I am working on my first ever multipart story (probably be more of a novella than a novel in length but we shall see) and have been struggling with the second chapter (I won't be publishing any until I feel confident with the first 3 or 4 parts). The sex scene that comes later in the chapter is coming along fine but the rest of the chapter, the build-up and story, is proving difficult. Which led me to think this might be an interesting topic. What do you find harder to write, story or sex? For me, it tends to be the former. Once I get into the naughty bits, it seems to flow fairly well even if I then spend a lot of time tinkering to make sure the right body parts are in the right places at the right times. But story? Trying to fathom what people are doing and why and get that down on the page without resorting to long expository passages? Yeah, that's work.
What do you think?
EDIT: And, I seem to have forgotten how to create polls on Lush. The method I remember is from my other board.bXJHVUxiAs0mLHbj
Story is so much harder for me. So is character, for that matter (Wait! This is supposed to be an exhibitionism story. My main character is an ex-nun. Bad choice! It'll take too many words to get her there....).
The truth is that I put in far more thought, energy, and effort into plot than I do the sex scenes. They just don't require it. Hopefully, I've already set up the motivation and the emotional consequences. Now all I need is a good action sequence.
I find the story so much harder. Usually, the idea I have starts with the actual sex scene and then I build the story around it. Trouble is, I often get bored with the rest of the story, so don't finish it. I should just submit more flash stories, lol.
The other thing that hampers me is that I edit as I go. I should really just have a brainstorming writing session, but I stop to fix typos and grammar and it just interrupts my flow. I just can't unseen them when I see them.
I find it much harder to write original, realistic, hot sex, than to write an interesting story. Sometimes I write a lengthy bit of story before thinking, "Oh shit, I should probably throw some sex in here if it's going on Lush."
Creating a storyline is the easiest part for me. I love plotting and story-telling. I find it easy to be creative with the context, but getting sex scenes that aren't trite and predictable is difficult. It's been described so many times that it's easy to get it monotonous. You really have to be creative to come up with a really interesting sex scene which hasn't been done before.
For me it is equal. I think that you should be telling a story that captures the imagination of the reader, one that happens to lead to sex within the story. Sex scenes strung together with haphazard narrative do not make an interesting story. Your characters should have some depth and be believable. If they are, the story will unfold and the sex that happens will read as a natural development in the story.
I find plot much harder than sex scenes. I think of sex scenes as writing "in the moment" and I think I am good at describing moment to moment action.
My HUGE weakness is plot. I've been avoiding it lately with fairly plotless flash stories and one long story that was pretty much all dialogue and sex. But there are writers here, VirgoGo and Burquette come to mind though there are many others, who handle it with seeming effortlessness.
So, personally, I am going to quit writing shards and write a real story next. Work on my weaknesses.
story is easy. sex scenes are harder, not because they're hard, but because you need to make them interesting, and there's only so many ways to write sex.
You can’t truly call yourself peaceful unless you are capable of violence. If you’re not capable of violence, you’re not peaceful. You’re harmless.
I'll be the first to admit that my sex-scenes are mostly pretty formulaic. Like Sprite said, there's only so many ways to write a sex scene. If you're fairly vanilla and straight in your sexual preferences (as I am), then it's even more limited. So I don't focus on the sex so much. I start with the assumption that the characters are going to end up fucking (on an erotic stories site? Surprise!), and then work backwards to figure out how they got there. My interest is in developing the story, building up the erotic tension and suspense that leads to the sex. I feel if I can do that well, it will carry readers through 'yet another kiss-and-fondle->blow job->eating pussy->penetrate-and-thust->change-of-position->orgasm (hers and his)' sequence. Sex scenes on their own (unless you're really skilled at doing them) are boring to me without the build-up of a story. Writing a good erotic story is more work, but it's also much more engaging to me as an author, and as a reader.
Post-avant-retro-demelodicized-electro-yodel-core is my jam.
I find story and character development to be easier to write than sex. Getting the physical sex to integrate into, or become another seamless facet, of the characters' emotions and motivations, and whatever conflict drives them to get naked, is difficult. It also doesn't help that I edit, obsessively and compulsively, as I write.
"It seemed like a nice neighborhood to have bad habits in.” Raymond Chandler
I love to watch people, and I don't mean as a voyeur. I can sit on a beach or in a bar and see someone that does something or says something that draws my attention. Then my mind starts working.."what if"...and the story begins to build. I don't write anything until I have 75% of the story in my head and then I type it out. The sex comes naturally, because well, the "if" part includes a lot of sex.
As Meggsy mentions above, the characters take on their own lives and tend to take care of the last 2% of the story.
Perhaps the hardest part is moving the story into the sex. How does a wife who loves her husband jump into bed with the first offer. "Iv,e always wanted to see my lovely wife having sex with another guy" Boring!.
I always have a harder time with the actual story. In my mind, I tend to think of really awesome story plots, but by the time I sit and try to type them out, they vanish. I can't seem to concentrate hard enough, because my mind is so swirly whirly with my anxiety disorder, but when I'm able to focus on the sex, that is when I shine. I'm not sure why. I know a lot of people who have edited for me in the past say that I make less mistakes in the sex scenes than the rest of the story. So, yeah, I'm not sure why one is easier than the other.
Oh writing the backstory is sooo much easier than writing the sex part for me! I always worry that I am being too repetitive or boring with the sex scenes. One of my fellow firefighters used to say "There's only so many ways you can turn it!" and that's true. With the story, I can be as creative as I want but during the sex I have to remember whose on top, what position they are in, what state of dress they're in, and a lot of other details. Plus I have to remember what the story is supposed to be about! I can't have two guys suddenly show up to a lesbian story! Or make the black man in an interracial story suddenly have red hair or something! LOL!
No if I could collab with someone who loved writing the sex scenes and leave me to do the storyline, that would be great!
Sex? Psh. Story? Psh.
The answer is simple.
Dialogue.
Dialogue's a bitch.
In fact, there are probably only a few on here that I think are truly masters of it.
*whispers* that damned disney princess
I find the sex far harder to write than the story. I quite often write the whole story with the words "inventive sex" inserted wherever it will eventually be needed. I find it incredibly hard to find new ways to describe the sex.
