Sue Grimshaw: Random House: What Makes Romance Go Round and Round

Giveaway Alert:  Sue Grimshaw is giving away 3 ebook copies of Desired (by Stacey Kennedy) so be sure to leave a comment AND your email address. Giveaway ends 5 August.

Industry trends in romance are cyclical -- cover looks change from year to year, storylines have their ups and downs, even the telling of a story has its transitions -- whether to tell it in first person or third. Romance readers may be loyal to the genre but they do like it when we change things up a bit.

I know as a reader, I too enjoy variety. Most of us have our favorite sub-genres, and contemporary seems to be it these days, but we do like to read other types of stories too.

Remember the strength of paranormal romances just a few years ago? Although I still enjoy reading them there are many more stories that are grabbing my attention.



Fifty Shades of Grey certainly drove reader interest to erotic romance - Loveswept's USA Today's bestselling author Stacey Kennedy has benefited from that trend and continues with her Club Sin series, DESIRED, -- just released last month. BDSM and dungeons are hot!




 New Adult continues to appeal to readers and really has become more of the norm. Readers now are looking for younger heroes and heroines. Cecy Robson will benefit from this trend with her Loveswept release, ONCE PERFECT, on sale in October -- "His life was never easy. Hers wasn’t supposed to be this hard. They come from different worlds, but fate lures them together in a way neither expected in Cecy Robson’s raw, steamy series debut." The more angst an author can incorporate into her story the more appealing it will be to readers today.

But, there is room for sweet and sassy too! Lauren Layne has defied odds within the NA genre with ISN'T SHE LOVELY - - her next release in September, BROKEN, is sure to win readers hearts too. Who can resist a girl with secrets, a guy with scars, and a love that could save them both. Now that's romance!









Smart, clever writing is always appealing to romance readers and Cassie Mae follows Lauren's footsteps with, THE REAL THING, on sale this month. If you like wit you'll adore both of these authors, very smart and talented storytellers.

As mentioned earlier, contemporary trends are hot - really hot, and they come in a variety of stories too. I think that is the biggest challenge for us all -- to keep things the same but different. For example:
How many billionaires can a romance reader read? A lot, especially if we keep the story and characters unique  - perfect examples of this include New York Times bestselling author Tracy Wolff's recently released, ADDICTED.

Laura Marie Altom's, CONTROL, also has that special touch to endear readers to the H/h from the start . . . Liam Stone is equally as fabulous as Ethan, but maybe not quite as wealthy.

SEALS continue to appeal to fans, and when wrapped in small town settings you're sure to have success, like Claudia Connor's, WORTH THE FALL.

And readers are still very sports minded. Hockey resonates with romance fans, which always sort of baffles me as in real life few have a full set of teeth! But, they are very resilient and maybe that is what makes them so hot - Sawyer Bennett's, ALEX, will release in October and he definitely fits the bill. Alpha heroes rule!!




Every month readers have a vast variety of romances to choose from -- and the trends are almost organic. The trick is to be able to monitor what is working and what doesn't and hope that you've got a strong enough idea of what readers want.

Bottom line - a good book is what sells, and that could mean something different to you than to me, but whenever I find wonderfully written characters I'll follow them anywhere and I think readers do too.

So - whatcha' reading?

Don't forget to leave a comment (with your email address) for a chance to receive one of 3 giveaway copies of Desired by Stacey Kennedy!

Happy Romance!
Sue Grimshaw ∙ Category Specialist & Editor at Large - Penguin | Random House Publishing Group | BBD - Loveswept, Flirt
sgrimshaw@randomhouse.com
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