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dragonjournal) wrote2009-06-04 08:29 am
dragonjournal) wrote2009-06-04 08:29 am
Entry tags:
Sex in fiction
Now, here's a hot topic for you:
Sex in fiction.
I'm not talking bodice-rippers. Those, pretty much everyone expects there to be sex in those books. And if they don't what rock have they been living under?
I'm talking about sex in other types of fiction: mainstream, fantasy, horror, whatever.
Despite the fact that various sexualities, and sexual practices are far more vocal and far more public than they were in the past -- I won't say they are 'mainstream' because that assumes a certain amount of acceptance that just doesn't exist, though I hope it will some day -- sex in the media is still... not quite a taboo, but definitely a titillating subject.
There are still portions of the world, and even my own country, where sex just isn't talked about. It's still a forbidden subject, meant to only be spoken in hushed tones and for the act of procreation.
My own views are that sex is fun, and as long as it happens between two consenting adults, it's no one's business what else goes on.
However. Even though sex is a natural part of life, it still seems to be something that a lot of people don't want to think about in their fiction. Even if the fiction touches on child birth (a completely other post) or on marriage, or just a hook up, sex seems to be the one thing they just gloss over.
Now, I'm not saying that all sex in fiction should be fade to black. I like reading, and writing, a decent sex scene myself. What I'm saying is that people don't want to seem to deal with it.
In my view, I believe that sex is a personal choice when it comes to the writing. It can be done well, and has been done well, or it can be done oh so badly and make you cringe.
If you put sex in fiction, someone's going to get offended. "Why heterosexual sex? Why homosexual sex? Why x? Why y?" It doesn't matter what you do, someone's going to find fault with it.
Not only is someone going to find fault with it, but someone, somewhere, is going to "denounce" your book -- if you're lucky, because, hey, free publicity -- for even having sex in it. Now, granted, this happens more often in mainstream fiction than it does something like horror, or fantasy.
The thing you have to ask yourself, or at least I ask myself, before putting sex into a story, is "why is this here". It's not an easy question to answer, and definitely not an easy one to ask. There are several ways to answer this:
"Because it shows the relationship of x and y." This is a tricky one. I don't think, unless you need to show a truly unbalanced relationship, that sex is needed to show a relationship between two characters. There are many more subtle, and more powerful ways to show that relationship.
"Because it moves the characters forward." This one, I don't believe. A fade to black can show the characters moving forward just as well as a sex scene can, sometimes even better.
"Because it moves the plot forward." Another tricky one. I can see, in some instances, how it might. A seduction needed to get information, a rape to cow a recalcitrant prisoner. Those would move the plot forward. And I say this as a woman who once wrote a scene about a woman giving her husband oral sex while informing him of the happenings with treaty negotiations. (Telepathy can be a wonderful thing. *grins*)
The thing is, be honest with why the sex scene is there. Is it something you wrote because you wanted to? Fine. But be honest with it. Edits can be made, and it can all go on the cutting room floor so to speak. Is it something you felt had to be there at the time? Again; fine. On a reread/rewrite/second draft, does it still need to be there?
I like sex scenes in my fiction. I really do. But they have to serve a purpose. A sex scene just to have a sex scene and "be edgy" or whatever is not the best way to go, though.
So, sex in fiction: It has its place, and can even be done superbly well. But, in my opinion, needs to serve a purpose to the greater, overall, plot.*
*Please note, this excludes erotica, whose sole purpose is to titillate and arouse.
Sex in fiction.
I'm not talking bodice-rippers. Those, pretty much everyone expects there to be sex in those books. And if they don't what rock have they been living under?
I'm talking about sex in other types of fiction: mainstream, fantasy, horror, whatever.
Despite the fact that various sexualities, and sexual practices are far more vocal and far more public than they were in the past -- I won't say they are 'mainstream' because that assumes a certain amount of acceptance that just doesn't exist, though I hope it will some day -- sex in the media is still... not quite a taboo, but definitely a titillating subject.
There are still portions of the world, and even my own country, where sex just isn't talked about. It's still a forbidden subject, meant to only be spoken in hushed tones and for the act of procreation.
My own views are that sex is fun, and as long as it happens between two consenting adults, it's no one's business what else goes on.
However. Even though sex is a natural part of life, it still seems to be something that a lot of people don't want to think about in their fiction. Even if the fiction touches on child birth (a completely other post) or on marriage, or just a hook up, sex seems to be the one thing they just gloss over.
Now, I'm not saying that all sex in fiction should be fade to black. I like reading, and writing, a decent sex scene myself. What I'm saying is that people don't want to seem to deal with it.
In my view, I believe that sex is a personal choice when it comes to the writing. It can be done well, and has been done well, or it can be done oh so badly and make you cringe.
If you put sex in fiction, someone's going to get offended. "Why heterosexual sex? Why homosexual sex? Why x? Why y?" It doesn't matter what you do, someone's going to find fault with it.
Not only is someone going to find fault with it, but someone, somewhere, is going to "denounce" your book -- if you're lucky, because, hey, free publicity -- for even having sex in it. Now, granted, this happens more often in mainstream fiction than it does something like horror, or fantasy.
The thing you have to ask yourself, or at least I ask myself, before putting sex into a story, is "why is this here". It's not an easy question to answer, and definitely not an easy one to ask. There are several ways to answer this:
"Because it shows the relationship of x and y." This is a tricky one. I don't think, unless you need to show a truly unbalanced relationship, that sex is needed to show a relationship between two characters. There are many more subtle, and more powerful ways to show that relationship.
"Because it moves the characters forward." This one, I don't believe. A fade to black can show the characters moving forward just as well as a sex scene can, sometimes even better.
"Because it moves the plot forward." Another tricky one. I can see, in some instances, how it might. A seduction needed to get information, a rape to cow a recalcitrant prisoner. Those would move the plot forward. And I say this as a woman who once wrote a scene about a woman giving her husband oral sex while informing him of the happenings with treaty negotiations. (Telepathy can be a wonderful thing. *grins*)
The thing is, be honest with why the sex scene is there. Is it something you wrote because you wanted to? Fine. But be honest with it. Edits can be made, and it can all go on the cutting room floor so to speak. Is it something you felt had to be there at the time? Again; fine. On a reread/rewrite/second draft, does it still need to be there?
I like sex scenes in my fiction. I really do. But they have to serve a purpose. A sex scene just to have a sex scene and "be edgy" or whatever is not the best way to go, though.
So, sex in fiction: It has its place, and can even be done superbly well. But, in my opinion, needs to serve a purpose to the greater, overall, plot.*
*Please note, this excludes erotica, whose sole purpose is to titillate and arouse.