Romance in the Media A-I

This page is for items which have appeared in the press or online news sources.

From this page you may return to the main Romance Scholarship page or go directly to

• Bibliography A-G - the first half of our bibliography of academic articles and books about romance.
• Bibliography H-Z - the second half of our bibliography of academic articles and books about romance.
• Dissertation Abstracts
• Scholarship in Languages Other than English.
• Romance Resources for Academics - lists romance-related resources which may be of interest to academics.
• Writers on Romance - lists items written about the genre by romance authors but not published in academic journals or books.

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Anonymous, 200?. 'What Do Women Really Want?', Hir@gana Times, Japan - Behind the Scenes. [1] [About Harlequin in Japan]

Anonymous, 2001. 'What's in a Name?: Authors and publishers discuss the (often subtle) distinctions between romance and women's fiction', Publishers Weekly, 7/2/2001.[2]

Anonymous, 2002. 'Mills & boom boom', The Observer, Sunday December 15, 2002.[3] 'Every two seconds, somebody somewhere in the world buys a Mills & Boon title. Readers, it seems, can't get enough of romance, happy endings and, these days, rock-hard nipples, bondage sex and lesbian fantasies. Geraldine Bedell slips between the covers of modern romantic fiction to see for herself how the 94-year-old publishing house keeps it up'. [The article quotes from Radway (though it's spelled 'Rodway') and mentions differences between UK and US romance trends.]

Anonymous, 2003. 'M6 Toll built with pulped fiction', BBC News, Thursday, 18 December, 2003.[4] 'Old copies of Mills & Boon romantic novels are being used to help prolong the life of the UK's newest road. [...] Tarmac spokesman Brian Kent said the company was not suggesting there was anything wrong with Mills & Boon novels. "We want to reassure Mills & Boon readers that we're not just picking on their favourite books - other books are down there too."'

Anonymous, 2005. 'Mills & Boon gets a makeover', The Sydney Morning Herald, January 7, 2005.[5] On the launch of Harlequin's Bombshell series, feminism and romance's response to changes in society.

Anonymous, 2006. 'In The Mood For Love: The Rise of Romantic Fiction in the U.K.', The Book Standard, November 09, 2006.[6]

Alberge, Dalya, 2006. 'Romance loses allure after book lovers turn to crime', The Times, February 10, 2006.[7] 'Thrillers have beaten bodice-rippers as library favourites but a children’s writer reigns supreme'. [About the most-borrowed books in UK libraries.]

August, Melissa, 2005. 'Sheikhs and the Serious Blogger: This summer, romance novels turn to the desert — and bloggers are riveted', Time, Monday, Aug. 22, 2005.[8]

Baverstock, Alison, 2004. 'Supermarket sex: It's a bestseller: Forget fainting females: would-be writers of romantic fiction should make their heroines feisty and their plots taut', The Times, August 11, 2004. [9]

Bellafante, Ginia, 2006. 'A Romance Novelist’s Heroines Prefer Love Over Money', The New York Times, August 23, 2006. [10] [This is about Nora Roberts]

Blake, Catherine S., 2003. 'Mormon romance novels seduce book buyers', Casper Star Tribune, March 08, 2003.[11]

Brown, Janelle, 1999. 'Forbidden Romance?', Salon, Sept. 29, 1999.[12] [This item is about romance and epublishing.]

Brumback, Kate, 2006. 'Romance Writers Changing Plots', Washington Post, Friday, July 28, 2006. [13][Report on the 2006 RWA Conference in Atlanta and current trends. Another version of the same article is available here ]

Buonfiglio, Michelle, 2006. 'Desire Surges For Romance Novels: Genre Has 64 Million Readers, Still Growing', WNBC.com, October 6, 2006. [14] [This includes quotations from academics Eric Selinger and Bill Gleason]

Craig, Amanda, 2006. 'The Language of Love', The Telegraph, 13 February 2006.[15] 'Literary snobs have always been rude about romantic fiction, but the genre is one of the oldest and most distinguished in literature and the writing has never been more interesting, says Amanda Craig.'

Cuthbert, Kate, 2006. 'In Love With Love', The Courier Mail, April 22, 2006.[16] 'Erotica may be the new buzzword in women's publishing but romance novels have been breaking sexual barriers from the start.'

