"I Give You My Body..."

How I Write Sex Scenes

By: Diana Gabaldon

Narrated by: Diana Gabaldon, Davina Porter, Jeff Woodman, Allan Scott-Douglas

Length: 3 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

For writers looking to make sure their next physical interludes on the page inspire readers to share the moment rather than to laugh at it, best-selling author Diana Gabaldon divulges the writing secrets behind the sex scenes in her wildly popular Outlander novels.

"Ask me to your bed," he said. "I shall come to ye."

In this revealing compendium, acclaimed writer Diana Gabaldon shares her invaluable lessons for creating an immersive reading experience, from evoking a mood to using the power of emotions to communicate physical intimacy. You'll learn the difference between gratuitous sex and genuine encounters that move the story forward and how to handle less-than-savory acts that nevertheless serve a narrative purpose. Gabaldon also notes that sex can be conveyed instead of described. With such tips as The Rule of Three for involving the senses, handy lists of naughty euphemisms (with instructions for use), and Gabaldon's own examples from the Outlander novels, "I Give You My Body..." is a master class in writing to draw readers in and keep them riveted to the page.

©2016 Diana Gabaldon (P)2016 Recorded Books

Great storytelling

I bought this audiobook to get an glimpse into Diana's writing process. Although I am not an aspiring writer, I enjoyed listening to Diana's rationale in constructing Jamie and Claire 's love scene. I read and or heard all of outlander series and it's great to relive major moments under 4 hours.

As always.. Diana is a genius

Diana’s writing, as always, is honest, exciting, and enticing ♥️.. and this applies even to her description of how she puts her story on paper.

A great writing help

It gives lots of wonderful advice, and if you yourself are a writer, and think you may write sex scenes, I would recommend it.

Useful for writers and fun in its own right!

Diana Gabaldon has a way with words, and she takes a fun and sensitive approach to the spicy ingredient that made her famous. I also appreciated that she read it herself and also used a few famous (or infamous) examples from her own work. Also a great book for Outlander fans who just want MORE! Well done!

Gabaldon is a master of craft

This book IS a how-to (how that came as a surprise to some reviewers is a mystery, given the subtitle), and a very good one. If you are a writer who writes (or wants to write) compelling, effective, and context-rich sex scenes, you can’t do better than this master class. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this book is how Gabaldon uses her scientific mind to shed light on her artistic process.

Stunning display of technical writing talent.

Would you listen to "I Give You My Body..." again? Why?

This is an audio-book that deserves several repeat listenings. There is so much content to consider that you just cannot do it all in one session.

What did you like best about this story?

The narration by Diana Gabaldon is, of course, Herself. The inclusion of clips from the recorded books narrated by Davina Porter brighten and illustrate the technical content. Brilliant combination, and one that I hope others will emulate.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I think this is a first for Diana Gabaldon, but Davina Porter is an established narrative star.

What insight do you think you’ll apply from "I Give You My Body..."?

I am absolutely fascinated by the used of "underpainting" to bring alive a scene.

Any additional comments?

Best of the Year.

rereading everything Outlander anticipating bees

As always her intellect astounds! such an intelligent person and so many accomplishments above and beyond her writing.

Thank you, Diana!

This was a master class in how to put together sex scenes, intimate scenes, and realistic interaction between protagonists as well as antagonists.
I've never written an intimate scene before and I like how Diana handles them in her work, so this was an unexpected treat to listen to and learn about the approach she uses.
Writing is an art and it's always best to learn from someone you respect and who is wildly successful.

very helpful

very helpful as a reader to see what the author looks at when writing. Diana is a little fast when she speaks (if you've listened to interviews you know this) so I went to 75% speed and it was fantastic.

Horrible narration

The narration takes away from anything you could learn about writing a sex scene or more specifically how she writes a sew scene. There’s a lot of good information missed from the fast talking narrator.