trueromance

Setting: Contemporary Lafayette, Louisiana
Subgenre: Contemporary erotic suspense
Hero: Luc Traverson
Heroine: Alyssa Devereaux
One sentence summary: He can’t control his desire…and that’s just the way she wants it.

Scene you like most and would never cut:
There’s a scene late in the book where Alyssa bares her past and her soul to Luc. I cried writing the whole thing.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying:
It’s okay if you don’t pursue your dreams.

What celebrity is your hero like:
A much sexier Emeril Lagasse. He cooks like a dream and has a lot of charisma.

What celebrity is your heroine like:
With the face and body of Jesse Jane, she’s got the unsinkable spirit of Molly Brown. She’s not quite accepted and yet she still presses on, refusing to let anything or anyone make her quit.

What is your heroine’s occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing:
Currently, Alyssa is the owner of Sexy Sirens, a notorious strip club in Lafayette, but she’s opening Bonheur, an upscale restaurant.

What is your heroes occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing:
Luc is a celebrity chef. After publishing many cookbooks, he’ll soon be appearing on his own cable cooking show.

What you think readers will like best about this book:
I hope it’s the characters’ growth and their road to happily-ever-after they take by becoming more honest, open, and evolved people.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet:
Since Delicious released on March 2, I’ve had a lot of requests for Tyler. He’s definitely on my mind. I’m also receiving mail about another upcoming hero in this series, Hunter Edgington. His book, SURRENDER TO ME, will release next March.

What’s next:
This fall I’ll be releasing 3 books I’m super excited about.
October 5, FOUR PLAY anthology (with Maya Banks)
October 26, HAUNTED BY YOUR TOUCH anthology (with Jeaniene Frost and Shari Kohler)
October 26, ENTICE ME AT TWILIGHT, Doomsday Brethren 4

I love to write about imperfect people learning their way so they can deserve their happy ending. I don’t know anyone who’s perfect, and I’m certainly not perfect myself. I tend to think reading about perfect people would be dull. I like seeing characters falter, learn, and change. Would you rather read people who are always heroic or flawed people who become better for their experiences? A random commenter will be chosen to win a copy of DELICIOUS.

Additionally, any input an author has in the comments is bound to increase the success of the post. If you plan to host a giveaway, please notify us and add that to the end of your blog post.

Tall….6’1”….check.

Smart….you bet….check.

Chris Winters is a TV-Film guy/techno-jock who makes the A-list for Borders True Romance, Reader’s Entertainment Group, and Between Your Sheets. Born in Virginia and currently living in LA, this 2008 Mr. Romance can be seen in TV and movie cameos, biking or running around the city, appearing at events, or sometimes on various websites.

What do romance readers want to know about Chris?

Has being Mr. Romance helped you in achieving any of your Hollywood goals?
I think anything you do adds a step to achieving any kind of goals in life. I have had, very interestingly, someone mention it on a red carpet event before. I started recently using it more to bring the awareness.

Has being a cover model added romance to your relationships or has it actually been a detriment?
Well, I do not think being a cover model of anything will add or take away romance from an individual because a person should love someone for who they are inside. I know me just being me adds a lot to romance, or anything else for that matter. Romance is defined on respect, communication, and love for the other person.

Where do you hope to be in your career in the next two years?
Well, I do have a few people pushing me that are successful working actors, so I will be having a great year in the middle or end of 2010. I remember in 2005 a lot of things happened within that year and it was the same time. I’ve done a lot in Hollywood since my arrival two years ago. I have to thank my fans for that as well for keeping up with me.

If you could go back in history and become anyone he wanted, who would that be?
That’s a really tough question. I would imagine the person I could possibly be would be Abraham Lincoln. He has his own personal issues along with doing something really great in his life. One true hero.

If you could choose to be any character in a book for a film, which character would it be?
This is another tough question. Off the bat, I would imagine Darth Vader from the Star Wars movies. I always loved that character!

