We spanking fetishists are connoisseurs of fantasy. Thoughts of red bare bottoms, discipline, and steamy power struggles fill our imaginations. Sharing these fantasies with our fellow spankos can connect us in the deep, psychologically scrumptious ways we crave. Erotic fiction is a particularly powerful medium for spanko self-expression. If you’ve been wanting to turn your kinky fantasies into stories, I've got 16 tips to help you write great spanking erotica.

1. Aim for telepathy, not flowery prose.

Many aspiring writers start out trying to sound fancy or clever. (I sure did!) Readers don’t actually like this, as it comes off as inauthentic. Instead, aim to evoke emotion through a telepathic connection with your readers. Give them the exact words they need to piece together the scene you’re imagining in their own heads. Describe the sights you want them to picture, the thoughts you want them to ponder, and the sensations you’d like them to feel. Clarity is kind.

2. Get ready to get vulnerable. 

Writing spanking erotica is a scary affair for most people, so prepare to put your fears on a shelf and ignore them. You will be opening the most intimate hallways of your mind to others and inviting them inside to explore. Some readers might think, “This sexy place is weird!” and judge you as a result. Your inner critic will remind you of this possibility throughout the writing process. “They’re all gonna laugh at you!” DON’T LISTEN. Doing so will make your story SUCK. Readers of erotica want to FEEL something and writing only becomes powerful when we stop playing it safe. Bare your naked soul without asking for anyone’s permission. Take up space.

3. Define your target audience.

Who are you writing your story for? “Other spankos, of course!” While that is true, I urge you to get more specific by creating a detailed avatar in your mind. How old is your target reader? What’s their gender? Are they religious? Political? What values do they hold? Solidifying details like that will make it easier to decide how to convey your ideas effectively. A Gen X audience, for instance, may interpret your story differently than Gen Z, so plan accordingly. In many cases, a writer’s target reader ends up being “people like me” or “me when I was younger.” Those work too.

4. Plan out the basics before you write.

Some writers are apparently “pantsers” who “write by the seat of their pants” without a plan. This is MADNESS, in my opinion. Starting your first draft without sorting out the basics of your story will likely create the need for more edits, if not rewrites of entire sections, down the road during the revisions phase. If writing a detailed outline feels like overkill, at least write out short descriptions of your plot, setting, and main characters. Also decide which tense (past or present) you’re going to use and the point of view (first, second, or third person) of the protagonist.

5. Identify your main characters’ conflicts.

Conflict is what makes a story interesting and relatable. Your readers will quickly get bored if your characters have nothing to struggle through. Spankos, in particular, LOVE intimate drama, so figure out what each of your characters wants and what’s standing in the way of them getting it. The tension from these clashes will keep things spicy.

6. Craft a strong narrative arc.

To start developing your plot, decide on what will happen at its beginning, middle, and end. Ask yourself: why does your story start when it does? What’s special about that moment, day, or period? Also, what will constitute the climax of your story and how will that event lead to the resolution of the plot? 

(Short stories involving spanking offer a natural three-part arc that can make this step easy: begin with the lead-up to the spanking, have the characters spank at the climax, and finish off with aftercare. A tried-and-true formula.)

7. Let your first draft suck. 

Now that you’ve planned out the basics, it’s time to dive in and start your first draft. Do not waste time aiming to create a finished product at this stage. Don’t write and rewrite your first two paragraphs over and over until they glisten in the sun. Let it SUCK and get it DONE. You will polish it later.

“You can always edit a bad page. You can't edit a blank page.”

—Jodi Picoult

Heed her words and charge forward, word warrior.

8. Spend time on the build-up.

You may think, “I’d better get to the spanky bits ASAP or readers will get bored and abandon my story.” Not so fast! Without a solid build-up, you’re unlikely to inspire a gratifying emotional payoff for your reader at the climax. People read erotica because they enjoy richly contextual relationships between characters. If you start your story off with a visceral punishment spanking, with little to no context beforehand, its impact will likely fall flat. The non-spanky parts are what give the spanks weight, so leverage your build-up as foreplay to get readers excited.

