What do you look for in a spanking story

I like meeting new characters. Getting inside their heads, learning their motivations, and so on. Reading a good, well plotted story.

In short, I read spanking stories for the same reason I read novels.

As for specifics - I'm a fan of poetic justice (so-called because that form of justice only exists in fiction). A story where one character sets up several others for spankings, then gets one at the end, can be wonderful.

As a flip side, I also enjoy ones where the spanking is completely, utterly unfair, but called for by the rules. As in "we both know that this is undeserved, but it is happening", even when one side pretends to be in doubt. Or the classic "student sent to the office for one thing ends up getting punished" story - such as the honour student who is "sent for the cane" (that is, to borrow it and bring it back for the teacher who wants to use in the classroom) and the other teacher (or headmaster) hears it as "sent for caning", delivering a good but completely undeserved caning. Another example of this theme is the "institutional" type story where a visitor enters the Reformatory For Women and is mistaken for an inmate.

Then there's the "moth to a flame". As in "I'm fascinated with the concept of spanking, but I don't dare mention that to anyone, so I'll flirt with the situation and follow things this way and - Oh what do you mean that it's my turn now?" type stories. A good example of this type of story is one that I wrote called "The Magistrate", but ImReadOnly and Watcher are also masters of this theme.

That can play in with the next area I like - the "mistaken age" story. Someone in their late teens, early 20s gets mistaken as much younger and spanked.

Of course tastes change over time, but at the moment those are my likes.

Primarily spanking, I have to admit. Otherwise I would probably be looking for reading material elsewhere! But when you have read a few thousand spanking stories, it is hard to excite you with spanking alone. You are looking for more; for characters, plot, atmosphere, psychology, style - whatever makes any story worth reading.

What makes spanking stories (and erotic stories in general) different, is that you also want them to fit your particular version of the fetish when it comes to positions, implements, surroundings, orientation, amount of sex etc. In some cases, a perfect fit here may turn a mediocre story into gold - I have some favorite stories I return to again and again although they are not very well written or constructed. They just happen to fit my desires perfectly.

Besides a well deserved spanking I look for well developed characters and an engaging plot. A wee bit of humour here and there goes a long way too, to make the story more enjoyable. Spankings sans story-line, and minus good characters and a unique and engaging story bore me...it is just a spanking in isolation and nothing more and after you have read one of those it feels like you have pretty much read them all. Everybody's spanking fetish is different and i like mine to be laced with engaging characters, and a gripping plot to stimulate my mind as well as my kink

Oh, I love gloriously OTT school settings. So common a scene but when done properly, nothing beats it. Forbidding towers and bleached dormitories, cold showers and cross country runs, manipulative prefects and cunning teachers, wicked bullies and fearful assemblies, dour canteens and homework satchels. All ending with our poor, innocent heroine silently sobbing as she hoists her knickers back up.....

Me too!

I posted earlier here but after reading what Alef said I just would have to say, what he said as far as what I look for. Alef, you hit the nail square on the head. I couldn't express what I look for any better so won't even try. I agree, if all these requirements are met the story doesn't have to be all that well written. The rest of the features in the story make up for that. Although having said this, I must say that I haven't found a story on here yet that I would consider poorly written.

Me three.

The more over-the-top it is, the harder it is to take seriously, which makes the scenario much more palatable for me.

