Twelve steps to Steamy

Whether you write YA novels or any other genre were romance occurs, there’s no emotional satisfaction if your characters meet one second and are making out (or having sex) the next. You need to build up to the moment. Tease your characters and readers. Take things slowly. And take them through the 12 steps to intimacy as originally described by author Linda Howard:

1.      Eye to body

2.      Eye to eye

3.      Voice to voice

4.      Hand to hand (or arm)

5.      Arm to shoulder

6.      Arm to waist or back

7.      Kissing  (mouth to mouth)

8.      Hand to head

9.      Hand to body

10.  Mouth to breast

11.  Hand to private parts

12.  Private parts to private part (okay, you know what I mean).

Your characters don’t have to go through all the steps in the first meeting (though they can), and the steps don’t have to be done in this order (though don’t try #12 without hitting the majority of the others first).

I personally think it’s sexier when the guy’s lips travel over the female’s temple, jaw, throat, or shoulder before finding her lips. And don’t forget the kiss can range from the brushing of his lips against hers to the deepening of their kisses. Maybe the guy leans in to kiss her (maybe he even gets as far as brushing his lips against hers) and the kiss is interrupted by someone or something else. Always a favorite trick of mine.  Also, by introducing just a few steps at a time, you can build the suspense, leaving your reader wondering whether the first kiss (or the more intimate, deepening kiss) is going to happen and when.  

But please, don’t make your reader wait too long. Nothing drives me crazier than having to wait ¾ of the book before the main character and her love interest finally kiss (as in the YA paranormal novel I recently read). What I do love, though, is not knowing if they’re going to go all the way. Obviously that doesn’t work for all subgenres of romance. If you’re reading an erotic romance, you’re expecting some action to happen pretty quickly. Heck, you’re expecting action. Period. This is why it’s important to be well read in the type of books you want to write.

Questions: do you like waiting for the first kiss to happen or get frustrated if it takes too long? Do you prefer things to get steamy pretty quickly (depending on the genre, this could be a steamy make out scene or a mind numbing rump between sheets)? And what is your favorite type of first kiss?

Young Love -- YA Romance

Ever wonder why so many of us (non-young adults) can't seem to get enough of reading stories about teenage love? Not that some YA can't get pretty steamy, but there are far smokier scenes in adult romance novels. So why do we still love our regular doses of young love?

Some of my guesses?

We Miss Being the Center of Attention

Bella & Edward - Twilight

There is nothing like that rush of realizing -- for the first time -- that his sun (pardon the pun, Edward) rises and sets for you. Adult men have just as many responsibilities as we do. Teenage men can make the girl of their dreams the center of their world.

Our Complicated Isn't Really So Complicated

Elena & Stefan  - Vampire Diaries

It may not feel that way, but our lives are fairly unfettered during our teenage years. Emotionally challenging, you bet, but most are spared the worrying about bills, mortgage payments, shuttling the kids to soccer practice. A teenage girl can enjoy falling in love without a mile long To-Do list waiting for her when she gets home.

You Can Only Experience Your First Time Once

Joey & Pacey - Dawson's Creek

First kiss. First love. First sexual experience. First heartbreak. Those things only come along once, and because we don't have any experience with them all our senses are running full tilt. We're constantly caught in a state between terrified and exhilarated.

We Still Believe Fairy Tale Endings Are Possible

Sam & Austin  - A Cinderella Story

Not that we all turn into jaded shrews as we age. . . but after we suffer a broken heart or two, we often  guard our emotions a little more carefully. After we lose our first love, we tend look at new romantic partners with the hope that he'll turn out to be our Prince Charming. Whereas the first time we fell in love we were sure it was going to last forever.

Those are just some of the reasons why I think I tend to get swept up so easily in a good YA romance. How about you?