What Chris wants you to know about him?
I can honestly say I do love life. I thank God everyday for another chance to breathe again. I am the type of guy who you will meet and walk away smiling, knowing that I am down-to-earth.

I am a free spirited individual who believes in living life to the fullest and laughter is the start of everything. I enjoy many things in life. This ranges from eating, running in parks, solving challenging problems, to spending some time with someone. They say life is too short, but I always ask: “What else is longer?” Life shouldn’t be measured in time, but the time you enjoy with it.

Here are the following fun filled facts:

I am very goal oriented and determined but I have a weakness for chocolate and other sugary things.
I like a stimulating conversation, this can range from fractual functions to macrophages; or the uvula!
I love Xbox 360. I only like a few select games that have a storyline.
I like parks– especially Pan Pacific in Los Angeles, next to The Grove (it was featured on Miracle Mile and actor Brian Thompson was on it. I worked with him. The park is pretty cool at night, while running).
I like Peanut butter, and most common things everybody else likes. Ladybugs come to mind.
I DO NOT fold clean laundry. Hate it. I use it for my ultimate Hamster Nest. My Hamster Nest is when you sleep on various clothing articles.
I like snakes, snails, spiders, and scary movies. Yeah, I am NOT AFRAID to get my hands dirty, muddy, or tear up my shoes! I will also rub your feet.
I like various music. However, I really like Indie music that no one else listens to.
I really, super love, swing sets! If you want to feel young again, that is the place.
Midnight blue or blue that resembles late, starry night. Romantic and euphoric.

So let’s give a shout out for this talented, humorous guy who is determined to make it to the top and to take all of his friends with him because success for Chris is all about the heart. Hear him on the March 9th on Canned Laughter and Coffee with Renee Bernard and learn why this is a swinging Mr. Romance, http://www.blogtalkradio.com/circle-of-seven/2010/03/10/canned-laughter-and-coffee.

Update: Here’s the interview!

Learn more about Chris at Between your Sheets.com

Alyssa Day, ATLANTIS REDEEMED, Setting: Atlantis and Yellowstone National Park
Subgenre: Paranormal Romance
Hero: Brennan, an Atlantean warrior who has lived without emotion for more than 2,000 years
Heroine: Tiernan Butler, a human investigative reporter who has the Gift of Truth Telling

One sentence summary:
When 2,000 years of lost emotion hit you all at once—do you fall in love or die?

Scene you like most and would never cut:
When Brennan first re-encounters Tiernan and the curse he has suffered under for so long shatters.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying:
Anything that makes her look, feel, or be helpless. She has a vested interest in bringing the truth to the public and achieving justice for her murdered best friend.

Your hero, is he a boxer or brief kind of guy:
Pure Atlantean silk, baby.

Ancillary character you had the most fun with:
The vampire leader, Devon. He has very interesting goals and the shocking twist at the end almost surprised even me! I’m going to write his book one day.

Your heroine’s favorite hobby:
Walking on the beach, far away from anybody who might be telling lies. Lies hurt her; they feel and sound discordant and screeching against her soul.

Your hero’s favorite hobby:
Can I say it involves Tiernan and nakedness? LOL. He also is having a great time learning to tell jokes now that he has emotion back and can recognize humor.

What you think readers will like best about this book:
The emotion. My editor said this is the most emotional novel I’ve ever written and I think she’s right. Something about Brennan’s almost childlike attempts to cope with 2,000 years’ of lost emotion swamping him all at once; then the way he and Tiernan fight for each other even when they are in so much pain—I admit I cried more than once writing this book.

Reviews: Wow! Everything from “spectacular” and “exemplary” to “a cocktail sauce of awesome.” I’m loving the reviews!

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet:
High priest Alaric. His path is so tortured, and everyone wants to know what happens with him and Quinn. There is a very emotional scene in Atlantis Redeemed between the two of them; Alaric is starting to crack around the edges a little bit.

