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How to Write Sexual Tension

One of the fun things about writing romance is that it’s actually your job to annoy readers! And you do this by ramping up the sexual tension between two (or more) characters and then repeatedly denying anyone relief. That first touch or kiss (etc) is just so much more satisfying if the characters, not to mention the readers, are desperate for it. So whether your characters are the type to explode into passion or just have a really emotional handshake, sexual tension can make it all the more delicious. Here are some tips to turn up the heat.

Purely romantic tension—a romance writer’s bread and butter—often involves a character imagining future dates, couplehood, or marriage; wishing they had the courage to confess their feelings, wondering if the other person might share those feelings, turning red when Aunt Griselda pipes up at the Thanksgiving table to say she’s always thought they would make beautiful babies with their best friend. Romantic tension is quite lovely! Sexual tension does basically the same thing, but it’s more physical.

Sexual tension is all about touch. Your character can imagine brushing hands with their crush, linking arms, bumping shoulders, and on into kissing and other bedroom activities. Your character might focus on a certain body part of their love interest: lips and mouth are common, along with hands and, well, any other areas they might spend too much time thinking about.

And it doesn’t have to be the case that these two characters have never touched. In fact, they might regularly hold hands, squish themselves onto a too-small couch, or even give shoulder rubs. The point is, your character wants more, and as a writer, you should almost give it to them, and then snatch it away. So fun!

To write sexual tension, start by getting your characters close—close enough so Character A can feel Character B’s body heat and smell their scent, see details of their skin and eyes, and be aware that B can sense the same of them.

So now, the almost touch. Or, if they’re already touching, the almost this-is-definitely-more-than-a-friendly-touch. Character A can hover their hand above B’s shoulder, or A’s gaze might fall to B’s mouth and stay there. A may look like they’re about to brush B’s hair back or hug them. But then either A or B or both pull back, or they’re suddenly interrupted by another character or noise or other convenient plot device.

Good, that’s one. Now let’s do it again, and this time, A and B have a new thought to obsess over: Was B really about to touch me? Were they really going to kiss me, or was it my imagination? So the tension is already high to start.

Let’s say this time Character A is climbing down a ladder after wallpapering the kitchen with B’s favorite flower, which is a total coincidence, and B puts a hand on their elbow to steady them. Such a tiny touch. It would hardly be noticed, except your characters are already thinking about touching, and that sets off a whole reaction, and more frantic overthinking. Rinse and repeat. 

Popular plots as this progresses include dancing or dancing lessons, massages, and that not-super-plausible-but-so-delicious thing where Character A trips and falls into B’s arms. Bonus if A’s all warm and sleepy in their way-sexier-than-they-should-be flannel PJ’s.

But again, nothing happens except B desperately wondering what would have happened if they hadn’t gotten interrupted by the cat growingly menacingly at a dark corner (whoops, sorry, wrong genre). What does the rest of A’s body look like under those PJ’s? How would it feel to touch A without the PJ’s at all?

And maybe at lunch A gives a groan of appreciation into their mac-n-cheese, and now B wants to hear that noise again during sexy times. Or B blushes and A helplessly comes up with a 7-step plan to make B blush again.

Of course, this is not a one-way street. If you build the tension high enough, at some point the characters are probably going to realize it’s happening to both of them. That adds another layer of tension: what is the other character thinking? A looked like they were going to kiss me and didn’t—why? Are they going to make a different choice next time? What do I do if they kiss me? What do I do if they don’t?!

(This would all likely be resolved by the two characters having a frank discussion about their feelings, but this is romance, so nobody wants them to actually do that.)

And then, the moment finally arrives. A kiss, a hug, a touch to the cheek, a night of passion by a roaring fire, a hookup in the bathroom of a haunted bookstore, whatever. Your readers and characters are so happy! Except now the readers kind of miss that tension. Have no fear—you can start it over! Yes, even if they had sex.

To do that, you need to come up with some plot reason why it can’t happen again. No more kissing, no more bedroom sporting events. A is betrothed to someone else, B is a space alien (and betrothed to someone else), or whatever. (Note that readers don’t tend to like it if A and B split over a simple misunderstanding, so an actual plot reason is best.) The sexual tension is actually easier to write at this point because your characters have memories of those events now. They know how good it was. Losing it after having it once is almost worse.

But of course, this is romance, so at the end, the tension will be relieved by a happy ending. Yep, that kind of happy ending.

Thanks for reading!