Danford, Natalie, 2005. 'Isn't It Romantic?: From vampires to clinch-free covers— booksellers speak out on what's hot and what's not', Publishers Weekly, 11/15/2004.[17]

Danford, Natalie, 2005. 'Embraced by Romance', Publishers Weekly, 11/21/2005.[18] "RWA's strength is that it's got unpublished members. That's where all the juice comes from."

Danford, Natalie, Lucinda Dyer, Karen Holt and Judith Rosen, 2003. 'Toujours l'Amour: Publishers are seeking to increase readership by diversifying subgenres and adding new category niches', Publishers Weekly, 12/1/2003.[19]

Dang, Dan Thanh, 2006. 'Spicing it up: The once formulaic romance novel, in which all the action happened in sidelong glances and behind closed doors, has gone explicit in new and racier books by old stalwarts like Harlequin', Baltimore Sun, June 21, 2006. [20]

Dyer, Lucinda, 2005. 'Romance: In Its Own Time', Publishers Weekly, 6/13/2005.[21] 'When it comes to attracting readers, corset-wearing heiresses are finding it harder to compete with stiletto-heeled executives. So-called "historicals," once the dominant subgenre of romance books, are losing out to contemporary novels.'

Eng, Dinah, 2004. 'Strong, sexy women save the day, get their man', USA Today, 10/25/2004.[22] 'Enter the kick-butt heroines.'

English, Shirley, 2005. 'Devil in a Kilt may be ravishing the US, but the reality leaves Scots women cold', The Times, April 02, 2005.[23]

Farquharson, Kenny, 2006. 'The write way to fall in love: Ever wondered how to create the perfect alpha male? Enrol on a course in Mills & Boon romantic fiction writing and you’ll soon find out', The Sunday Times, May 14, 2006. [24]

Fitzgerald, Sara, 2006. 'Romance, Writ Large', The Washington Post, Sunday, April 30, 2006.[25] 'A Tried-and-True Genre Of Novels Expands, And Business Is Booming.'

Goodwin, Daisy, 2006. 'Confessions of a heroine addict', The Sunday Times, September 17, 2006.[26]

Gracen, Julia, 1999. 'Dangerous LOVE: The murder of a romance novelist by her dashing but abusive husband has fans asking tough questions', Salon, June 17, 1999.[27]

Gracen, Julia, 1999. 'Too darn hot', Salon, Oct. 5, 1999.[28] 'Romance fans clash over a new breed of explicit, kinky love story.'

Hawtree, Christopher, 2000. 'Obituary: Alan Boon', The Guardian, Friday August 11, 2000.[29] 'The man who made a million bosoms heave with passion'.

Hobbs, Belinda, 'What Do Women Really Want?', Hir@gana Times, Japan-Behind the Scenes, not dated. [30]

Jones, Tracy, 1997. 'Get your bodice-ripping hands off my genre!'. Salon, Oct. 7, 1997. ['There hasn't been a heaving bosom in a decent romance novel for years - but there has been plenty of guilt-free, female-friendly sex. Maybe that's why men keep bashing romances.'] [31]

Kean, Danuta, 2005. 'Let's hear it for romance', The Guardian, Thursday April 14, 2005.[32] 'Danuta Kean on the real, shameful reasons we're so snooty about romantic fiction.'

Kennedy, Maev, 2000. 'An era swoons away as Mills and Boon goes photographic', The Guardian, Thursday July 13, 2000.[33] 'The most shattering literary news of the new millennium broke yesterday, the announcement that Mills and Boon is to abandon its cover drawings in favour of "modern imagery which shows empowered women" - ie, cover photographs.'

Kirkham, Chris, 2006. 'Passion Deep in the Heart of the Metro: Romance Novel Fans React to Slight', Washington Post, Tuesday, October 10, 2006. [34]

Memmott, Carol, 2006. ‘Romance novels for women get frankly sexual’, USA Today, 20 February 2006.[35]

Mehegan, David, 2004. 'The new romantics: A local couple are passionate about publishing love stories for gay men', The Boston Globe, May 22, 2004.[36]

Montagne, Renée, 2002. 'Romance Novel Cover Stories: Cover Art Reflects Shifting Tastes, Mores over the Decades', NPR, Feb. 14, 2002.[37]

Morris, Catherine Avril, 2003. 'The latest in lusty lit: They don't rip bodices like they used to', Metro Times, 1/15/2003. [Mostly a Harlequin Temptation reader, she explains that 'the term "bodice ripper." Coined by the media and still used — by the media — to describe any and all romance novels [...] has been both outmoded and out of favor for decades'].[38]

Moser, Margaret, 2000. 'Looking for Love in All the Right Places: New Writers of the Purple Prose', The Austin Chronicle.[39] [The item focuses on the 'Romantic Times magazine's 18th annual Booklovers Convention', and the cover models but also includes other issues.]

