First Person Sex: A Discussion

So I’m writing a book in first person and that’s fun although different–only one POV, for starters–and then I get to the first sex scene. Hmmmm.

Here’s the thing about first person for me: it feels like I’m sitting next to somebody on the bus and telling them a story. Okay, that’s fine. But then I get to the sex scene, and even if it was Lani and Krissie on the bus, I wouldn’t go into detail, not the kind of detail I use in third person sex scenes. It just feels wrong, not morally wrong (we crossed that bridge long ago), but out of place. My Girl Liz would not do that. For one thing, it’d be a betrayal of her lover (“So here’s what he did last night . . .”). For another thing, it would probably make whoever was listening uncomfortable in real life. (TMI.) Continue reading