About this episode
How did love stories about vampires, cowboys, and wealthy dukes become the highest-grossing fiction genre in the world? Zachary Crockett gets swept away. SOURCES: Delaney Diamond , romance novelist. Danielle Flores , high school math teacher and avid romance novel reader. Brenda Hiatt , romance novelist. Diane Moggy , vice president of editorial at Harlequin. RESOURCES: " Even as Overall Book Sales Are Declining, Romance Novels Are on the Rise ," by Elena Burnett, Sarah Handel, and Juana Summers ( All Things Considered, 2023). " Key Takeaways from the Authors Guild’s 2023 Author Income Survey ," press release by the Authors Guild (2023). " How Amazon Turned Everyone Into a Romance Writer (and Created an Antitrust Headache) ," by Ann Kjellberg ( Observer , 2022). " Vivian Stephens Helped Turn Romance Writing Into a Billion-Dollar Industry. Then She Got Pushed Out ," by Mimi Swartz ( Texas Monthly, 2020). " A Brief History of the Romance Novel ," by Amanda Pagan ( New York Public Library Blog, 2019). " How Harlequin Became the Most Famous Name in Romance ," by Kelly Faircloth ( Jezebel, 2015). " Fifty Shades of Amish: A Strange Genre of the Romance Novel ," by Leah McGrath Goodman ( Newsweek, 2015). Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.