Understand Your Characters
Before writing the scene, have a deep understanding of the characters’ backgrounds, motivations, and emotional states. Consider:
- Personal Histories: What past experiences shape their current attitudes towards sex?
- Emotional States: Are they in love, seeking comfort, or using sex as a means of power or escape?
- Dynamics: What is the nature of their relationship? Is there a power imbalance, mutual respect, or unspoken tension?
2. Consent and Communication
Ensure that the scene respects the characters’ agency and consent. This can be subtly woven into the narrative:
- Verbal Cues: Use dialogue to express consent and boundaries.
- Non-Verbal Cues: Body language and actions can also convey comfort, hesitation, or enthusiasm.
Consent and Communication
Ensure that the scene respects the characters’ agency and consent. This can be subtly woven into the narrative:
- Verbal Cues: Use dialogue to express consent and boundaries.
- Non-Verbal Cues: Body language and actions can also convey comfort, hesitation, or enthusiasm.
Show, Don’t Tell
Instead of explicitly describing every action, use sensory details and internal monologue to convey the experience:
- Sensory Details: Describe the sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches that the characters experience.
- Internal Monologue: Share the characters’ thoughts and emotions to add depth and intimacy.
Keep the characters’ personalities and voices consistent throughout the scene:
- Dialogue: Ensure the dialogue fits the characters’ ways of speaking.
- Actions: Characters’ actions should align with their established behaviors and attitudes.
Balance Physicality and Emotion
A sex scene should be more than just a physical act; it should reveal something about the characters:
- Physicality: Be explicit enough to convey the physical experience without being gratuitous.
- Emotion: Show how the characters feel before, during, and after the act. Are they nervous, passionate, conflicted, or regretful?