Writing sex scenes: an awkward topic, but not one we've shied away from .    Ask the Editor - Sex Scenes in a Romance Novel   Shelley Thrasher advises using the CLICK acronym. Tuesday, January 27, 2009 Ask the Editor - Sex Scenes in a Romance Novel Question: I would like to know in contemporary romance, what is the rule of thumb as to how many sex scenes there should be in a novel. Michele Cameron Moments of Clarity Michele, I’ve edited about fifty contemporary romances during the past four years and have never... [ Read more ]   Scintillating Sex or Subtle Suggestion Linda Lane: Friday, February 14, 2014 Scintillating Sex or Subtle Suggestion It has been said that love makes the world go ’round, and many of us still believe that. Back in 1955 (for th...

Regency Wedding, image by Louish Pixel, via Flickr I was once interviewed by a local newspaper reporter who asked me why, as a romance writer (a species he all too obviously despised), I didn’t write sex scenes. Not expecting the question, I gave a snappy answer off the top of my head: “I’d rather do it than write about it.” Naturally that was the only thing I said that he quoted accurately. A more thoughtful answer would have been: To me, romance is getting to know each other, falling in love. Going to bed is the end product, the culmination, not part of the process. As it comes after discoveries, difficulties overcome, and in fiction the author’s efforts to keep lovers apart for 75,000 words or so, it’s an unnecessary coda to the story. After all, as a neighbour of mine said, we all know what happens after they close the bedroom door. Maybe my attitude is old-fashioned, but my historical setting encouraged my view. Zeitgeist strikes again! In Regency times, contraceptio...

It has been said that love makes the world go ’round, and many of us still believe that. Back in 1955 (for those who are old enough to remember), a romantic Frank Sinatra ballad compared love and marriage to a horse and carriage, stating in both cases that they were inseparable. Is that true? The world has changed a lot since 1955. Books, too, have changed since 1955—or maybe not so much. A trip back in time reveals that explicit sexual content in poetry dates from ancient Greek and Roman works. Seventeenth century England produced its share of erotica; it seems the English were not quite as stuffy as we’ve been led to believe, at least not behind closed doors. Fast-forwarding to the twentieth century, we find Henry Miller’s candidly sexual Tropic of Cancer , first published in Paris in 1934 and banned in the U.S. Its ultimate publication in the States in 1961 resulted in an obscenity trial and a 1964 Supreme Court decision that it was not obscene. Harold Robbins’ first novel, ...

With BRP’s focus on romance (and all that ties into that) and writing this month, I thought it would be a great idea to talk with one of my favorite romance authors, Samara King. I don’t call Samara a favorite because she’s my best friend. No, I call her that because her stories have wonderful blends of intriguing characters, humor, fierce attraction between heroine and hero, great sex, great stories (so that the sex isn’t just a prop), and a fast pace that makes you want to race to the end of the story. I wanted to get her take on how she as an author comes to the page to write her sexy love scenes, how she considers the story she works on when developing sex scenes, and what advice she would offer to writers looking to develop sizzling sex scenes. Let’s see what she had to say! Samara King is the author of eighteen multi-genre works within romance fiction in novel and novella lengths as well as poetry. Writing romance has been a part of Samara’s world since her days of sneaking...

This is the conclusion of Kathryn Craft's interview with erotica author Kathy Kulig. Click here for Kathy's bio and Part One . Kathryn Craft: You write under your own name; others take on pen names. What went into this decision, for you? Kathy Kulig: Writers use pen names for different reasons. Some say if you write erotic romance it’s a good idea to use a pen name for privacy. For me, Kathy Kulig is my real name. I liked that it was short, easy to say and spell. I’d caution about using cutesy names or over obvious pen names like D.D. Stiletto or Raven Maniac. Or names close to well known authors like Stephen R. King, Norah Roberts, JK Rowling, etc. Kathryn: You know everyone's dying to ask: do you research all of the, um, situations in your novels to make sure they're workable? Kathy: My husband would love it if I said, “YES!” But you don’t need to commit a murder to write about it. You don’t need to be an FBI agent, a spy, an astronaut, an alien, etc. t...

