Love and Marriage
Marriage and sexual tension.
Can they coexist or are they mutually exclusive? The vast majority of romances have a single hero and a single heroine, a ton of sexual tension, and a happily ever after. But what about those series that have a developing relationship? How is the sexual tension maintained when a couple has come together, euphemistically speaking?
Nora Roberts has done it with great success in her JD Robb series with Eve and Roarke, though I haven’t read any of the In Death books so I’m not sure what her trick is.
Sexual tension stems from the push and pull of two people, the external elements that are keeping them together, while their internal conflicts are keeping them apart. So how do you maintain that type of tension when two people are married or when they are in a relationship over a series of books. Must the internal conflicts remain so strong that there’s always the question whether or not the relationship will work in the long run?
Adding a second potential love interest would do the trick, of course [Joe Morelli and Ranger come to mind in Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series]. But barring this device, which I don’t personally love, what works for you? There must be another way!!!
Question of the Day:
Is it possible for a hero and heroine to keep the sexual tension alive through a series of books?
September 15th, 2008
Misa 
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September 15th, 2008 at 11:21 am
I’m not sure the sexual tension can last for long. In the Stephanie Plum series, Evanovich did a great job at keeping it going with the addition of Ranger. But after awhile you want your heroine to settle down, so you can move on to another series. Personally, and this is probably just me, I get bored after about the seventh book. What works is the couple gets together, they break-up, get back together, then get married, struggle come close to breaking-up. Ouch this sounds like real life to me. It becomes way too prodictable.
For myself, when Rhett Butler walked out on Scarlett, I wanted more. I wanted to know they eventually made it. But unfortunately that’s where the story ended. The sexual tension in that last scene is end all for me. It always leaves me wanting more. It can be done, but has to be done right with the right story, or it simply falls flat on its face, and I move on. With Scarlett, she topped the chart of, “Will she ever get it?” We all knew her one great love was Rhett, and that he was the only one who could tame her. But he was fed up. I think if there was a series for Mitchell, it would have been fantastic because of Scarlett’s strength as a character.
You have to find that kind of strenth
September 15th, 2008 at 11:34 am
Dang got a phone call, and hit submit…So predict. Yes, I can spell sometimes, and as I was saying, you have to find the right combination of sexual tension, stubborn pride and strength for a series to keep coming back.
September 15th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
JD Robb does it by introducing and revealing issues to the reader even as they are being revealed to the ongoing couple. She also does it by introducing new characters, having the hero or heroine interact or clash with that person in some way, and then having that relationship cause something to come up for the couple. I’m not a huge fan of the same couple in a series but every once in awhile it draws me in. Roarke and Eve did it. and Jack and Lola, definitely!