Sweet to Super Hot
March 26th, 2008 by Michael MayI thought I’d try something different for my first preconference session, so I attended Romance Readers Advisory 101. I sat in the back row with the other three guys.
Romance fiction is often ridiculed as over simplistic, formulaic, and anti-feminist. However, over 64 million Americans read romance novels last year, and romance accounts for about 25% of all library circulation.
Characteristics of the romance genre include a focus on the development of a romantic relationship between two main characters, satisfactory resolution of the relationship or a “happily-ever-after” ending, and readers’ emotional connections to stories and/or characters.
Some sub-genres of romance: Contemporary, Historical, Paranormal, Suspense, Gothic, Regencies, Inspirational, NASCAR, and Chick Lit.
Chick Lit, described as “not my mother’s romance” or “looking for Mr. Right Now,” also includes Brit Lit, Lad Lit, Bride Lit, Mommy Lit, Ethnic Lit, Hen Lit, etc.
How to work with patrons to increase romance circulation:
- Never assume what books patrons might enjoy based on age or appearance
- “Suggest” books or authors rather than “recommend”
- Contact a nearby Romance Writers of America Chapter and invite local authors to speak at your library
- Develop a “genre certification program” for your readers advisory staff
- Create book lists, book displays, bookmarks
- Collect, catalog, and shelve all genre fiction equally
Romance author Elizabeth Boyle summed it up nicely: “We need romance novels. Dreaming big makes you a better person. If we all believed in happy endings, the world would be a better place.”
Tags: boyle, fiction, genre, PLA2008, preconference, RA, romance
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March 26th, 2008 at 9:27 am
Michael, Thanks for attending. I like that point about suggesting instead of recommending, as it seems less pushy and gives readers a bit more room to modify the readers advisory interview, perhaps toward finding books they truly will enjoy. Rick
March 26th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Mike,
Very brave of you to attend this session. My concern with suggesting new titles or authors is the patron’s comfort zone for the more sexy titles that are prevalent in today’s romance series. Therefore I’m always looking for new authors/titles with a slightly “old fashion” romance style. I realize the new Christian romances will meet this need, but they don’t always match certain patrons.
Martha
March 27th, 2008 at 11:34 am
Mike, I like your quote from Elizabeth Boyle. Lily A Long was a Minnesota novelist at the end of the 1800s in Minnesota, and as a Minnesota romance reader (and Library Manager at Hennepin County Library) I thought I’d share a line from her “message to the reader” at the end of “A Squire of Low Degree (1890)”:
“So it was nothing but a love story after all. True; but is there so much love in the world that there is no longer any need of telling its story?”
I believe there will always be a need for telling its story.
April 2nd, 2008 at 10:37 am
Michael, thanks for coming to the session and I hope that stats, comments and thoughts will continue to work for you. On suggesting titles that are less sexy, look for the traditional Regency romances that were published by Signet, but sadly aren’t anymore, and check out Romantic Times for a monthly survey of titles and their “hotness”. Cheers and I hope the rest of your time at the PLA was fabulous.