want to write

[lapog]

Hey, I've been writing for a while mainly gothic horror type stories. I gave a hand at some fantsy erotica(yes it contridicts but here is what I mean, the story was set in the future but didnt involve humans but was to the taste of ertoic (a man having sex with a metal woman and foward.)) any way I was woundering if anyone could give me any pointers on what to do when I write my first real erotic story. Any tips at all.

[GaryWilcox]

Show, don't tell. Any fool can write BDSM. A good writer can make the experience exquisite.

Outline your work before you type. Know the beginning, the middle, and the end.

When you don't know if something can work, consider not showing it, because life is the mysterious journey of a hero, after all. Sometimes you can tell an entire story by what is only guessed at it glimpses and questions. Never tie yourself to cold hard data... but have the data and logistics for yourself.

[Powerone]

Many people think that they just can write a sex scene and that's it. That is porn, not erotica. In erotica you have the same things you have in your other writing, characters, settings, motivation of the characters, etc. The sex scene is just the "climax" of the rest of the story.

Don't be afraid of writing things you haven't experienced. Most writers (I hope) have not experienced rape, murder, etc. but can convey the feelings of the characters. That is what makes a good writer, where you can place the reader into the action.

If you look at most of my stories, I convey the feelings of the female characters, yet obviously I am not one (but then again, maybe I am really female, acting as a male writer, LOL)

P1

[LaJan]

Interesting distinction, Powerone. I will consider that while writing my next piece and put it to that test. In my shortest stories, there seems little time for in-depth character development. However, to avoid the label of 'simply porn' (i.e., trash), I will see if I'm better suited for one or the other. After all, writing porn is a dirty job but someone has to do it... (Yes, that was stolen and misquoted from a song by the rock band Ratt. I guess I'm gonna get sued, damn it.)

Many people think that they just can write a sex scene and that's it. That is porn, not erotica. In erotica you have the same things you have in your other writing, characters, settings, motivation of the characters, etc. The sex scene is just the "climax" of the rest of the story.

Don't be afraid of writing things you haven't experienced. Most writers (I hope) have not experienced rape, murder, etc. but can convey the feelings of the characters. That is what makes a good writer, where you can place the reader into the action.

If you look at most of my stories, I convey the feelings of the female characters, yet obviously I am not one (but then again, maybe I am really female, acting as a male writer, LOL)

P1

[Insidious]

Don't be afraid of writing things you haven't experienced. Most writers (I hope) have not experienced rape, murder, etc. but can convey the feelings of the characters. That is what makes a good writer, where you can place the reader into the action.

I have never been on a scout spacecraft. On the other hand, I know what it is like to operate a computer; I know what it is like to be alone for long periods, and I know what it is like to live in cramped conditions. So I am writing what I know, in a way.

(That quote is entirely from memory, so it may be a long way from correct.)

[Powerone]

Good Quote.

P1

[Dr Mabeuse]

Show, don't tell. Any fool can write BDSM. A good writer can make the experience exquisite.

Outline your work before you type. Know the beginning, the middle, and the end.

I'd respectfully disagree with Gary. I never outline my stories. Often I don't even know what's going to happen when I start to write. I'll just have a scene or an image in mind that I want to describe, and things will go from there.

My advice to you would be to read your ass off. And don't just read erotica and porn; in fact, avoid it. Get some books of good short stories and read them and study them. Find out how authors do things: how they write dialogue, how they describe characters, set scenes, establish moods. It's best to learn from the masters, and the truth is, there aren't very many masters in porn. It's best to go elsewhere for your lessons.

My other advice is that writing is only 30% writing. The rest is revising and rewriting and proofreading. No one gets the story right the first time. You've got to write hot, while the inspiration is on you, then set it aside and let it cool off for a couple of days and then go back to it and revise and correct it. You have a duty to your readers to make it as perfect as you possibly can. Readers can tell when they're being disrespected.

---dr.M.

[Morrighan]

I've never outlined my stories either, but then, I've never finished one. I write until the inspiration leaves me, and rarely does it return. "The Punisher" is actually the longest piece that I've ever been consistently happy with, and sorry to disappoint the fans, but I don't know that I can go back and finish it.

