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LET YOUR CHARACTERS WRITE YOUR LOVE SCENES/PART SIX

Revised and updated from a workshop I did several years ago, this post is all about using your characters to make your love scenes unique and intricate to your story. It has been posted in several parts over the last few months. If you’re a writer, this may help inspire you to write some of the most difficult scenes in your book: your sensual encounters. If you’re a reader, you will get lots of sneak peeks into the Relics of Merlin series, which is being re-released by Sourcebooks over the next few years.

The Relics of Merlin series of books are whimsical romances set in a magical Victorian London of sexy shape-shifters, enchanted tea, wicked spells and loose corsets. Since I’ll be using excerpts from several of the books in the series, I thought it might be helpful to have a quick overview of each:

Enchanting the Lady:  In a world where magic rules everything, two misfits--Felicity Seymore, a Victorian beauty unable to perform even the simplest spell, and Sir Terence Blackwell, a were-lion searching for Merlin's relics--form a passionate alliance.

Double Enchantment:  When Lady Jasmina accidentally creates a double of herself using a relic, the mix-up brings her real self into a compromising position with sexy were-stallion, Sir Sterling Thorn.

Enchanting the Beast: In the third book of the Relics of Merlin series, ghost-hunter Philomena Radcliff comes to Grimspell castle to rid the residence of spirits, but she finds most haunting of all a reclusive were-wolf suspected of murder.

Everlasting Enchantment: In this brand-new fourth book, Sir Gareth Solimere has been trapped inside of one of Merlin’s relics for centuries, and only true love will set him free. But when were-panther Lady Millicent Pantere steals the relic, will she be his salvation or his doom?

So why am I doing a post on (gasp) sex scenes? Because several friends of mine said it was the hardest thing for them to write. Since they are my favorite part of the book to write, I thought I’d share how I do it and hopefully it will be helpful to others. Since I always seem to learn better by example, I’ll be giving examples from all my books to show how my love scenes are a development of my characters, plot and setting. I’m sure there are many other ways to develop a love scene, so let this be an inspiration and not a rule. If you’ve read any of my other posts on writing, you know my favorite motto is: there are no rules in writing, just guidelines.

(Read my previous posts on this subject by searching for the title in the LABELS or CATEGORIES in the far right sidebar.)

SIX: USING SETTING

Put your characters into a setting and allow their reactions to their environment write and shape the scene for you.  I used that shamelessly in my first novel, and in Enchanting the Beast:

   A pool of clear water sat in the middle of the glade, fed by several springs that appeared to flow from the top of an enormous crystal boulder that jutted out over the surface of the pond.  White falls of water hid the cavern beneath the boulder and Phil imagined that the crystal surface would fairly sparkle in the sunshine.

   The overcast day only appeared to make it glow.

   Not that she could see much of the sky above.  Gorchids grew to enormous proportions all around the edges of the pool, their stems so heavily laden with blooms that she could barely see the green of their leaves.  Pale lavender flowers with ruffled edges vied with star-shaped sepals enclosing frilly white petals.  Clusters of deeply pink flowers with burgundy insides grew next to vibrantly blue-spotted petals with tiger-striped tops.  Phil took a few steps out onto the mossy bank and breathed deeply.  The combined perfumes made her feel almost drunk with delight.

   A gust of wind curled through the glade and the flowers danced, the sound of their petals rubbing together like a delicate symphony.  Phil had never heard the like.  Some loose petals floated into the pond, creating a soft carpet of color on the rippling surface.

   She reached down and trailed her fingers in the crystal water.  It felt surprisingly warm.  Phil crouched and scooped up the liquid and bathed her face, removing the last vestiges of sorrow from her encounter with an illusory Tup.  She sat back on the spongy moss and closed her eyes, allowing the peace of the glade to soothe her.

“What an enchanting place,” she murmured.

   “I knew you’d like it,” said Nico.  “Come on, let’s go for a swim.  It was hot beneath the willows.”

   Phil glanced over her shoulder and gaped.  “What on earth do you think you’re doing?”

   Nico’s chest was bare, all that golden brown skin gleaming even in the cloudy daylight.  His boots and shirt already lay on the carpet of moss and he’d started to undo the buttons of his trousers.  “I always swim in just my skin.  Don’t you?”

