Interweaving Emotion & Sex for an Unforgettable Love Scene

I have a workshop coming up, starting April 1, called Writing Hot, Delicious Love Scenes. One of the things new writers often have questions about and which I cover in the class is how do you blend hot sex and intense emotions to create an unforgettable love scene?

Whether you’re writing a highly emotional love scene between two people who are in love, or one-night stand sex between two people who have just met, emotion needs to be a part of it. Even in erotic romance, some kind of emotion is vital. If you don’t include emotion and characterization then your scenes may be porn-like or mechanical and robotic.

Some scenes will have loads of emotion and some scenes will have a little emotion. But even with the one-night stand variety of sex, you still need some feelings and thoughts blended with the sex.

Why is this so important? You need to establish an emotional connection between your reader and your point of view (POV) character. Without this connection, the reader won’t care. And you must make the reader care or they toss your book aside.

You can add touches of emotion anywhere within a scene, whether it's extremely erotic or not. When I say emotion, I don't mean mushy-gushy type emotion. Basically, it's just little things that keep the reader in touch mentally with the POV character. If you only have physical, external reactions from your POV character, you're missing an opportunity to strengthen the reader connection and you're not staying in deep POV. So with any reaction you have for your character, examine it. Ask yourself, is this reaction from deep inside the character. Or is it something an external observer would notice?

For example, if your heroine has insecurities about her body when she's naked in front of the hero, show that from deep within her psyche. It's another opportunity to make the reader empathize with your heroine, care about her, and make her even more likable. The hero could pick up on her insecurity and say or do something to make her feel better. This would be a touch of emotion that makes him more likable. It shouldn't be cliché at all. And an alpha hero can stay alpha and still do nice things. You will hopefully make a character empathetic when first introducing them, but you also need to keep that empathy going throughout the story, building on it, making it stronger so the reader completely identifies with the heroine, and falls head over heels with the hero. This links back to who the character is inside... their thoughts and emotions.

If you're interested in learning more about my workshop, click: Writing Hot, Delicious Love Scenes. You can read past student testimonials at my website also. :)

Nicole

www.nicolenorth.com

Sexy, Sensual Settings

When people imagine the perfect place for a hot, delicious love scene in a story, they generally visualize a beautiful bedroom with French doors, an incredible view, and a Jacuzzi tub close by. Perhaps the bed is four-poster with gauzy mosquito netting to create a dreamy cocoon. Candlelight glows in the background to give a hint of seductive light, just enough for one person to gaze into the other's eyes or appreciate their physical attributes.

While this is definitely a sensual setting, it is only one (and perhaps the most obvious) of hundreds. What makes a setting sexy is what the author brings to it, how the author presents it. Almost any place is good for a love scene. Since so many love scenes have been written, and readers have read thousands of them, you might want to set some of yours in unique and unusual places.

The only limit is your imagination. Interesting settings include a beach, a garden, a cave, the top of a building, a closet, a bathroom, a store, a dressing room, a tent, a field, a mountaintop, a car, stairs, an elevator, etc. Placing a sex scene in an unusual setting requires more thought and “choreography” on the part of the writer but sometimes you can create such a unique and personalized scene this way, it becomes far more memorable to the reader.

What is your favorite place (or the most unusual) for a love scene? This can be a love scene you've written or read.

I'll cover sexy settings and how to set love scenes in unusual places in my upcoming workshop.

Sept 1 - 30: Writing Hot, Delicious Love Scenes

Thanks for stopping by!
Nicole

Devil in a Kilt, Red Sage Secrets Vol. 27

Beast in a Kilt, Red Sage Secrets Vol. 29

www.nicolenorth.com

How Do You Create a Hot, Delicious Hero?

I’ll be teaching a workshop in September called Writing Hot, Delicious Love Scenes, and today I want talk about one important ingredient in those sizzling scenes—the hero. You have a chance to win a $15 discount off my love scene workshop by commenting below. (Yes, that means the winner will only need to pay $5 if they want to take my workshop.) Comment any time between now and Friday at noon Eastern, at which time I’ll draw one name and announce it here soon after that.

To write hot, delicious love scenes, first you need a hot, delicious hero. His yumminess factor needs to be established early, in his first scene. And in every scene that follows, build his appeal even higher. He should be physically attractive, preferably on a larger-than-life scale. That means he isn’t your average guy next door. But he doesn’t need to be model material either. The heroine (and your reader) simply needs to find him incredibly attractive. If you saw him on the street, your jaw would drop and you’d stare longer than you should. You’d be like, OMG; I want to lick him. He’s tall, he’s muscular, he’s extremely masculine. He has those really good genes. And of course he looks hot in a pair of jeans… or in a kilt, or in nothing at all. ;-)

He’s strong physically and tough mentally, but he isn’t perfect.

After this, add another layer of appeal in his personality, his attitude, his outlook. Is he a bad boy who likes to tempt and tease the good girls to do naughty things? Is he dark and angsty and hungry for the heroine? Is he charming and playful in bed? Deep down, this guy is intensely sensual. He loves sex and he loves a lot of sex. Sexuality oozes from his pores. He smells so yummy (natural pheromones mixed with a tiny bit of cologne), if a woman is standing near him in line at Target, she will get lightheaded from trying to inhale him. He doesn’t have to say anything; he shows his sex appeal in his body language, in that focused dark look in his eyes, in his decisive actions.

To create a hot but lovable hero, add something else early in your story, something you might find surprising—a problem he has, a big flaw, or his vulnerability. Why? Because no one likes a perfect person. And this makes a woman think, oh, poor baby. He needs a hug! He needs the love of a good woman. He needs a good woman in bed to take his mind off his problems. In other words, he instantly becomes sympathetic. Your reader will start falling in love with him then and there. This vulnerability or problem could be hidden from the heroine or barely visible, but she suspects something is wrong—something she needs to uncover so she can nurture and help him heal.

Another trait that makes a hero incredibly appealing to the reader or the heroine is compassion. He cares. Certain things are important to him and matter to him. He isn’t just an alpha warrior robot. Even if he hides all his emotions, he still has them. Exactly what and who he cares deeply about will vary depending on the hero and the story. It also means he pays attention to the heroine and those around him that he protects. If he sees they need something, he provides it for them. This shows he has heart, as well as his human side and why he is deserving of love.

What is it about a hero you find appealing and delicious? Which trait makes you gaga or weak in the knees? If you want to name your favorite delicious hero, please do. He can be from a book, movie or real life. Please comment before noon Friday to be in the contest drawing.

Click here to learn more about my September workshop:

Writing Hot, Delicious Love Scenes

Thanks for stopping by!

Nicole

Devil in a Kilt, Red Sage Secrets Vol. 27

Beast in a Kilt, Red Sage Secrets Vol. 29

www.nicolenorth.com