And ahhh maybe I should do a post on this! I keep getting into conversations about it; it's something I both am really interested in and also feel kind of awkward talking about. Not least of which because I know a lot of people enjoy porn but also are a bit embarrassed by that, and I really don't want to do anything to mess with that pleasure or make anyone feel like they have to justify it. That being said...it is fascinating to me, the different perspectives we come from!
It just occurred to me that perhaps part of the reason why I still haven't managed to write a proper sex scene in Guardian is that the relationship is so intense that taking it physical can't actually level it up.
You know, that makes a lot of sense to me!
It's funny, I have a lot of OTPs that I happily see as either gen or a ship; the sex is inconsequential one way or another to what I enjoy in the relationship. But I have some OTPs that fall on one side of that spectrum or another -- I have a few relationships I'm fannish about that that I absolutely can only see as platonic and will not read sex/romance for at all. And then on the other side I have a few OTPs that I cannot see as platonic, and WeiLan is one of those; physical desire is just part of their connection, in my mind. But it's not something I need to see realized to be satisfied -- I'm basically okay that we don't get to see them kiss in the show (though I'm gutted that they don't get a real hug!) and in fic I am totally satisfied by fade to black. As long as I know they're happily hooking up, I don't need to see it.
Which, basically, is my thing in general. Like this:
The same emotional pay-off that I get from a good sex scene can also be delivered in another way, because it's about showing the need and love (and whatever else) for me. So angst and porn can actually do the exact same thing for me as a reader
That's just it! Except for me, sex doesn't typically give me that emotional payoff at all. Not the way angst or h/c can -- I have fictional "kinks" for sure, tropes and things I enjoy on this deep visceral level and actively seek out. But sex isn't one of them. Some of the things around it do interest me, but the act itself and descriptions of it aren't something I read fic for and more often than not is a mildly irritating distraction from the stuff I'm really into.
...Except I've been writing enough of it lately that I'm definitely getting something out of it? And yeah, it's not just the mechanics, it's the emotions behind them...but I'm writing the mechanics too. And lot of that is because it feels like the stories require a level of, hmm, mechanical detail to effectively convey the character interactions -- but why am I coming up with stories that require porny details, rather than other ideas?? It's just odd!
On the other hand, presumed-dead angst is a bullet-proof kink for me, so yeah, much less mystery there, really the only question is why did it take me this long XD
Re: writing sex and angst
And ahhh maybe I should do a post on this! I keep getting into conversations about it; it's something I both am really interested in and also feel kind of awkward talking about. Not least of which because I know a lot of people enjoy porn but also are a bit embarrassed by that, and I really don't want to do anything to mess with that pleasure or make anyone feel like they have to justify it. That being said...it is fascinating to me, the different perspectives we come from!
It just occurred to me that perhaps part of the reason why I still haven't managed to write a proper sex scene in Guardian is that the relationship is so intense that taking it physical can't actually level it up.
You know, that makes a lot of sense to me!
It's funny, I have a lot of OTPs that I happily see as either gen or a ship; the sex is inconsequential one way or another to what I enjoy in the relationship. But I have some OTPs that fall on one side of that spectrum or another -- I have a few relationships I'm fannish about that that I absolutely can only see as platonic and will not read sex/romance for at all. And then on the other side I have a few OTPs that I cannot see as platonic, and WeiLan is one of those; physical desire is just part of their connection, in my mind. But it's not something I need to see realized to be satisfied -- I'm basically okay that we don't get to see them kiss in the show (though I'm gutted that they don't get a real hug!) and in fic I am totally satisfied by fade to black. As long as I know they're happily hooking up, I don't need to see it.
Which, basically, is my thing in general. Like this:
The same emotional pay-off that I get from a good sex scene can also be delivered in another way, because it's about showing the need and love (and whatever else) for me. So angst and porn can actually do the exact same thing for me as a reader
That's just it! Except for me, sex doesn't typically give me that emotional payoff at all. Not the way angst or h/c can -- I have fictional "kinks" for sure, tropes and things I enjoy on this deep visceral level and actively seek out. But sex isn't one of them. Some of the things around it do interest me, but the act itself and descriptions of it aren't something I read fic for and more often than not is a mildly irritating distraction from the stuff I'm really into.
...Except I've been writing enough of it lately that I'm definitely getting something out of it? And yeah, it's not just the mechanics, it's the emotions behind them...but I'm writing the mechanics too. And lot of that is because it feels like the stories require a level of, hmm, mechanical detail to effectively convey the character interactions -- but why am I coming up with stories that require porny details, rather than other ideas?? It's just odd!
On the other hand, presumed-dead angst is a bullet-proof kink for me, so yeah, much less mystery there, really the only question is why did it take me this long XD