Even if you’re not writing fantasy, consider how putting your characters into different settings can make their love scenes unique.  What about silk sheets on a bed?  Making love in a park, a forest?  Even an alley or bathroom nightclub can contribute to a different reaction from your characters and pull in different sensations. And consider the weather.  Are they sitting in front of a cozy fire while it’s snowing outside?  Is it a brilliant sunny day?  Or is it raining, as shown in the following excerpt from Enchanting the Beast?

Nico lifted her and lowered her onto his shaft with a swiftness that took her breath away.  Then his firm hands squeezed her bottom and he lifted her up.  The rain came down in earnest then, pelting their heads and faces, and Nico copied the rhythm of the storm.  Phil held on for dear life, the sky pounding her from above and Nico pounding her below.  The force of her body shattering with pleasure took her by surprise and she screamed his name, the wind drowning her cry and carrying it away.

Think of the setting your characters are in, then allow them to react to that setting. And let’s not forget to incorporate other elements, like the weather, to add to the intensity of your love scene.  This is where you can really take advantage of your five senses to not only craft your scene, but to make it come alive for your reader. Consider what your characters are feeling, hearing, smelling, touching and tasting.

This is my last installment of LET YOUR CHARACTERS WRITE YOUR LOVE SCENES. If you’re a writer, I hope you found this look into my writing process helpful and inspiring. If you’re a reader, I do hope you enjoyed a peek into some of the intimate moments of my heroes and heroines in the RELICS OF MERLIN series.

With All My Magical Best,

Kathryne

LET YOUR CHARACTERS WRITE YOUR LOVE SCENES/PART FIVE

Revised and updated from a workshop I did several years ago, this post is all about using your characters to make your love scenes unique and intricate to your story. It has been posted in several parts over the last few months. If you’re a writer, this may help inspire you to write some of the most difficult scenes in your book: your sensual encounters. If you’re a reader, you will get lots of sneak peeks into the Relics of Merlin series, which is being re-released by Sourcebooks over the next few years.

The Relics of Merlin series of books are whimsical romances set in a magical Victorian London of sexy shape-shifters, enchanted tea, wicked spells and loose corsets. Since I’ll be using excerpts from several of the books in the series, I thought it might be helpful to have a quick overview of each:

Enchanting the Lady:  In a world where magic rules everything, two misfits--Felicity Seymore, a Victorian beauty unable to perform even the simplest spell, and Sir Terence Blackwell, a were-lion searching for Merlin's relics--form a passionate alliance.

Double Enchantment:  When Lady Jasmina accidentally creates a double of herself using a relic, the mix-up brings her real self into a compromising position with sexy were-stallion, Sir Sterling Thorn.

Enchanting the Beast: In the third book of the Relics of Merlin series, ghost-hunter Philomena Radcliff comes to Grimspell castle to rid the residence of spirits, but she finds most haunting of all a reclusive were-wolf suspected of murder.

Everlasting Enchantment: In this brand-new fourth book, Sir Gareth Solimere has been trapped inside of one of Merlin’s relics for centuries, and only true love will set him free. But when were-panther Lady Millicent Pantere steals the relic, will she be his salvation or his doom?

So why am I doing a post on (gasp) sex scenes? Because several friends of mine said it was the hardest thing for them to write. Since they are my favorite part of the book to write, I thought I’d share how I do it and hopefully it will be helpful to others. Since I always seem to learn better by example, I’ll be giving examples from all my books to show how my love scenes are a development of my characters, plot and setting. I’m sure there are many other ways to develop a love scene, so let this be an inspiration and not a rule. If you’ve read any of my other posts on writing, you know my favorite motto is: there are no rules in writing, just guidelines.

(Read my previous posts on this subject by searching for the title in the LABELS or CATEGORIES in the far right sidebar.)

