RITA ® Award-Winning Author of Fantasy Romance
//A round-up today of some great books I’ve been reading, and an excellent movie rec. Also thoughts on Connectedness (hat tip to Becca Syme), aggressively refilling the well, how to know when to push on drafting vs. when to revise, my new release plan, and why genres “die.”
//Happy 10th Anniversary to THE MARK OF THE TALA! I’m talking about why that was a milestone book for me and the journey from crack ho to the rise of #Romantasy. Also being an intuitive writer and how that impacts my process, especially revision. And balancing a traditional publishing career with an indie one.
//I’m filling you all in on my editorial meeting with my Tor editors and my agent and, as requested, explaining what it’s like to discuss an upcoming contracted book with only an amorphous idea, as I don’t/can’t outline ahead.
//April Fool’s Day and the cruelest prank I ever witnessed, my favorite reader compliment to get, and how author ROI varies depending on short or long term. Also, Clifton Strengths, Becca Syme, and what I’ve learned about Connectedness.
//Some schooling today on business, things authors should really know, and arcania on how traditional publishing decides how to handle releases. Also, the “new” genre term Romantasy and why I think it came to be coined.
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//Happy (almost) Mardi Gras! I’m talking planning author finances over the longer term, offering some predictions on the rise and (inevitable, eventual) decline of Romantasy, and looking at the 10 year anniversary of THE MARK OF THE TALA.
//More foreign rights news, this time Russian! Also a fun panel on Romantasy tomorrow at Beastly Books and Instagram Live. And thoughts on influencing social media algorithms being the new superstition.
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Join me next Saturday, Feb 10th, 4:00 – 5:30 PM ET/2:00 – 3:30 PM MT for a super fun panel: “In Our Romantasy Era” – how and why romantasy stories are resonating with readers and authors today. The event will take place in person at Beastly Books in Santa Fe, NM and online on Instagram live @farofeb and @beastlybooks418. Should be a great conversation!
//The new portmanteau term “Romantasy” being used for Fantasy Romance and Romantic Fantasy, my own personal history with writing cross-genre and being a crack ho, and how I got namechecked in a most validating way!
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A weird thing about me: I’m always a bit ahead of my time. I don’t know why this is, but it’s been true all of my life. And it’s not nearly as cool as it sounds (if it does sound cool). In truth, it’s not a great thing at all, because it means I’m never in the full swing of the cultural zeitgeist. I’m the odd duck, the one not marching along with everyone else.
Many of you have heard these stories of my trajectory (which implies a straight course and steady momentum which would be entirely incorrect). In summary:
Fast forward to today and the coining of the term Romantasy.
A number of readers have contacted me recently, having just encountered the term, largely via the new Goodreads Choice Awards category. I’m not sure who coined the term, but the portmanteau of Romance + Fantasy has now come to encompass Fantasy Romance and Romantic Fantasy. This has been occurring first in the Indie spaces and now is moving into traditional publishing as they catch onto the trend. Just last February – on Valentine’s Day – Devi Pillai, Publisher at Tor, the notable publisher of science fiction and fantasy (SFF), announced that they’d created a new imprint: Bramble. Monique Patterson, Editorial Director at St. Martin’s Press, moved over to head up Bramble, which will be SFF + Romance.
In very cool news for me, Monique was featured in Publisher’s Weekly Notables of 2023 and namechecked me! (Along with my friend and colleague, Amanda Bouchet.) Monique said:
Romantasy may be the shiny new portmanteau on the block, but the fusing of speculative fiction and romance, Patterson notes, is nothing novel. She points to series by such authors as Amanda Bouchet and Jeffe Kennedy that would likely be categorized as romantasy now, but came out before the term was coined. It was tough putting out such books in years past, but they “would probably do wonderfully now,” she says.
Isn’t that cool? I was so pleased to be mentioned in this context. From Crack Ho to Trailblazer!
Ain’t that just the way it goes?