(I once read The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice and there was—forgive me for saying it, Lord—too much spanking in that book! Swats were doled out so superfluously that none of it meant anything to me by the end. I may sound like an old man yelling at clouds outside of Walmart, but the spankings in spanking stories should mean something, dammit!)

9. Avoid tropes and cliches.

A trope is a commonly used storytelling strategy, plot element, or character archetype. A cliché is a specific phrase, idea, or situation that has been overused to the point of becoming trite and predictable. Clearly, it’s best to avoid using both if you want to keep your readers engaged. Claiming your main characters “fell in love at first sight” or “lived happily ever after,” for example, will have them rolling their eyes. Give them original, nuanced, unexpected ideas to chew on and they will love you far more.

10. With dialogue, seek a balance between realism and purpose. 

Dialogue that sounds robotic, stilted, or too formal is both unsexy and unrealistic. Real-world speech, on the other hand, is often messy, meandering, and repetitive. While writing, aim to strike a balance between the two with smooth, punchy dialogue that adds to the stories of your characters and their relationships. How they speak (or refrain from speaking) should help convey their intentions and what kind of person they are.

11. Utilize spanko language.

Certain words and phrases will be more likely to tickle your reader’s spanko bone than others. In addition to explicit talk of spanking, subtle threats and strict admonishment can help spice up your dialogue. A spanker’s words of praise for their spankee in a story can feel like a warm hug to readers who enjoy submitting in real life. Be generous with these juicy bits so your audience can put themselves in the shoes of your characters and imagine they’re the ones speaking or being spoken to.

12. Show, don’t tell.

Writing that someone “felt turned on” when their panties were pulled down will do less for readers than, say, describing the slick wetness dripping from the warm space between their legs. Get specific about what your characters are experiencing so readers can embody rather than imagine the associated feelings. This will lead to stronger connections with your characters and more engagement with your writing overall. 

13. Make your climax matter.

Your story’s climax should revolve around the greatest challenge your protagonist faces and solve your plot’s core question. (“Will the hero defeat the evil villain?”) All your major plot elements must converge on this singular point of reckoning. This is the most intense, pivotal moment of your story and your readers will be craving emotional payoff, so make it matter. Your protagonist should endure a real possibility of failure and the outcome should impact their narrative arc in ways that force them to evolve.

14. Settle on an ending that either satisfies or intrigues. 

Readers of erotica tend to prefer happy endings between lovers. If your characters don’t end up together at the end, there’s a chance your audience will feel let down. This isn’t always the case, however, where transgressive kinky dynamics are involved. If the lovers in your story are also enemies on some level, you have fertile ground for an ending that makes readers ponder the more complex aspects of our intimate relationships. However you choose to wrap up your plot should be consistent with your story’s main message and the arcs of its characters. 

15. Kill your darlings.

Readers are busy people just like you and me. As you edit your first draft, do them a favor by ensuring every bit of content in your story is relevant to the plot. Cut anything superfluous and shorten up passages that drag on too long. Keep the pace moving by asking yourself, “Would the story make just as much sense without this word/sentence?” If the answer is yes, leave it out. Snappy is sexy.  

16. Clean up your cadence as you edit.

The term “cadence” refers to how the words in a piece of writing flow in our mind as we read them. Ideally, the poetic rhythm of your prose should be just as pleasing to readers as the plot of your story itself. Reading your draft out loud can help you choose language and sentence structures that feel smooth, vivid, and enticing. Rewrite any sentences that sound clunky and break up ones that run on too long. Clarify confusing transitions and vague descriptions. Polish your paragraphs until they shine.

Them's the tips, folks! Now get out there and put them to use! The spanko world is small and we await your kinky stories.

Psst, if you’d like help, you can hire me! As a bestselling ghostwriter and book coach, I have a passion for helping spankos with a vision get their best ideas on the page.

“Working with Sweet Tea was a joy. She guided me through the writing process with incredible skill, fostering my ideas and helping me develop my story. When I needed extra support, she seamlessly stepped in to ghostwrite, ensuring the project stayed on track. Sweet Tea is extremely capable, professional, and adaptable—truly a partner who gets things done with excellence.” 

—"ThatJon", author of Broadened Horizons

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