: Re: Describing sex in a non-erotic fiction How explicit should the scenes be? When writing any type of fiction I just skip to the day after the sex took place and heavily imply that the persons

@Sue2132873

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What you are describing is often called a "fade to black" (after the movie technique of fading to a black screen just as a the 'action' starts, and then opening on a new scene the next morning), and is very common in all genres. There is no hard and fast rule as to whether or not you need to include a sex scene, so here are some pointers.

What are the purposes of this scene in your story?

Everything that you put into your story should have a purpose. Some purposes will necessitate the inclusion of a sex scene, others will not.

Example 1:
Your protagonists have resolved their romantic tension and admitted their love for each other, and the natural next step is to consummate their relationship.
In this case, the emotional developments have already happened, and the sex itself is gratuitous.

Example 2:
Your protagonists haven't admitted that their feelings go beyond physical attraction until a careless remark in the heat of the moment forces them to confront their feelings.
This scene does need to be shown, because relevant events are happening during it.

Example 3:
Your protagonist has sex with a stranger, and gets pregnant.
This scene does not need to be shown, because the exact mechanics of the event have no bearing on the plot implications

Example 4:
Your protagonist has sex with a stranger, and the stranger tries to assassinate them.
This scene does need to be shown, because in this case the details do matter.

So far my examples have focused on plot related reasons to show a sex scene, because those are the easiest for me to think up contrasting examples of, but plot is not the only thing to consider.

Sex scenes can reveal personality, explain relationships, address story themes, and much more. If you need your scene to do any of these things, then fading to black is likely not going to be sufficient. If your scene is doing none of these things, then your sex scene is gratuitous and probably should not be included. Or, if you want to include it anyways, you should find a way for it to do one of the above things in addition to entertaining the readers.

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