Skip to main content

Romance Writer Toolkit: #1 The Stages of Seduction


Introduction:

This is the first of a new series I’m super excited about sharing with you. It will be ongoing as I am constantly learning and growing as a writer, and of course I want to share that with you! 

What sparked this series is that when I first started writing I didn’t have a clue about about the structure of a story, characters, motivations, goals…and you get the picture. I knew nothing. And now I know that you really need to know the rules before you break them. 

 I would get an initial scene idea and start writing. I wrote my first two manuscripts this way by pantsing with no plan at all and no thought. Of course this ended in two books that were a pile of disconnected chapters that had no point and didn’t make sense. Because even pantsing requires knowing where you end, or at least the main conflict or what a characters goal and motivation is. Just something that will drive the story forward, and I had zilch! 

Now, after struggling for years, I found myself wanting to do the research, read some writing craft books, and actually learn the basics of writing a story. And while not all of it was life changing, I found the gems that were game changers for my writing. And you will find tools you can apply to your writing even if you don’t fit in a box. 

Toolkit Tip:

I’m currently reading Passionate Ink: A Guide to Writing Erotic Romance by Angela Knight and as I’m finishing it up, I can honestly say this book belongs in every romance writers toolkit. It is gold! It’s something I wish I read before I attempted my first book as it has everything I needed to write a book. 

*NOTE: This book is currently out of print so do yourself a favor and hunt down a used copy. I did reach out to the author recently and asked if it could be sold as an ebook and she said she could make that happen! Yay! So I will update this post as soon as an ebook is available. 

*UPDATE: New edition is now available on Ebook and paperback. CLICK HERE. 

I will do a full post on this book later, or maybe multiple posts as it has so many nuggets I could pull out. But today I wanted to share with you what I found so helpful from chapter eleven! 

The 12 Steps of Intimacy

HERE is the PDF to read the steps. 

*Pages 141-145 in Passionate Ink.* 

*Note: These steps and this book are written mostly with a male/female relationship dynamic in mind, but I feel like the steps and book can be applied to whatever relationship dynamic you are writing. 

The steps explain the stages of seduction. These are romance writer gold! The steps can help you to build the sexual attraction and tension. You can use this as a guide when you’re writing, and for help when the romance just isn’t sizzling and the passion isn’t there!

 It’s just a way my brain never broke down the romance before and the steps are a great way at helping see what is happening between my characters and be able to fix things. 

I’ll leave you with some quotes from Angela’s book on the steps of intimacy! I hope this helps you! 

Happy Writing xoxo 

“The reader should feel the sexual tension start to build between the hero and heroine from their first glance. What’s more, you should feel it too, or you’re in trouble.” -Angela Knight, Pg. 141

“If you’re having trouble getting your characters into bed, make sure you’ve laid the groundwork with these earlier steps. Once you build the attraction and passion between your couple, love scenes come much more easily.” -Angela Knight, Pg.145

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Where Have I Been? A Journal Entry on The Last Few Years

Introduction: Hey everyone! Happy New Year! I'm back! I know I haven't posted in over a year and I am here to tell you all about why and what's been going on. I hope your holidays went well, your writing and reading has been joyful, and that you are smashing your goals for the month already. I hope you are doing things you love that bring you happiness and may this year be the best for you! Things Didn't Go As I Planned... Here I am in 2026, not published, not a lot of my goals met that I have set year after year. Some new and some old. Putting out all my words of wisdom, writer advice, and failing at it myself. Story of my life. Lol  I know the secrets, but doing them for myself is a whole different ball game. I've been on a journey these last 5 years since I started writing and I've learned a lot, experienced a lot, and grown up a lot all on the road to success. It will happen for me. Just a few years later than I planned, and that is okay. My writing journey ...
4 comments
Read more

Writing What You "should be" writing vs. Writing What you Love

 As this year comes to a close, I wanted to share about the battle of writing what you think you should be writing vs. what you love. When I first started writing, I thought I should write a YA fantasy very much along the lines of Twilight. Now, I still love Twilight to this day as much as my 13 year old heart did, and I will forever be in the fandom and my heart in Forks, WA, but as I was writing my Twilight-esque book, I noticed it got harder and harder as I went on. I wasn't loving the book anymore. It's because I was reading and loving all of these steamy contemporary billionaire romance novels and that is where my heart was, and what I was supposed to be writing. Not forcing out a book that teenage me would like. Or I found "more respectable or credible" somehow. But the truth was I wasn’t reading YA anymore and  I shouldn’t have been writing in a genre I wasn’t passionate about anymore.   So, I quickly wrapped up that book to give myself some closure and then s...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Newbie's Guide To Audiobooks: For Readers

Introduction:  So you want to get into audiobooks. Yay! I was once starting where you are and was lost and confused. I was also the reader that once turned my nose up to audiobooks thinking that it wasn't for me, and now I am an audiobook junkie! When you can read while driving, working, cleaning, and grocery shopping, it becomes a no brainer. You can go about your life and be productive while not ever feeling readers guilt! It's the best of both worlds.  I started audiobooks in March of 2022. My day job allows me to leave headphones in, and as a voracious reader, the temptation to be able to consume more stories anyway I could won out.  Below I will share all the things you need to know when getting started in audiobooks, and all the ways you can listen!  Getting Started: Devices: You just need your phone, tablet, or e-reader, and you can have access to any audiobooks you want.  It's no secret audiobooks can be pricey, and when you are getting started, you are ...
Post a Comment
Read more