What’s next:
Christophe’s book is next – and it’s a heist book! In ATLANTIS BETRAYED, out in September, he encounters a famous British cat burglar and boy, do the sparks fly! Then it’s the first of my new urban fantasy series, also for Berkley. I can’t wait!
For the first time ever, I’m stuck for a title for Denal’s upcoming book. If you can think of a wonderful title (must have Atlantis in it), I’ll put you in the acknowledgements for the book.

There must be prizes! One book to 3 random readers commenting on this blog! Please visit me online at http://www.alyssaday.com for excerpts, a free short story, video interviews, and more. Thank you so much!
Hugs,
Alyssa

Naked Edge by Pamela Clare
Setting: modern day Denver, Colo.
Subgenre: Romantic Suspense
Hero: Gabriel Rossiter
Heroine: Katherine James

One sentence summary:
When Navajo journalist Katherine James and Park Ranger Gabriel Rossiter team up to investigate a murder on land sacred to Native American people, their passion for the truth — and each other — makes them targets for those desperate enough to kill.

Scene you like most and would never cut:
Other than the love scenes?

I loved the “male-bonding” scenes in this story, the scenes in which heroes from some of the past I-Team books interact with Gabe, the hero from this story. And I loved writing all of the outdoor scenes, which enabled me to show off my lovely home state of Colorado. I also really love the scene depicting contemporary American Indian life, with which I’m familiar after more than a decade of reporting on Indian issues for the newspaper.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying:
As a traditional Navajo woman, Kat would never be disrespectful to an elder. Neither would she sell herself or her culture short, which is why she doesn’t drink alcohol and why she’s still a virgin.

What is your hero’s greatest fear:
What Gabe fears most is having to trust others. He goes to great lengths not to have to trust anyone. He even rock climbs alone.

What is your heroine’s greatest fear:
Deep inside, Kat is afraid of letting her elders down. It’s important to her to prove who she is to them. Of course, in the story there are other things she comes to fear: flying bullets, bones, and a very real, live breathing skin walker.

What is your heroines occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing:
Kat is an investigative journalist. If she were unemployed, I suspect she’d end up back on the Navajo reservation helping her grandmother cook, spin wool, and care for the family’s sheep.

What is your heroes occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing:
Gabe is an expert rock and alpine climber and skier, as well as a trained paramedic and a park ranger. If he were unemployed, he’d end up living in his truck up in the mountains and spending all of his copious free time skiing and climbing. He’d get odd jobs to keep his gas tank full and he’d “chase the powder,” as we say here in Colorado. He’d go wherever the snow is good for skiing.
Or if he ended up without a job and found himself desperately attracted to a beautiful, young woman whose life was in peril, he just might end up volunteering to be her 24/7 bodyguard. That’s just a guess.

What you think readers will like best about this book:
I think readers will like the love story between Kat and Gabe most. As two people from completely different cultures who are opposites in many ways, they face a lot of obstacles. Watching them overcome those obstacles and seeing how each saves the other through love will, I hope, touch readers deeply. I also think readers will enjoy what is a fairly realistic and accurate glimpse at the lives of contemporary urban Indian people.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet:
I get e-mails every day asking when “Horny Holly” will get her story and when Connor MacKinnon from my MacKinnon’s Rangers series will have his own book. I have to answer them all with, “I don’t know.”

What’s next:
Right now I’m working on the next I-Team book. It will tell Natalie’s story and that of Zack MacBride, the deputy U.S. Marshal who ends up becoming her hero, despite a shared tragedy in their past. I don’t have a title for it yet. After that, I hope to sink my teeth into Connor MacKinnon’s story. And I might have a paranormal up my sleeves…

But now I have a question for readers:
Kat James is the first contemporary heroine I’ve written as a virgin. I was afraid that readers wouldn’t find that believable, even though, as a Navajo, Kat would naturally be more conservative about such things than most of us. Surprisingly, most of the people who’ve contacted me have really liked this aspect of the story. So I’m wondering what is it that’s so appealing to readers about the virgin heroine?