Want to be SFW with that eventual love scene? How to write implied smut

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers 

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Opposite sides

Sometimes characters are enemies by circumstance, cast by fate onto opposing sides of a war or political situation. But when they meet, they find they have a lot in common and start to feel friendly toward each other. There are a few ways to go here. Your characters could already think the war is stupid and distrust their own side, happily forsaking it for each other. Or they could harbor intense hatred for anyone on the other side because they’ve been raised that way, only to find their assumptions were wrong and end up in a crisis of faith. Or the characters could be in an epic, forbidden romance: something that would doom themselves and their families if it was ever discovered.

It’s personal

Sometimes characters just don’t like each other. Maybe they’re rivals at work or in sports. Maybe they have a meet-ugly fender bender or photo bomb. Whatever the case, these two seriously can’t stand each other…until they can. The change might come about because one unexpectedly helps the other, who then realizes their enemy is actually a nice person. Or maybe there are explanations and apologies for a misunderstanding. Perhaps they just get snowed into a hotel room with only one bed. However it happens, their intense relationship then ignites in the other direction.

Enemies with benefits

Okay, so these characters are clearly not right for each other. They can’t stand each other, and even if they could, the narrative dooms them to be enemies. But they’re definitely hooking up. Maybe they find each other attractive and agree to seek some mutual release from stress. Or maybe it happens unexpectedly in a moment of passion. Either way, the physical closeness and trust they find in bed are at odds with their outward relationship. And something’s gotta give.

Enemies to lovers often draws in other tropes like single or mutual pining, slow burn, and forced proximity. However you write it, readers love when characters get dragged kicking and screaming into their Happily Ever After.

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ The Vampire Haven erotic romance series ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

Happy Endings for an Immortal-Mortal Romance

Doomed love stories are a staple of romance, and one of the greatest is the tragedy of an immortal being in love with someone whose lifespan is finite. But of course, romance fans don’t always want the tragic ending. So here are three ways to take your doomed immortal/mortal romance and give it a happy ending.

1. Change the rules

Your human becomes a vampire, or your vampire becomes human. An angel falls to earth to be with their human lover or a human is elevated to angel status. In other words, solve the problem by avoiding it altogether. For a twist, you could have your mortal become some other brand of immortal than their lover: a psychopomp (I love that word), demon, ghost, god, etc. Either way, your lovers spend the rest of their lifetime (of whatever length) together.

2. End of story

You can always end a story by killing off your couple. Your mortal comes to the end of their lifespan, and your immortal also kicks the bucket: a stake through the heart, magical weapon, or holy war. Then maybe they get to be together in the afterlife. After all, if Swan Lake did it, why not you?

3. Reincarnation

Or you can tell your love story over and over again. Your mortal character dies and is reborn, while your immortal waits and pines. The possibilities for romance are delicious: does your reincarnated human remember their lover every time? Maybe at a certain cue (like a kiss), or just on meeting them? Or do they have to fall in love anew every time? Maybe your immortal has to search the world over for their reborn lover, or maybe they know where to look. Throw in a soul bond if you like. Either way, the story could involve tropes like pining, meet-cutes, and strangers to lovers.

In sum, immortal/mortal love stories are great for high-stakes happy endings. Have fun writing!

Check out other articles on romance between ghosts and humans and vampires and humans

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ The Vampire Haven erotic romance series ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

A Mnemonic Device for Writers

Writers know the struggle: we’re running errands, exercising, cleaning, when the characters in our head start talking. The plot hole solves itself, the twist ending is revealed, the villain finally says the right line. It’s all fine and good if you’ve got a moment to stop and make notes. But if you’re driving, swimming, or chasing a preschooler at the park, you run the risk of forgetting your great ideas.

I learned to use a peg-word mnemonic system in high school psychology, and I’ve always loved it. It’s a simple way to remember a list of items when you don’t have a way to write them down. There are many to choose from, but my favorite uses words that rhyme with the numbers one through ten:

1. Bun
2. Shoe
3. Tree
4. Door
5. Hive
6. Sticks
7. Heaven
8. Gate
9. Shrine
10. Hen

To use this as a writer, you’ll have to distill your new plot info into a few salient notes, and then imagine those notes associated with the objects on the list. Let’s try a test case. 

Say your fantastic new plot is: at the grocery store, Jane wants to ask out a cute girl named Barbara. But Barbara is not paying attention because she’s just found a dragon’s egg in her cart.

