Unless you’re a fellow fan of “So You Think You Can Dance,” you probably haven’t heard of Evan Kasprzak. Bear with me though, this month’s column may still have some relevance for you! Evan is just the latest example in my own life of non-traditionally attractive guys who make cute seem sexy.

Evan was a standout this season not only because of his talent, but because he was the one male dancer who didn’t seem to have sexy in his repertoire. While the other guys could pout, and gyrate, and strut, and glare perfectly convincingly, Evan couldn’t quite pull it off.

As he said in an interview with the New York Post, “I’m very comfortable being the kind of goofy guy, that’s my hometown, so to speak. So I’m nervous to pull a Latin Ballroom, or something like that where I have to try and be sexy...shaking my hips and getting a little sexy are definitely out of my comfort zone.”

Funny thing, though...Evan survived week after week due to his huge fan base. Women in droves adore the guy.

I was reminded of this recently when I watched a newly-released short film called “After Hours” in which Evan plays a goofy janitor dreaming of attracting an unattainable young woman. His dancing wins the day, of course. The interesting part was reading the comments; so many females attested to the swoonworthiness of the cute Mr. Kasprzak.

Gene Kelly, who happens to be Evan’s inspiration and role model, was also more cute than sexy. Nevertheless, it would not be wrong to say he achieved matinee idol status in his day. It could be argued that masculine ideal Tom Cruise is more cute than sexy (one of my daughters thinks he has “mouse cheeks.”) Idols of 80’s teen cinema (RIP John Hughes) were often more cute than sexy, for example Anthony Michael Hall, John Cusack, Eric Stoltz and Corey Feldman. Situation comedies consistently go for the cute with their leading men, and end up making “hot” stars out of guys like Michael J. Fox, David Schwimmer, Jason Segel, and even Jim Parsons.

In books, where you can’t so clearly tell whether the hero is sexy or merely cute, you can still find plenty of men who aren’t perfect Edward Cullen types. Sebastian Gilder, one of the heroes of my novel Bloodchained, was inspired in part by the character Wash from “Firefly.” He’s not the stunningly handsome, sexy hero (that would be my Finn Equain, or “Firefly’s” Captain Mal Reynolds). He’s cute, funny, charming, and above all, approachable.

I think that’s the key, really. As much as we like our heroes to be perfect and oozing sexiness from every pore, there’s a lot to be said for approachable. It makes your fantasy a little easier to believe, for one thing. And it also suggests that you might actually be happier with the cute boy than the sexy one.

I think about myself and my fellow SYTYCD fans, imagining ourselves on the dance floor with the various competitors of this and other seasons. Of course we think about doing the tango with hotties like Kupono. But when we pretend we’re dancing with Evan, there seems to be real...potential. That’s always the charm of the Boy Next Door, the guy who is “merely” cute. He really could become yours.

Diana Laurence is the author of the Soulful Sex anthologies of erotic romance fiction, and the vampire romance Bloodchained (www.bloodchained.com). Her latest book, How to Catch and Keep a Vampire: A Step-by-Step Guide to Loving the Bad and the Beautiful is published by Sellers Publishing and will be appearing in stores worldwide starting in September. Visit her at www.dianalaurence.com or enjoy her blog at www.eroticawithsoul.blogspot.com.