Almost every author at some point has trouble writing sex scenes. Sex is such a transcendent experience that it almost defies words. So how are you supposed to write about it then? Fear not, for I have scoured the forums to bring you the wisdom of the ages!
And by that I mean I read what Weird Harold said on the subject.
Do you really want to do this?
The biggest thing wrong with a lot of the stories on Lit is that there doesn't seem to be a reason for the character to be having sex. A brother walks in on his sister undressing and suddenly they're both fucking like rabbits. We don't get why, we don't get what either of them are thinking, they're just straight in there.
A lot of people complain about difficulties getting characters to fall into bed. They write the background easily, but their characters don't seem to want to play and in fact resist getting together. Think about
why
your characters are supposed to be shagging. Do they love each other, is she drunk, are they the last two people alive and it's a way to pass the time? If your characters don't have a good enough reason, then they may resist the sex scene and you'll end up with stilted or non-existent writing.
Oh my God! No! Not the egg beaters!
Never be afraid to be different. You may think that the inside of your mind is not fit to see the light of day, but trust me, there is much worse out here on the internet. Everyone has their own sick little fantasy and a lot of the readers on Lit are probably waiting for someone to write their own personal one. Never be afraid to write exactly what you're thinking about – there's probably someone out there who'll worship you for writing the story that he/she's been waiting for. I'm still waiting for someone to write the one with the credit-cards, the instant drying superglue and the small Panamanian dwarf named Tuscaloosa…
But I digress.
And here we are at the Sex World Championships. The British team is looking very good this year, don't you think Bob?
One of the more frequent mistakes that can be seen in Lit stories is the play-by-play. AFAIK, this is a Yank football term, but it fits quite well here. This is where the writer tells us exactly what the characters are doing, like he's a sports commentator giving radio coverage of the sex.
He ran his hands over the upper hemisphere of her breast and used his fingers to tease her nipple. Then he kissed her neck, his lips slowly sliding down towards her chest, licking and sucking his way down her body. She groaned and put her hands on his back. He moved his other hand onto her hips, his fingers sliding inside her knickers.
Well it's a good start for the young lad from Britain, don't you agree Bob? For those of you just coming in from work, we've just seen a beautiful bit of play to get her bra off and now, I think he's going to try and get his lips on her nipple. He's moving down her breast, beautiful mouth work there and he's found the nipple! What a good effort from Smith! Oh and you can see the crowd's excitement at that.
Play-by-plays can be identified by lots of sentences starting with he did this, she did that. Beware of this and try to spice up your work by telling us something apart from what their hands are doing.
Mmm, that feels sooo good.
The most important thing to describe is how things feel. The biggest organ in the human body is the skin and talking to your reader about how his touch sent sparks of electricity racing up your nerves as a warm flush radiated through your skin is always going to get a good reaction. People don't want to hear what your character is doing, they want to hear what it feels like.
Eg. Which would you rather read?
He ran his hand over her breast, squeezing it gently
or
She shuddered as his hand ran over her breast. Waves of excitement flooded through her body as he squeezed gently. She bit her lip and moaned in ecstasy.
What are you thinking about?
Make sure you tell the reader what your characters are thinking. Sometimes that's half the fun. It is a bit of a difficult skill to get inside the heads of your characters, but well worth the effort of learning. People react better to realistic characters and the best way of making your characters real is by telling us what they're thinking. Another bonus is if you can make the sex seem dirty and forbidden to your characters, then it adds to the thrill of the reader.
Where did that third hand come from?
If you're struggling with a sex scene, then it may be because you have too many hands wandering around the place. Right, so his hand is on her breast, while her hand is on his dick and his other hand is squeezing her arse while simultaneously rubbing her clit. It can be very hard to keep up with what all of your characters are doing and you may end up putting your characters into an anatomically impossible situation or writing a play-by-play to ensure that everyone knows where the hands are.
A helpful hint for getting out of this predicament is to get rid of one of the sets of hands until you get in the mood. It's easier to work with if only one of your characters is actually doing anything. Start off by having him eat her out, or by her giving him a blowjob and you'll find it a hell of a lot easier. You don't have to worry about where the hands are going until you're nicely warmed up. Other variants include having her masturbate for him or using the perennial favourite sex-toy: handcuffs.
