Suspense in romance is not the same as what is obtainable in crime or mystery novels; there may not be shooting, fighting and running through dark alleys. These elements may be present in romantic suspense, but in romance generally, suspense is the general kind common to most fiction where readers care more about the things about to happen to a particular character or in a particular situation. This curiosity is what keeps them reading from page to page.

Suspense In Romance

You keep your readers reading by doing two things. First, make them care a lot about what is happening in the story. Then, create intrigue by doling out information in increments, holding back the most significant pieces until the end. You make each scene propel the story and the romance forward and keep the reader eagerly wanting to know more. A scene can end on a cliffhanger or present a new complication that is followed up on later. And this leaves the readers in suspense, leading them to continuously read the next scene, and the next, until the end, where they find the answers that you have made them desire so much.

Character-driven Suspense

The suspense in romance novels centers on the progress of the relationship between the hero and the heroine. Your reader wants to see the physical and emotional areas of this relationship deepen, and you have to effectively build suspense around these areas. Emotional and physical intimacy can effectively create suspense when developed independently. Your main characters sharing their first kiss or having sex for the first time should not be the moment of final emotional intimacy. 

Your romance narrative should not run that smoothly. Readers want to worry that your hero and heroine may still not end up together, and here is the opportunity to create suspense. Use the characters’ emotional problems or a clever plot twist to keep them apart. Deprive them and your readers of ultimate romantic satisfaction and achieve enough suspense to keep the pages turning.

Plot Element Suspense in Romance

Besides the emotional tension of the romantic relationship, you can also use plot-related twists and secondary characters to back up your primary source of suspense. Plot elements can be interesting in their own right. And the outcome of a plot element can affect the emotional tension between the main characters. 

For example, is there a key to a treasure box on the heroine's pendant? Is the hero on a treasure hunt to retrieve it? When she finds out the truth about him, she may reckon that his advances toward her were not out of genuine interest but because she has something he wants.

Secondary Characters and Secondary Suspense

Secondary characters can also deliver a secondary source of suspense. Although their fortunes should not compete with the hero and heroine’s relationship, their stories can still grab and keep your reader’s interest. Secondary characters’ plotlines often stand parallel to or highlight the central romance, which gives them added interest. Will their business venture succeed? Will they win a civil dispute or recover from heart surgery? The answers may not have a tremendous effect on the story, but they will matter to your reader, so use them to your advantage.