Omer, Sevil, 2006. 'Hot, waterproof romance novels beckon bathers', Reno Gazette-Journal, 2/24/2006.[40]

Pacio, Nerissa, 2006. 'Sex between the commas: Authors Turn up Heat in Women's Romance Novels', San Jose Mercury News, Sun, Mar. 19, 2006.[41]

Park, Michael Y., 2002. 'Reading True Romance', Fox News, August 28, 2002.[42]

Pavao, Kate, 2003. 'Out of the Closet: Now more than ever, gay and lesbian characters are prominently featured in YA fiction', Publishers Weekly, 12/1/2003.[43] [These books are perhaps not marketed as 'romance' but one of the readers quoted in the piece says that 'above all these are passionate love stories, which are just so appealing and heartening for an adult reader'.]

Reardon, Patrick T., 2006. 'The mystery of sheik romance novels', Chicago Tribune, April 24, 2006.[44]

Regis, Pamela, 2004. 'Romance: Bestselling popular novelists keep it all in the family', Washington Post, Sunday, October 24, 2004; Page BW13. [45]

Reynolds, Diane, 2006. 'Revealing the history of Romance novels', Carroll County Times, Wednesday, June 14, 2006. [46] [This is mostly an summary of comments by Pamela Regis]

Rosen, Judith, 2004. 'What They Do for Love: Agents discuss their multi-faceted roles in bringing romance into print', Publishers Weekly, 11/15/2004.[47] [At the foot of the article several prominent romance authors, including Connie Brockway, Susan Wiggs, Eloisa James, Mary Balogh and Jo Beverley, talk about the writers and stories which gave them inspiration, most often Heyer but also Holt, Cinderella and others.

Sabadus, Aura, 2006. 'Authors put the case for romance', The Scotsman, Sat 19 Aug 2006.[48]

Sandler, Lauren, 2001. 'Throbbing hearts and thumping Bibles', Salon, July 12, 2001.[49] 'Christian authors are staking their claim on pop culture's steamiest preserve: Romance novels.'

Stenhouse, David, 2005. 'America is turned on by kilt-ripping yarns: Sales of Scottish romance novels are rocketing in the US, where readers lust for a Highland fling', The Sunday Times, March 27, 2005.[50]

Tellez, Roseanne, 2006. 'Romance Novels Turn Up The Heat In Sex Sellers', cbs2chicago.com.[51]

Urbina, Ian, 2006. 'That Which Simmers Is Not to Be Dissed', The New York Times, October 10, 2006. 'Plato’s “Republic” or bodice ripper? A Washington subway advertisement compares the two, and has irked fans of romance novels'. [52]

Weber, Bruce, 1999. 'Romance Novelists: Profits Without Honor', The New York Times, August 3, 1999. [53]

Williams, Zoe, 2005. ‘Get Real’, The Guardian, G2 section, Thursday 11 August 2005.[54] 'Mills & Boon is to get a makeover, ditching the requisite fairytale ending. Surely that's missing the point, says Zoe Williams.'

Wiser, Paige, 2006. 'Romance reigns on the love bus', Chicago Sun-Times, August 23, 2006.[55]

Witchel, Alex, 2005. 'A New Romance', The New York Times, June 12, 2005.[56] 'Say amen, Dorothy. This Oz is the brave new world of the gay male romance novel.'

Wolff, Isabel, 2004. 'In defence of romance', The Guardian, Tuesday March 2, 2004.[57] 'Isabel Wolff is proud to be part of the romantic fiction tradition that includes the Brontës, Tolstoy and Austen.'

Wyatt, Edward, 2004. ' "Sorry, Harlequin," She Sighed Tenderly, "I'm Reading Something Else"', The New York Times, August 17, 2004.[58]

Zaitchik, Alexander, 2003. ‘The Romance Writers of America convention is just super’, New York Press, Vol 16: 30, 22 July 2003.[59]