Black Romance Podcast

In today's episode I talk with Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar Cruz, co-authors of In Case You Forgot and their recent release Busy Ain't The Half Of It . We discuss their co-authored books as well as many other topics, including: the importance of publishing love stories between Black queer characters; how Frederick Smith's romance novels Right Side of the Wrong Bed and Down For Whatever , publish...

Best-selling writer Farrah Rochon and I talk about her new release The Dating Playbook and also deep dive into several topics: how she wrote and published her 2007 debut novel, Deliver Me , the first in her Holmes Brothers Series; we talk about her New York Sabers Football Series; Bayou Dream Series; Moments in Maplesville Series; and The Boyfriend Project . Rochon was named Shades of Romance Maga...

Barbara Keaton's first romance novel, All I Ask , was published in 2000. Since then she has gone on to write thirteen romance novels, which celebrate black love. In this episode, we discuss: her experiences publishing with Genesis Press, working with Romance Slam Jam, the mentorship a community of Black writers have provided her, and we deep dive into her novels Nights Over Egypt , Heat at First S...

Chilufiya Safaa is a romance novelist whose books put a fresh twist on African and African American love themes and allow readers to examine what they thought they knew about African and African American people. In this episode, we talk about Safaa's first four novels, A Foreign Affair, Passionate Encounters, The Art of Love, and Stay the Night, which were all published by New York publisher Kensi...

Veronica Mixon, my guest today, was an editor at Doubleday for fourteen years from 1974 to 1988. She was hired as assistant to an editor of Romance and Science fiction novels and then promoted to editor when her boss left the press. She recounts her experiences during these years: creating Doubleday's Starlight Romances, working with many writers, including Barbara Stephens, Millie Ragosta, and Ro...

Eboni Snoe is the best-selling author of seventeen books. In this episode, we discuss her experiences publishing her first romance novel A Shiek's Spell with Odyssey Books in 1992 as well as her experiences publishing with Arabesque and Avon Book. We deep dive into her novels Beguiled , Tell Me I'm Dreamin' , her forthcoming autobiography The Altar , and her publishing company Beyond Maya Press. E...

Celeste Norfleet, a best-selling writer of over twenty-five novels, joins me this week. We talk about her 2002 debut novel Priceless Gift and its curious ending, which became the inspiration for the novels in her well-loved Mama Lou Matchmaker Series. She recounts her experiences at the beginning of her career and the supportive environment of Romance Slam Jam among her well-known sister writers a...

Adriana Herrera, a USA Today bestselling author, joins me this episode to talk about a converging series of experiences and events that led her to write and publish romance: her experiences as an immigrant from the Dominican Republic; the dissonance she felt between her studies on Black Feminist Thought and the colonial images she read in romance; the demoralizing rhetoric about immigrants in the...

Today's guest is Katrina Jackson, best-selling writer of over twenty novels. She joins me to discuss her prolific career. Katrina discusses some of her early reading practices, writing her first romance, a self-published book titled Encore , and why she publishes affirming images of Black women. She also recounts how her life as a pre and post tenured historian in the Academy informs some of her n...

Best-selling writer Piper Huguley joins Julie to talks about her experiences writing, publishing, and marketing historical novels with African American Christian characters. She talks about developing her online platform to self-publish her novels, including her first The Lawyer's Luck and the books in her "Home to Millford College Series." In addition, she talks about A Virtuous Ruby from her "Mi...

Best-selling writer Kennedy Ryan joins Julie to talks about how she developed her writing craft, which led to the 2014 publication of her first book,  When You Are Mine . She talks about her experiences self-publishing, starting a foundation serving Atlanta families living with Autism, and she recounts her experiences at the 2019 RWA award ceremony when she won the Rita award for her self-publishe...

Best-selling writer LaQuette joins Julie to discuss her successful writing career, which began with the 2013 publication of her first book, My Beginning . They discuss how she came to write and publish romance, her role as the current President of the Romance Writers of America, her publishing company Brooklyn Girl Ink, and her books Jackson and Bedding the Enemy . LaQuette is a 2021 Vivian award...

Best-selling writer Reese Ryan joins Julie to talk about her successful writing career, which began with the 2013 publication of her first book, Making the First Move . They discuss Ryan's recent nomination for the Vivian Award in the Contemporary Romance Short area as well as her experiences writing and publishing romance. They also deep dive into three of her novels: Making the First Move , Seco...

Best-selling and award-winning novelist Shirley Hailstock joins Julie to talk about her successful writing career, and they deep dive into her novels Whispers of Love ( Under the Sheets ) and Love in Logan Beach . Shirley Hailstock is the author of over 40 novels and novellas. She writes contemporary romantic suspense, paranormal, historical romance, and mainstream women's fiction. She holds a Car...

Best-selling writer Donna Hill joins Julie for the first episode of Season two of the Black Romance Podcast. They discuss Hill's experiences writing and publishing romance, and they deep dive into three of her novels: Rooms of the Heart , Chances Are , and Confessions in B Flat . Donna Hill is a prolific writer who has published romance, women's fiction, chick lit, erotica, and mysteries. She has...

Margo Hendricks who writes romance novels as Elysabeth Grace joins me to close out Season one of the Black Romance Podcast. We discuss her contemporary and paranormal romance novels as well as our forthcoming editorial collaboration on a special issue of the Journal of Popular Romance Studies , which will focus on Black Romance. This issue will include all of the transcripts from my interviews on...

Rochelle Alers and I talked about a number of topics: her experiences writing and publishing romance in the 1980's; and we talked about books and characters from her Hideaway, Cavanaugh Island, and The Innkeepers series. She also discussed her work with Vivian Stephens on the Women Writers of Color group, her experiences with RWA, and with Black women editors and writers who she believes have cont...

This week Gwendolyn Pough (writing as Gwyneth Bolton) and I discuss her popular romance fiction Make It Last Forever and Sweet Sensation . We also discuss whether her academic publications on Black feminism and Hip-Hop culture influence her romance fiction.

Rebekah Weatherspoon discusses the importance of depicting Black women in her books, writing inclusive novels that feature queer love stories with Black characters, and her experiences self-publishing and publishing with Dafina, a traditional press.

This week Alyssa Cole and I discuss how her precocious childhood reading habits may have influenced her current romance publications. Cole also reveals how her historical and contemporary romance like Let it Shine , An Extraordinary Union , An Unconditional Freedom , A Princess in Theory , and A Duke by Default work through, try to understand, and trouble particular aspects of U.S. culture, histor...

This week's conversation with Vivian Stephens focuses on several topics: her work at Dell; her transition as editor from Dell to Harlequin; Harlequin's release of her; her subsequent work with Black romance writers; marketing an all-Black line of Vivian Stephens romance; and her own publication Second Act .

In part one of my interview with Vivian Stephens, she discusses her experiences as an editor at Dell Publishing, and she talks about her role in the founding of The Romance Writers of America.

In this conversation, Beverly Jenkins and I talk about her early experiences as a Black woman writing and trying to publish her historical romance featuring Black characters. We also discuss Night Song , her debut novel, Indigo , Jewel , and Forbidden , her historical novels set in the late 1800's.

Having published over one hundred and twenty-five novels, Jackson talks about the importance of how Blackness is represented in media and popular culture and about how this led her into filmmaking.

New York Times best-selling writer Brenda Jackson recounts the challenges she faced publishing romance fiction with black characters in the 1980's and why she negotiated her own contract to publish her first novel in 1995.