I’m randomly giving away a signed copy of Naked Edge and a Borders gift card for $25. All you have to do to be eligible to win is to join in the discussion.

So what do you all say? What’s appealing about a virgin heroine in a contemporary romance?

Click here for Excerpt:

Geee-zus!
Gabe sucked in a breath, shocked by the blistering impact of Kat’s unexpected kiss, heat
shearing through his gut at the first clumsy press of her lips against his. Even as his body
responded, some part of his brain knew this shouldn’t be happening. “Kat, you’re upset
and tipsy and—”
She kissed him again, tilting her head to better slant her mouth over his.
Christ!
He turned his face away, felt her lips brush his jaw. “Honey, you don’t really want this.
You’ve just lost—”
She made a little sound of protest, her arms sliding behind his head, drawing his lips
closer to hers, as if to show him that she did really want it.
Good. So did he.
Ignoring the pathetic warnings of his conscience, he took control of the kiss, drawing her
tight against him, capturing her mouth with his.
God, she tasted sweet! She smelled sweet, too — like honey and woman. She gave a little
whimper, melting against him in a way that was utterly feminine, every inch of her soft
body molding to his, her breasts pressing against his ribs, her lips parting to give him
access. He swirled his tongue over hers, felt her body tense. And through a pheromone
fog, he realized she wasn’t just a virgin between her legs.
Kissing — real kissing — was new to her, too.
Not just virgin, buddy — extra virgin.
He reined himself in, gentled the kiss, slowed it down, brushing her lips lightly with his,
teasing their outline with the tip of his tongue, nipping their fullness, his lust for her at
war with some strange urge to protect her from himself. In his world, any night that
started with kissing ended soon after with fucking. His cock had already risen to the
occasion and strained painfully against his fly, looking for the surest route out of denim
and into her. But that couldn’t happen — not tonight, not when she was vulnerable and
afraid and hurting, probably not ever. She wanted happily ever after, and all he could give
her was sex. Still, he could keep kissing her…
Hell, yeah.
He claimed her mouth in a no-holds-barred kiss, penetrating deep, taking her tongue with
his, sucking it into his mouth, biting down. She whimpered, kissed him back, meeting the
strokes of his tongue with her own, her fingers curled in his hair, her body almost
undulating against his, communicating in a primal language of its own, one Gabe’s body
understood only too well.
Katherine James might want to save her virginity, but her body had other plans.
With a groan, he drew her beneath him, testosterone shorting out his brain, his body
taking over, his blood running hot and fast. He found her throat and pressed his lips
against the rapid beating of her pulse, kissing a path over soft, sweet skin, tasting her,
nibbling her earlobe. And he wasn’t finished — not by a long shot.
Kat heard herself whimper and turned her head to the side, surrendering her throat to
Gabe, the heat of his lips raising goose bumps on her skin, his male scent filling her head,
the hard press of his body on top hers making her belly flutter.
She’d never felt anything like this, never even imagined it — the heat, the intensity, the
overwhelming physical force of it. Her body trembled, and her heart raced, her breathing
uneven as if she’d been running. And she was running — from her grief, from her fear,
from everything that hurt. Some part of her knew this, but that only made her run faster.
The rules don’t apply tonight.
She didn’t stop him when he slid a callused hand beneath her sweater to trace tiny circles
up her ribcage. She didn’t object when his clever fingers found the clasp of her bra
between her breasts and unhooked it. And when he cupped her left breast, when his
thumb flicked her nipple…
She gasped, stunned, the sensation too astonishing, too arousing, too wonderful to be real.
Jagged shafts of heat seemed to shoot straight from her breast to her belly, turning to
liquid between her thighs.
“You like that, don’t you?”
At the husky sound of his voice, her eyes flew open. She found him looking down at her,
his breathing as rough as hers, his blue eyes burning, a smile on his wet lips. She forced
herself to hold his gaze, shocked by the intimacy of watching him as he watched her, as
he watched the effect his touch had on her, his hand still cupping and shaping her breast,
his thumb tracing lazy circles over its aching crest.
And the heat in her belly became a wildfire.
Then he pushed her sweater up, baring her breasts, his gaze raking hungrily over her.
“God, Kat, honey, you’ve got beautiful breasts. They’re so… Mmm.”
Whatever he’d been about to say became a moan as he ducked down and drew one of her
nipples into the scorching heat of his mouth.
“Gabe.” Kat’s body jerked at the initial shock of it, the pleasure staggering as he suckled
first one nipple and then the other, tugging at her with his lips, teasing her with velvet
strokes of his tongue, tormenting her with nips of his teeth. It was sweet, so sweet, and
terrible, too, the fire between her thighs now a throbbing ache. She heard herself calling
his name, felt her hips lifting toward him, wanting, wanting…
Wanting him.
He groaned, settled his weight between her thighs, and answered her need, grinding what
could only be the thick ridge of his erection against her… there. Slowly, so slowly he
moved against her, taking the edge off the ache, only to make it so much worse. She was
wet, the emptiness inside her burning, her inner muscles clenching around nothing. And
she knew.
If he kept going, if he pressed her, she wouldn’t be able to stop him. She wouldn’t want
to.
Gabe’s body was strung so tightly he thought it might snap. He’d been a damned idiot to
take it this far. He’d wanted to give her the comfort she so obviously needed, and one
thing had let to another. Or that’s what he’d told himself. In truth, he’d wanted to kiss her
and hold her — and so he had.
He needed to stop. But how could he when Kat was coming apart in his arms, her
response burning him up? Her little mewls and whimpers were driving him out of his
mind, her wine-dark nipples drawn into tight buds that begged for his mouth, her hips
moving in a way that was both feminine and undeniably erotic. He didn’t want to stop —
oh, hell, no! He wanted to fuck her long and hard. He wanted to make her come again
and again. He wanted to forget himself inside her.
And then what, buddy? You’ll pluck her sweet cherry and show her the door? She
deserves better than that, and you damned well know it.
Gabe dragged his lips from hers, forced his hips to hold still, sexual need grinding in his
gut, blood pounding through his veins. “Kat.”
She looked up at him, so beautiful it made his chest ache, confusion and longing in those
hazel green eyes, tear stains on her cheeks, her lips red and swollen, her delicious breasts
rising and falling with each rapid breath — no makeup, no silicon, nothing but sweet,
soft, sexually aroused woman.
He fought the urge, so elemental, to kiss her again and settled for running his knuckles
over her cheek. Somehow, he managed to string a few words together. “If I don’t stop
now, honey, we’re going to be at this all night.”

