Best Wattpad Alternatives for Erotic Fiction Authors

For authors of self-published fiction online, there are few names bigger than Wattpad. Wattpad is one of the largest platforms (the website and Wattpad App) where writers can share their personal stories with millions of readers all over the world. Since its founding in 2006, Wattpad has grown into a powerhouse, with the site now boasting over 90 million visitors a month. However, as the site has grown, so too have the restrictions on what type of content can be published on Wattpad.

Wattpad's main audience is young women interested in fan fiction (according to online articles). Since their audience skews young, Wattpad has faced criticism over the years for exposing that audience to erotic stories and racy fan fiction. Wattpad has occasionally tightened its rules and purged content over the years, but nothing prepared authors for what the community would experience in the spring of 2024. Less than a year after Wattpad was sold to a huge Korean corporation, the "Wattpad Purge" commenced. The "Purge", as it's known in the community, started with site's new owners announcing much stricter policies against adult content, the removal of direct messaging between users, and the launch of a new AI tool to scan published stories for TOS violations.

The immediate result of the Wattpad rule changes - and the reason it's known as the "Purge" - was a wave of longtime Wattpad authors being banned or seeing their previously published stories removed from the site. The Wattpad Purge hit authors in all genres and categories - including fan fiction and original works - but writers of erotic stories were hit the hardest. Reddit writing groups were quickly filled with posts from frustrated Wattpad authors looking for alternative places to publish their erotic stories and adult fan fiction.

Since so many Wattpad authors are looking for new places to publish their stories, we'll take a look at the best Wattpad alternatives. There are two main alternatives that are close to the size as Wattpad, both of which accept erotic stories and racy fan fiction - Literotica and Archive of Our Own (AO3). For authors considering moving their works off of Wattpad (or cross-posting to multiple sites), the main difference between these two Wattpad alternatives is that Literotica specializes in original stories and AO3 specializes in fan fiction. Let's take a look at both options.

Best Wattpad Alternative For Original Stories (non-Fan Fiction)

Literotica - The Internet's Most Popular Erotic Fiction Website for 25+ Years

Literotica is the best alternative for Wattpad authors looking to publish original erotic fiction and sex stories. Established in 1998, Literotica has been the top online community of authors and readers of original works of erotic fiction for over a quarter of a century. There are no other text sex websites even close to the size of Literotica, both in their number of monthly visitors (over 50 million), in their massive number of published works (over 500,000), and in the number of authors they've worked with (over 100,000).

If you're publishing erotic stories online and you don't post them at Literotica, you're missing out on a huge potential audience.

Literotica Pros:

• Freedom of Expression: Literotica allows adult content, providing erotic fiction authors with the freedom to express their creativity.
• Readership: It's the most visited sex story publishing website in the world.
• Multiple Formats: In addition to text stories, Literotica publishes audio, games, poems, and other storytelling formats.
• Reader Feedback: Followers, comments, voting, forums, chat, and other forms of feedback for authors.
• Well-defined publishing guidelines and community guidelines to promote a sex-positive experience for all members of the community.
• Diverse Categories: Literotica offers a wide range of categories, from romance to BDSM, catering to diverse tastes and preferences.
• Author Community: The platform hosts an active community of readers and writers who offer constructive feedback, help, and encouragement.
• Revenue Opportunities: Literotica allows authors to post links to popular monetization services alongside each work, as well as on their author profiles.

Literotica Cons:

• Site Design: Some parts of Literotica's website design are somewhat outdated, although much of it has been updated in the last few years.
• Not Fan Fiction Focused: Literotica readers like original stories, so fan fiction works might not do as well here.

Best Wattpad Alternative for Fan Fiction

Archive of Our Own (AO3) - Fan Fiction Non-Profit Publishing Community

Archive of Our Own (known in the online writing community as AO3) is a non-profit, fan-run platform that hosts a giant library of fanfiction. The site was originally created as an archive of fan fiction that had been banned from other platforms. Since its humble beginnings in 2008, AO3 has grown into a huge fan fiction community, with hundreds of millions of visitors a month. AO3 is arguably a larger publishing platform than even Wattpad, so it's a natural place to publish fan fiction that's been banned from Wattpad.

Unlike commercial platforms, AO3 is run by a board and funded by donations. The most important philosophy of the site is free speech. That means AO3 allows any and all content to be published, which can be scary for some authors coming from more restrictive platforms. The site also prioritizes function over form, which means that its user interface - while feature-rich - may take some getting used to. If you'd like complete freedom to publish whatever type of fan fiction you can imagine, AO3 is the place for that.

The biggest downside to AO3, and it's intentional, is that it is not a place to publish original works of fiction. AO3 was created for fan fiction, and the audience there is not very interested in other types of stories.

AO3 Pros:

• No Censorship: AO3 allows any content, giving authors complete freedom to express their creativity.
• Readership: There is no bigger fan fiction publishing platform on earth.
• Tagging System: The platform's tagging system if famous for its flexibility.
• Community: AO3 is run by fan fiction fans for the fan fiction fans.

AO3 Cons:

• Low Tech User Interface: AO3's interface can be confusing or overwhelming for new users.
• No Censorship: This can be a little scary for some authors and readers since many extreme works get published.
• Limited Feedback: AO3 publishes so many works every day that it can be difficult for authors to get noticed.
• No Monetization: AO3 prohibits authors from using the platform to make money in any way.

Best Wattpad Alternative For Publishing Ebooks

Amazon - The Largest Book Seller in The World

Amazon is the biggest, the oldest, and the most corporate online book and ebook seller in the world today. There isn't much to say other than you must be on Amazon if you want to sell ebooks online. There's no site even close to the size of Amazon. They can be strict about enforcing their (sometimes complicated) adult content rules, but they do allow the publishing of erotica or sexy romance as long as it meets all of their guidelines.

Amazon Pros:

• #1 Bookseller: Amazon is the biggest book publisher in the world and gives you access to the most readers.
• Monetization: Amazon exists to make money, so publishing ebooks here offers the potential to make money.

Amazon Cons:

• Erotic Content: While Amazon allows adult content, they have strict rules and tend not to surface erotica in search.
• Competition: This is the biggest bookseller in the world, you're competing with Stephen King and J.R.R. Tolkien.
• Low Commission: Many of Amazon's monetization programs require a lot of sales to make a little money.
• Potential for removal: Amazon has also purged adult content at various times over the years.

Best Wattpad Alternative For Ebooks That Isn't Amazon

Smashwords - Independent Ebook Publishing That Also Has Amazon Distribution

Smashwords is an e-publishing platform that allows authors to self-publish and distribute their works to major retailers like Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Smashwords can get your work into Amazon without actually being Amazon. They also run their own platform which is known for being slightly more free speech friendly than Amazon. Like Wattpad, Smashwords was recently purchased by a large corporation, so their publishing policies could change to be less adult-friendly at any time.

Smashwords Pros:

• Distribution: Smashwords offers a wide distribution network (including Amazon), increasing the visibility of your stories.
• Royalties: Authors retain a significant portion of their book's sales.

Smashwords Cons:

• Formatting: Smashwords' formatting process is strict, but this is normal for serious ebook publishers.
• Marketing: Authors are responsible for marketing their works, which can be time-consuming and expensive.

In conclusion, while Wattpad (after the Purge) remains an excellent platform for general fiction and non-sexy fanfiction, erotic fiction authors will likely find publishing on Literotica (for original works) and AO3 (for fanfiction) are better alternatives. Amazon and Smashwords also offer possible alternatives for less explicit adult content if writers prefer ebook publishing.