My Romance Rating System

Some readers and writers have a guide to what their comfort level is when it comes to reading or writing intimacy/romance. Here's mine for my own writing (as told in seasoning references. I love my food, y'all).

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Physical Touch

Subtle	Savory	Spicy
Hands/Holding hands Forehead Cheek Shoulders Arms	Waist & Hips (M & F) Neck Back/Spine Forearm Chest (M only)	Thighs Bottom Tongue Bare Skin Is Repeatedly Touched: All Savory Body Parts (excluding Neck) Any Reproductive Areas (M & F)

Physical Reactions

Subtle	Savory	Spicy
“Butterflies” Sighing Blushing Flustered	Breathlessness Minimal Gasping "Chest tightening"	Excessive Gasping Moaning Groaning Begging {Detailed Reproductive Reactions Mentioned}

Kissing

Subtle	Savory	Spicy
Kisses in the ‘Subtle’ category are light (i.e. pecks) and not very detailed. You would also find hand, cheek, forehead, knuckle, etc., type kisses here.	Kisses in the ‘Savory’ category are more detailed and more intimate, but not explicit. You may find the phrase “notes of passion” and characters becoming slightly breathless. The farthest ‘Savory’ kisses would go would be lips or breath hovering/lightly brushing the jaw or neck. The rest is Closed Door.	Kisses in the ‘Spicy’ category are building to sexual activity and are explicitly detailed. Scenes are Open-Door. All ‘Spicy’ aspects of Physical Touch and Reactions are clearly stated here.

This guide is to make clear what I WILL and WILL NOT put in my books and where my personal boundaries lie 😊. Though there are many more, I'm sure from the topics discussed here, you'll get a sense of what kind of romances I write (hint: no erotica. Just heartfelt, sweet romance without the intense spice).

~Morgana LeVaine