I love a great sex scene, especially the ones that are stomach flippingly good. I admire the authors that can describe every caress, every tantalizing touch with such gusto that the reader can’t help but get carried away. I love getting swoony along with the characters, having my heart race and my skin tingle. I love the creative euphemisms some authors employ. I love sweet and tender sex scenes, awkward first time sex scenes, and steamy-let’s-test-the-rules-of-physics sex scenes. I even enjoy the occasional scene that makes me Google a new term (then quickly delete my history, cookies, cache and whatever else might be tracking it so my kids don’t see it). I love them all.
This is actually reversed from the original clip for maximum naughtiness.
Seemed appropriate in this post.
I, however, cannot write such scenes.
I’ve tried — both in THE COINCIDENCE OF COCONUT CAKE and the book I’m working on now. And they just aren’t good. Sure, with some editing I could make them work well enough — but I don’t want to bore readers with adequate sex scenes. I want them to sizzle on the page. Alas, my steamy scenes are cliche, I lose track of hands, and, honestly, it isn’t my favorite part to write. I much prefer the tension fraught scenes leading up to the sex. The anticipation is almost always the best part.
I prefer to explore the moments leading up to the realization that Character A must kiss Character B. I love playing with the million ways two people can get excited without touching. A glance, a whisper, and an interrupted almost kiss. And then, at last, they have their moment. When my characters finally do fall into each other’s arms, I let them get a little steamy, then give them their privacy.
Ultimately, I have a story to tell and I get to tell it my way– so I’m going to play to my strengths. I write funny, charming, and light fiction where my characters hook up behind closed doors. In other words, I avoid the whole sticky situation (pun intended).
