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2020 has been quite a year...and it's not even half over.
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) upended much of what we thought we knew about how to live our lives. Depending on where you are in the world, you may have been stuck in quarantine for several months by now. Heartbreaking images of sickness and worse have dominated news and social media. We've also seen wonderful stories of people helping each other, working together to make it through these extraordinary times.
Many were shell shocked by the arrival of the Coronavirus and all the changes it brought. But shock is temporary. As the days, weeks, then months passed, most of us have started to settle into a "new normal". It's far from old normal, and hopefully short lived - but it's the world we're living in, for now.
Throughout history no matter how enormous a crisis, and no matter how long it lasts, humans find ways to make the best of their lives. Love and laughter are not absent even from the darkest eras of modern human history. Great art has always been a byproduct of great tragedy. It's no surprise that we've seen famous musicians, actors, authors, designers, comedians, and others utilizing their talents to help society cope with this latest pandemic.
It's not only love, laughter and art that persist despite disaster - so too does sex, intimacy, and orgasm. If at any point in human history people stopped having sex, we wouldn't be here today. The Coronavirus lockdown has been especially impactful on sex lives since the government guidelines have trapped people together indoors for long periods of time, often with little to do.
It wasn't long after the lockdowns started that Literotica saw its first quarantine sex story. Initially, we weren't sure if we should publish it. Then another lockdown story arrived, and another. It became clear that Literotica authors - like other artists - were using erotic literature to process, examine, and cope with the changing world around them. Some of the stories were just plain naughty, some were sad, others explored the consequences of extended confinement on relationships.
As we read more of these stories, and saw feedback from Lit readers, we understood that quarantine erotica was shedding light on another side of this incredible story we're all living in 2020. The Coronavirus has shut millions of doors around the world, but the people behind those doors continue living their lives. They laugh and cry, fall in love, have sex, create drama, experiment, be faithful, and cheat. Technology - live cams, videos, photos, audio, and text - allows even the lonely to be exhibitionists and voyeurs, to meet new people, to be intimate in ways never before possible during extended isolation.
We've seen a lot of things change this year, but there's a lot more going on just out of sight. Erotic stories allow us to peer inside of our neighbors windows, to walk through some of those closed doors - getting us close to the action, by invitation, and from a safe distance. It's not a cure, but every little thing that helps us keep our sanity until that cure is found matters.
Several Literotica members have suggested that we bring all of the coronavirus, lockdown, and quarantine inspired erotic stories together in some way. With those suggestions in mind, we've created the "
Love The One(s) You're With
" special writing event to benefit Coronavirus charities (as well as awarding the usual prizes to authors).
We will donate $500 to the charity of the winner's choice, as well as $250 each to the charity of each of the two runner up's choices. As always, there are some rules for the contest, please make sure to read those below.
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If you'd like to participate in this contest, please read this entire post. If you don't read the whole thing, you may miss out on important rules, rendering your story ineligible for the contest!
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You can begin submitting on (or before):
May 10th
The last day to submit is:
June 10th
at 11:59EST
Winners will be announced on:
June 17th
This contest will coexist with the usual monthly contest. Stories may only win one or the other, not both contests simultaneously. The prizes for the top 3 stories will be the same as those awarded in the monthly contests:
