I Suck at Sex Scenes!

MFontana

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Can I be honest with you all?
I Suck at Sex Scenes, every time I try, my brain goes blank, especially since most of protagonsits are either Lesbians or Bi-sexual/
Any advice would be great!
The first bit of advice, if you're adamant about including them, or genuinely want to improve your writing of them, determine the overall tone of the scene as compared to the rest of the story. Are you writing a serious, intimate, moment between the characters, or just for the fan-service?
If it's the latter, I'd say to reconsider your approach, and whether or not the scene is actually relevant to the narrative itself. If it isn't relevant or necessary to the narrative, then there's no real reason to include it.
The second point I'd direct your attention towards is the characters in the scene itself.
Why are they having sex? What has their relationship been prior to that moment? What will it become after that moment? Who wants the sex, and why? How does the sex scene serve to enhance their characters and the dynamic between them?
All of that should definitely be sorted out before you even start thinking about writing the scene itself, because if you haven't addressed it, there is a good chance you'll end up not doing justice to the characters as you've written them prior, and the scene will come across as forced.

As for writing the scene itself there should always be a lot going on beneath the surface.
From what I've seen as well, too many stories here focus just on the actions, and they neglect the characters themselves. The build-up, push-pull dynamic, intimacy, desire, and all-too-important foreplay and after-care. Of course, I've also seen my fair share of exceptions to that as well.
There's no real magic formula though, beyond keeping the scene's focus on the characters in their entirety, and having it serve as the culmination of their romance arc (in most cases). Ultimately, everything in the scene needs to stay true to who the characters are.
If you are trying to elevate your scenes from 'smut' (porn w/ plot) to 'erotica' though, you need to shift the focus from the physical, to the intimacy and the emotional, narrative, and character developmental payoffs in the scene.

I don't have much advice beyond this yet, because I'm also still honing my craft in this area.
 

TheAdherent

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Same

I can still write the beginning of a scene and up to the halfway point decently enough, but after that, the emotional tone becomes really one-note. There’s barely any variation.

My story, especially the title I Can Purify Corruption Through Intimacy in the Apocalypse, basically baits readers into thinking it’s primarily a sex-focused story, when it really isn’t that simple. Well, I did hint that “intimacy” doesn’t only mean physical intimacy, but also emotional intimacy, intellectual connection, trust, vulnerability, companionship, and other forms of closeness. Physical intimacy just happens to be the fastest way to achieve it. I also made it clear that the story is a slow burn and avoided cheap tropes like hypnosis or rape to filter out readers who only want instant gratification. Still, the point is: I’m very bad at writing sex scenes.

Sex scenes were never really my main focus in the first place. What matters much more to me are the broader aspects of intimacy. I’ve heard that Scribble Hub readers tend to like “plot with porn,” and that seems true, because I’m pretty satisfied with my story’s early stats so far. I’m fairly confident in most parts of my writing except for the smut scenes, and since the story’s stats have stayed steady even outside the smut chapters, I do think I’ve at least managed to attract readers through the plot itself.

That said, even after doing a decent amount of research on what counts as “good” stats, I still honestly don’t know whether my numbers are actually satisfying or not, lol. People who’ve been on Scribble Hub longer might look at my stats and think, “Nope, those aren’t impressive at all.”
 

Fisher0001

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Vigirns shouldn't write sex scenes. I say this as a 36-year-old virgin. Also, if you suck at erotica or sex scenes, maybe you should get some experience? If you can't get experience like me, then stick to fade to black like me or do over-the-top comedic sex scenes.
 

HarryGarland

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Perhaps you can read Fifty Shades Of Grey or some of those... Really old romance novels by Barbara Cartland. I think Cartland's sex scenes are nice, not too much.
 

Fisher0001

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Perhaps you can read Fifty Shades Of Grey or some of those... Really old romance novels by Barbara Cartland. I think Cartland's sex scenes are nice, not too much.

Some things can't be taught. To write a good sex scene, someone needs to experience sex. A popular erotica author told me in another Discord that there are emotions and physical actions that can't be replicated in writing without experience.
 

CharlesEBrown

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Vigirns shouldn't write sex scenes. I say this as a 36-year-old virgin. Also, if you suck at erotica or sex scenes, maybe you should get some experience? If you can't get experience like me, then stick to fade to black like me or do over-the-top comedic sex scenes.
Not really true - you just need a good mentor. Mine was a woman who paid her way through college taking calls on a sex line. She found out I was a writer, made me write scenes for her, and then taught me how to write them for a general audience too before we met in person. Depending on your definition of the term (after hearing the full story, I've had two other women, one that I wound up marrying, insist this) I was still technically a virgin after we met in person...
 
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