In my quest for publication I’ve recently delved into how to heighten sexual tension. It seems everyone has an opinion on how to achieve it. After reading a plethora of articles, books, and even some advertisements, I think I have a better understanding myself.
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| Romeo and Juliet by Frank Dicksee |
Sexual tension actually starts long before the first time the hero and heroine have sex, even before they share that first intimate, or quite possibly awkward, kiss. Right from the start of the romance a writer weaves in conflict, both internal (which often drive the protagonists apart) and external (which often thrusts the protagonists together). It’s the conflict that builds tension, hurling a reader into limbo, the limbo of 'will they/won’t they' get together.
To create sexual tension, a writer uses the conflict tension along with word choice and sensory cues, often penning them into the inner thoughts of the point of view character. For example, if you say, “He kissed her,” you’re making a bland statement, but if you say, “His lips pressed down on her. She didn’t pull away as he had expected. Instead her emerald eyes fluttered shut and she moaned deep in her throat. Never had a woman given so much. He was at once aroused and awed by her strength, her beauty,” then you get a sense of the conflict and the tension between them. You start to feel worried that perhaps, just perhaps, she might pull away, that a kiss is not just a kiss, and there might not be a happily ever after…or then again, she might not pull away, that his kiss is THE kiss, and these two will forever be happy together!
“We waste time looking for the
perfect lover, instead of creating the perfect love.”
― Tom Robbins
To create sexual tension, a writer uses the conflict tension along with word choice and sensory cues, often penning them into the inner thoughts of the point of view character. For example, if you say, “He kissed her,” you’re making a bland statement, but if you say, “His lips pressed down on her. She didn’t pull away as he had expected. Instead her emerald eyes fluttered shut and she moaned deep in her throat. Never had a woman given so much. He was at once aroused and awed by her strength, her beauty,” then you get a sense of the conflict and the tension between them. You start to feel worried that perhaps, just perhaps, she might pull away, that a kiss is not just a kiss, and there might not be a happily ever after…or then again, she might not pull away, that his kiss is THE kiss, and these two will forever be happy together!
“Sex is an emotion in motion.”
What heightens sexual tension for you…in the books you read or write or in life?
I love to love my husband—when our life together gets tough, he somehow manages to get even sexier.
I love to laugh—with my family. It’s such a delight to see their eyes light with happiness.
I love to learn—about others…what makes them tick, who they are, and how they got there.
I love to learn—about others…what makes them tick, who they are, and how they got there.
