The Stupidest Writing Decision I Ever Made
Alright, I’ll admit, I’m not infallible. I’m human. I make mistakes and I learn from them and move on. Therein lies the heart of this post. Consider it a cautionary tale for those of you who may think to do this in the future. Take some advice and don’t do it, no matter how much your mind and body screams for you to. No matter if your muse is standing over your shoulder with a rubber hose threatening you. Simply turn around and give them a hearty face shove.
So, here is what I did that I will never do again–at least to the degree I did it this time around.
Using place holders instead of writing the love/sex scenes.
See, it seemed a good idea at the time since I just wanted to finish the book with plot and characters so I could go back and reread and edit and get the book out the damn door. I thought, hell, I’ll just put holders in the love scenes (bright red ones with notes as to the intent of the scene character-wise) then I’d go back during editing and fill them in. Big mistake. Huge. I can’t even express the mental fatigue I have now after writing 7 love scenes in 5 days each one 1k-2k long. In a word, I’m spent. In order to keep things fresh I kept pushing my personal writing boundries. While that is not necessarily a bad thing while writing an erotic romance, it sure makes you sit and stare at the screen, scratching your chin and wondering what the hell you’re going to write next. Then there are the emotional issues during lovemaking. Now, I have done this before on a much smaller scale. One or two scenes only and not always sex related and I had no trouble going back in. Thus, I thought this instance would be fine. Man, was I mistaken. Hard.
I try to have some revelation of character during each love scene. I don’t want it just about tab B in slot A and choreography without meaning. I want the deep emotional responses for my characters as well as physcial fulfillment. Not always easy to accomplish, but better when you are writing linearly and not jumping around. Of course, I went back to a scene or two before the love scene so I knew what was going on and place the action in context, but still. Ugh. I’m one that has always prided herself on letting the sex play grow organically from the plot and characters. Gratuitious action generally turns me off. So, why do I feel, even though I had those place holders there where the sex should have been had I written linearly, that the scenes are in fact extraneous? Maybe this is just a fear derived from working the way I did on this book. It’s not like me at all. And you know what? I don’t think I liked it.
How many of you take things out of order and then have to go back and lace things in? Did it seem like a struggle or did you embrace it with open arms? Please let me know, I’m really interested in how it worked for you.
-Kate
Although new, i’ve experienced this pain already. i write part on screen and part long hand, so i just tend to start where i feel like starting in a scene, and hope it fits in when i transcribe later.
but, then there are gaps, and i don’t really know what to do with them so i move on instead of staring at my screen blankly and getting frustrated. but then there’s more gaps. and i’m stuck with a swiss cheese story that’s just mind-bogglingly overwhelming.
someday, i’ll actually plot out a story and try and write in order. maybe.
Oh, I have done that and then spent like 4 days writing nothing but sex I hated it! I usually leave notes to myself like *INSERT sex here, show deepening feeling, realization of BLAH BLAH BLAH* There is always some reason for the sex and I know what it is but that doesn’t mean I’m in the mindset to write it all the time.
Oh. i only do that sort of. I might skip ONE scene because i can’t get the flow or mood right. i don’t skip them all. I’d be a wreck.
I always seem to get stuck on the love scene, but once I tried to skip it and it was so difficult going back and getting back to the same emotional place. Thank goodness it was a short!
So I can’t laugh at you or throw the first stone.
oh wow. that sounds miserable. i never place holder sex but it would suck to be caught in that situation. i think it would be the time made a 70K book take place over seven days in a house no one could leave. horrible. half the time i couldn’t even remember what day it was.