Smut Help [18+]

One thing many writers over look when trying to write "fluffy" or romantic love scenes is the setting. There are some settings that just don't lend themselves to romance. However, most settings can be made romantic by method of description alone. A hay loft in a barn can be as romantic as a finely decorated bedroom. Set the mood, then add the characters. Think about what you find romantic yourself. Candlelight? Certain colors? Certain lighting? Textures? Chances are, what you find romantic many others will as well. (Unless, of course, one is a total social deviant - but we won't go there......) There are certain mainstream boundaries that define romantic for most people. For example, in the bedroom, don't write about a character's "colorful Batman print sheets". Try "cool satin sheets in the shade of crimson lips". Set the romantic mood with lighting. Lighting can be described in terms of softness, gentleness, filtered, glowing, etc. Sounds should be described in delicate, pleasing terms. A word about dialog: for romance, think in terms of whispers, murmurs, "purring", etc. The whole idea when writing any form of romance or erotica is to draw the reader into it. Make them feel the what the characters feel. Make them feel the passion as strongly as the characters.

I guess I have rambled as well. Writing and art are my greatest passions in life. I could never imagine myself not doing either.........

TigreHielo: I think you just gave me an idea for my next random words fiction challenge. Somewhere in your post something slapped me on the forehead and said: "Wouldn't this be a cool idea?" Thank you!

You're right. The setting is easily overlooked. I didn't think about it at all. Thank you for the tip! (Though, when I try to write fluff I tend to overlook a lot of things. I've never been very romantically inclined. The kind of woman who asks her boyfriend to buy her something useful rather than say flowers.)

But I have managed to come up with a few thoughts when it comes to writing romantic things. One of which is to try to adapt it to the characters I'm writing about. Think about what they like and what would be more likely to set their heart aflutter. Stereotypical romance doesn't fit everyone. A thoughtful gift that fits the character can be more fluffy than a box of chocolates and a candlelit dinner. (Giving a swordsman a new ornate sheath and fixing him some food at his favorite training ground for example.) Least those are my thoughts on it. (Not really sure how much faith you can put in them seeing how stuck I am at writing fluff. )

Anyways, thank you all so much for your help! You've saved my life.

@ ferus - Glad I could help. I certainly know what you mean about being "not romantically inclined". Flowers wouldn't be my first choice either.

I brought up the stereo type/mainstream because it is usually a good foundation to build on when you're starting out. It does need to be tailored to your characters and also the genre. Some genres do have formulas for romance that readers expect - mainly mainstream romance novels. Personally, I could never do one of those.

Hey all! I find myself in a bit of a predicament here.... I've written one "short" one-shot that I really hadn't intended to follow up. But alas, someone asked me to and I just couldn't say no. *stupid!* So now here I am stuck trying to get this smut out. I can "see" how I want it to go, but those damn words! They just won't fall into place. I don't want it to seem like just run of the mill smut, but like it was said before, the mechanics of sex is basic. How do I make it hot, without seeming like it's just like all the other smut out there? It can't be romantic *not how the story supposed to unfold* or full of angst. What else is there? Any ideas? Cuz I'm just about ready to :

I've rambled...sorry!

@Black Domina
I think we have all been in that boat once or twice, wondering how to make what we write unique, regardless of context, smut is the same of course. I think a lot depends on the characters. If you have two dominant characters then aggression can be hot. I personally find driving each other to distraction with foreplay works well. I suppose what I do is get the image of the scene in my head running like a movie, then try and narrate it, I will hash it out in my head a few times before I even attempt to write/type it, till I have everything I want to describe set in my mind, and how I want to describe it. But I know you can do hot hon, I've seen it with with my own eyes.

I'm a sucker for violent sex myself. A bit of hair pulling, scratching, biting, a few bruises shared. Then there's of course talking dirty. If you can pull off the dirty talk then that really really enhances a smut scene, no matter what the mechanics are. (Me is no good at talking during sex... sadly...)

I know how it goes with the words not cooperating even though you know how you want the scene to be. I get that about... every single bleeding time I try to write sex. (Sometimes it can take me days to write a scene just because I have no idea how to word it.) My trick is to harass someone on MSN or Skype. I whine, they throw in ideas and how they'd like a scene to be, and somewhere in the middle of it I figure it out. Sometimes you just need that one word or sentence and everything falls into place.
*crosses fingers everything works out*

With pure sex, no romance involved, I zone. Low, quiet, slow, the characters practically steam with lustful wafts and when they touch it's just, woah, intense. Or I'm tripping. Very little dialogue, lots of touching, grinding, and if I go into their heads for the scene, they're as caught up in the 'heat of it' as two animals would be. Anything they do say is going to come out choked or panting, more groan than moan. If one of them can actually draw it out for his partner, he's probably a masochist because he's just as desperate for it as his frustrated lover. I guess it's the mood of the piece. I think of a steamy shower room or a hot tub. Even when the actions are frantic clumsy rough - the steam is hovering heavy and sticky and the writing is like that steam - paced, even, slow and soaking it up. I find that really gets readers in the mood, especially if they were expecting a thin two paragraph 'enter, thrust, the end' lemon scene.

Domina your writing smut ^^) Oh babe you gotta work out the scene "internally" I mean, only "you" know "how" you want the two char (or more) to meet. Once you established the "W's" (who,what,when,where) the act is basic, *insert in someone*

What makes it unique is the "how's" you get the W's to work together. Well thats probably confusing. I picture every detail of W's then I build "how's" in my head. After I write it out I read it several times before leaving it alone for a few days (about 3) then I go back a re-read...wtf, *delete re-edit* Now beta!

Smut is as much a part of us as breathing, you writing it makes it different from me writing the same story with same characters, in similar setting. Even with PWP there is a "plot" that is the "sex" how you get it to work into something unique depends on "what" you want to portray. I love wet, fast, hard, desperate smut, but a dash of loving smut helps break the monotony.

I started reading original fiction to broaden my knowledge base and improve my own style, with sexual encounters. I read a lot of smut, usually, that helps but I find a nice love story in 17- gave me a different perspective on how to describe my characters romantic encounter. Even if your chars do not have "that type" of envelopment, a twist (to infuriate the other) may be something that's a unique spin on your PWP part 2..

If you are looking for some ideas on sexual variety, some of it rather unique, get yourself a copy of the Kama Sutra. If you've never seen it, trust me, there are ideas here.

If you are looking to write lustful sex for the sake of sex, get yourself some porn films. No romance, no feeling, just to the point sex. They are a good way to learn how to describe hardcore sex. A writing prof I had in college had us do this. We had to write descriptions of the scenes that would allow anyone who hadn't seen the film to clearly visualize the scenes. It works, and if you're doing yaoi, there are plenty of boy/boy ones out there.

All wonderful ideas guys! I have an idea on how it want it to go and I've been hashing it out on "paper". I see it in my head how the scene is and I'm determined to get it just right.
Wish me luck!!