Setting: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Subgenre: Women’s Fiction
Hero: Rafael Dunlap
Heroine: Nathalyia Fontaine

One sentence summary: A bet between friends leads to a passionate romance and redemption..

Scene you like most and would never cut: A difficult question, but I think there are two scenes in IF YOU WERE MY MAN that I really like. Both set the tone for the book. The first scene is that of Rafael and Nathalyia’s initial meeting when he tries to entice her to go out with him to discuss the service at Fontaine, her restaurant. He strikes out big time when she hands him a menu and tells him she isn’t on it. Rafael takes her refusal as a challenge. The chase is on, but who will catch whom.

The second scene is when Jake, the bald-headed bartender and confident of Nathalyia, forgets himself and kisses Clarice, the younger, full-figured waitress he secretly yearns for. Jake has a scar on his heart as well as on his face and back-paddles as fast as he can. However, act-before you-think Clarice is not about to let that happen even if she has to resort to some unorthodox methods.

Thing your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying: “If you don’t like the food or the service, there’s the door.” Nathalyia lives and breathes Fontaine. It is her duty and also her pleasure to make sure that Fontaine, the restaurant/bar, left to her by her late husband, succeeds. She’ll bend over backwards to ensure that her customers have an exemplary dining experience. Fontaine is more than a restaurant to her, it is a shining example that, although she came from nothing, she has succeeded beyond her wildest dreams and expectations.