FIVE:  USING PLOT & CONFLICT

I think writing is like weaving, where you have to incorporate all these different strands into your work, and that removing any thread will make the entire thing fall apart.  So in all of the examples I’ve shown in the past few posts, there’s an element of conflict and plot as well.  Both their external (plot) and internal conflict can lead you to a unique love scene. In Enchanting the Lady, Felicity is trying to overcome her feelings of inadequacy (internal conflict), while Terence is trying to trust her (internal) and find the relic (external conflict).  In Double Enchantment, Jasmina is trying to prove that she’s just as passionate as her magical twin (internal) and Sterling is determined to make her marry him (internal).  And they’re both using each other to find the relic (external).  In Enchanting the Beast, Philomena is insecure about her age (internal) and Nico fears the nature of his beast (internal).  They are both trying to solve the mystery of Grimspell castle’s ghosts (external). For another example, I’ll use an excerpt from my upcoming brand new release, Everlasting Enchantment, to reflect the use of plot and conflict. Gareth is trying to seduce Millicent to break his curse (external), but finds himself actually falling in love with her (internal). Because she’s aware of the curse and his goal (external), she doesn’t trust him (internal), but finds herself wanting him all at the same time (internal), and the nature of her beast is fighting within her as well (internal). As you can tell, there’s a lot of conflict going on within this love scene:

Gareth groaned and pressed closer to her. She could feel his muscles tremble as he fought to keep his touch gentle.

Millicent buried her fingers in his hair and showed him she would not break. Perhaps…perhaps the moment she had truly known she would make love to him was when she had thought he had died. When she had felt such an overwhelming grief that she would have blindly rushed forward to save him if it hadn’t been for Nell reminding her that he was immortal.

Or was he?

Millicent easily pulled his face away from hers, heard him catch a breath at the reminder of her were-strength. “I cannot break your curse. I do not have enough love in my heart to do such a powerful thing.”

“I do not care.”

“So you said. But what if…what if it were possible? Will time catch up with you and turn you to dust?” Her voice cracked, betraying her emotions, her fear of making the wrong choice.

His eyes looked like twin pools of midnight, the light blue barely discernable. “I do not care.”

“I will lose you either way.”

“Are you sure you want to keep me?”

“I—“ Millicent frowned. She did not know what she wanted beyond this moment.

He slid his finger across her cheek. “Merlin’s spell bedamned. I will make love to you for no other reason than because I want to. Because I have to. Because I need to make you a part of me, if only for one night.”

And Millicent’s beast, who had lain strangely quiet within her, sensed her weakness and suddenly rose up, demanding this man for her mate. She could not stop the low growl that sounded in the back of her throat. Could not help but pull his face to hers once again, kissing him with a fierceness that she feared would startle him.

But Gareth only moaned, met her fierceness with his own, pushing her back against the bedding, his tongue tasting the inside of her mouth, his hands roaming over the silk sheet covering her; exploring, kneading, demanding.

Millicent did not know how he managed to keep her senses overwhelmed and remove his clothing at the same time, but within moments she felt his naked body slide next to hers, his skin warm and smoother than the silk. He felt perfect, his muscles molding against hers, as if they somehow fit like a puzzle into one form. And yet…a flutter of anxiety twisted through her and she fought the urge to push him away. She wanted him, yes, but feared him all at the same time.

Her beast growled, chiding her for being a coward. But the animal lacked the vulnerabilities of a human heart, acting on instinct and need alone. Her beast had always been a part of her, even in human form, and she had used that side of her nature to save her life and sanity more than once. But she had always controlled the inclinations of the were-cat.

Until now.

Consider your external and internal conflicts and allow your characters to bring them into their love scenes with them.  Think of all the different emotions they’re feeling and how it affects the intimacy of the scene, and then use that to guide you through their very own unique, special moment.

Until Next Time,

Kathryne

I'M SHARING A BIT OF MY SPARKLE TODAY...

at my group blog. Stop by and enjoy the glitter: http://casablancaauthors.blogspot.com/

LET YOUR CHARACTERS WRITE YOUR LOVE SCENES/PART FOUR

Revised and updated from a workshop I did several years ago, this post is all about using your characters to make your love scenes unique and intricate to your story. It has been posted in several parts over the last few months. If you’re a writer, this may help inspire you to write some of the most difficult scenes in your book: your sensual encounters. If you’re a reader, you will get lots of sneak peeks into the Relics of Merlin series, which is being re-released by Sourcebooks over the next few years.

The Relics of Merlin series of books are whimsical romances set in a magical Victorian London of sexy shape-shifters, enchanted tea, wicked spells and loose corsets. Since I’ll be using excerpts from several of the books in the series, I thought it might be helpful to have a quick overview of each:

Enchanting the Lady:  In a world where magic rules everything, two misfits--Felicity Seymore, a Victorian beauty unable to perform even the simplest spell, and Sir Terence Blackwell, a were-lion searching for Merlin's relics--form a passionate alliance.

