Hello, all! After reading many kissing scenes (including a great many of my own) I have come to the conclusion that a lot of writers neglect the human senses other than touch when it comes to a kissing scene. Writers tend to tell what's happening and forget to show when it comes to scenes like this, trust I've done it multiple times.

Example (which I have made up):
'He leaned forward, lips parted slightly. I kept his gaze as I too moved closer until our lips were millimetres apart.
"I love you," Damon whispered.
Our lips touched - softly at first until his hands roamed my hips and his tongue entered my mouth.'

That's all well and good, but seriously? Dear writer buddy, you need a checklist to make this skeleton nice and fleshy:
1. What about the way they smell? Coffee, try to avoid fruit unless you're talking about hair, leather, etc...
2. The taste of his lips, skin... Not forgetting the texture. Is it smooth? Rough? Stubbly?
3. What can you hear? The sound of your heart racing? His rugged breaths?
4. What can you see? The way his pupils have dilated? Describe how he looks up close (not for too long though).
5. Then of course you have touch but don't just say 'his hands roamed my hips' tell the reader how goosebumps raise under his hands, how you flush etc...

And last but most definitely not least to make a kissing scene brilliant it must have an excellent: build up. Show the reader the tension of the scene, the nerves, the fear, the excitement, make it so spontaneous even you didn't expect it. Whatever you do make sure the moments leading up to the kiss are well structured and show the rising sense of (whatever emotion you're going for).

And so for the final example, a little extract from my vampire diaries imagines:

'"No one cares!" Enzo shouted from inside the Salvatore Boarding house. "Like Maggie I lost Y/N! Give me one good reason Damon, one good reason for me to not turn off my humanity?"

"God I don't know Enzo, I haven't turned off my humanity and Elena's dead!" Damon shouted back.

"I'm not you though, I can't become the good person you have." The sounds of glass smashing echoed in the house.

"Enzo, no don't do it!" Damon yelled.

"Too late mate." No.

You slipped through the house door greeted by the sight of Damon sitting in the ruins of a coffee table and Enzo standing, watching you.

"Y/N, run!" Damon yelled at you.

But you couldn't. You couldn't leave Enzo. So you stood there frozen as Enzo sped towards you. His eyes were emotionless whereas yours only held sadness.

"No!" Damon smashed into Enzo, pinning him to the wall.

Veins appeared underneath Enzo's eyes whilst his fangs gleamed against his bottom lip.

"Y/N I swear to god if you don't leave I will kill you myself!" Damon yelled at you, pushing Enzo harder against the wall.

"Kill her, I don't care," Enzo hissed, glaring at you.

You shook your head, walking over to them and putting a hand to Enzo's cheek. "You do, you just took the cowards way out."

"Y/N, I can't hold him much longer." Damon was struggling as Enzo pushed harder against him.

"Let him go." You nodded, letting your hand drop from Enzo's face.

"But Y/N he'll kill you." Damon gripped Enzo tighter.

"He won't, I trust him."

"Y/N-"

"Damon just do it," you hissed.

Damon stepped to the side.

Enzo leaped at you, holding you tightly against him with one hand, the other moving your hair to the side as he tilted your neck.

"This will hurt," he said, fangs slowly piercing your skin.

"If you're trying to scare me away with fangs it's not going to work," you spoke clearly, the first words you'd ever spoken to the vampire now draining you. "I love you Enzo and nothing will ever change that." He pushed you away the week before and Elena and Caroline had taken you to a safe house because of Kai. Elena was now dead and so was Kai so you'd come back to find Enzo who thought you were dead. "Besides - " you managed to raise your hand and run it through his hair "- aren't you meant to be a gentleman?"

Enzo stopped then, pulling away and looking down at you. Small beads of red fell from the corners of his mouth. "Gorgeous, what the hell have I done?" His eyes filled with tears as he pulled you up, arms encircling your body.

"Enzo, you're back," you whispered.

"Drink this." Enzo let one hand leave your waist to bite his wrist. His warm blood filled your mouth as you drank, healing.

He slowly pulled his wrist away, brushing a stray strand of hair from your face. "I'm so sorry, Y/N."

"I'm sorry," you whispered. "I should never have left you."

"I'm never letting you out of my sight," Enzo whispered, pupils large before pressing his lips onto yours. He tasted of blood and bourbon but you didn't care. The kiss was gentle as your lips moved in synch. Enzo lightly pressed you to the wall as his hands slipped under your shirt. You let your hands wander to the hem of his shirt, pulling it up and over his head. His smell of leather and beer washing over you. The few moments that you were separated all you could see was the lust in his eyes before he pulled you against him - the kiss becoming even more heated.

"I know where this is heading," Damon groaned, his footsteps walking past you to the door. "Be safe lovebirds. And do not make love in my living room or there will be hell to pay."

Enzo chuckled against your lips. "We'll see."'