What celebrity is your hero like: I think Rafael is like Denzel Washington. Both are gorgeous with a lean, muscular build, charming and charismatic. When needed, both can be a force to be reckoned with. Both have the ‘it’ factor. As a hostage negotiator, Rafael has the intelligence and steely determination to overcome any obstacle placed in his path - be it a criminal or a reluctant Nathalyia.

What celebrity is your heroine like: Nathalyia is a cross between Vanessa L. Williams, and Angelina Jolie. Like Ms. Williams, Nathalyia is stunning with a keen intelligence and quick smile. She’s been down, but hard work has taken her to the top of her profession. She knows how to win people over, but if pushed, like Angelina Jolie, she pushes back.

What is your heroines occupation, or if unemployed, what should she be doing:
Nathalyia is sole proprietor of Fontaine, a popular seafood restaurant/bar near the ocean in Myrtle Beach. The restaurant was entrusted to her by her late husband, the only person in her life who gave to her without expecting something in return. She loves Fontaine and takes her responsibility seriously. She wants nothing to interfere, least of all a man who makes her pulse pound and her body want his.

What is your heroes occupation, or if unemployed, what should he be doing:
Rafael is a hostage negotiator with S.O.R.T. - Special Operations Response Team - with the Myrtle Beach Police Department. He’s very dedicated. Even when he’s off duty he doesn’t drink alcohol because he never knows when he might receive a call from his commander.

What you think readers will like best about this book:
I think readers will enjoy watching playboy Rafael unknowingly fall in love, then have to go all out to win Nathalyia’s love. Women have always come easy to Rafael with his fallen angel looks and easy-going-manner. Not even to himself has he admitted why three weeks is the longest he stays in a relationship. Nathalyia is a woman who makes him forget all the rules he’s lived by when dating - except one - which will test both of them.

The person that readers want you to write about but you haven’t yet:
I received Emails almost on a daily basis asking about Rio. Rio was first seen in ONLY YOU, book # 5 in the Grayson Friends series, then again in THE WAY YOU LOVE ME and ONE NIGHT WITH YOU, books # 1 and #3 in the new Grayson Friends Series. Rio is the strong, silent, gorgeous type. You never know what he’s thinking. His unblinking gaze can be as cold as an ice. He’s deadly and anyone who meets him knows it. He solemnly watched his two best friends, Blade Navarone and Shane Elliott, fall in love. But home and hearth aren’t for Rio. He walks alone. Or so he thinks. There’s a woman waiting for Rio and she’s going to turn his orderly world upside down…and make him like it!!!

What’s next: Coming March 30 is FOREVER YOURS, a reissue and the first book in the Taggart/Falcon series. FOREVER YOURS is a marriage of convenience story. Victoria Chandler needs to marry or lose her chain of lingerie stores, Lavender and Lace. She wants a malleable man who will sign a pre-nup, then get lost until time for the divorce a year later. She gets Kane Taggart, a man who can be controlled as easily as a twister, a man who will settle for nothing less than a lifetime.

****

Thank to Borders for the opportunity to blog. It’s always a pleasure to connect with readers. To thank those who stop by I’m giving away three (3) books in a random drawing. A winner will be selected from blog posts. First prize: a first edition copy of Fallen Angel, my first book published in 1993. Second prize is a copy of UNTIL THERE WAS YOU - the first book in the Graysons of New Mexico series. Third prize is a copy of ONLY YOU, the book in which Rio makes his first appearance. Winners will be notified by email.

I’m always interested in learning what readers think about characters, especially the hero and heroine. I do my best to write about men we can fall in love with and women we can root for. Since I write contemporary romances, I’d like to know your thoughts on the most endearing or annoying characteristic a hero or heroine can exhibit? In other words, what makes you sigh or makes you want to grit your teeth. LOL. Please do not provide specific names, titles or author’s names in your answer.