I concur fully with what has been said about having good characters,plot,style and so forth in a story. A spanking story is like any other kind of story;either it is well-written or it is not. I certainly agree about how endless repetition of SMACK! and the like is poor writing,and I think it shows either lack of imagination or laziness on the part of the writer.
I like at least some degree of plausibility in the story, and if it is a discipline story that the punishment be deserved. Being falsely accused or mistaken for someone else,and spanked,generally a turn-off. An exception would be a twin switch plot,where one twin pretends to be the other,not knowing she has a spanking coming. I so love the idea of bratty Jessica Wakefield one of the Sweet Valley High twins being spanked when she is caught posing as her responsible sister Elizabeth.
Have mentioned in other threads or story comments that I do not like explicit sex in stories,or father/daughter or mother/son domestic discipline stories. Nor do I care for stories of spanking very young children. Teens yes,and even the age group called " tweens" if they are sufficiently bratty. Totally love maternal discipline of adult daughters.
Definitely prefer F/ F and M/F. Somehow most F/M does not appeal to me, unless its something like a cheating spouse being involved.
Likewise M/M which I confess have not read much of. Do think non sexual M/M domestic discipline would be something I might enjoy more of. Like a story where a dad applies a paddle to speedo-clad bottom of an errant teenage son(counterpoint to mom paddling bikini-clad daughter).
I like variety in describing spankees,like what they are wearing and so forth. Have often said too often the story involves a dress being raised and panties down. That might be fine for a period piece,from a time when women were almost always dressed like that, but not necessarily in the present. And I may have mentioned I love stories where a woman or girl wearing scanty,revealing,or provocative clothes gets spanked, whether its just for dressing like that,or a case where she gets spanked for some other reason and happens to be wearing something that leaves her bottom poorly protected. Stories where a woman is wearing thong underwear or a thong bathing suit and gets spanked,regardless of why,are at the top of my list of favorites.Not however if the story is supposed to take place in the past. Once read a story at Classics where a husband spanked his wife for wearing a revealing bikini in public.Problem was story was set in the 50s and bathing suits that exposed the buttocks were not around then. If you write a story set in the past, get details right.
Would add that I don't like stories that involve really brutal punishment,floggings and the like,something that occurs all to often in judicial punishment stories. And obviously no rape or torture.
Really like stories ending with some description of what it was like afterwards. Did the one spanked realize that she had suffered the consequences of her actions,her feelings about what happened, and so on. And by all means,especially if its a hard or severe spanking,mention or description of the physical results,the condition of her bottom,pain,soreness,etc. And delighted if there is mention of how she dealt with the matter of sitting,like saying she sat on a pillow or cushion, slept on her stomach,ate standing up etc. There is one of Rollin's stories that ends with the recipients of a strapping eating supper off the mantel.That is a great old spanking threat "have to eat off the mantelpiece" that does not seem to be used much in spanking stories now.At the very least would be a change from the common " won't sit down for a week" phrase.
By no means do I only read discipline stories.I like lighthearted "fun" stories too. The same standards about plot,style,etc still apply. Whimsey though can be difficult to write. Have to carry the impression throughout the piece that the spanking is nothing but fun,and maybe have a twist ending, like my story "Birthday Bikini,Birthday Spanking."Won't give away the plot but it is neither punishment nor even "loving discipline" in the ending.
While I enjoy stories set in all sorts of times and places,find that on the whole get into those that are more familiar. For example,British school stories with the cane are less appealing than American school paddlings(unless they are the ridiculous ones that involve the totally divorced from reality bare bottom paddlings in the classroom and the like). I think of American spankings being with the paddle,hairbrush,strap,belt,switch,not the cane unless you have people that live a serious spanko lifestyle.
This is a really interesting and informative thread. We do have some serious readers here.

Redskinluver,

That is a really serious thread. Nicely done. I guess to add something to what I said above is that first off, I really do like father/uncle/daughter/niece type scenarios. I also like the daughter/niece being in her later teens. I also enjoy stories of this nature when the scenario leading to the spanking is plausible, something that a girl that age could do in real life. Examples are curfew, problems at school, things like that. I have also read several stories on here where the daughter has been younger than 13, again, with plausible infraction leading to the punishment with the discipline being administered in a very strict but also very loving setting. In other words, even though we all know these stories are fiction, the story line follows something that would and most likely does happen in real life. In some households, again in the real world, the outcome may actually follow very closely the outcome we read about here.

I am not a fan of M/M, F/M or most adult spanking adult scenarios. Mainly because this just isn't realistic to me. However, I do like some judicial disciplinary stories. I also don't like really severe punishment or torture type stories either. Prison strappings administered under reasonable circumstances I consider good. I have read some stories along these lines that I have liked. An example is "The Prison Whipping" by the late Alex Birch. Setting I believe is in 1948 shortly after the war. Can't remember exactly where, perhaps South Africa but not sure. Good prison discipline although can't really agree that it was deserved.

When it comes to historic fiction, Wikipedia is your friend. It has pages on most of the major fashions - how they started and when they ended - that can add veracity to any historical story.

Edited to add:
Old books, movies, radio plays, etc also help to get a feel for the time. For example, Pretty Maids All in a Row (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretty_Maids_All_in_a_Row for details) is a film that perfectly captured some of the attitudes towards sex in the late 60s and early 70s. Would a film that includes student/teacher sex (with a serial killer mixed in) be a comedy today? No, but this was a comedy made at a time when it could be joked about.

The way someone dressed, acted, and the cultural mores - you can find them in old media and use that to get a handle on historic fiction.