What keywords you choose are subjective: it’s whatever you want to remember as the important elements in the new idea. So for example:

1. Character names: imagine the words “Jane” and “Barbara” written in ketchup on a hot dog bun
2. Setting: imagine a tennis shoe sitting in a grocery cart, next to a dragon’s egg.

For dialogue, which is the stuff I forget most, pick out the general beats of the conversation, using whatever abbreviated keywords will remind you of the whole thing. Say Jane says:

“Hey I just met you! And this is crazy! But here’s my number. So call me may—OMG is that a dragon egg?”

3. Imagine carved on a tree “Hey” and/or “just met”

4. Imagine carved on a door “crazy”

5. Imagine a bee hive, with a word written in honey: “number” or “my number”

6. Imagine spelled out in sticks: “may—OMG”

I find that the time I spend trying to create my list also helps cement the ideas in my head. Keep refreshing the pictures in your mind—bun, shoe, tree, door, hive, sticks (remember, those rhyme with with one, two, three, four, five, six)—until you get to a point where you can write it down. And there’s your plot, safe and sound! And also a dragon egg, apparently.

Happy writing!

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ The Vampire Haven erotic romance series ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

Good organization is especially important when you’ve got more than one story forthcoming, because it’s super easy to get it all mixed up. 

First steps

1. Answer all the questions the press asked you in the acceptance email. (It’s easy to miss stuff when you’re excited.)

2. Give the publisher an updated bio.

3. For podcasts, tell the press how to pronounce your name.

4. Carefully read and sign the contract. I’m not going to go into contract specifics because I am not a lawyer. You can find online resources for that. But short story contracts are usually brief and easy to understand. They should always include payment amount and when you can expect to be paid, plus a date when the story rights revert to you if publication falls through.

5. Be sure you’ve received payment.

More steps under the cut:

6. Go through edits with the press, if there are any.

7. Find out what your exclusion date is. (A press will usually say you can’t sell your story as a reprint until a certain date after publication. It’s usually a few months.)

8. Find out your publishing date.

9. For online publications, find out if there’s a date when your story will no longer be available/free to read on the publisher’s website. If so, you’ll need to update any links you have to the story on your website or social media on that date.

After the story comes out:

10. Do a press release about the story on social media, your website, and your author newsletter, if you have one.

11. If the press/magazine is sending you an author copy, be sure you’ve received it.

Being an organized, timely writer makes a good impression on publishers, which can help your career down the line. Publishing is a small world, and your reputation is worth quite a bit. Congratulations again!

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ The Vampire Haven erotic romance series ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

Before You Give up on a Story

Writers generally love the stories we’re writing…otherwise we wouldn’t write them. But sometimes it seems like we’re the only ones who feel that way. It’s hard to get rejection after rejection on a short story, and at some point, we may begin to think of hiding the story at the bottom of our metaphorical trunk. 

However, a flood of rejections doesn’t mean you have to let go of a story altogether. You could give that original story idea new life, even if its first incarnation didn’t work out. So here are three things to do before you give up on a story, from least to most drastic.

Change the word count. 

I also wrote about this in an article for SFWA. You may find a longer or shorter treatment of your story gives it new life. You could take one scene and make it the whole story, or expand the piece by delving into backstory or the inner workings of a character’s mind.

So maybe your story about a long, creepy flight to Jupiter could be cut to just the scene where the main character finally encounters the ghost the’ve been chasing around. Or, to make the story longer, you could add a whole new angle where you examine what led to your ghost’s untimely demise or how she got stuck on this ship.

Change the Who, When, and Where. 

Your story may also benefit from a change of perspective.

Who: What would your Jupiter story look like if the ghost were the narrator? Or if there was a third character on the ship? Or if your main character was someone the ghost had known in life?

When: You could try setting your story before the ship even leaves for Jupiter: what does the ghost do during preparations? Or set it after the ship completes its journey, and your character is dealing with the aftermath.

Where: What if your story was set on Jupiter, where characters must deal with the docking of a haunted ship? Or on another ship that encounters the ship along the way, or another planet where the ship might get stranded?

Write a whole AU.

AU stands for “alternate universe.” Fanfic writers are very familiar with this idea: taking the source material and changing everything about it, except the stuff you love most.

So take your haunting off a spaceship and put it in a submarine, school, cafe, or eerie stretch of road. Change your main character from a ship captain to a waitress in a creepy town, an actress in a spooky play, or a maid in a haunted house.