Thanks again for allowing me to spend time with each of you and I hope that you will write and let me know what you think of IF YOU WERE MY MAN at www.francisray.com.

Lauren Willig writes the acclaimed “Pink Carnation” series for Dutton, and her latest book, “The Betrayal of the Blood Lily” comes out in January ‘10. Cara Elliott (whose real name is Andrea DaRif) debuts her new “Circle of Sin” trilogy in March ’10 with “To Sin With A Scoundrel.”(She also writes historical mystery romance under the pen name Andrea Pickens.)

These best selling authors are teaching a course at Yale U: READING THE HISTORICAL ROMANCE.

What was the genesis of the course; how did you two come up w/the idea and what was/is your goal in teaching the course?
(to read the syllabus click here)

LW: Two Yalie romance writers find themselves next to an open bar…. There is, as there always is, a bit more back-story to it. Over the past few years, I’ve become involved in the burgeoning romance scholarship movement, as a group of academics have fought to build a critical apparatus around the study of popular romance novels, not just as sociological artifacts, but as texts. It’s a movement that’s been spearheaded by Professor Eric Selinger at DePaul and Professor Sarah Frantz at Fayetteville, both of whom were instrumental in putting together the Princeton conference on popular romance last spring. There are dissertations being written on Heyer, on Cruisie, on Roberts, just as there are on E.M. Forster or Hemingway. (At last year’s Popular Culture Association conference, I got to hear papers on the use of the first person in Mary Stewart’s “Nine Coaches Waiting”, the symbolism of food in J.D. Robb, and inversions of status in American-written Regencies. I gave a paper on the uses and abuses of history in historical romance.) It’s an incredibly rich and interesting field, all the more so because it’s been neglected for so long.

Fast forward to last spring, as Cara and I sipped glasses of wine during the intermission of Lady Jane’s Salon, discussing romance scholarship and how we would structure a class if we had the chance. It suddenly occurred to us—why not?

CE: Oh, right, the open bar definitely came into play! The idea for the seminar began with one of those fun, serendipitous moments . . . Lauren and I ran into each other at Lady Jane’s Salon, a monthly romance reading series in downtown New York City, and as fellow Yale grads, we started comparing notes on our experiences there. As we chatted, we starting joking around, saying, “Oh, you know, we should really propose to teach a college seminar on romance novels and how they should be treated as a serious literary genre—the students would probably love it.”

We both laughed . . . and then a simultaneous spark lit in our eyes. “Oh, let’s go for it!” we both said. And so began the process of putting together a formal proposal and week-by-week syllabus of readings and discussion topics. Lauren’s sister Brooke, a junior at Yale, was a fabulous sounding board for ideas and books, and together we polished up a presentation.

After passing the first few hurdles, we were called to New Haven to interview before a group of twenty students and two faculty members. They asked great questions, and I think our enthusiasm for the subject came through loud and clear (neither of us has any trouble talking about books and why we love them!)

In any case, our proposal was accepted, and received the stamp of approval from the English department, so come January, historical romance will “go Ivy League!”

What was it like to interview in front of a panel of students?

LW: There was something a bit surreal about being interviewed in a college dining hall (the smell of baked scrod brought me right back!), but it was an incredibly invigorating experience. It was a large panel of interviewers, about twenty at a guess, composed of both faculty and students, which meant they brought a very wide range of approaches and questions. We got to speak about everything from how one would define the term “romance novel” to the intricacies of English society in the early nineteenth century.

CE: And we brought down the house with a mention of Sarah Wendell and Candy Tan’s website Smart Bitches, Trashy Books! They loved it (humor is very important in our books) I thought the sherry-colored wood paneling was going to pop off the walls. And that’s exactly what we are trying to do—shake up the old perceptions of romance as mere “bodice rippers.”

Was there a question put to you that stands out as something very astute or that may have caused you to think about romance fiction in a way you hadn’t? In other words, were there moments when you were surprised by how folks saw romance in a good light, but perhaps one you’d never considered?

