3. ‘Aaaaand ACTION!’ – Where do all the body parts go? Or: Is that even possible?
Enough with the foreplay already. Let’s get down and dirty.
A good sex scene consists of realistic sex acts, because realistic sex acts allow the readers to stay immersed in your story.
If you make the reader stop and stare, if you make them go ‘WTF?!?!’, if you make them wonder if it is even physically possible to do what your characters are doing, the readers are jerked out of the scene and out of the mood.
Usually that effect does not affect the reading experience in a positive way.
Therefore:
- Please do not tie your characters into pretzels unless they are acrobats, masters of Kama Sutra, or snakes. It hurts both the characters and your readers. Also: a sex scene is not a sex manual. If your readers wanted to read one of those, they would not be reading your story. Unless your story is included in a sex manual, obviously.
- Male and female bodies are different. Their orgasms may look similar when you monitor their brainwaves, but in bed it’s still ‘Vive la difference!’ To put it plainly: Women usually take longer to achieve orgasm than men. For most people coming at the same time is the exception, not the rule.
- Please keep in mind that the laws of physics will not stop working just for your sex scene. Therefore, think about the actions you describe.
No, really.
Think your scene through.
Consider the weight of your characters, the surface they move on, how soundproof the walls are that surround them…
Helpful techniques for tackling that problem include:
- You can try sketching your scenes. Even stick figures can help you to keep track of which arm and which leg goes where.
- Or when you watch DVDs, freeze the love scenes once in a while and take a moment to reflect upon the problem of whose limbs ended up where.
- Get one of those ‘The Joy of Sex’ books. They have pictures of postures.
- Obviously you can also try things out. And get that mind out of the gutter—sometimes it’s helpful simply to remember which arm goes where when you roll over in bed!
- (And last but not least, don’t forget to undress your characters.)