Road Trip Wednesday is a ‘Blog Carnival,’ where YA Highway’s contributors post a weekly writing- or reading-related question that begs to be answered. In the comments, you can hop from destination to destination and get everybody’s unique take on the topic.
This Week’s Topic: Compare your first kiss with your favorite characters’ first kiss…
Eek… I’m sort of sad to admit that I can’t even remember the name of the first boy I kissed. I do remember the experience though, and the sentiment behind it, and it was quite similar to the first kiss of Callie and Tucker from my story Where Poppies Bloom:
He leans in, drawing me closer with a gentle hand on the back of my neck. “I’m gonna see you tomorrow morning, right?”
I shrug. “If you’re lucky.”
He drifts closer, his mouth curling into a lopsided smile. “Oh, that’s how it is?”
I’m about to reply when he cuts me off with the press of his mouth against mine. It’s tantalizingly drawn out, and it comes with the mind-blowing, Holy hell! realization that Tucker Morgan is kissing me. I let him lead, his mouth moving slow, feather light and full of restraint, teasing me until I’m almost bursting with the untapped energy between us. When he pulls away, I’m breathless.
Yeah, mine was sort of like that, what with the tentativeness and nervous energy. Now that I really think about it, every kiss I’ve ever written shares something with one of the stand-out kisses I’ve had (mostly with my husband… love ya, babe! :)). Funny how my real life experiences find their way into my writing, often without me being conscious of it.
What about you? How does your first kiss compare to that of your characters’ or your favorite characters’?
katyupperman.com 
It’s interesting how we draw from our own experiences for fiction whether we’re conscious of it or not.
I know! Sometimes I read over something I wrote months (years!) ago and out of nowhere the real-life inspiration hits me. Sort of fun. 🙂
I like that scene–it mixes nervousness and enjoyment so well. My own experiences were a lot heavier on the nervousness!
Thanks, Rebecca. Anyone who says they weren’t nervous during their first kiss is a LIAR!
I love your characters’ kiss, especially the “Holy hell! realization that Tucker Morgan is kissing me.” That went through my head when my husband and I kissed for the first time. Only I didn’t call him Tucker Morgan. 🙂
Wait–why WOULDN’Tyou call him Tucker Morgan? 🙂 Thanks, Tracey!
That’s such a cute first kiss scene, Katy! My first kiss would be good fodder for a YA comedy, not so much the steamy kisses that are oh so fun to write.
– Sophia.
I like steamy first kisses, even when they’re mixed with a healthy dose of nerves. Thanks, Sophia!
Such a cute excerpt! I want to read more. 🙂
Thanks, Pam. 🙂
Aw, adorable!! I tripped on a blackberry bramble. -.-
Thanks, Kelsey. I read your post and loved it, by the way. 🙂
Amazing excerpt, and a really sweet first kiss! I love how you describe the kiss between your characters and how you draw inspiration from your real life kisses.
This is a great RTW topic! I haven’t written my characters’ first kiss yet, and all this inspiration is in perfect timing as I’m getting close to the end of writing the first draft.
Thanks, Lora. 🙂 Good luck writing that first kiss… hope to read it someday!
yowza! that is SOME kiss! Love it, and it’s great how you connected this to your own book.
Thanks, Katharine! This was a tricky kiss for me to write for some reason. Glad to get positive feedback on it!
Luckily I’ve had some good kisses to draw from too…just not my first one 🙂
Isn’t it nice to have real-life inspiration to fall back on every once in awhile? 🙂
Aww! What a cute excerpt! 🙂
That sounds like a great first kiss. And I love that you used your own characters. It really gives it a realistic feel.
Thanks so much, Milena!
Lovely. I’m dying to read the rest of this book now…sigh.
Aww, thanks, Lara. 🙂