You can even change genre. Write a college AU where your human and ghost (who may or may not be a ghost in this version) are roommates or rivals. Maybe they’re co-workers in an office, or old ladies in a retirement home. Add romance. Get rid of romance. Make them ballerinas with superpowers. Your imagination is the only limit.

Speaking of AUs, read about scrubbing your favorite fanfic couple into original characters.

The point of all these potential changes is to light a new literary fire in you. Maybe you’re excited to turn your original idea into a single 500-word scene or a 40,000-word novella. Maybe you find the ballerinas with superpowers idea really inspirational. 

Of course, there’s no guarantee the new version of your story will sell any better than the last. But it does feel good to breathe new life into a project, to give another chance to that spark that made you write it in the first place.

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ The Vampire Haven erotic romance series ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

 

Three Reasons to Hit a Word Count

(And What to Do if You Don’t)

Most submission calls have word limits, and most writers follow them. But of course, stories don’t always go from idea to page without wandering into Subplot Land and picking up a few souvenirs. So now you’ve got a 6000-word story for a 5000-word call. Should you submit or not? That’s up to you—but here are some things to keep in mind.

The word count is there for a reason.

A podcast editor can’t squeeze an overly long story into a ten-minute spot. An anthology editor can’t print an unlimited number of pages. And online magazine editors know what length of story their audience likes. Which means those word counts on submission calls aren’t arbitrary: they’re based on real-world limits.

You might hope an editor will make an exception for you, because your magnificent story fits the publication in every other way—genre, subject matter, writing style. You imagine the editor replying Oh I know this is too long, but I couldn’t put it down, we’re going to publish it! And I’m not saying that will never happen. But after talking to editors, I can tell you it’s more likely the editor will never know your story is the right genre, subject matter, and writing style. Why? Because they’re not going to read it. They’ll look at the word count and send an automatic rejection letter. Not because they enjoy crushing writers’ dreams, but because the word count is there for a reason.

Get more tips on how to submit a short story.

Not following the submission guidelines is a red flag.

Most submissions to open calls are from people the editor has never met. She only knows two things about these writers: if their story fits the publication, and if they follow the rules. Think of submission guidelines as a way to make a first impression. If the editor requests your story be submitted in 18-point comic sans, that might seem weird to you, but do it anyway. If they say not to include a list of your previous publications in your cover letter, then don’t, even if you’re very proud of them. (The one exception is that you don’t need to give out your home address and phone number if they ask for it—if your story is accepted, you can share that, but not before.)

You need to show you can follow the rules, because an editor is not just accepting your story—she is accepting you as a working partner. An editor needs to have confidence that you’ll follow other rules coming up, like sharing the publication on your social media and completing edits by a deadline. If the first impression you make is that you don’t care about the rules, well—that’s not a good look.

You are in charge of your story, not the other way around.

Okay, so I know we all joke about how characters charge off in unexpected directions and short story plots balloon into novellas. And that’s great! Chasing an idea around your brain is part of the fun of writing! But in the end, you are actually in charge of that story, which means if it’s too long, you can in fact take your red pen and cut it down to size.

I often have different versions of the same story for submitting to different calls (for example, I add or remove a romance subplot). That way, I can submit to more places, which increases the chance of the story being published. So you can leave your 7,000 word adventure for calls that allow that word limit. But there’s no reason you can’t have a 5,000 word version as well. (You might even come to like that version better!) Plus, cutting a story down is good editing practice.

Check out my SFWA article on how to rewrite a story for a different call.

BONUS: What to do when you don’t hit the word count

So you’ve considered all my helpful advice and rejected it. No worries! If you’re going to submit a too-long (or too-short) piece for a call, here’s even more advice:

1. Be up-front about it. In your cover letter, tell the editor you know your piece is too long, but you’re hoping it might be a good fit otherwise.
2. Follow all the other submission guidelines.
3. Don’t be surprised if you’re rejected anyway. (And don’t EVER write a rude reply back to a rejection letter. Talk about making a bad impression.) 

Thanks for reading! Have fun with your stories!

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers 

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Writing a First Kiss

There are a million different ways to write a great first kiss. Here are some of my thoughts, and a few prompts!

We’ll deal with the physical first.

Writing physical intimacy is just logistics: who’s got their [specific body part] where? For kissing, you’re obviously dealing with mouths, but also usually hands, and eventually some sort of embrace.

