Friday, January 25, 2013

Guest Post: Classy Sex Scenes for YA & New Adult Books, by D.T. Dyllin

Check out this Guest Post by Hot New Adult author D.T. Dyllin, but first get a quick look at her book that's just been released this week!!

**D.T.'s Kindle Fire and eBook giveaway is still open!**

Hidden Gates
by D.T. Dyllin

For P.J. Stone, being a “Seer” who has never seen anything is less than fun. And P.J. isn’t known for her patience.

To make matters worse, she must choose a suitable mate to continue the Seer bloodline. Duty always comes before her heart…at least that’s what her parents taught her. When she finds herself wanting someone who is considered off-limits, P.J. is forced to question everything she believes.

As if navigating her love life isn’t complicated enough, P.J. finally receives a vision—of a threat to her world that only she can perceive. But no one will believe a fledgling Seer’s warnings. With nowhere else to turn, she may decide to trust a stranger with her life, her world, and maybe even her heart.


D.T. Dyllin
What’s up you sex crazed lovelies?!

Don’t try to deny it.

If you’re wondering how exactly to go about writing a ‘classy’ sex scene for a YA or New Adult novel, but can’t quite figure it out…then yep…your mind has been living in the gutter.

But no worries, you’re not alone. My mind lives there 99% of the time, and that’s why I also write adult books. It’s kind of nice to not have to censor myself.

Alright, so I’m going to jump right into this now…here are some tips on how to do the New Adult or YA sex scene with a touch of class… aka …  How not to incur the wrath of publishers and angry tween moms.

1)     Even if you’re not a mom, pretend that you are. We all know teenagers know about sex. But what would you be comfortable letting your own child read? If you wouldn’t let your own kid read the scene you wrote, then it’s time to edit it. ‘Nuff said.

2)     Don’t be overly descriptive of the physical parts. Yes, you need to describe things a tad, clearly, but describe the emotional part more. Plus we all know that can be hotter sometimes anyways.

3)     Watch your word choice. Don’t use words like c**, d***, c***, etc. in YA, or most New Adult for that matter. Here’s an example from Hidden Gates:

“A new type of warmth I’d never experienced before bloomed in my center. Soon it grew into a fire of need, spreading through my system, pushing outward into spasms of ecstasy.”

It’s pretty clear what’s happening in the latter scene, and I didn’t even use the word cum once. I know…craaaazy.

4)     Make it more about the connection, the love, and the romance than just the sex. Make the sex an extension of the characters feelings for each other and even if you slip up a bit and go more “adult” you still won’t go wrong.


5)     Last but not least. Try to teach responsible birth control usage and protection against STDs. I know, I know…it kind of sucks. But you have to think that we as adults realize that pregnancy and STDs are a very real risk, and some of the books we read are purely fantasy.

There are tons of things that I think are super hot in books that I’d never do in real life. For instance… just meeting a man and hooking up with him and not using protection. In real life I’d be like… "You better be wrapping that up, buddy boy.”

But sometimes teens and tweens still take cues from fictional characters if they seem cool. In Hidden Gates, I threw in a line about birth control between Bryn and P.J. I really didn’t want to, I won’t lie, but again, it’s our responsibility as writers to consider these things.

Alright, those are my hopefully helpful tips on how to write a ‘classy’ sex scene in YA or New Adult novels. Thanks to Two Fantasy Floozies for the invite to guest post! It was fun! Later all you sex crazed lovelies! J


2 comments:

  1. Thanks for having me back for a guest post! :D

    ~D.T. Dyllin

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  2. Great advice and love the cover! I have the most trouble with my romantic scenes, love to read them in other books, but writing them can be difficult.

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