Fantastic sex & writing

On a regular basis, fantasy writer Patrick Rothfuss hosts a panel. The one below is very interesting - from my point of view anyway. If I had to pick two genres in which I primarily read they would be fantasy & romance. The issue that these four fantasy writers are discussing, namely writing sex scenes, is one that writers of romance have been dealing with for a long time. It's something I struggle with as a writer, I'm not out to write sex books, I'm out to write good stories. Good stories where a high proportion of that story is about two people over coming obstacles and ending up together. Ending up together involves sex.... so what and how to writer that?
How much is too much?
And likewise is your reader going to feel cheated if too little is covered on page?  etc.

10 Tips for Fantastic Sex - The Story Board Ep. 7



On a related note, thinking of writers who did sex well, I could think off three (pre 2000) off the top of my head: Judith Tarr, Juliet Marillier & Anne McCaffrey.
However, as time passes, more of the sex is happening on page.

As an unrelated note, I thoroughly enjoyed Patrick Rothfuss's 1st book "The name of the Wind" and have his 2nd one sitting on my shelf. I've held off starting it until the next book comes out so I can have a long sit don with the series. As a writer I can understand why the next book is not out yet, as a reader I'm champing at the bit.
I also really enjoyed the first two books by Peter Brett and am off to buy his latest one after this.
Guy Gavriel Kay - The author Jacqueline Carey mentions is also very good

PS: sorry this is quite a long video

A billion Wicked Thoughts

In the upcoming book A Billion Wicked Thoughts, neuroscientists Ogi Ogas and Sai Gaddam studied thousands of romance novels looking for clues about social expectations. 

After analyzing 15,000 Harlequin books, they came up with the most popular professions for heroes in romance novels. The complete list follows below–what do you think?
1. Doctor
2. Cowboy
3. Boss
4. Prince
5. Rancher
6. Knight
7. Surgeon
8. King
9. Bodyguard
10. Sheriff

Okay, so now I'm trying to think of my writing (published and unpublished to think of what my heroes do).
Human with a Twist he's basically an antiques deals (but not her boss)
Redemption's Kiss he's a police officer (is this close enough to Sheriff??)

What does the occupation of our favourite heroes tell us about ourselves. Of course studies like this need to be read with a critical eye - after all, any one who reader Mills & Boon/Harlequin know they are heavily skewed to certain tropes (& hero employment choices). But just because one is reading with a crietal eye - doesn't mena it's not interesting. They also say...

"While modern radiophysicists have discovered black holes and developed the means for communicating with extraterrestrials, scientists studying desire still struggle to identify basic differences between the sexual interests of men and women… Quasars don’t close the curtains out of modesty or suspicion. In contrast, most of us are unwilling to let curious scientists photograph us as we tumble between the sheets. Radio waves may be invisible, but they don’t try to deceive curious physicists and they’re incapable of self-deception. Humans are guilty of both."

They don't stop with what our heroes do, they look at how we describe them as well:
"...We analyzed the text of more than ten thousand romance novels published from 1983 to 2008 to determine the most common descriptions of the hero’s physical appearance.

Here are the seven most frequent masculine features:
Cheekbones
Jaw
Brows
Shoulders
Forehead
Waist
Hips
And the seven most common adjectives used to describe masculine features?
Lean
Handsome
Blond
Tanned
Muscular
Masculine
chiseled

...no synonym for penis appears in the hundred most common physical descriptors used to describe the romance hero. If we wished to describe the ideal-looking hero, we could use the most common two-word physical descriptions: the perfect hero boasts “blue eyes,” a “straight nose,” “high forehead,” and “square jaw” together making a “handsome face.” His head is framed by “dark hair” which accents the “white teeth” in his “sensual mouth” curved into a “crooked smile.” He stands tall with “broad shoulders,” a “broad chest,” “narrow waist,” “flat stomach,” “strong arms,” “big hands,” “big feet,” and “long legs”—though the heroine’s eye might ultimately be drawn to his “powerful thighs.”"

Mmmmmm, he sounds nice :)

Follow this link to read an excerpt from the book. 
And yes this stuff fascinated me so expect a couple more blog based on their material :)