There is a lot more to erotica than...

[Pervertedneighbor]

just writing about people having sex.
The best erotica I have ever read leads
down the same road as the best suspense
or romance or adventure novel, etc.
You need a good story, believable characters and situations,
and most of all, you need to build tension.
For me, I have found that realism is the best way,
I tire quickly of the cliches, the typical descriptive
language, the total lack of creativity that goes
into the average on-line erotic story. 

We need to
separate erotica from  sloppy porn.

[KitKat]

I agree. I love a good story that leads up to a big hot ending.

[Levorotatory]

Same opinion here.  The worst are the ones where the sex scene starts in the first paragraph.  It doesn't turn me on at all if there isn't at least a little prior character development, and just like in real life it is often the buildup that makes it memorable. 

[herschel]

Agreed. Crude language and raw sex is for sophomores. Erotica is literary art.

[psiberzerker]

You need a good story, believable characters and situations,

I write a lot of variety, but I always start with Characters.  "Believable" I like to push the boundries on, but even if it's one of the Trope Fantasies, like Daddy/Daughter, I really like to explore the Motive of Why he's doing his daughter, beyond "She's hot."  That's a copout, of course she's hot.  Nobody want's to read a story about an overweight 13yo with a bad case of acne, and a speech impediment.  (Actually, now I really want to write one about her seducing her father, because nobody else loves her, and jr. high sucks even when you don't have all of that to pick on.)

I tire quickly of the cliches, the typical descriptive language, the total lack of creativity that goes into the average on-line erotic story.

I have several dealbreaker pet peeves, and chief among them is unironically describing the  girl down to bra size, by way of introduction.  No hopes, and dreams, no goals beyond losing her virginity, and quite honestly, her legs exist for the purpose of carrying around that rack, then spreading to reveal her fuckhole.

"Realism" is one they don't always break until later on, but nothing snaps the Damoclean thread suspending my disbelief quite like a 4 year old explosivley gushing like a fountain of orgasmic extacy having her hymen brutally torn open by an absurdly oversized log of man-meat.  

That's the worst story for me, where it's engaging, immersive, and then waits for the very end to turn into a fucking (Probably Japanese) cartoon.

[Fizzfizz]

I agree. I like when the author leaves the visualization to the reader. "Tommy thought Suzy was hot," gives you the character's opinion rather than the authors interpretation on what hotness is.

[_priapism]

Thrusting in and out of her virgin pussy, slapping his balls against her ass, while she lost track of how many orgasms she had?  Artistry.

[staci]

"While his hot flowing lava shot from his mammoth weapon in spurts into her welcome cavern"

[psiberzerker]

There's more to erotica than just writing about people having sex, you need to build tension.

I would add that this is a bare minimum.  While things like story, characters, and realism are nice, at the end of the day, you have to arouse the reader.

I'd say there's more to erotica than Wish Fulfillment.  At least to me, this is a major turnoff.  I'm weird, some people seem to actually like writing a literal omnipotent God.  

I don't get anything, personally out of a premise like someone finds a genie, and wishes for beautiful women.  Or someone discovers the perfect aphrodesiac so women find him irresistable, and can't refuse him.  Or hypnotizes them so they're under his power, and can't refuse him.  Or he asserts his Power, forces them, and they orgasm like they never have before, because of it.

Especially when there's no real effort on his part.  For example, the guy just learned hypnosis.  Like he snaps his fingers, and just like that, he can enthrall women sexually.  Or he has that perfect body from the beginning.  (Pretty much like she's blond, and blue 5'2" and 36/24/36D)  Without even mentioning that he works for it, or owns a set of weights.  It's just there.

This is basically Lazy Writing.  Essentially, he gets "Sex" (Actually rape) just like that, with no effort.  He doesn't have to listen to her.  He doesn't have to learn anything about her (Other than her bra size) the female character is basically a pair of tits, and a pussy.  The man is a 10" dick, and because he has that, gets whatever he wants.

To me, personally, that's about as sexy as a guy goes to the sex shop, and buys a blow-up doll.  However, those sorts of stories seem extremely popular.  So, what do I know?

[Katiebee]

“It was a dark and stormy night…”

[psiberzerker]

“It was a dark and stormy night…”

I actually introduced my most popular character to date with:

"It would be a dark and stormy night, fucking hate cliches."

https://www.asstr.org/files/Authors/Psiberzerker/NonCon/Antirape%20%7BfM%20Drug%20Rape%20Snuf%7D

[Katiebee]

“It was a power that could only be used for good or evil…”

[psiberzerker]

I just want to thank you, and justanal (The Truth About How It Really Happens) for my current story.  I actually started with the cliche of a mother walking in on her son (Then repeated the scene with role reversal) but explained it.

For me, it's not so much who does what to whom, but explaining how it can happen, believably.  Which is why I picked such a cliche scenario.  In this case, she got the idea for grooming him from watching "Incest" videos from the 80s.  Which was rife with "Mothers" catching their "Sons" (Actors are 18, not related, and actors) playing with her dildo.

If life imitates art, then does that mean life is an allusion?