Narrative timing
- Thread starter delphi604
- Start date
StillStunned
Mr Sticky
- Joined
- Jun 4, 2023
- Posts
- 9,350
It's hard to give any firm advice. But generally speaking...*
A sex scene is only as good as the build-up. Give the reader some reason to be engaged with the characters or the set-up. This can be quite simple, just a few hundred words to create a scene that the reader can imagine happening, with some decent foreshadowing of what's to come. Then provide the sex. Don't try to do too much in one scene. Slow and detailed is better than rushed with a dozen positions. Write it like real people having sex: explosive if you're hot and bothered to begin with, slow and sensual if you have all the time in the world.
But for the next sex scene, you have to earn your reader's attention again. Start over, create a new build-up. You can build on the first scene, or shift to something new, but you need to give your readers time to catch their breath and become interested again. And the more sex scenes you write, the more the reader will want to know about the characters, or the world, or something.
There are hundreds of thousands of sex scenes here on Lit. If you want readers to stick around for yours, you need to give them a reason.
This is a great question, by the way. You might want to post it in the Authors' Hangout. In between the arguing and the nonsense, there are a few insightful discussions about writing by some hugely talented authors. Or at least people who've spent a large chunk of their lives thinking about writing.
* I.e. advice that's worth what you paid for it.
A sex scene is only as good as the build-up. Give the reader some reason to be engaged with the characters or the set-up. This can be quite simple, just a few hundred words to create a scene that the reader can imagine happening, with some decent foreshadowing of what's to come. Then provide the sex. Don't try to do too much in one scene. Slow and detailed is better than rushed with a dozen positions. Write it like real people having sex: explosive if you're hot and bothered to begin with, slow and sensual if you have all the time in the world.
But for the next sex scene, you have to earn your reader's attention again. Start over, create a new build-up. You can build on the first scene, or shift to something new, but you need to give your readers time to catch their breath and become interested again. And the more sex scenes you write, the more the reader will want to know about the characters, or the world, or something.
There are hundreds of thousands of sex scenes here on Lit. If you want readers to stick around for yours, you need to give them a reason.
This is a great question, by the way. You might want to post it in the Authors' Hangout. In between the arguing and the nonsense, there are a few insightful discussions about writing by some hugely talented authors. Or at least people who've spent a large chunk of their lives thinking about writing.
* I.e. advice that's worth what you paid for it.
NippleMuncher
Masticatus Nipplicanis
- Joined
- Apr 3, 2003
- Posts
- 4,152
I am by no means a writer, but I've dabbled and had great feedback from my readers. Your comments are essentially what I've always followed, good build up to set the scene, followed by the encounter, then cool off, rinse and repeat.
The few additions that I would make:
1 - Keep the plot believable, even when writing fantasy. The reader can only suspend belief so far before calling bullshit and clicking away.
2 - Keep character's physical attributes reasonable. In fact, unless describing attributes is absolutely integral to the piece, specifics are rarely needed. Your job as a writer is to spark the imagination of the reader, let them fill in the details that suits their desires.
3 - Write what you know. Trying to fake your way through something you aren't familiar with will be a sure way to draw criticism and lose readers. This is not to say that you can't push your limits as a writer, just be honest about it.
delphi604,
Most of my writing has been about single encounters which are pretty quick and easy, but I do have a few that were multiple encounters over a period of time. Think of it like watching a movie (actual movie, not porn). You are not given the entire scope of the movie in one scene, it is many scenes woven together, some fluff, some pertinent to the story line, some actual story line, all balanced to create the whole.
Specifically about timing, it's going to depend on what you are trying to convey and how you go about it. If you're writing for the masses, then you've got to set a general scene and introduce your characters, how long this takes will depend on the complexity of the story and character relationships. When you know your reader personally, you're writing to that reader's wants and desires in particular, so a lot less story and character development has to happen, generally. Use your time between scenes to elaborate on the setting and characters. For instance, if you open with "it was a dark and stormy night," then describe how this plays into your story as the plot progresses, such as "the power had been out for hours and darkness besieged the city. Candlelight twinkled throughout the room . . ."
Do you have samples of your writing posted somewhere?
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