I'm In the Mood for ...? (Suzanne Forster)

Let’s see … some sleep therapy, a long hot soak in the tub full of bubbles, a weekend getaway to a spa that specializes in massages and pampering? As some of you know, I’ve been in the throes of a particularly difficult deadline for weeks now, and yesterday, I crossed the finish line at long last. I wrote the final lines of my romantic suspense novel, The Private Concierge.

Yipeeeeee!

But much as I’d love to break open the champagne and howl at the moon, I can’t do that just yet. Before I can start howling, I have to go back to the beginning and do the final clean-up, which includes writing a love scene! The whole thing. Yes, I have an entire love scene to write, and it’s an important one. I guess you could say pivotal to the story. So, it’s not exactly one of those scenes you can come back to later, but Mother Nature isn’t always known for her timing. This particular scene was interrupted by the southern California wildfires.

Love Scenus Interruptus? (grin) Sorry, it’s late and I’m a little punchy. That’s what comes of far too much screen time. Actually, the scene should be interesting because I’ve never written a love scene out of sequence before. Now that I think of it, I ought to hold a contest when the book is out to see if anyone can guess which scene it is. But, back to my original dilemma.

No way was I in the mood to write a love scene in the midst of all the chaos of the wildfires, no matter how hot it got, and actually, that’s not a fire pun. The Santa Ana winds created heat in the three digits. West Newport, the little beach town where I live hit record daytime and night-time temps, and because of the horrible air quality, the concerns about having to evacuate, and the 24-7 television coverage, I couldn’t write anything for several days. When I was able to get back to the book, I was both exhausted and adrenalized, which may be why I moved right into the story’s denouement, which had action and lots of forward momentum. From there, I went on to the final scenes, all the while thinking I should interrupt myself to go back and write the love scene. That never happened, but at least, prior to the fires, I had written everything up to and including two pages of the actual scene.

Because the creative brain can be perverse, it wasn’t until I was well into the denouement that I realized why I’d gotten stuck on the second page of the love scene. I’d started it in my heroine’s POV, and it was supposed to start in the hero’s! Oh, happy day. Everything opened up when I realized that, and I made copious notes and called a friend to brainstorm. This love scene was going to be fabulous. I now understood why it was so completely essential and why it had to start with the hero, who had even more at stake than the heroine. But I didn’t write the scene. I couldn’t. I was in the middle of the denouement, which in the writing biz, we call the climactic point of the action, and the energy pulling at me was completely differently than love scene energy.

So, now I have a finished book without the pivotal love scene that changes everything for these characters. Fortunately, because of my note taking and brainstorming, I know exactly how that happens, but still, for the mood to be right, I need to start over and work my way back to the love scene, via the final cleanup, which will bring me and my hero and heroine to exactly the place they need to be. I hope.

So, back to the topic of this blog—getting in the mood. I just saw a movie called Lust Caution by the renowned Chinese director, Ang Lee. I went because a review described the theme as sexual surrender, but also because the time period is WWII in occupied Shanghai, and I have two secondary characters in The Private Concierge who are Chinese. I was hoping to be steeped in the elements of Asian culture.

Well, what can I say? It was an amazing movie in many ways, and the hero and heroine’s relationship had everything to do with sexual surrender, but mostly in the sense that every love scene was a choreographed battle. I was on the edge of my seat and I’m sure my eyes have never been wider. I would recommend the movie, but definitely not for the faint of heart. It was a wrenching, riveting experience, but not exactly the mood I needed for inspiration.

What I need for my love scene is a dance of surrender more than a battle. I’m too weary tonight to come up with the words, but I know that it will be impassioned, erotic, and there will be conflict, perhaps even anguish, but rather than physically battle each other, these characters must let go. Take risks. Give in to their vulnerabilities. The story demands that they get past the need to use their minds and bodies to guard their hearts and surrender all. The story demands that, but will they do it? They both have so much at stake. It’s life and death, really.

Maybe the real question is why do I do it, meaning what was I thinking to have envisioned such a scene? Or did my characters envision it for me? When I realized it needed to be in the hero’s POV and the dam broke, it all made perfect sense. I could see everything unfolding in front of me, and it was lovely, perfection. Now, it’s getting hazy. I hope the fog hasn’t settled in by the time I get back to it.

Meanwhile, I’m going to nibble on dark chocolate, breathe in some cognac fumes, and put on the mood music. Maybe some … Barry White?

All suggestions are welcome, including hiring a ghost writer, lol.

Suz