More than four years ago, Daria Snadowsky was out of a job with plenty of time on her hands, and had recently broken up with her boyfriend.

Inspired by an episode of "Sex and the City," in which Carrie Bradshaw was in a similar situation, Snadowsky decided to write a book.

"I thought if I could turn everything I learned about relationships into something concrete, it would be worth something," says Snadowsky, who has bachelor's and master's degrees in film studies from Emory University in Atlanta and a law degree from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

A year later the book was finished -- the first draft was 599 pages -- but success wasn't instant. Endless rejections and rewrites later -- the manuscript dropped to 280 pages -- Snadowsky's book finally has seen the light of day.

Released last week, "Anatomy of a Boyfriend," published by Delacorte Press Books for Young Readers, a division of Random House, centers on Dominique Baylor, whose life seems to be on the fast track to success, until she falls for Wesley Gershwin.

Aimed at Young Adult readers 14 and older, "Anatomy" details the pain and exhilaration of first love -- and sex.

The book has gained a reputation for its straightforward discussion of sex. "This isn't all new stuff," Snadowsky says, "but I think people will be pleased with how honest, frank and unbiased it is. Nothing the characters do is judgement-free."

Snadowsky kept the book away from her parents until the book had been bought by the publisher. "My parents said, 'Now you have to let us read it.' "

So one night, before heading out to a law school class, Snadowsky let her parents read the manuscript. She was so worried about their reaction that she couldn't concentrate on class. And she made a point of going home late that night in the hopes of avoiding parental contact.

Snadowsky had nothing to worry about. "They couldn't be more supportive," she says. "It (sexuality) was an aspect of me they weren't familiar with."

The publisher has devoted a Web site to the book -- www.anatomyofaboyfriend.com -- and will soon unveil an interactive Web site in which readers of the book can create their own boyfriend.

Snadowsky's future plans are up in the air.

"I would love to practice law but I'm taking a break," Snadowsky, 27, says. "I would love to do both no matter how the book does. Ideally I would like to write something else."

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