The Art of Writing Smut

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It's not as easy as it looks, but is a lot of fun.
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Boxlicker101
Boxlicker101
3,133 Followers

Writing smut, like any other kind of writing, takes a certain amount of skill and knowledge. Some writing skills are not required, such as establishing characters or plot development, because the only thing the dedicated readers of smut care about is graphic sex, and the more detailed it is, the better. Character is less important than the sizes of his cock and her tits. The plots consist of: A and B get together. They have sex. They have sex again, probably in a different way. They have sex another time, probably a third different way. Besides A and B, you can have C and D and E or any number of people, and they can have any number of sex acts, performed any number of times, depending on the length of the story.

I hope you notice I made no reference to fucking. Although it is an important part of smut, not every tale has to include fucking. Two men can take turns sucking each other off, or a man can eat a pussy for the entire length of the story, or a woman can do the eating. You might want to write about a man wanking or a woman frigging or two people masturbating each other or a whole string of people using dildos on each other or giving each other hand jobs of one kind or another. This is an area that involves individual preferences. Personally, I like writing about a variety of activities.

However, this is not as easy as it might sound. You could write: Mary sucked off Johnny. Johnny ate Mary's pussy. Johnny and Mary fucked. This would be a form of smut, of course, but of such abysmal quality that I'm sure that Literotica wouldn't even accept it, even if it happened to be 750 words long. I know I would never submit it but I might use it as a story outline. If I did, I would add details and dialogue until it was a 5,000 word story of the hot sex that Johnny and Mary had together. I will, hopefully be describing here how to convert those three sentences, or three similar sentences, into a 5,000 word story that will make people wet or hard, depending on gender.

As in any kind of writing, mechanical skills are important. For one thing, you have to spell correctly, and that requires more than Spellchecker. You can catch some misspellings and typos with the program but not all. If you type in something that is a word, but not the word you want, Spellchecker will not catch it. A smutty story does not have to read like an essay written by a professor of English but, as in any story, the writer should follow the rules of ordinary good grammar. Your computer will not catch all grammatical mistakes so careful editing for them and for spelling errors is necessary.

Also in common with any kind of writing, word selection is important. Avoid repeating names or words too often, especially long words. You can't completely avoid the repetition of articles and some pronouns but keep it to a minimum. Especially avoid starting a string of sentences with the same pronoun, such as: "He unbuttoned...He removed...He looked...He caressed...He licked..." Use proper names some of those times, or other references, such as "the young man" or "the blonde" or similar designations. Sometimes it might be better to combine two short sentences into a compound one or start some of them with prepositional phrases. One way to avoid using a proper name too often is letting the character have two names, such as Jen and Jennifer, and alternate using them.

Remember, you are writing smut, not a technical paper. Try to stay away from scientific terms such as penis, vulva, vagina, etc. Also avoid being cute with expressions like "honey-bucket" or "trouser snake" or old-fashioned terms like "spend" or "cunny" unless you are writing a story set in Victorian times. Although there are plenty of synonyms, I prefer to use what I consider the most affectionate words, "pussy" and "cock". This is also a matter of individual writers' preferences.

In writing smut, you don't absolutely have to have any dialogue, but it does read better if you do. You can say: "Mary enjoyed the feel of Johnny's cock driving in and out of her pussy." Or you can say: "Oh, God, that feels good!' Mary cried out as Johnny's cock drove in and out of her pussy." That's really two ways of saying the same thing but the second example is better for describing Mary's enjoyment. An important thing to remember is the characters are very involved with what they are doing. Any conversation will involve those activities, and they will talk the way actual people talk. In particular, this means using contractions and sentence fragments and otherwise not always using perfect grammar.

Have them talk dirty. This can be something of a turn-on for the readers and it reflects the way people actually talk in those circumstances. I can't imagine Mary or any other woman saying "Your penis feels very good in my vagina." More likely she will say "I love your cock in my pussy." Or "cunt", depending on how crude you want her to be. However crude or refined a character is, be consistent. Nobody is going to speak of her "cunt" and "tits" and refer to the man's "penis" or "organ".

Adults are not usually going to speak of a "thingy" or a "poo-hole" or use any other childish terms. An exception would be if at least one is roll-playing a child. Then they would use such terms to stay in character. Likewise, you could have a character refer prissily to a penis or vagina but, once they really get into the sex, talk about a cock or pussy. As long as you are consistent with the inconsistency, it's alright, and helps develop the character, making the story more believable. You don't need much character development but it can't do any harm.

