Universal Pleasures
This month I wanted to talk about Universal Pleasures, maybe because I’ve been watching a lot of the series FBI which, I think, hits a lot of my Universal Pleasure spots (Danger! Competition! Power!) but, I digress.
You might have already heard about this idea – it’s been kicking around for a while. I first heard about on a podcast (I know it was a podcast with Katee Robert, and I think it was The Wicked Wallflowers but I’ve not been able to put my hand on the exact one) and quickly followed up the source: a session at the Romance Writers of America conference in 2018 by author and academic Dr Jennifer Lynn Barnes, The session was called Writing for your Id and it can still be purchased from Romance Writers of America if you’re keen.
I’ve already listened to it a few times…
Similar ideas are raised elsewhere, including, but not limited to, in T Taylor’s 7 Figure Fiction: How to use universal fantasy to sell your books to anyone (available as an e-book on the various platforms).
In the Writing for your Id presentation, Dr Barnes starts by talking about her hypothesis that as we write, and develop in our writing, we edit out our Id (our most basic, impulsive, pleasure-seeking part of the self). We think it’s too silly, or too much, or that we’ve done it before, or it’s a cliché, and so we don’t include all the things that we really like.
But those things we really like are also really liked by other humans (that is, by readers) and, put simply, when an author puts the things they love in a book, they do it well, and other people like those books too.
This idea of Universal Pleasures is central to the success of more contemporary romances like Twilight and Fifty Shades, to the persistence of rock-star, sports-star and mafia romance, and Harlequin/Mills & Boon Presents. But it’s also key to historical romance (I mean, how many powerful, wealthy Dukes can there actually be…!) and in rurals, and paranormals, and fantasies and, well, you get my drift. Some version of Universal Pleasures can be found in pretty much every book, every movie, every streaming or TV show or series.
So, what exactly are the things Dr Barnes identifies as Universal Pleasures.
While noting that they aren’t, strictly speaking, universal, nor exhaustive, the Universal Pleasures Dr Barnes identifies are: competition, danger, beauty, power, wealth, touch and sex.
Dr Barnes gives more general examples of the Universal Pleasures, and how they might be used to press your readers’ buttons (in a good way) in her presentation but, for the purposes of this article, I wanted to give you a couple examples of where some of those Universal Pleasures can be used to make your spicier scenes more pleasurable… so to speak.
DANGER
First, who doesn’t love a Danger! Bang!
And, who doesn’t think that having sex amongst the crowd at the Super Bowl would be dangerous; especially for a well-known billionaire and his submissive. This is just a little snippet of one of my fave public sex scenes:
He leaned over and whispered, “Do you know that three out of four people fantasize about having sex in public?”
Hot…
His tongue swirled in my ear. “The way I see it, why fantasize when you can experience it instead?”
Holy…
“I’m going to fuck you during the Super Bowl, Abigail.” He bit down on my earlobe and I sucked in a breath. “As long as you’re quiet, no one will know.”
Hell.
I grew wet just thinking about what he said. Looked around to the people beside us. Everyone was wrapped up in blankets. I was starting to understand his plan.
From chapter twenty-four, The Submissive, Tara Sue Me
TOUCH
It seems to be stating the obvious to say that it’s impossible to have sex without touch.
But, there are plenty of examples of touch without consummation which heighten tension, and create that fluttery feeling in your gut. This example below is ALL ABOUT the touch (there’s also an element of service, which I think is another Universal Pleasure but, again, I digress!):
She ventured closer, until she was standing in front of him. Undressing a man wasn’t a hard thing to do. There was an order to the releasing of buttons and the removal of clothes. She knew what to do. Only her trembling fingertips betrayed her as she reached for one of his wrists, turned his forearm towards her and fumbled with the tiny cufflink there. She bit her lip, intent on her task, and wondered if the crazy throb of the pulse point at his wrist was for her.
She slowed her breathing and got on with her task, undoing first one cufflink and then the other. She stepped in closer as she undid his tie, and his eyes never left her face and hers never left his. Buttons, so many buttons on his shirt, tracking a path down his chest, the last of them hidden beneath his trousers as she pulled the shirt free and dealt with them too. Buttons and knuckles and air that had suddenly grown too thin for breathing.
“This isn’t going to end well,” he rasped.
“Relax, I’m a professional.” She pushed the front of his shirt aside and slid her hands up and over his shoulders, taking his shirt with her. By the time she’d smoothed her hands down his arms the shirt was on the floor.
From chapter four, Untouched Queen by Royal Command, Kelly Hunter
POWER
Finally, I will confess that this one is a favourite of mine (she says, writing this while procrastinating working on the current WIP with a powerful MMC).
Power isn’t necessarily power over others or power differentials although that does work (see almost every billionaire romance ever written). It can also be a character being REALLY GOOD at something, which I fondly refer to as competence porn. Check this example:
“Here’s the thing. I do aerobatics.”
“Like stunts?” And I’m getting hard again. “Are you shitting me?”
Her expression is careful, almost worried about my reaction. “Yeah. You up for some?”
Holy hell. My girl has taken me flying and wants to do stunts for me. I grin so wide, the headphones practically fall off. “Oh, fuck yes.”
Her answering grin is filled with giddy glee. “We’ll start off with a hammerhead. Then do a couple of rolls and a loop. Nothing too crazy.”
“Nothing too crazy, eh?”
The corners of her eyes crinkle. “I’m tempted to show you crazy but we’re not in the proper aircraft for advanced stuff. This plane is for the basics.”
I’ll take her word for it. No need to tell her I’m hard as a freaking plant, that I find her so fucking sexy right now, I’m having trouble concentrating. Why the hell did I tell her we’d take it slow?
From chapter twenty, Fall, Kristen Callihan
Clearly, those examples are not exhaustive! There are many ways to use the Universal Pleasures to spice up your sex scenes – and the Pleasures themselves aren’t limited to sex scenes. As noted above, they’re pretty hard wired, to greater or lesser extents, into most romances.
But, the last thing Dr Barnes talks about in the presentation is making a list for yourself of all the things that DO IT FOR YOU. She calls this your Id List. It helps with your writing, it might help you get unstuck (not sure where to go next… check out your Id List for something you love and chuck it in).
I’ve started working on my Id List. It includes competence porn, of course. But it also includes:
- second chance romance (the one that got away!);
- big, spectacular cities (Sydney, Melbourne, London, New York, Edinburgh);
- professional, successful women (of course…);
- sex in the workplace (I’m in HR, I know this is naughty!)
- glow-ups (who doesn’t love a shopping montage); and
- fabulous real estate (yes, I’m Kristine and I procrastinate on realestate.com.au and Zillow, what of it?!).
And so, to end this month, I’m giving you homework.
Go away and have a think about the list of all the pleasures that occur in your writing. Which ones appear in the books you go back to read over and over again.
Start writing your own Id List, and let me know what’s on it: @wordsbykc (Twitter) / @wordsbykristinecharles (FB)
This post was originally published in the Romance Writers of Australia Hearts Talk May 2023
wordsbykristinecharles 