Back to advice--as far as whether you do or don't outline, or how, when, and where you write, there can be no advice, really. Every writer is different. Some can sit themselves down from 9 am to 5 pm and write something wondrous. Others, myself included, can only hope inspiration will strike and that there's a computer somewhere when it does. Inspiration struck me once in my truck on my way to work, and I actually went 85 mph trying to get to my computer in time before it left me. (Didn't make it). Sounds funny, I know, but it's the essence of art. Find out what works for you and stick with it. If you're as temperamental a writer as I am, I'll pray for you.

Morrighan

[Lord Douche]

Not outlining your story is fine for something that goes on this site most of the time; little plot or character development, and lots of sex. If you want to put plot in though, you need planning, if you want it to be any good. Or else you quickly become lost.
LD

[Powerone]

Not outlining your story is fine for something that goes on this site most of the time; little plot or character development, and lots of sex. If you want to put plot in though, you need planning, if you want it to be any good. Or else you quickly become lost.
LD

I have to disagree. I have never written an outline for any story that I have written. I usually have an idea of what the story is going to be about, but by time i am finished, that has usually changed. I think an outline is a little too structured.

P1

[LaJan]

I have both outlined and "free-written" stories and both ways work for me at times. I have become too locked into an outline that had a major flaw I only realized after starting the story and had to scrap the entire thing because my inspiration wasn't able to adapt. And I have written stories with so many holes in them the time it takes to correct them is just too boring. However, I have never written a requested story without a complete outline before starting or I can't rein in my imagination enough to complete the task as requested.

If one has an abundance of ideas, 'writing without a script' can be very effective since you can always pick and choose from new options as you go. If you're like me, tho, it's best to at least think the plot through long before starting or dr_mabeuse's percentage of "30% [creative] writing" (with which I agree completely) will get decreased dramatically while I spend 90% of my time doing “waste management”.

I also agree with the notion that the more you read, the better a writer you will become. Elements of style developed from a wide variety of sources afford the author much more ability to go wherever s/he wants to while taking the reader along for the ride.

(By the way, this is actually the last sentence added to the response so that I could tell you it took 27 minutes to complete, rewrite, edit, spell check (using Word) and post. I typed the original response in 4 minutes. Obviously, my percentages suck… )

PS Is Ayn Rice a master? If so, maybe her ponygirl series isn't really porn. Either way, one can never read too much.

LJ

...I never outline my stories.

My advice to you would be to read your ass off. And don't just read erotica and porn; in fact, avoid it. Get some books of good short stories and read them and study them. Find out how authors do things: how they write dialogue, how they describe characters, set scenes, establish moods. It's best to learn from the masters, and the truth is, there aren't very many masters in porn. It's best to go elsewhere for your lessons.

My other advice is that writing is only 30% writing. The rest is revising and rewriting and proofreading...
---dr.M.

[boccaccio2000g]

[QUOTE=dr_mabeuse]I'd respectfully disagree with Gary. I never outline my stories. Often I don't even know what's going to happen when I start to write. I'll just have a scene or an image in mind that I want to describe, and things will go from there.

My advice to you would be to read your ass off. And don't just read erotica and porn; in fact, avoid it. Get some books of good short stories and read them and study them. Find out how authors do things: how they write dialogue, how they describe characters, set scenes, establish moods. It's best to learn from the masters, and the truth is, there aren't very many masters in porn. It's best to go elsewhere for your lessons.

My other advice is that writing is only 30% writing. The rest is revising and rewriting and proofreading. No one gets the story right the first time. You've got to write hot, while the inspiration is on you, then set it aside and let it cool off for a couple of days and then go back to it and revise and correct it. You have a duty to your readers to make it as perfect as you possibly can.

---dr.M.[/QUOTE

I'm not sure that I've ever read a fairly length message here with which I am more in agreement (except that I'd be lying if I said that I hadn't read much erotica).

I do have the guilty feeling that one should outline stories, that one should know exactly where one's going before one starts, that one should have a written master plan in mind and at hand.

But I am constitutionally incapable of thinking that way and sticking to it. I have a general idea of what's going to happen, and an idea of most of the key characters and their relationships. But for me half the fun of writing is the 'what if' feeling one gets in Chapter 11, when one gets an inspiration and asks one's self, "Hey, what if this were to happen?"