Avoid too many short sentences. You should also avoid using sentences that are too long, and include too many clauses or too many prepositional phrases, because such sentences are sometimes hard to follow; the readers are liable to get lost reading them and they might give up and go on to something else, and it is quite possible they will avoid your work in the future, and maybe advise their friends and everybody else to do the same thing. Since you don't want this to happen, avoid sentences like that last one. Personally, at least in the narrative, I try to mix short sentences with longer ones. To me, the story seems to flow better when I combine sentences like that.

You don't need a lot of description of the characters, but you do need some. For readers to relate, they need to be able to picture the people involved in the story. The length and color of the woman's hair is usually enough, but sometimes curls or braids or other hair style might be mentioned if it somehow figures in the story. Information on the man's hair is not usually worth mentioning, although in some instances it might be. If eye color is relevant, mention it, otherwise describing a face as pretty or handsome or other general term is enough. An unusual facial feature, such as a big nose or ears might be mentioned, but only if it advances the story.

All the women in smutty stories have big, firm breasts. Besides being big, they are sumptuous or luscious or succulent or bouncy or similar adjectives, and have big, sensitive nipples that become erect when licked or fondled. Don't mention the exact size unless it has otherwise been made public, such as the woman having been in a beauty contest. Their actual size is of no importance anyhow, just as long as they are big. Besides having big breasts, they are generally sexy, although not spectacularly so. If you happen to be writing about a big, beautiful woman, make sure you emphasize the beauty of her face and how sexy the bigness makes her. Even though some people actually prefer the type, women in smutty stories should never have figures like Ally McBeal.

Her skin is always soft and smooth. It may be creamy white or a lovely soft brown or splashed with freckles or any other color, but it's always healthy and made for caressing. If licking her feet or fucking her insteps is part of the story, her feet are always soft and plump and completely lacking in corns or calluses. People who want to read about sucking toes or licking or fucking feet don't want to read about imperfections.

All women have pussies that produce lots of juices that have a delightful aroma, and taste even better than they smell. Her pussy lips are always swollen. Her clit is also swollen, so much so that it pushes its way out from under its protective hood. Whoever is eating her pussy devours her juices and declares how delicious they are, while she expresses what a thrill she is getting from that person's tongue and mouth. When she cums (or comes) it is a tumultuous occasion, with her ass bouncing up and down on the bed and her legs equally active, flexing or scissoring or oscillating.

The men in smutty stories are likewise excellent physical specimens, although falling short of being Mr. America contenders. They are never fat or skinny or bald or have bad breath or anything else disagreeable, unless they are up to no good, such as committing sexual harassment or something comparable. A man can be described as "tall" or maybe even "well over six feet tall" but his exact height is never given unless he is a basketball player or his exact height is meaningful for some other reason.

They are always virile enough to completely satisfy the other party. They always have big, hard cocks but the exact size is never given. "Close to a foot long" or "so big her hand could only go half-way around it" are about as much as you want to say about the size. When a man is sucked off, he always cums in the other person's mouth and he or she swallows it. Just like a woman's pussy juices, his semen is always delicious.

You may have noticed that I have been using quite a few adjectives. In the past, I have been criticized for using too many of them in my stories, and I have actually cut down somewhat. However, you cannot properly write smut without using numerous modifiers. You might be able to write other kinds of stories, even erotic stories, but not smut. These same critics also say "Show, don't tell" and I fully agree with the idea, but I believe you need adjectives to do that. Sometimes verbs can be used to good effect in describing a character. Instead of saying: "Mary's pussy was dripping as she straddled Johnny's cock," say something like: "As Mary straddled Johnny, pussy juices were trickling down her legs or dripping onto his cock."

However, you can't always use verbs to describe a person or a body part. A cock might create an interesting bulge in a man's pants but once those pants have been removed, it is big and stiff. Even if you describe it as jutting or sticking out, you still need adjectives if you say any more about it. Furthermore, people don't just fondle breasts; they fondle succulent or luscious breasts. As I said earlier, cocks and pussies and breasts can't just be mentioned if you want to "show" them to readers. They have to be described, and this requires numerous adjectives. At the same time, a string of adjectives modifying a noun can just look silly. As in everything else, avoid excesses.

