Alt.sex.stories

alt.sex.stories is a Usenet newsgroup for erotic stories.

In early 1992, the only Usenet or altnet newsgroup for written erotica was "rec.arts.erotica", whose moderator was often too preoccupied to approve messages on a regular basis. On May 7, 1992, Tim Pierce created "alt.sex.stories" as an unmoderated alternative. [cite newsgroup|title=newgroup alt.sex.stories|date=1992-05-07|author=[e-mail] (Tim Pierce)|id=[e-mail]|url=http://groups.google.com/group/alt.fan.e-t-b/msg/d1512b5197bbb4a0?dmode=source|accessdate=2006-07-12]

The newsgroup quickly became one of the most popular text-based newsgroups (i.e. not intended for posting binary files) on Usenet. Amateur writers of all sorts began posting fictional "erotic stories" and finding a worldwide audience for their work. However, because of the very nature of unmoderated newsgroups, "alt.sex.stories" soon found itself a repository for a great number of poorly-written, sometimes barely coherent "stroke" stories consisting of a few sentences or paragraphs. The average quality of the stories posted to the newsgroup seemed somewhat lower and more crude than the stories seen in pornographic magazines and books, and this state of affairs continues to the current day.

Nonetheless, the laughable quality of some of the stories on the newsgroup was offset by a large number of relatively decent "stories." Over time, authors appeared on the newsgroup who were possessed of genuine writing talent. A few of these authors were so popular that they succeeded in using "alt.sex.stories" to launch moderately successful careers for themselves as writers of erotica. Notable authors of erotica who originally wrote for "alt.sex.stories" include Elf Sternberg and Mary Anne Mohanraj.

As the popularity of the Internet soared in the mid-1990s and authority figures began to restrict access to many adult-oriented Web sites and binary-oriented newsgroups, "alt.sex.stories" managed (by and large) to avoid becoming a target for would-be censors and law enforcement officials cracking down on Internet pornography. The fact that the newsgroup is dedicated primarily to fictional "text"-based stories, as opposed to graphics and pictures, has allowed the newsgroup to be bypassed and overlooked in the wake of various crackdowns on online "obscenity." Many users of the newsgroup live in the United States, where the First Amendment protects the right of most citizens to post adult-oriented "fictional" stories in a forum such as the newsgroup. (Text-based pornography is restricted or prohibited in many other countries, however.)

The subject matter of "alt.sex.stories" has ensured the newsgroup's survival. Even after the entire "alt.sex.*" newsgroup hierarchy was overwhelmed by unending spamming starting in the mid-1990s, people continued to post stories to "alt.sex.stories." Today the newsgroup remains a popular place for users to search for "smut" stories of literally every conceivable form of written erotica that can be devised. (However, the high spam content on the newsgroup means that for many readers, a newsgroup-specific spam filter is necessary to filter out the many junk messages there.)

The newsgroup has served as the source for a great number of anonymous and pseudonymous stories that have since been archived on many adult-oriented Web sites and CD-ROM collections.

alt.sex.stories.* hierarchy

alt.sex.stories.moderated

The onerous moderation requirements of "rec.arts.erotica" led to that group being abandoned by its moderators in 1996, as of late 2004 is still essentially dead. But the constant spamming of "alt.sex.stories" by various pay services, scam artists, and bots created a need for a moderated newsgroup. In early 1997 Eli the Bearded revived the stillborn group "alt.sex.stories.moderated" (aka ASSM) and moderated it for about two years. This moderated newsgroup has always operated by cross-posting all approved stories to alt.sex.stories, and is not simply a filtered version of the unmoderated group, rather, all stories posted to ASSM were specifically submitted there.

Currently the day-to-day operations and general direction of ASSM is overseen by the Alt.Sex.Stories Text Repository (ASSTR), which coordinates a group of volunteers to moderate the newsgroup using a web-based voting system. ASSTR also hosts an [http://assm.asstr.org/assm archive] of the newsgroup. ASSM is one of the few remaining active groups in the "alt.sex.*" hierarchy.

Due to competition from web-based erotica sites and communities, the volume of stories posted to ASSM (and thus to alt.sex.stories) had dropped considerably by 2006, although the group is still actively moderated.

alt.sex.stories.d

alt.sex.stories.d [iscussion] (aka ASSD) is a forum for story authors and readers to discuss stories submitted to ASSM and any other topics they feel like.

alt.sex.stories.gay

For same sex pairings, the newsgroup "alt.sex.stories.gay" was created but was soon filled with spam. The group "alt.sex.stories.gay.moderated" (often referred to as "ASSGM") was launched on October 1, 1997 and developed a distinct culture and stories that are rarely posted elsewhere. Although there are a few female/female pairings posted, the group primarily consists of male/male stories; Lesbian stories are far more acceptable to ASSM readers. The current ASSGM Moderator is JT Michcock who has run the group since January, 2000. There is a free web-based story archive (linked below) as well as a number of email groups, zipped archive resource groups and a separate discussion group all on Yahoo Groups.

There are several other sub-groups to "alt.sex.stories". A few are active, but most are just repositories of crossposted messages, usually spam.

tory codes

Because of the large volume of stories posted to these groups users found it difficult to find stories to suit their kink. To help with this a set of codes to describe the story content have been developed, such as M for Male and F for female.

Notes

References

*" [http://www.asstr.org/files/FAQs_and_Information/Things_You_Should_Know_v3.txt Things you should know] : A help file for alt.sex.stories and related groups" by Seurat (version 3; Dec 1998)
* [http://www.asstr.org/files/FAQs_and_Information/ass_faq.txt The Alt.Sex.Stories.* Hierarchy and Related Groups FAQ] (version 2.03; Jun 19, 2000) by Apuleius. See especially section 2, a history of erotic stories on usenet.
* [http://www.asstr.org/files/FAQs_and_Information/Ole_Joes_Guide_v15.txt Alt.sex.stories - A Subculture] by Ole Joe (version 15; Nov 1998).
* [http://www.asstr.org/~ASSHoF/ alt.sex.stories Hall of Fame] : Commentary on beloved authors
* [http://www.assgm.net/info/faq.doc alt.sex.stories.gay.moderated FAQ and posting guidelines] : Frequently asked questions for the ASSGM group and guidelines for story posts

External links

* [http://groups.google.com/group/alt.fan.e-t-b/browse_frm/thread/791b9d9a29076d73/d1512b5197bbb4a0?lnk=st&q=alt.sex.stories+newgroup+amherst&rnum=1#d1512b5197bbb4a0 copy of the newgroup message that created alt.sex.stories]
* [http://www.asstr.org/ Alt.Sex.Stories Text Repository] -- free, non-profit collection of over 250,000 works of erotic literature, home to over 1800 authors, and host of the [http://assm.asstr.org/assm/ Alt.Sex.Stories.Moderated archive]
* [http://www.modemac.com/cliches.html The Top XXX Cliches of alt.sex.stories] -- humorous compilation (also free) of cliched writing on "alt.sex.stories"
* Google groups: [http://groups.google.com/groups?q=alt.sex.stories alt.sex.stories]
* [http://www.assgm.net/ alt.sex.stories.gay.moderated (ASSGM) Archive]
* [http://www.asstr.org/~JournalofDesire/v3n2/Jekyll-SexStories.html "Sex Stories on the Internet: The First Twenty or so Years"] -- essay by "H. Jekyll"