Eleven kinds of first line, from the slow build to the hand already on him.

The best way to open an erotic story is with a line that puts the reader somewhere specific and makes them want the next one. That can mean starting slowly with a man’s routine. It can also mean dropping them straight into the sex. Both work. What fails is a page of backstory before anything happens. Here are 11 openings I’ve used, counting down from the slowest to the most direct.

How do you open slowly without losing the reader?

A slow opening still needs a hook. Give the reader a man in a place they can picture. Then hint that something’s about to break.

11. The routine

Start with a habit, then break it. Late Night Glances opens: “Ethan had always been the type to keep his routine simple.” The reader knows the routine is about to change.

10. The setting

Put the reader in a place with a body in it. Into the canyon begins: “Alex climbed the upper trails of Runyon Canyon as the afternoon light softened over the Hollywood Hills.” Then it moves straight to his sweat and his boots.

9. The rule

Tell the reader what’s forbidden. In The sign still stuck, the narrator has been in Bangkok less than an hour, “and the hostel had already told me twice not to have sex in the shower.” Now the reader is waiting for them to do exactly that.

8. The message

A text can open a story in a handful of words. Cum on the security screen starts with Dev’s phone lighting up at ten past two: “Laundry room. Ten minutes. Watch me.” Rough Day opens on a text too, from a friend who’s had a bad one.

How do you open in the middle of things?

Start at a moment of change. The reader catches up on the way.

7. The arrival

Somebody walks in, and things are different. My new roommate’s naked habit opens: “The moment Alex dropped his bag in the hallway and peeled off his T-shirt without closing the door, I knew sharing the flat was going to test me.” The whole story is in that sentence.

6. Second person

“You” puts the reader in the man’s shoes. First Time on the Nude Beach builds to “This is it. First time.” Short sentences in second person read like nerves.

5. The middle, then back

Open on the moment the story is building to, then rewind. Watching football and cuddling in bed is not gay starts with “Rhys’s arm is over my stomach, the match is still on” before going back to explain how they got there.

How do you open with the sex already happening?

Some readers come for the sex. Give it to them in the first line, then let the context arrive around it.

4. Waking up

Sleep is a good place to start a story about bodies. Caught in the Hostel Dorm opens with five words: “I woke already holding myself.”

3. An object doing the work

Let something other than a man start it. The upside of sleeping naked begins: “The sheet found Fraser’s cock before he did.” It’s funny and erotic in eight words.

2. The screen

A watcher’s first line can set up the whole arrangement. Bend over or I call the cops opens: “The security pane slides over the porn the moment the side door opens.” The reader knows a scene has been planned.

1. A hand already on him

The most direct opening there is. The gym changing room story starts: “Theo’s tattooed fingers close around my cock before my shorts have finished hitting the tiles.” There’s no warm-up. The story then has to earn the rest by slowing down.

Which opening should you choose?

Match it to the story. A slow-burn story between friends suits the routine or the arrival. A hookup suits the hand already on him. If you’re unsure, write the scene first. Then come back for the sentence that gets closest to the moment things change. My guide to building sexual tension helps with slow openings. If you need a story to open in the first place, try 25 gay erotica story ideas.

Common mistakes

The most common is the weather report: a paragraph of sky before a man appears. Another is the CV opening, with his age and job crammed into the first sentence. Spread those details out.

FAQ

Should an erotic story start with sex?

It can. It works best when the story then steps back to explain. If it doesn’t, the reader has nowhere to go.

How long should the opening be before the first sexual moment?

In a short story, a few hundred words at most. My guide to how long a gay erotica story should be has rough lengths.

Should I put a content warning before the first line?

On most sites, yes. A short note of what’s in the story helps readers find what they want. See where to publish gay erotica for free.

How do I end what I’ve opened?

Look back at your first line. 9 ways to end an erotic story shows how.