LW: I don’t know if I’d call this the most astute, but the question that left the deepest impression on me was whether we expected to have only women in the course. When I told them that the scholar on the forefront of putting romance on the academic map was, in fact, a man, I could see the entire room take notice. Although it is a small point, it makes our larger point that this is a literary field worthy of general study by interested and intelligent people of either gender. Should guys study romance novels, too? Hell, yes.

CE: That really was an interesting moment. As Lauren says, you could see something click in both the men and women. The question had been asked half in jest, but I think the answer made them think—and in a very good way.

LW: On top of that, I think the focused nature of the class also caught their attention. We tailored the class around the Regency romance—not only because we both write it and men in knee breeches are always a Good Thing—but because it provides a self-contained field through which we can track the development of a genre in a comprehensive way. Our class starts with Jane Austen’s “Northanger Abbey”, moves through Heyer and Woodiwiss, looks at changing attitudes towards sexuality and heroism in a variety of authors over a thirty year time span, going right up through Regency paranormals and chick lit. Some of the tropes and changes we look at are unique to the Regency romance, but many mirror developments in the romance community as a whole. The fact that there are sub-genres within romance, each with its own traditions and trajectory, rather than just a monolith known as “oh, romance novels”, clearly made the students on the panel stop and think.

What strength/s do each of you bring to the course?

CE: I think one of the great things about this collaboration is that Lauren and I bring a pretty unique set of skills to the course. We both have a good undergrad grounding in history, and I have a Masters degree in Graphic Design from Yale while she has a Masters degree in History from Harvard, as well as a Harvard Law degree. So it’s a fun left-brain/right brain sort of thing—and together we make the complete package! Lauren brings a really impressive formal academic experience to share with the students, while my background in art and visual communication adds a different perspective.

But most importantly, we both are really passionate about romance and what we write, and I think that comes through when we discuss it. Our goal in this course is to share our excitement in the creative process, as well as to inspire an appreciation and respect for the romance genre. Hey, it’s time for the world to recognize that smart women write romance—and smart women (and even smarter men) read romance! We hope that we can help spread the word.

LW: Both of us bring a passion for the subject, years of experience as readers of the genre, and a nuts and bolts perspective as practitioners. On top of that, we each have our own unique skills. Back in the day, I pursued a doctorate in English history at that Other School (the Crimson one in Cambridge). The doctorate got away from me, but not before I spent several years scribbling endless dissertation notes, teaching undergrad classes, and generally doing the whole academic thing. One of my various teaching appointments was on the tutorial board of Harvard’s History and Literature department, which seems particularly appropriate for a class like this. As a lapsed historian, I contribute the history side of things and lots of war stories about grading papers, while Cara brings in the more textual, literary approach. It’s worked perfectly as a balance.

Why Yale?

LW: It was a combination of affection, opportunity, and geography. Both Cara and I are devoted Yale grads with lots of warm and fuzzy feelings about our alma mater. I live in New York and Cara in Connecticut, so, for a commute to class, Yale lies nicely in the middle. Not to mention those amazing caramel lattes at Atticus, which I will now get to drink regularly.

CE: And Yale has a wonderful undergraduate program where each semester, the 12 residential colleges sponsor courses that are supposed to be a bit “outside the box” and allow students to work with notable professionals in fields ranging from sports and art to music and literature. (One of the highlights of my student experience was the chance to study the art of the children’s book with Maurice Sendak.)

So we thought that this was the perfect place for the course we wanted to create. It’s incredibly exciting to have this opportunity, and we are really looking forward to it.

What questions would you ask these talented, instructors? Would you entertain taking a course about Reading Romance?
Answer below & you may be one of 5 winners to be randomly chosen to win a copy of Cara or Lauren’s books!

Almost Home, by Pam Jenoff

Setting: England
Subgenre: Romantic suspense
Heroine: Jordan Weiss
Hero: Jared Short