Dear Reader,
I would like to begin by saying while I revel in the science and enjoy the Victorian splendor that is in today’s steampunk, I find that there is often something missing…and it’s not steam…it’s steaminess.
Now before you get your bustle in an uproar, take a look at some of the most celebrated authors of other science fiction and action genres, like James Rollins, Michael Crichton and James Patterson. More often that not, they include some relationship (dare I say romantic) element between their characters within the context of the story. And while steampunks are full of science and fantasy elements, I believe they would benefit from a heavier dose of the relationship aspects between the characters.
Why? Because it’s human nature to be interested in the human condition. That’s part of what makes even dystopian fiction possible. There’s been a long-standing tradition among those in the science-fiction genre that says too much steaminess in a story somehow lowers its quality. Why?
After all, when you read a book, is it simply because that character has the coolest raygun in existence, or is it because you actually are curious what will happen to the character once he shoots said raygun and mayhem errupts?
When you meet a couple, do you ask how they met, or do you want to know how often they polish their brass buttons on their captain’s jacket to get them to gleam so well?
Part of the reason I adore Gail Carriger’s steampunk Parasol Protectorate series is because of the relationship between her main characters. The first book especially got me hooked because there was an attraction between Alexa Tarbotti and Lord Macon that was nothing if not steamy.
While the Victorian era was indeed a little more straight-laced about the kinds of affections that could be touted in public, we must remember that this is steampunk. Perhaps being a little steamier requires us to be a little more punk about our perceptions of the era and let those relationships out in the open.
After all, if a woman can wear her undergarments on the outside without steampunk social circles batting an eyelash, why should we not have more steaminess in our steampunk stories? What do you think? Are you for more steam in your steampunk or not?
STEAMED! 
I’d like to suggest that there are ways of making things “steamy” in the sense you’re indicating without taking them out of what’s period-appropriate. Of course, not all steampunk is Victorian, but when it is, the history can still be alternate enough that a different expression of sexuality is acceptable . . . or the female character can have a background that’s not quite mainstream (Gordon Dahlquist handles this well in The Glass Books of the Dream Eaters by having Celeste Temple, his heroine, be the heiress to a Caribbean fortune, raised on the islands in a less restrictive way than the London women she comes across) . . . or the female character can face and overcome social consequences. And of course, the Victorians were *having* sex, and lots of it, just not (in the case of respectable middle-class women) before marriage, and they weren’t *talking* about it. But I do have to admit that nothing throws me out of a book faster than complete disregard of what’s period-appropriate. I did my grad work in Victorian lit, and while I don’t want steampunk authors to write Victorian novels, I will put a book down pretty quickly if the characters are essentially our contemporaries in fancy dress. There are lots of ways to work with it — and it can be a fantastic way to give sex scenes new life — a character might not say this, or know that, but she’d still *feel* it, so how to describe it without that vocabulary?
[…] A Case For Steaminess in Steampunk « STEAMED! I would like to begin by saying while I revel in the science and enjoy the Victorian splendor that is in today's steampunk, I find that there is often something missing…and it's not steam…it's steaminess. […]
Oh, yes, I’m all for steaminess in steampunk! Pairing steampunk with romance is just as valid as pairing it with mystery, horror, or fantasy. I can’t get enough of it.
I’ve been chronicling the evolution of steampunk romance on my blog since 2008, and it has become a very hot subgenre. Romance publishers are very keen to acquire these stories.
I’ve enjoyed Dru Pagliassotti’s CLOCKWORK HEART, Nathalie Gray’s FULL STEAM AHEAD, Meljean Brook’s HERE THERE BE MONSTERS (from the BURNING UP anthology), and of course Alan Moore’s LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN.
I’ve also been enjoying George Mann’s Newbury and Hobbes books (THE AFFINITY BRIDGE; THE OSIRIS RITUAL) and even they have a touch of romance (just a touch, mind you).
Other available titles include Sheryl Nantus WILD CARDS AND IRON HORSES (western steampunk romance!), Ciar Cullen’s STEAMSIDE CHRONICLES, and Katie MacAlister’s STEAMED.
Forthcoming titles include Meljean Brook’s THE IRON DUKE, Christine Danse’s ISLAND OF ICARUS (Carina Press), Robert Appleton’s THE MIRACULOUS LADY LAW (Carina Press), and Samhain Publishing will release a steampunk romance anthology in the near future.
The subgenre is definitely growing, and I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a lot more titles in the next couple of years.