Researching due to something I read recently

[ShadowSilk]

I follow lots of different people on Twitter, most of them writers, and someone recently tweeted that according to a recent poll, romance readers now want to see a sex scene between the two main characters within the first 50 pages.

 

I polled my Facebook friends last night on this, and most of them said that it kind of depended on the story, but that for the most part, within the first 50 pages was just too soon.

 

I'm a Kindle published indie author.  I write paranormal romance, and I'm just starting a new series.  I tend to write slow burn relationships, so hearing that people want to jump right into things kind of threw me off a little bit and made me worried.  Of course I write the story the way it falls, but still, help out a struggling author here, Nerds. 

 

What do you think?  I tried to post a poll but it's not showing up. 

 

WHEN SHOULD ROMANCE/PARANORMAL ROMANCE CHARACTERS HAVE A PHYSICAL RELATIONSHIP?

 

A.  Within the first 50 pages is great

B.  Within the first 100 pages

C.  Between 100 and 150 pages

D.  It doesn't really matter if the story is good and it seems natural/makes sense

 

Thanks for reading, and thanks for voting!

 

*Mods, if this is inappropriate or needs to be moved, please feel free to do so; I thought it the best forum for what I was looking for.

[Sylvaa]

I'll bite!

 

I think it depends on the reader base you are looking to appeal to. 

 

When I want light reading, I tend to go for historical romance and usually my favorite authors get between halfway and two thirds of the way through the book before there are any sex scenes. There is usually a good bit of character development and a reason the intimacy occurs. So my personal answer would be D.

 

If you are trying to appeal to, for example, the harlequin romance novel types, I could see the expectation to be within the first 50 pages.

[ShadowSilk]

Thank you!

 

I write paranormal romance, though my leading men seem to be very old fashioned -- think Regency/Victorian era -- gentlemen.

 

I appreciate your feedback very much.