, I don't have a clue to the ratio between your system and mine. This lil gal has in her mind that the big guy must have a BIG doodad and every time she spots a big guy, her eyes go right to his crotch...

Size doesn't matter my bony ass....it does...in everything!

Fire away...my armor is in place.

amicus

Hey Amicus, remember what Stella said in the post immediately prior to yours.

I'm 5cm (2 inches) shorter than my wife, 179 to 184cm and have a clutch of daughters ranging from 184 to 193cm (a fraction less than 6' 4"). Mebbe guys of your generation were a bit scared of such women, but the younger men certainly aren't, judged by the numbers that turn up at our door.

 

[Bebeslut]

If a woman is very short and the man she is with is very tall (or the other way around), they are likely to get the measurements wrong. If you have to look up a long way, the difference between 5'10" and 6'3" is difficult to estimate. Looking down, the difference between 4'11" and 5'3" is also difficult.

"Just as high as my heart" is a better description than "She fits under my armpit".

Or "My eyes were level with her cleavage" is probably better than "Her nipples poked my eyes shut."

Og

I dunno. "She fits under my armpit" does have an allure. But only if you're sweet-talking.

 

[Stella_Omega]

That's a great little piece and I enjoyed a second spin through it. Unique and well-deserving of its green E.

And your comment, Stella, regarding it saying something about the person doing the narrating is good in a couple of directions. Don't you think this can be especially true in erotic writing? I can find a flawed character, or one I wouldn't normally be drawn to in real life, quite attractive because of the fondness portrayed by the narrator.

Oh, yes. Jonas sees the world in very limited ways. He cant tell us; "We walked the street to my apartment." He can't tell us much about this woman Shelley, except by quantifying the number of curls per inch of her hair. He can't really explain what they do together-- but you knew he'd be inarticulate, because of his previous descriptions. The story is about him, although he's talking about her.

For me, I get a very strong impression of Shelley, her kindness and forthrightness, and also-- Jonas's attractiveness, which he's incapable of seeing in himself.

And when, for instance,

...Betty says to Maggie "Here is my friend Joe. He is 6'4 and his cock is 8 inches long and two inches thick"

as sweetthing says, that's weird. Why would she say that? Is it a recurring joke between Betty and Maggie? Is she trying to embarrass Joe? Is it part of a dare between the two women?

I want to know!

 

[MzDeviancy]

I just remember reading one story where one character was 5'8 and a 32E. That a) was an instant back-click, and b) gave me sympathy pains in my back.

 

[mynameisben]

I think this is just another left-brain vs. right-brain thing. Some people just get more into measurements than others. An excerpt from my latest novel-in-progress illustrates what I mean. . .

"Oh, Stephanie! I adore [pressing his fisherman's sizing gauge against her breast] your 1 3/8" diameter areolas!"

"Mmmmm!" she moaned as Randy licked her nipples to hardness. "And just the sight of [drawing machine shop calipers from her stocking] your 31.8 mm external diameter cock is making me wet!"

"That's it baby! Bend over now, so I can pump [tire gauge] your 1.5 psi pussy with my 12 cubic inch displacement meat stick!"
​

I'll bet half of you are yawning right now, and half are busy fanning off the vapors. We're all different. No biggie.

 

[Stella_Omega]

I think this is just another left-brain vs. right-brain thing. Some people just get more into measurements than others. An excerpt from my latest novel-in-progress illustrates what I mean. . .

"Oh, Stephanie! I adore [pressing his fisherman's sizing gauge against her breast] your 1 3/8" diameter areolas!"

"Mmmmm!" she moaned as Randy licked her nipples to hardness. "And just the sight of [drawing machine shop calipers from her stocking] your 31.8 mm external diameter cock is making me wet!"

"That's it baby! Bend over now, so I can pump [tire gauge] your 1.5 psi pussy with my 12 cubic inch displacement meat stick!"
​

I'll bet half of you are yawning right now, and half are busy fanning off the vapors. We're all different. No biggie.

Some of us are counting on our fingers, trying to follow along.

 

[sophia jane]

I think this is just another left-brain vs. right-brain thing. Some people just get more into measurements than others. An excerpt from my latest novel-in-progress illustrates what I mean. . .

"Oh, Stephanie! I adore [pressing his fisherman's sizing gauge against her breast] your 1 3/8" diameter areolas!"

"Mmmmm!" she moaned as Randy licked her nipples to hardness. "And just the sight of [drawing machine shop calipers from her stocking] your 31.8 mm external diameter cock is making me wet!"

"That's it baby! Bend over now, so I can pump [tire gauge] your 1.5 psi pussy with my 12 cubic inch displacement meat stick!"
​

I'll bet half of you are yawning right now, and half are busy fanning off the vapors. We're all different. No biggie.

This made me laugh.

I guess the thing for me is that in real life, I wouldn't look at someone and assess them in terms of measurement so when I am writing, I don't tend to describe in those terms either. When you see a hot girl, you aren't going to know her height, weight, and cup size just by looking at her; you can see she's tall and curvy, or short and thin, etc.
I also think the point that the measurements don't actually translate is a good one. Not everyone is going to visualize 6'4" accurately, so why bother unless it truly adds something to the story?

My answer to your question Kat- It seems in most cases that using measurements is done because of a)laziness or b) lack of imagination or c)inability to use descriptive words or d)poor writing abilities. Maybe all of the above.

 

[mynameisben]

Some of us are counting on our fingers, trying to follow along.

Normally I would never dream of correcting a typo in anyone's post. But Stella! How could you -- an erotic writer of such breathtaking accomplishment -- misspell the word "coming?"