Turn-off and Deal Breakers for Readers

More so with longer stories but for me it's a lack of conflict/challenge, the sex might be written well, it might even be amazing, but I want to see a couple overcome something and grow along the way.

If nothing has changed by the time the couple are worn out cuddling in bed, then the story feels more like a simple sex scene within something bigger. And I want to see the rest of it, when I don't it can almost feel like I've been cheated.

Granted in dreadful at this myself, especially when I've grown to like the characters when writing. Becomes a little hard to put them through difficult times.

But, what I happen to dislike, someone else is bound to love.

The only turn-offs I can think of, are when the chick is tantamount to looking like Olive Oyl.

And I haven't ran across it here, yet, but I've ran across several on Lit where the guy is rather meek and is dominated by the more assertive, usually taller, possibly older transwoman, and sometimes her dick is bigger.

If something gets too far from plausable and reads like a adolescent fantasy, like; "he was plowing her doggystyle while they furiously made out," well that'd better be Elastigirl or Spinel he's fucking, or she's fucking Reid Richards, Luffy, or Plastic Man.

Quote by RowanThorn

So this is going completely off topic for the thread, but censorship is extremely important on a site like this. And freedom of speech allows a personal business (Lush) to decide what kind of product and clientele it's catering to. There are websites that wlll specialize in all the things lush will not allow. Racism, ped0 stuff, it's all out there if that's what you're in to. Demanding a business cater to all interests is going against their freedom of expression.

And frankly, if this site freely hosted those sort of stories, I think it would lose tons of its user base. Would gain some new poeple too. But is that what the people running the site want? But honestly, I think if you want to delve into the issue further, take it to the political forums (the think tank). Start a topic there, it's not on topic for this thread.

That has little to do with freedom of speech. The first amendment mainly protects us from the government. Private spaces, which includes here, and our own homes, can set whatever rules they want, for what people can and can't discuss, or express. That's why places are able to have dresscodes.

That said; I don't believe in censorship. I'm what they call in fanfiction circles, a proshipper. Don't like, don't read. What one doesn't like should be their own personal problem, not everybody's problem.

Quote by M_K_Babalon

That said; I don't believe in censorship. I'm what they call in fanfiction circles, a proshipper. Don't like, don't read. What one doesn't like should be their own personal problem, not everybody's problem.

Just a little note. All the stories here are moderated by a team of volunteers. That means we sometimes have to read things we don't like. There are certain subjects that some of the mods will excuse themself from, but there are some that ALL my mods don't want to read. So, really, even if those were sent in, they'd simply languish in limbo for eternity.

Also, certain subjects throw up certain flags in a search engine. I am ok with people doing a search for (for example) bdsm stories, and therefore we get a lot of people interested in bdsm here. certain crowds I would prefer not to attract. Simple as that.

Quote by sprite

Just a little note. All the stories here are moderated by a team of volunteers. That means we sometimes have to read things we don't like. There are certain subjects that some of the mods will excuse themself from, but there are some that ALL my mods don't want to read. So, really, even if those were sent in, they'd simply languish in limbo for eternity.

Also, certain subjects throw up certain flags in a search engine. I am ok with people doing a search for (for example) bdsm stories, and therefore we get a lot of people interested in bdsm here. certain crowds I would prefer not to attract. Simple as that.

Which goes in line with my first paragraph. The second is simply my opinion. It's a private site and it picks the rules. It's just like Lit's no under 18 rule, when people complain about it, I tell them to come here, since it's 16. I ain't calling the shots here, so my opinion doesn't carry weight as far as site ops go.

Quote by RowanThorn

What happens in an erotic story that makes you walk away? I'm not looking for kinks or topics that you just don't find appealing. I'm more interested in a story that you would otherwise enjoy and something happens that just hits the brakes for you.

My personal example would be bad pillow talk. I've been really into some stories and things get hot and heavy. Then a character rolls off something entirely inane, flow breaking, or out of character. I read a story that was sweet and sexy, then during the act (as a character was losing her virginity) she starts saying things like, "Use me like your dirty whore. Beat me and punish me! Choke me and spit on me!"

