Fictional Fantasies: Exploring Paraphilic Narratives in Literary Spaces

Limited empirical investigation has explored how women engage with atypical sexuality. Some studies suggest that women may express paraphilic interests through fantasy, rather than action. The current study examined the expression of atypical sexuality on Wattpad, a popular fiction-based website whose readership is primarily female. Using 123 search terms based on a variety of sexual interests, data were collected on 102 distinct stories. A thematic analysis of the most popular stories (n = 11), ranging from 11,300,000 to 196,000,000 reads, revealed themes including masochism, exophilia, homoeroticism, age gap relationships, pseudo-incest, and coercion. The motifs that intertwined power, control, innocence, objectification, taboo, coercion, and otherness highlight the nuanced ways in which erotic desires reflect or challenge societal norms and personal boundaries. The results may not be clinically concerning in isolation; however, the cumulative effect of consuming taboo or harmful sexual content may have implications for sexual development among vulnerable audiences who may use fiction as a blueprint for understanding sexual dynamics. This exploratory study offers preliminary insights into how written erotica may serve as an outlet for female expression of atypical sexual fantasies, warranting further empirical research on paraphilic themes expressed through written media.