Appeared in RWAustralia's Hearts Talk, November 2007

First, let me say this article is about sexual tension. Not about writing love scenes, necessarily, but about the sexual tension between your hero and heroine.

Tension is created when two opposing forces meet. Think of a tug of war - the tension is created by the teams pulling the rope in opposite directions. To create the sexual tension in our stories, we also need two opposing forces happening. The pull of sexual attraction, opposed by the push of their conflict.

If you have attraction with no conflict, they'll jump into bed and the story is over. If you have the conflict with no attraction, it's not a romance, they're just two people who have a problem. Two equal and opposing forces. But at different times in the story, the push will be stronger than the pull. And at other times, the pull will be stronger.

So, how do we get that on the page?

The Pull

We want to feel the characters being pulled together by their attraction.

If you describe the visuals, eg, Jack Hero had a devilishly handsome chin and black eyes, then I know what to see in my mind. If you want me to hear something in my mind, you describe the sound, eg, Jack Hero's laugh boomed loudly.

If you want me to feel what the character is feeling, then you'll need to describe the feeling in her/his body. And sexual attraction is mainly about the feeling. Imagine ten women at a nightclub when a fabulously gorgeous man walks in. They all look at that same man and he'll give some weak knees, others will think, 'nice' then turn and look for a cocktail. It's not just how he looks, it's about how he affects your heroine - and the reader wants to know if your heroine has the weak knees, or is one who simply appreciates a good-looking man.

This body-feelings thing creates 'emotion' on the page, giving your story emotional punch. Also, I've found that to get it right on the page, it has to seem a little over the top in my head. I used to be so wary of over the top emotion, but then I realised that while I'm writing it, my mind has all the emotion I already feel and see about the characters (since I know them so well) plus the emotion I'm writing. The reader only has the words, so it doesn't feel as over the top to them.

Here's an example, from my November book, At The Billionaire's Beck And Call?. This is the first time Macy has met her new boss in person.

At six foot three, with closely cropped brown hair and rugged features, she had a feeling he'd stand out wherever he was, yet that hardly explained the unexpected thrum of desire that had resonated through her bloodstream at her first glimpse of the man she'd been working under for the past two weeks. Or the way her breath caught slightly every time his coffee-brown eyes flicked to hers during the introductions.

Then, to increase the sexual tension, we need some signals that the other character is feeling the same attraction. These are a little trickier to pull off since we're not in their point of view, but a few tell tale signs are all that's usually needed.

An example of signals from the point of view character plus the heroine. In this scene, Ryder and Macy are in Ryder's office:

He reached for her hand and held it lightly between his. No pressure, just holding. And yet her skin touching his set off a sizzling heat that travelled through his veins all the way to his toes. For one extraordinary moment, he forgot the pressure to marry, forgot the company buyout, forgot the inheritance, and just wanted.

Wanted her.

As he watched, a blush stole up her decolletage, along her throat and bloomed on her cheeks. She felt it, too. The pull to kiss her delectable lips, to taste her, was almost overwhelming.

(Notice I even used the word 'pull' in there. :))

Now I want you to think about the most sexy man in the world. It may be your dh. It may be Clive Owen. It may be Hugh Jackman. Imagine he's standing in front of you and giving you a come-to-bed smile. You know he means it. Close your eyes and think about what your body feels. Does your pulse pick up? Does your belly flutter?

Those signals of attraction are what you need to give your characters. Really show the pull of attraction for both of them.

The Push

The push is the conflict that's keeping them apart. You know your conflict, you've spent hours and hours tweaking it so it's just right. The key here is showing it opposing the attraction.

Jill Heroine really wants Jack, and her body goes crazy when he's near, but she knows she can't let her guard down and kiss him because Jack is about to destroy the world and Jill is an assassin who's been sent to stop him.

So, imagine that same man you were visualising earlier. You know he wants you. And you want him like you've never wanted a man before. Need to have him. But you *can't*! Argh! It's impossible. What do you do in your imaginary setting? Do you have to physically step back? Clench your hands to stop yourself reaching for him? Do you slap his face to make him hate you so you're not the only one resisting?

Here's an example of one technique businesswoman Macy used when she was stuck in the back seat of a car with Ryder.

All she had to do was survive ten days. The rest, after he was gone, would be easy.

Ten days.

She could do that.

She began reciting projected growth figures in her head and came very close to forgetting about the masculine thigh that lay mere inches from hers.

Very close, but not quite.

The pull is still there, but the push is stronger here.

Another example, this time from Ryder's point of view:

His skin tightened and his lungs labored, but he couldn't get carried away. Couldn't count his chickens before they hatched.

He needed to marry her, not entice her into his bed.

Hauling himself back, he cleared his throat.

He's fighting the attraction to her (for the moment!), so again the push is stronger than the pull at this point.

Push & Pull

When we feel the push and the pull at the same time, we get that 'impossible attraction', 'star crossed lovers' thing. The push - pull happening simultaneously is what creates sexual tension. As I've mentioned, it goes back and forth - like the two teams playing tug of war where the rope moves to one side, then back, then to the first side again, etc, until eventually one team wins. In our story, that's when the conflict is resolved and the pull is victorious.

Here's an example of putting it together. This is Ryder and Macy at the office again. Look for the pull (her body's reactions) and push (her resistance).

Macy rose. "I'll leave you to your appointment."

As she turned to leave, he grasped her hand and his warmth flowed from his hand to hers, heating her body. "I meant what I said. About you changing your mind." His gaze came to rest on her lips. "Say the word, Macy."

Her skin prickled with unwanted heat. He was so close. His mouth was so close. She shut her eyes for a long moment against his power. Then she took a deliberate step back and he released her hand.

At the door she turned. "I appreciate the option. But we both know it will never happen."

Then she walked on unsteady legs back to her own office to focus on something besides her boss and the trip they were taking alone in only a few days.

Now it's time to look at your scenes and check for the push and the pull. See which is stronger in each place and if you're showing the internal struggle your characters are having between the two. Good luck!

Other ideas to keep the sexual tension high

A sex scene will release some of your story's sexual tension, so use them carefully (and make sure you ramp up the tension again afterwards). Tease the reader and draw it out - don't let your characters fall into bed / car backseat / dimly lit corner of a bar too early (though, the rule is the scene has to serve the story, so if your story is best served by an early sex scene, then put it there).

Laughter diffuses your sexual tension. I love a good romantic comedy, but when you're building sexual tension, you don't want the heroine and hero laughing too much. If you want humour during the tension, let it be between the character and the reader, or in banter. Laughter on the page is a 'release' and you'll lose some of the tension you've been so carefully building.

Sub-text is your friend in building sexual tension. It lets the characters say things that they wouldn't say directly, or to flirt when they don't want to.

Keep it personal and specific to this story, these characters. The pull between your characters is much stronger if the reader is aware of why Jack Hero can't resist this particular woman or why Jill Heroine's attraction to this man is beyond anything she's ever felt before.