Adverbs have also gotten a bad press but they are necessary too. People don't just hold a woman's luscious breasts; they hold them gently. When Johnny thrusts his big cock into Mary's wet pussy or tight ass, he does so slowly and deeply. Like anything else, adverbs can be overdone but they are necessary in writing smut. Don't use them in dialogue tags, though, or your story will sound too much like an old word game called Tom Swifties.

Maybe most important, be realistic and detailed. The two ideas go together. Sometimes I will see a porno movie that includes a woman who is about to be fucked in the ass for the first time. The man will get behind her, rub some spit on his cock and give one big thrust. Like magic, all eight inches disappear inside her. That is never going to happen. For one thing, they would need plenty of artificial lubrication such as KY Jelly or baby oil or Aquaglide or something similar that will liquefy and not evaporate. Show how the lube is squirted into her ass, giving her a thrill, followed by the greater thrill of having a finger thrust deeply into her to spread it evenly.

For another thing, penetration could never be achieved that quickly. She has to hold her ass cheeks open and he has to wedge the head of his cock inside the tiny hole. After that, describe a series of thrusts, each going in farther than the preceding one, until "his pubic hair is tickling the smooth skin inside her ass cheeks".

Describe those thrusts in some detail. Show the readers how the man's cock plunges in deeper every time and let them hear her express extreme pleasure at the intrusion. Show how she continues to hold herself open and arches her back to help him drive his cock in farther. Show how she thrusts her ass back to meet him. Show them how the lubrication has liquefied and, even though Mary's ass is still tight, Johnny's cock slides in and out without friction, giving exquisite pleasure, approaching ecstasy, to both participants.

You can't show the readers, but you can tell them, how waves of bliss radiate out from her stretched opening and the channel that is being so delightfully filled. You can tell how pleasure is throbbing from his cock as her muscles squeeze its entire length. Once she is close to an orgasm, show how he massages her engorged clit and increases the pace, his balls slapping against her dripping pussy with every stroke, while she matches his greater speed, until she cums.

If he is fucking her pussy, no artificial lubrication will be needed because she will always be sopping wet with her own juices before they start. Even then, he will take several strokes before "his pubic hair is brushing against her swollen pussy lips'. If she is on top, she will "slowly lower her body and give a great cry of joy when the head of his cock wedges into her dripping pussy". After that, she will "impale herself on his hard shaft" with a series of strokes until "their pubic hair is mingling". When two persons are fucking, whether in an ass or a pussy, the cock, either real or a strapon, always achieves maximum penetration, and be sure to let your readers know that explicitly.

Once the fucking is well underway, show how slow, deep strokes are used, to make it last as long as possible. Show how the person on the bottom, either male or female, responds to the person on top. Depending on the position they are using, show how his or her legs wrap around the other person's hips, and his or her arms clutch the other's shoulders. Describe how one participant thrusts up or back to meet the strokes of the other. If it's a man and a woman, she always cums first, followed almost immediately by him, unless you want her to be multi-orgasmic. One way or another, he always cums right after she does, whether it's her first time or her tenth.

If someone is eating a pussy, show the readers how that person's tongue caresses the swollen lips under his or her face. Show them how, as he or she continues, the responses of the woman being eaten become stronger and more pronounced. Her cooing or purring or sighing evolve into moans and whimpers of pleasure. Her movements go from squirming to writhing to thrashing on the bed, with her ass bouncing up and down as her pussy fucks into the face of the person doing the eating. The escalations continue until she starts to cum. Show this to your readers through vivid descriptions, which must include adjectives and adverbs.

When a cock is being sucked, show how the person doing the sucking loves the sensation of the round hardness going in and out between their lips. He or she will caress the entire length of the shaft with their tongue, reveling in the smooth and tightly stretched skin. If it is a woman who is doing the sucking, the cock will spend some time between her luscious breasts and/or being rubbed against her erect nipples. Either a man or woman will sometimes take the cock out of their mouth, lick around the ridge and the slit and smile at the man around the mushroom-shaped head. Describe this graphically and the readers will see themselves as one of the people involved.

Just as in real life, things shouldn't always go smoothly or perfectly. If Mrs. Robinson is seducing a young man, especially if it's his first time, there's a good chance he will ejaculate prematurely. When this happens she, through sucking, stroking and soft words, will coax his cock into another erection, so they can do some mutually satisfying fucking, or whatever she wants to do. If a cock slips out, as sometimes happen, the man and woman get it back in quickly. Similar minor mishaps occur every day, and the people involved cope with them, and so can the characters in your story. This doesn't make the tale more erotic or smutty but it does make it more like actual life.