I was like, 'damn girl, you just had your first kiss 2 days ago.' When I get pulled from the moment so abruptly I just don't want to go on.

So what about you guys? What sort of things should writers avoid?

Nothing much. That doesn't mean I would like reading everything, approve of it, or get turned on by it. I guess breaking believability causes me to stop.. which is very odd for a sex fantasy reader right? I like to think the story has a world with rules and things that can and cannot happen. Even if there are goblins fucking elves, don't bring a random unhinged element into it suddenly.

Lately, I've been reading stories that are either AI-written or AI-enhanced. I find them boring and a total turn-off. If I'm going to spend my time reading a story, I want it to be human-written and have sincere eroticism.

Quote by techgoddess

Lately, I've been reading stories that are either AI-written or AI-enhanced. I find them boring and a total turn-off. If I'm going to spend my time reading a story, I want it to be human-written and have sincere eroticism.

As I understand it AI is basically predictive text on radioactive steroids (that were probably cursed by a council of wizards for good measure). The algorithm is trained to find the 'most likely' next word, sentence, response etc. in a string. I would assume that in practice that would lead to very formulaic 'do what everyone else has already done to death' mediocrity by design. Real creativity requires a small spark of insanity, and I'm not sure AI is really equipped to color outside the lines.

Quote by techgoddess
Lately, I've been reading stories that are either AI-written or AI-enhanced. I find them boring and a total turn-off. If I'm going to spend my time reading a story, I want it to be human-written and have sincere eroticism.

Amen

I'm going to go with the "railroad plot". The author in this case has a strong idea of where they want the story to go, but the situation and characters are just props to that end. It ends up breaking the suspension of disbelief and feels really artificial.

Otherwise, I second CuriousAnne for the same reason. If a story does something blatantly unrealistic within the first few paragraphs, I struggle to get much further.

I like world-building. If I'm reading something that should grab you and twist you, and it doesn't, it's a letdown. The daddy/ daughter thing is the big one. Daddy looks at daughter or vice versa, and suddenly they are all over each other—no remorse, no anguish, even before it's done. Ditto the hot coworker. Do ya'll really jump into the hotpants without a second thought? Yes i can write that way and I have, but it's not.. satisfying. I guess that makes me a drama queen

I become less interested in a sex story if everything and everyone is top-level perfect, or is described too (uh, encapsulatory? - - is that a word?).  Like, a simple passing phrase for each of his or her attributes: 

- perfect big firm tits

- perfect round ass

- perfect face

- perfect hair

- the shortest schoolgirl miniskirt, at the office.

- the perfect specimen of manhood, he is fit as all anything, successful, rich, large in the trousers (“when soft, he carried in his pants what other men carried when achingly erect, and had the perfect ass which any woman would want to bite into like a statue made of chocolate . . .”)

Sure, it’s sex fantasy and we do get that urge to fuck those perfect-looking bodies, so we want to have them in our sex stories.

But personally it kind of bores me when all the characters in every story are model-gorgeous.

The same with their lifestyles.  Sometimes I read relationship situations which might be (considered to be) ideal, but which feel like it’s so normal for everyone involved.    Like, a female protagonist describing her lez sex partners coming over for their daily lez sex, and the protagonist describes her husband coming home and also getting a treat by having sex with the woman’s lez-sex partners.  It’s described as such an easy throwaway thing!   “Oh yes and my husband gets to have us both if he comes home and finds us still going at each other”.

For me it reads as so matter-of-fact, it feels unspecial to me.  Here I am witnessing the lives of couples and their extra lovers who just ‘do’ each other; the writer includes it as backstory and just moves on to - - to another current example of that ideal interaction.

(“Edward had sex with both of us, all night long.  In the morning I woke him up with a blowjob; Natalie joined me and soon Edward was ready for more!”)

For me it conjures the image of someone playing dolls.     I have read parts of stories where the acts are not described but only mentioned.     It’s like reading the TV guide synopsis instead of watching the show.

I tend to glaze over a bit when a story I’m reading starts going that way.    

But that’s me; you asked.   

For other readers, it might get them right where they want it, that sexy fantasy world with the fuckable people we masturbated about in our thoughts, getting us There.