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We hope everyone is getting excited about our Dare To Write blitz, running from 10th-17th July!
This competition has now closed.
To help you get the heat level right with your submission, we’ve invited some of our fabulous Dare authors to share their top tips for writing hot! Read on, we dare you…!
When it comes to writing the sex scenes, go hard or go home… Dare is sexy from page one. The off the charts chemistry between hero and heroine evident from the get go. Pretend no one will ever read what you write, take a deep breath, drink your favourite tipple first, if you need to lower your own inhibitions, and go for it!
Think of the hottest scene you’ve read and go back and re-read it, really looking to understand exactly what it is about the writing that makes your toes curl. To get in the mood, I like to put on a never-fail awesome scene from a movie, like when Baby goes to Johnny’s cabin the first time, in Dirty Dancing, and they dance together, and I write it in my head as I watch, imagining how I’d describe the feel of his skin, the sound of their breathing, the warmth in the room, the sound of the music. What’s she thinking and feeling? Is it frantic or tentative? Some of my favourite scenes in my first Dare were also written with a glass of wine in hand. I swear, it helps!
Dare to be different! Make your characters edgy, interesting, relatable and give them quirks. Dare pushes the boundaries so ensure your characters do that in every way.
In my opinion, the key to writing the hottest love scenes aren’t the words you use or the positions you put your characters in, or even how many people you include. It’s all in the emotional tension, or the push/pull between the characters. The emotional surrender and the emotional resistance. A love scene without tension is a boring love scene!
Accept that you’re going to blush, then go for absolute broke. Everything you ever wanted whispered to you, everything you ever wanted done to you, everything you never had the nerve to try but wish you did, every dark fantasy you’ve had, gift to your heroine and make her blush too. Hell, make a pact with yourself to make your editor blush while you’re at it – the more people blushing the better. Your editor will tell you if you’ve gone too far. Chances are you won’t have, but if you have, wear that like a badge of honour.
Dare promises to be a fantastic and bold new series. The reason I was drawn to it is also my number one tip for aspiring authors: Dare To Be Different!
Beyond explicit language and gritty heroes, attempt to step even more outside your comfort zone. Ever watched a movie that has a really bad villain you can’t help but root for? Make that guy your Dare hero (making sure to redeem him by the end of the book, of course!). My prime example is Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy. By definition, he was a gangster, but even though he did terrible things throughout the series, at his core all he wanted to do was protect his family and his club.
So, find that drop dead gorgeous badass gangster/mechanic/rock star with a heart of gold, and make your readers fall in love with him. Also, read as many hot contemporary books as you can get your hands on. There’s nothing like reading in the genre to get ideas flowing. Good luck!
I think steamy scenes are at their sexiest when the hero and heroine are playing mind games and pushing each other to their emotional, as well as physical, limits. So, I’d recommend keeping the emotional stakes high throughout these scenes-rather than concentrating on the purely physical actions-to give extra depth and dynamism.
We hope these brilliant tips have inspired you to enter our Dare to Write blitz next week! If you’re keen to submit, the details you need are:
- The Dare to Write blitz will run from Monday 10th July to Monday 17th July.
- We’re looking for first chapter and synopsis only – no need to have the full manuscript written!
- If we love the voice, we’ll invite you to submit further chapters and work with you on developing your story to its full potential. Please note that requests for additional chapters are not a guarantee of publication.
- Please email DareToWrite@millsandboon.co.uk with your entry. This mailbox will be open from 8am (GMT) 10th July to midnight (GMT) 17th
- No US settings please! Think UK, Australia, Europe…and beyond!
- Only one entry per person
- All entries will receive editorial feedback by midnight (GMT) 18th
- We will not use your chapter entries in any way other than in connection to Dare To Write.
This competition has now closed.