The Bad Sex in Fiction Award teaches us several things: first, many novels contain profoundly cringeworthy sex scenes; second, even great writers often flounder when they try to write about sex; and finally, there are plenty of editors who (perhaps begrudgingly, or perhaps because they too are at a loss for how to approach this subject) are letting these giggle-inducing scenes sneak through to publication. This state of affairs might lead us to wonder, Why is it so hard to write about sex? And, more importantly, what can editors do to help?
romance
Different Places, Different Faces: Book Covers in the US and the UK
By Meagan Nolan
As the cover of a book communicates to the potential reader what lies within, many conventions have emerged to highlight certain genres, such as an old photograph that promises a memoir, or a shirtless muscular man that promises a romance novel. To investigate further, we’ll look at four popular books sold in both the US and the UK and see what each cover has to say about the same story.
Romance Readers’ Embrace of Ebooks
By Elise Hitchings
Out of Amazon’s ebook paid sales, 45 percent were romance. And out of all romance sales, an estimated 89 percent are digital copies. So why do romance readers buy so many ebooks?
I Believe in a Thing Called Love
By Brianne Robinson ladybriski
I don’t think there is any genre that gets more insults than the romance genre. I, myself, used to mock and refuse to read anything that could be considered a “bodice ripper.” I only read more literary and sophisticated works, of course. Then, one day, I was stranded at my mother’s house with nothing to […]
Oyster, Scribd, Kindle Unlimited & Overdrive: More Developments in Stream-Reading
By Amy McNeely
Recently, there have been several big changes in the book-subscription-service world. Oyster, an ebook-subscription service, announced in September 2015 that it would be ending all services in January 2016. In June 2015, the Scribd subscription service announced it would be limiting the number of romance titles in its catalog due to their extreme popularity. Kindle […]
Author Interview: Jessica Andersen
By Whitney Smyth
By Whitney Smyth Author Jessica Andersen started professionally writing romance novels in 2001, and hasn’t looked back. After recently finishing up her darkly themed Mayan apocalypse series, Final Prophecy, she donned a new penname and has begun a new series of lighter Western romances as Jesse Hayworth. I was able to snag a few minutes […]