Read. One can be an avid reader without ever acquiring a desire to write. But one can never be a good writer without having acquired a taste for reading. A lot of the common faults that plague 'we happy few, we band of brothers (and sisters)" -- spelling errors, grammatical errors, problems with sentence and paragraph construction -- will be drastically curtailed if one has read widely and thoughtfully.

Proofread. And proofread. And proofread. Think of your writing as you would a visit to your home by royalty, because you only get one chance to make a first impression. One sees so many stories here that are rushed to 'print' in (apparently) the heat of the moment, but which could have been so much better. Look at your writing from every possible angle -- Is the dialogue sharp? Are the characters (and dialogue) distinctive and yet consistent? Have you fully captured the sensory goings-on in the encounter(s) you're describing --the sights, sounds, tastes etc, the characters would have experienced? Is there a nice balance between short sentences and long ones, between short words and long ones? Re-read your longer sentences as if you were reading them out loud, to see if they flow properly.

Boccaccio

[Dr Mabeuse]

Hey, I've been writing for a while mainly gothic horror type stories. I gave a hand at some fantsy erotica(yes it contridicts but here is what I mean, the story was set in the future but didnt involve humans but was to the taste of ertoic (a man having sex with a metal woman and foward.)) any way I was woundering if anyone could give me any pointers on what to do when I write my first real erotic story. Any tips at all.

One other thing: Concrete Sensual Detail.

These are the little things that bring a scene alive, that make it vivid and make the reader feel that he's there experiencing it with you.

Concrete means that it should be real. Don't keep on telling us what they feel or think. Show us them acting in a way that expresses their inner state, and let us figure out whether they're scared or excited or in the throes of orgasm.

Sensual meaning "of the senses". It should be something the character sees or hears or feels or smells. It should be something we can sense ourselves in our imaginations, described in a way that lets us experience it too.

Detail means the little things that show you were there, if only in your imagination. Too many sex scenes end up being shopping lists of what they did. "He grabbed her breast and then he twisted it. He slid his hand lower and spanked her shapely ass. She moaned and twisted in the chains..." The detail is the way the cloth of her blouse was crushed beneath his fingers, the way the top button popped open, the feel of her flesh when he slaps her bottom, the way she spreads her fingers and then clenches them into fists.

The best sex scenes have enough concrete sensual detail to pull the reader in and force him to visulaize the scene. Very often the sexiest part of a scene will be something that seems inconsequential: the sound of the headboard banging against the wall, the way she licks her dry lips, the sound of her high heels on a wooden floor. That's what maes a scene vivid and lets us see it.

---dr.M.

[tyme]

My goodness, the advice here is excellent. The best advice I ever received was Mr. Wilcox advice: " show, don't tell".
When I write erotica, I use my imagination, picture what's happening in my mind, and try to describe as best I can by using images, comparisons, lots of description.
I also like to think in terms of the five senses. What do I want the reader to see? What feelings do I want to provoke? What sounds do I want the reader to hear (this works especially well with erotica *wink*)? Many people are moved by smells, scents, aromas, especially when dealing with sex. One of the sexiest men I've ever known, who taught me very much about sensuality, loved to smell of me, my lingerie, etc. At first it scared me -- I thought he was freakish, but it's really a very normal, healthy desire -- just one of those things not everyone wants to admit or talk about.
But in erotic, it feels very right and good to be so descriptive, the reader can "smell sex". That's a very nice compliment to receive.
Taste is an awesome tool to use. What does one lover taste like to another? Is the main character reminded of tastes, smells, etc.? What are they? Describe them as if it were you describing them yourself.
Another thing I love to do in order to prepare for writing erotica is read some of my favorite erotica and/or refer to many of my favorite authors -- I even take notes, and have my thesaurus & dictionary near by so I can describe a feeling another writer has evoked in me, but use my own words.
Reference material also help keeps me from being repetitive. How many was can I say lust? Passion? Desire? I'm amazed at some of the descriptions that come to my mind when I stroll through my thesaurus while writing.
Well, I've given quite a bit of advice. I'm sure I don't always live up to it, but I've only been writing erotica for about two years. When I first started writing, words flowed from me like a fountain because I had so much pent up inside. Sometimes now I really have to work at it. But I really do hope I'm becoming a writer.
Writing is all I really want to do.
I guess I should post my lastest story & see what you think. I'll go nosing around & see if I can find a place to do that.
Many erotic wishes to you, new one.
~tyme~