Gutsy heroines and hunky heroes face the unexpected and overcome formidable odds, because with courage, true love can find a way… Such are the steamy romances Kathy Kulig loves to read and the stories she loves to write. Her erotica has been published in print, e-books and anthologies.    Kathy is an award-winning erotic romance author whose works include elements of BDSM and the paranormal. She has published several novels and novellas for Ellora's Cave. Her latest release, Summer Sins, is part of a series called Dark Odyssey. Besides her career in writing, she's a cytotechnologist and has worked as a research scientist, medical technologist, dive master and stringer for a newspaper. Kathy resides in eastern Pennsylvania with her husband. Kathryn Craft: Define the difference between romance and erotica. Kathy Kulig: There are actually three terms you should know: A Romance is about two people falling in love and struggling to over...

The first sex scene I wrote was for my second novel, and I almost didn’t write it. I plan my novels quite extensively, and, in this one, I’d planned for two characters to fall for each other and have a romantic tryst, but I hadn’t really planned for them to take it much further than a kiss. In the first draft I used the typical PG-13 Hollywood tactic of “fade to black, cut to next scene”. When I read it through, however, I faced a mental neon sign flashing “Cheat, cheat, cheat”. I couldn’t get passed this: I had to write that sex scene. So I did. I’d read books where euphemisms are used to describe what is going on between the couple and I was determined to avoid this. I used correct anatomical terminology and no cutaways, but I did stick to what my protagonist was feeling (emotionally and physically). And suddenly my characters revealed a lot of information that I would never have guessed otherwise. The nudity revealed a scar on my protagonist’s body that not only explained her mo...

One of the sexiest scenes I've ever read in a novel can be found in Free Fire , a mystery by C.J. Box. In it, Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett teams with Judy Demming, a National Park Service ranger, to investigate a killing in Yellowstone National Park. Pickett, as usual, is away from home, which has been causing problems between him and his wife. Demming is bored with her job and her husband. The spouses are both good people, and their partners love them, but they are largely offstage while Pickett and Demming bond during their travels through the park. Their shared career frustrations, and clear respect for each other's investigative acumen, lead to a subtly crackling chemistry that neither wants to acknowledge and yet cannot deny. In a painful, halting moment, they express unwilling vulnerability toward one another — and then mutually decide, with no small regret, that no physical lines will be crossed. So nothing happens. And yet, everything happens. I remember r...

 First of all, let me say I have nothing against a well-written love scene, and I do mean love scene, not sex scene. However, I draw the line at gratuitous sex and don't care for erotica. I just don't see what titillation has to do with story. Like every other element of writing a story, sex, violence, or colorful language should serve a purpose. For example, in Play It Again, Sam, I have a love scene that is a very important part of the story and the growth of the character. Sam is single after 25 years of marriage and the whole dating scene has changed. She is not sure about recreational sex. So when the love scene happens it is because she has worked though many issues. It's not just there because romance readers expect it. When One Small Victory was first published by Five Star, my editor there kept wanting me to let the central character, Jenny, do more than kiss the man she was attracted to. Problem was, Steve was the detective she was working for as a confidenti...

Two years ago, I talked to author Rachelle Chase about writing sex scenes as part of a series on my blog All the Blog's a Page . For the talk, I asked two questions: Is sex an important component to develop in your writing , and how are you able to weave it into a work and also have a strong plot development? Her detailed response is still relevant because as Chase points out, it's not just about having sex in your story; it's about layering the sexual undertones into a fully developed story. As Chase is quick to point out below, sex is not the story; it is an integral, organic component to the story. Below is Chase's take and a "lesson" on sexual development within a story... I write erotic romance, so sex is VERY important. The way I weave it into the story and have strong plot development is by making sex a part of the story . When my characters are doing nonsexual things or are talking about nonsexual things, there are sexual undertones. When my ...

Question: I would like to know in contemporary romance, what is the rule of thumb as to how many sex scenes there should be in a novel. Michele Cameron Moments of Clarity Michele, I’ve edited about fifty contemporary romances during the past four years and have never required a certain number of sex scenes, although I do recommend at least two. Some of the novels I’ve worked on have an abundance of sex scenes, and some have virtually none. However, a contemporary romance does need to have certain basic elements, which I abbreviate by thinking of the acronym CLICK : conflict, longing, intimacy, climax, and kiss. I have to scramble the final three letters of my acronym in order to discuss these elements in sequence, but it’s a good memory tool. Conflict lies at the core of any novel, and in a romance it’s crucial. A romantic couple without any sparks is like Ashley Wilkes and Melanie Hamilton in Gone with the Wind —nice and sweet, but boring. Scarlett O’Hara and Rhett But...