I guess YOU do! Hi there! I'm a 43yo married Christian homeschooling mom with 5 kids, the youngest of whom are my 12yo twins. I've enjoyed writing since I was a kid, and have been encouraged to pursue it many times in the past. I'm finally looking to take some of that seriously and look for a way to make money of this talent. I'm not sure what to write, honestly. I do have quite a few erotic stories in my brain that I could easily hash out, but I struggle with that some on a moral level. I feel like I could write a lot of things, but no brilliant stories come to mind. I've even thought some recently about writing non-fiction, as I do have a wealth of knowledge in a variety of areas. I guess I just feel like I need this big thing in my head that I'm super excited about before I get started, but I do know in reality that it's kind of a silly thing to think. In the meantime, I'm doing some actual (piddly) work on the erotica stories. I've got a character sheet and an outline for as far as I know the story so far. I could actually begin writing it probably, because it'll be easier to continue the story if I can be submersed in what came before each new section. Anyway, I'm new to all of the process really except the actual writing part. I've done research on it for years though so I do have a clue. I'm looking for friends, and I'm socially motivated so accountability would be fantastic, and I'll probably need some help on the publishing end when I get that far. How did you decide WHAT to write? Nice to meet you and I can't wait to get to know you all!
Well, hello, Dolly! Sorry. Couldn't resist. I know what it's like to be all over the place in terms of genre. At the moment I'm concentrating on Christian romantic suspense, but once I've got my latest published, I plan to tackle a half-finished novel in the psychological/cryptozoology horror line. As far as whether you should pursue the erotica, that's up to you. Or rather, between you and God. Me, I like to turn up the heat a little higher than I find in run of the mill Christian romance, but I don't get clinical ("Tab A into Slot B") about it. I like to think my love scenes are "adult"--- in the sense of "we're adults, we know what's going on here, no need to spell it out." Anyway, welcome!
Take the time to write anywhere from a sentence to a paragraph for each idea. As you describe the idea in writing one may pop out for you. As new ideas come add them to this list. When you finish a project read through your list again, your next story may jump out at you. Good luck.
No, I never read the New Member blurbs. Good luck in your endeavors! My small experience with erotic writing has led me to believe that if it's at the level of the Song of Solomon, you have nothing to worry about morally. And somebody said once that the difference between pornography and erotica is that the former is all about what's happening outside the characters' bodies, and the latter is about what's happening inside their heads. That made sense to me.
Well, you said you used to write as a kid. So did I, and the story I spent the last couple of years piddling around with is actually a sort of revamp of something I wrote when I was 16. Only this time hopefully more intelligent and better-written. I finally had to ditch it for various reasons, but I definitely learned a lot and advanced my skills considerably on that one! Or maybe the cat just didn't get out of the way fast enough when the lid came down
Hi Dolly, First, it’s really nice to have another Christian here! I’m 39, male, and single; hoping to marry, have a family as big as yours, and homeschool. I also live in Texas! I write poetry and short stories; while I’m still looking for a place to publish my short stories, you can see my poetry at the Society of Classical Poets website by searching the name Joshua C. Frank there (also my friends Susan Jarvis Bryant and Brian Yapko, who write similar things). I write what I do because I’m called to write as a ministry. I see the ways modern culture needs changing, and I write poems to remind them gently (sometimes not so gently) that we’re seriously off the rails as a culture and what each of us can do to get ourselves back on track in some small way. I write something like transgressive literature, but in the opposite direction—blatantly traditional instead of blatantly radical; I’ve written poems against birth control, abortion, smartphones, delaying marriage, and disobedience to parents (to name a few). The idea is to help undo the bad influences operating on people. Joe Vasicek writes short stories along similar lines (and Andrew Fox has published some others in an anthology). If you want a writing buddy, I’ll be happy to oblige. Just message me. In fact, I’d be interested in corresponding anyway, if you are.
