Sex scenes can provoke embarrassment, fear, joy, anger, or (perhaps worst of all) boredom from readers, and writing them can sometimes feel like stepping into a minefield. Scenes of intimacy are a big part of the romance genre, and Writing Sex Scenes can help writers of all experience levels feel more confident when creating them. This session will focus on making sure your sex scenes aren’t gratuitous or exploitative; addressing explicit content, stereotypes, and clichés; and reflecting the diversity of potential sexual dynamics, feelings, and encounters accurately, sensitively, and enticingly.

Maya Berger is an Advanced Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading. She specializes in editing and proofreading erotic and romantic fiction, speculative fiction, and academic texts in the humanities and social sciences, and she appeared as a guest on The Editing Podcast speaking about editing erotica. Maya also launched The Editor’s Affairs (TEA) in 2020 to help fellow freelance editors manage their business affairs. After spending 13 years in the UK, Maya moved back to Canada in 2017, and she lives and works in Toronto.