Double Enchantment:  When Lady Jasmina accidentally creates a double of herself using a relic, the mix-up brings her real self into a compromising position with sexy were-stallion, Sir Sterling Thorn.

Enchanting the Beast: In the third book of the Relics of Merlin series, ghost-hunter Philomena Radcliff comes to Grimspell castle to rid the residence of spirits, but she finds most haunting of all a reclusive were-wolf suspected of murder.

Everlasting Enchantment: In this brand-new fourth book, Sir Gareth Solimere has been trapped inside of one of Merlin’s relics for centuries, and only true love will set him free. But when were-panther Lady Millicent Pantere steals the relic, will she be his salvation or his doom?

So why am I doing a post on (gasp) sex scenes? Because several friends of mine said it was the hardest thing for them to write. Since they are my favorite part of the book to write, I thought I’d share how I do it and hopefully it will be helpful to others. Since I always seem to learn better by example, I’ll be giving examples from all my books to show how my love scenes are a development of my characters, plot and setting. I’m sure there are many other ways to develop a love scene, so let this be an inspiration and not a rule. If you’ve read any of my other posts on writing, you know my favorite motto is: there are no rules in writing, just guidelines.

(Read my previous posts on this subject by searching for the title in the LABELS or CATEGORIES in the far right sidebar.)

FOUR: USING YOUR CHARACTERS’ PERSONALITIES

Or you might want to think of this as: why your characters are perfect for each other.  What personality traits complement each other? Your character’s flaws, strengths, goals and motivation all combine to create a unique personality. Let the character’s personality add depth to your love scene and lead you into even more romantic encounters.  The following example on using your character’s personality is from Enchanting the Beast:

“But then I realized,” she mumbled, her eyes watching his every move, “that it wasn’t your predatory nature itself that fascinated me so much, as it was…”

Nico couldn’t resist the temptation any longer.  His hands curved around and under her breasts and he gave them a gentle squeeze.  Her breasts were heavy and full in his hands, so very perfect.  He lowered his mouth and kissed the top where the cloth had exposed the skin.  His shaft had been hard for some time but now his trousers felt as if they nearly strangled him.

Nico dropped her breasts long enough to yank on the flimsy gown, exposing her hardened, dark nipples.  Before she could finish her gasp of surprise he had his hands under her breasts again, lifting them and burying his face in all of that soft, sweet flesh.

“Ah, Nico,” she groaned, her hands weaving through his hair.  She raked her fingers back from his temples and he yielded his feast to look into her eyes.  “Don’t you see?  It’s not your nature that fascinates me.  I…I cannot resist the lure of taming your beast.”

Nico grinned, more wolfishly than he’d intended.  “It’s not possible, lady.”

Nico is a were-wolf, who is struggling with the predatory nature of his beast.  Philomena is an older woman (a ghost-hunter by trade) who has the ability to tame him. Their personalities led to a full chapter love scene, the longest I’ve ever written.  But the moment Phil calms him, Nico’s beast-nature surfaces again. So they went back and forth between their two personalities during a romantic encounter, until Philomena finally won.:}

Consider both your hero and heroine.  What facets of their personalities make them perfect for each other?  What parts clash, and need to be resolved (or compromised on) before they can have their happily-ever-after?  Let that lead you to write their first love scene, where their conflicts are revealed.  Can you resolve some of them in that first scene?  Reveal how their strengths and weaknesses compliment each other and maybe hint how this will help resolve their conflicts.  Then consider their next love scene and the next, until they’ve finally resolved all of their issues and they have revealed enough of their personalities to each other that they can appreciate how perfect they are for each other.

Until Next Time,

Kathryne

A Christmas Gift from Sourcebooks: Check out 99 Cent Special Ebook Offers! http://books.sourcebooks.com/promos/

That's right! My publisher is saying Merry Christmas all month long with special 99 cent ebook offers, including my bestselling title, THE FIRE LORD'S LOVER. You can see all the other great titles and sign up for email alerts here at: http://books.sourcebooks.com/promos/

Ho Ho Ho!