Donna Hill
May 11, 2021 | 1:01:18 |
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 even had her books adapted for TV. Her career started in 1990 when she published Rooms of the Heart. Since then she has gone on to publish more than 80 novels and novellas, including her most recent book Confessions in B Flat.
Shirley Hailstock
May 18, 2021 | 00:54:01 |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 Career Achievement Award from Romantic Times Magazine, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the New York City Chapter of RWA, and an Emma Merritt Service Award from RWA. Her novel, Legacy is listed as one of the 100 Greatest Romance Novels of the 20th Century.
Reese Ryan
May 25, 2021 | 01:04:40 |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, Second Chance on Cypress Lane, and Waking up Married.
Reese Ryan is the author of over twenty novels. She is the past president of her local Romance Writers of America chapter and the 2018 Donna Hill Breakout Author.
LaQuette
June 2, 2021 | 01:10:25 |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 finalist for her book titled Under His Protection. This award-winning writer has received the 2016 Author of the Year Golden Apple Award and the 2016 Write Touch Readers Award
Kennedy Ryan
Jun 8, 2021 | 01:19:34 | Best-selling writer Kennedy Ryan joins Julie to talk 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-published novel Long Shot in the Contemporary Romance Long area. They deep dive into her books series All the King’s Men, Queen Move, and her latest release
Reel.
Kennedy Ryan is a RITA Award Winner and Top 25 Amazon Bestseller. She has also published her writings in Modern Mom Magazine, Chicken Soup for the Soul, USA Today, and many others.
Piper Huguley
June 15, 2021 | 01:16:39 | Best-selling writer Piper Huguley joins Julie to talk 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 Milford College Series.” In addition, she talks about A Virtuous Ruby from her “Migrations of the Heart Series” as well as her forthcoming books: her Hallmark novel Sweet Tea, and By design: The Story of Ann Lowe, Society’s Best Kept Secret, a historical fiction which will be published by William Morrow.
Piper Huguley is an Amazon Bestselling writer for her books The Lawyer’s Luck and The Preacher’s Promise. The Preacher’s Promise was also named a top ten Historical Romance in Publisher’s Weekly by Beverly Jenkins.
Katrina Jackson
June 22, 2021 | 00:52:13 | 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 novels’ themes. She and I also discuss several of her books: From Scratch, Office Hours, The Hitman, Encore, Grand Theft New Year’s Eve, and her current release Back in the Day.
An Associate Professor of history, Katrina is a college professor by day who writes romances by the weekend, when her cats allow. She writes high heat, diverse, and mostly queer erotic romances and erotica. She can be reached at @katrinajax.
Adriana Herrera
June 29, 2020 | 01:00:27 | 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 2016 elections and her need to affirm the existence of immigrants; and her need to create romance novels that center diverse characters who are Black and LGBTQ. In this conversation, she and I also talk about her Dreamer series as well as her additional publications: Finding Joy, Mangoes and Mistletoe, Here to Stay, “The Duke Makes Me Feel," and her newest release One Week to Claim it All.
Adriana is an outspoken advocate for diversity in romance and has written for Remezcla and Bustle. She is one of the co-creators of the Queer Romance PoC Collective. Her Dreamers series has received starred reviews from Publisher's Weekly and Booklist and has been featured on The TODAY Show on NBC, Entertainment Weekly, NPR, Library Journal and The Washington Post. Her debut, American Dreamer, was selected as one of Booklist's Best Romance Debuts of 2019, and one of the Top 10 Romances of 2019 by Entertainment Weekly.
Celeste Norfleet
July 6, 2021 | 00:52:34 | 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 and readers. We also discuss her current release One Night in Georgia, which tells the story of three friends on a road trip in 1968 from New York to Spelman College in Atlanta, Georgia.
Celeste Norfleet is a best-selling writer of over twenty-five novels and her books have gained critical acclaim and stellar reviews, including nominations for The Rose Award, the Romantic Times Book Review's Reviewers Choice Award, the RT Book Review's Lifetime Achievement Award, and numerous Romance Slam Jam Emma Award nominations.
Eboni Snoe
July 13, 2021 | 00:51:20 | 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.
Veronica Mixon
July 20, 2021 | 00:47:38 | Veronica Mixon recounts her experiences during her years of creating Doubleday's Starlight Romances. In an unexpected turn of conversation, she talks about working with Octavia Butler on an article for Essence magazine and advocating with the editor for higher pay for Butler's books.
Veronica Mixon was an editor at Doubleday for fourteen years from 1974 to 1988. She was hired as an assistant to an editor of Romance and Science fiction novels and then promoted to the editor when her boss left the press. She has worked with many writers, including Barbara Stephens, Millie Ragosta, and Rochelle Alers, building relationships with other Black editors during her time at Doubleday such as Marie Brown at Anchor and Vivian Stephens at Dell.
Chilufiya Safaa
July 27, 2021 | 00:50:11 | 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 was all published by New York publisher Kensington Publishing, her fifth and sixth books, Stolen Dreams and Bittersweet, that were independently published. Safaa also talks about her relationship with Vivian Stephens, the writing coach for her first three books, and about her career publishing traditionally and self-publishing.
Barbara Keaton
August 3, 2021 | 01:05:03 | Barbara Keaton's first romance novel, All I Ask, was published in 2000. 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 Sight, and Show Me!.
Barbara Keaton has written thirteen romance novels, which celebrate black love. In addition to her books, Keaton has also written several articles and editorials that have appeared in various publications: Today's Black Woman Magazine; The Chicago Crusader; The Chicago Defender; The Chicago Reader; Bronze Thrills; True Confessions; and, Affaire de Coeur.
Farrah Rochon
August 17, 2021 | 01:20:02 | 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.
Farrah Rochon wrote and published her 2007 debut novel, Deliver Me, the first in her Holmes Brothers Series. Rochon was named Shades of Romance Magazine's Best New Author of 2007. She has been a Romantic Times Book Reviews Reviewer's Choice Award nominee. In 2015, Farrah won the Emma Award for Author of the Year.
Frederick Smith and Chaz Lamar Cruz
August 24, 2021 | 00:57:51 | 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, published by Kensington, were inspirational to Chaz; their path to becoming co-authors; and how Chaz's career as a poet shape both language and style in their novels.
Besides being co-authors of two novels, Frederick Smith has published three additional novels centering the romantic lives of Black and Latinx queer characters. Chaz L. Cruz is a writer/poet/creative and a lead writer of Handsome the series.
Patricia Vaughn
August 31, 2021 | 00:28:20 |This week historical novelist Patricia Vaughn talks about her experiences writing and publishing her first two historical novels in the 1990s. She discusses how her agent Vivian Stephens helped her to publish her first historical novel Murmur of Rain with Pocket Books in 1996 and talk about her second Shadows on the Bayou.