Kisses are dynamic, meaning there’s some movement going on. Here are three of the many physical possibilities for kissing that are particularly suited for a first kiss:

1. Lean-lips-hands. This is a quiet kiss: First, character A leans close, or else they both do. There is often eye movement, where one or both gazes are shifting from eyes to lips and back again (sometimes this is written as silently seeking permission). Then their lips meet. For a first kiss, you may want to pause here, because this is probably a Big Deal. After that, hands move, usually to the other person’s shoulders, neck, or collar, where they rest. It’s not an attempt to move the partner, it’s a simple desire for more touch.

For a quiet kiss there’s probably not going to be a ton of movement, because usually when characters open their mouths and deepen a kiss, there is more hand/arm involvement. (Of course, that’s not a rule, feel free to write a passionate kiss where hands never move from lighting resting on shoulders.)

2. Embrace-kiss. A lot of first kisses start with hugs. But it needs to be a lasting hug, and it helps if it involves shoulder and neck contact. Then have the characters move back from the hug slowly, without breaking it. At this point, you can go for some super intense eye contact if you want, followed by both partners leaning in and starting the kiss, which can range from shy to suddenly passionate. The embrace will likely tighten back up at some point.

Or, instead of eye contact, you can have them moving from the full contact in the hug to resting their cheeks against each other, and then slowly shifting back just enough for mouths to meet. This is a kiss where there is no “seeking permission” phase, they just both move into it together. Because the shifting is slow, this kiss will probably at least start off quiet. And again, the embrace will probably renew itself.

3. Kissing everywhere but the lips. Oddly enough, this is good for both shy and really confident first kisses.

Read the rest of this article on my blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers

How to Write Romantic Pining

When writing romance, pining is everything. Readers want to see how desperately a character wants the romance, and how fervently they believe it’s never going to happen. That way, when it does happen, the rush of happy emotions takes the reader right along with it.

Writing pining is all about playing with your character’s emotions, which romance writers probably enjoy far too much. Let’s start with the happy part:

Your character is in love.

And probably lust as well. In any case, they believe their crush is the most wonderful, beautiful, amazing person in the entire world. Your character imagines what it would be like to spend a day with their crush, a dance, a night, a lifetime. Your character wants to be their crush’s special someone, the person they come to when they need help, whose comforting embrace they seek. The person who’s allowed to touch and kiss and openly love them. 

Now it may be the case that your character is already some of these things to their crush: a best friend, a confidant who knows what makes them laugh, a person who’s seen what their smile looks like under every kind of light. It might even be the case that your character and their crush are already lovers. But it’s just not enough for your character: they are in love, and they want it all: to be able to tell their crush how much they love them, to have a relationship that lasts the rest of their lives.

So now here comes the heartbreak:

Your character thinks it’s unrequited.

Your character must believe there is no path to a happy ending. Maybe their crush has a romantic partner already, or has rejected romantic overtures from your character before. Maybe the crush doesn’t seem to be into people of your character’s gender identity. Maybe the crush has sworn off romance or just seems completely satisfied being friends. Or your character believes they’re not pretty/smart/cool enough for their crush to ever think of them romantically.

This part is entirely emotional. It doesn’t matter what the outside circumstances of the relationship are. What’s important is your character believes that their crush is not in love with them now, and will never be.

But let’s talk about those outside circumstances a little:

Also, it’s impossible.

It’s a great idea to put additional barriers between your character and their crush, so the reader (who knows it’s requited), still thinks it really is unworkable. Maybe one of them is betrothed to someone else. Maybe the romance would need to cross a boundary: warring families, a commoner in love with a royal, or one of them’s a werewolf. It doesn’t have to be literally forbidden: maybe one is very outgoing and the other hates parties, or one is quite wealthy and connected and the other poor, or there’s an age difference (between adults). The point is, even if they are in love, your character and their crush will have to work to get past whatever sticking point you wrote for them.

But get past it, they will, of course, because this is romance, and your readers are looking for the payoff. The hopeless pining that abruptly resolves into joy when the characters realize their love is requited. And the more desperate you make your character, the bigger the rush when it finally happens.

Thanks for reading! To spice up your pining, check out How to Write Sexual Tension. And find more on how to set up that big romantic payoff in POV Switching in Romance.

This article was first published on my writing blog

DannyeChase.com ~ AO3 ~ Linktree ~ Weird Wednesday writing prompts blog ~ Resources for Writers