Write what you know. Five kids, I can't believe you don't have some funny stories to tell. You had to go through all sorts of stuff to turn you into who you are now. You met people along the way that made you decide, you will never be like them, or maybe someday you could be like them. I am sure there were times that you were up at 2 am and could not sleep because of something that did go wrong or might go wrong. You met a guy, fell in love, became a mom. You seem happy, well adjusted and might have some of the answers for those who are looking for the very same things you already have, but have no idea on how to get them. You managed to do a lot of stuff to get you where you are, I am sure it was a journey, and adventure full of heartache, disappointment, joy satisfaction and reflection. I skip over most intros from new members here; except those that go into some detail as to why you want to write, what you have written and something about yourself. A good writer knows you have to have a hook to keep, them reading, and the ability to make you care about the character and what is going to happen next. You did that with your intro, so my guess is that there will be many more posts from you in the future. I am also happily married, 45 years, a Christian, used to be in the ministry, father of two, adrenaline junky who has a hard time with moderation of just about everything. One of my favorite sayings, "If you can't die doing it, what is the point." while it has led to lots of battle scars and stories, I have no regrets.
I check in from time to time. My current emphasis is more on non-fiction, in particular around science literacy.
Hi, I’m unsure of what to write as well. I'm 56 and wrestle with inner shame when it comes to writing, but I keep being drawn to try and write and overcome this shame. Letting go of the shame and writing a good honest critique is a real challenge for me. Good luck on your journey
What is there to be ashamed of? Writing is like a performance where you are in front of a live audience. It is simply expressing yourself and your creativity. Do it for the simple joy of doing it. No one else has to read it, unless you try to make a profession of it. Or decide to post here for feedback on style and structure. No one here is going to say it's crap, give up. We will say this does or doesn't work, maybe try it this way.
Thanks for the reply, I am here to get feedback on style and structure and also learn how to better critique writing in general . The shame is old baggage that I'm working on letting go of!
There are three books that can help you with structure: The Story Grid. Save the cat writes a novel. And the Snowflake method. Any of those three will help you build a structure for your story. The different methods give you different approaches, and the challenge is finding the one that works best for you. Write for yourself, and forget about anyone else reading the work.
That would be fantastic, thank you! I sent a message. I would love to chat with you! My childhood was something other than the way I interpreted it, and I'm struggling with a lot in that arena right now. My oldest son is turning 24 this week and is currently not speaking to me. That whole well-adjusted thing is just my communication skills, I'm thinking. I do well, but not recently. This life is hard. But yes, I often think I should write a book on this or that. Homeschooling, for instance. But I get discouraged because there's so much already out there. Yes sure there's room, but it seems silly to me and irrelevant. I want to be relevant! I'm not sure how I can educate others right now, and the things I've often thought I had authority in are now the things that are testing me and are sources of doubt and pain instead of joy and confidence. Look at me, spilling my guts on an online forum. Maybe that should've been a pm. Oh well, there it is. LOL I used to know a guy with your username, over on goodreads. I didn't know him well, just had a handful of conversations with a friendly guy. It's been years. Happen to be that same guy?
Welcome Dolly. My tuppence worth is that your plan of starting with erotica is a good one. Writing erotica is a good way of breaking through that initial barrier between you and a page full of story. Also: ghost stories, outrageously cartoon or violent action, or romance so soppy you have to mop up after it. Id stuff. I never get around to publishing those id-pieces here for review because they are written for their own sake, to get the words flowing. Why I think it helps is that smut or ghost stories (to take the simplest examples) have such clear direction and intend that you never have to stop and worry about what you're trying to achieve because you have something very simple in mind; You're trying to titillate/scare. You have a simple destination in mind for the character (*ahem*/death or mind ultering horror). What do I write next? Answer becomes easy: bar a few lulls for pacing's sake its whatever ramps up the arousal/fear. Then --- having bought your headless huntsman to a thundering climax (wait, look at the genres sir, they've merged!), feeling renewed in confidence that you don't have real writers block and you can plot your way out of a paper bag after all --- you go back to chewing the end of the pencil trying to write that searingly insightful account of a man coming to term's with his brother's death and the guilt he feels for surviving and how its an allegory for Belgian occupation in the war and so on and so on... Of course no reason you shouldn't then publish them here for review. I just haven't got around to it yet, but you'll note there are some good examples in the workshop already, and plenty people happy to review.
I don't know if you're acquainted with the writings of Anaïs Nin, possibly the best female writer of erotica. Like you, she started out with a strict religious background which formed the basis of much of her approach to the subject. Another writer to investigate is Nancy Friday, who published many books involving women and sexuality. My Secret Garden: Women's Sexual Fantasies, Forbidden Flowers: More Women's Sexual Fantasies, and Women on Top: How Real Life Has Changed Women's Sexual Fantasies, have been considered to be the most influential books about women addressing their sexuality. These books are a different sort of erotica, because they address the underlying issues women have with their sexual fantasies. They're worth a read.