I said to be realistic and then postulated hunky men and voluptuous women, all of whom are skilled and complete open in their sexuality. This may not seem realistic but there are such people. I also said that nothing should be done in excess and that includes realism. The average act of sexual intercourse is a short period of grunting and panting in the middle of the night until the man cums, followed by his rolling over and falling asleep. Nobody wants to read about that. They want to read about people who are attractive, but not too attractive, unless they know those people to be movie stars or super models.

When people read smut, they are looking to read about satisfying hot, sexy partners sexually, and being satisfied by them. Even if they are happily partnered, they want to read about somebody who is sexier and hotter than that partner, or otherwise better, even if only superficially. This applies to men or women, gay or straight. Smut is read by persons who want to fantasize, whether by individuals or by sexual partners who want to enhance their own activities.

There are few if any tangible rewards for writing smut. Literotica periodically has contests but they are rarely, if ever, won by writers of pure smut. The greatest reward I can hope for is receiving feedback and comments like this one from an anonymous reader about the incest story "My Cute Nieces":

Thanks

12/02/05 by Anonymous

Thanks for this. You told it so well it was almost like I was lying back and enjoying this lovely pussy licking. I feel warm wet. Lovely writing.

Feedback and comments like this one are the reasons I write here.

*

Thank you for reading this essay. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it, but I also hope I didn't give away any trade secrets. Whatever you thought of it, I appreciate comments and feedback.

Boxlicker101
Boxlicker101
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AnonymousAnonymousabout 6 years ago
Thanks 😊

This was actually very helpful for improving my...I'd say amateur, skill for writing smut.

AnonymousAnonymousalmost 10 years ago
Fantasy in Excess

First, thank you for giving descriptions of scenes. I have trouble with word choice, so it's helpful to see what others use so that I know what vocabulary to keep and what vocab to throw away. Sensations and emotions are another thing that are hard for me to express in words. In that respect, this guide is very helpful, so thank you.

However, I'm getting some mixed messages form this line: "Just as in real life, things shouldn't always go smoothly or perfectly."

So why INSIST on things like this?:

"The men in smutty stories are likewise excellent physical specimens, although falling short of being Mr. America contenders. They are never fat or skinny or bald or have bad breath or anything else disagreeable, unless they are up to no good, such as committing sexual harassment or something comparable."

"All the women in smutty stories have big, firm breasts. Besides being big, they are sumptuous or luscious or succulent or bouncy or similar adjectives, and have big, sensitive nipples that become erect when licked or fondled. [...] Their actual size is of no importance anyhow, just as long as they are big."

What if I prefer medium- or smaller-sized breasts, or skinnier and shorter guys? What if I don't want to write about people impaling themselves on foot-long cocks ("impaling" comes across as a violent word to me -- acceptable for a rough and quick fuck, not so much for something slower)? What if I enjoy seeing a few inexperienced fools fumble around as they feel and taste new things that might not immediately turn them on, but they find a way around it anyway because in the end they're having fun exploring this new territory with someone else?

As you said, sex in fiction tends to be idealized for entertainment reasons, and people with "perfect" physiques (perfect being subjective) do indeed exist and fuck, sometimes fucking each other. But they aren't the only people in existence, and just as there is such a thing as realism in excess, there is fantasy in excess. There are many, many people with a high tolerance for that, but others lean more towards realism, enjoying the awkward moments and the imperfections because it makes the characters more endearing as they learn to work past that.

AnonymousAnonymousalmost 10 years ago
Licking sound

How would you spell the sound of licking pussy?

AnonymousAnonymousover 11 years ago

I think you went really, REALLY heavy on the idealized sex here, and you spoke in way too many absolutes. I've been writing smut for a good ten years, and all of that time having it read by a lot of other people, so I feel confident saying I have some degree of authority in this matter. You say to avoid overly flowery or silly words to describe sex organs, then talk about "round hardness?" Come on. You also don't seem to actually know how anal sex works, which is pretty vital if someone wants to write male/male.

Your style may have served you to some degree, but the amount of restrictions and "this always happens" in this article does anyone reading it a great disservice.

AnonymousAnonymousover 15 years ago
So True

"Your computer will not catch all grammatical mistakes so careful editing for them and for spelling errors is necessary."

Like when you use the term roll-playing instead of role-playing. :wink:

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