Smart Podcast, Trashy Books: A Romance Novel Podcast

[bookaside slug="second-chance-on-cypress-lane"] My guest today is Reese Ryan, YouTube host and author of the new book, Second Chance on Cypress Lane. We talk about her book, the levels of food p0rn found inside, and about her career - she released four books in 2020! FOUR! Her books for Harlequin Desire have some gorgeous covers (check them out in the show notes!) and her stories have delicious themes across several genres. It's a really fun conversation.Show notes for this episode: https://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/podcast/434-fried-food-family-drama-and-jazz-sexy-small-towns-with-reese-ryan...Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amanda and I are talking with VE Schwab, author of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, a book we both enjoyed tremendously. We talk about the 10-year process of writing it and the power of telling an immortality tale about a person who walks through history as a woman. We touch on queerness, achievement, erasure, representation, and also discuss death, loneliness, grief and immortality. About halfway through we take a deep dive into death rituals and experiences with grief and loss, with some specifics at about 42:00-43:00, so be aware if that’s not a topic you can engage with right now. (Take care of you, ok? Thank you.)Stay tuned to the end for a special surprise when Amanda’s roommate finds out who Amanda’s chatting with....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michelle Hazen is a romance author and a wildlife tortoise biologist, a semi-nomadic career (the biologist part) (and also the author part) that informs much of her writing. We talk about saving baby animals, writing about trauma, life in the desert doing biologist work, and romance tropes that work really well in the desert....Music: purple-planet.com...Looking for a podcast to try? Have you checked out Tea & Strumpets?Tea & Strumpets is a lively and engaging podcast dedicated entirely to Historical Romance! Join hosts and friends Zoë and Kelsey each episode as they discuss all the steamy (and sometimes tepid) details of the Regency Romance genre. And since the regency technically only lasted 9 years, generally we're talking post-wigs but pre-telephone! Find us wherever you download podcasts, or at RomancePod.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’re back with more questions from our Patreon community! We have questions about books, romance covers, and of course, food. Strong opinions? Yes! Silliness! Also yes!Thank you again to the Patreon community for providing the very silly, very much needed questions....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the help of the Podcast Patreon community, Amanda and I are answering silly questions to help get us all through Hellweek.If you're like me, and a little stressed/overwhelmed/chin-deep-in-existential-dread, a little silliness goes a long way. So Amanda and I are bringing you a temporary respite with an extremely silly Q&A with half the Patreon’s incredible questions - the other half will be in a future episode. Think The Most Goofy AMA You've Ever Heard. Is there background construction noise AND dog barking? Of course! We’re talking candy, bedside tables, time travel, cheese plate perfection, and more - with extra silliness. We hope it gets you through....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

My guest today is Dr. Hilary Levey Friedman, Brown University professor and author of the new book Here She Is: The Complicated Reign of the Beauty Pageant in America. I had a chance to read the book and was so eager to discuss it, in particular because of the ways in which public conceptions of beauty pageants overlap substantially with public conceptions of romance. We talk about pageants, history, popular culture, and several surprising elements of the culture of Miss America - for example, the number of former pageant contestants who go into politics and public service....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today Amanda and I are talking with Gretchen McCulloch, author of Because Internet and host of the podcast “Lingthusiasm.” If you like listening to a really smart person with intricate knowledge of what’s going on beneath the mundane, this is an episode for you. We start by fangirling about Courtney Milan and creative use of language in some of her favorite novels, and then we talk about internet language. We also talk about how the use of language as a tool for socializing is something we’re all redefining. The words we use, and the spaces in which the words, happen are changing rapidly, and now are even more different.This is a longer episode because we talk about So Many Things. Amanda and I both read and really enjoyed Because Internet, and it was a treat to talk to the author about her book, and about how language and socializing are evolving....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We received an email from Megan, who wanted to know about the possibility of building a rating system for sex in books. TL;DR, we don’t think it’s entirely feasible given how subjective heat levels can be for different readers, but the idea gives us a lot to talk about.We also talk about Prime Day this week, my younger child’s bar mitzvah, which was last weekend, virtually, from our backyard, and different levels of friendship.What about you? What would your sex rating system look like? What elements would you want to highlight? Think it’s doable? Email us! We love hearing from you....Music: purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Happy Valentine’s Day!Amanda and I are chatting about everything from bookstores and trade romance to her Reylo fanfic. Our conversation is inspired by a question from Jasmine, who is part of our Patreon. She wanted to ask us about sci-fi and space romances, and ask for recommendations. Amanda’s much more fluent in space romance than I am, but we absolutely have recs, suggestions, theories about required elements, and potential reasons why space is SO appealing right now.This episode is brought to you by Best Women's Erotica of the Year, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel, and published by Cleis Press.Music: https://www.purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to part four and the final episode in my series on RWA: One Month Later. We’ve heard from C Chilove, Laurel Cremant, and Diana Neal, the officers of CIMRWA, from past RWA president HelenKay Dimon, and from Jessie Edwards, Marketing and PR Manager for RWA.Today, I’m speaking with Courtney Milan.There’s a lot to process, and this is a somewhat emotional interview wherein we talk about what happened, her reactions, and what’s next for her. We also talk intermittently though non-specifically about the physical manifestations of trauma so please be aware going into this episode if that’s something difficult for you to listen to.I’ll be taking this Friday, February 7, off, and I’ll be back on February 14 - Valentine’s Day - with Amanda. See you then!Music: https://www.purple-planet.comYou can subscribe to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you catch your favorite shows! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to part three of my four-episode series, RWA: One Month Later. Today, we’re hearing from RWA.Jessie Edwards, Marketing and PR Manager for Romance Writers of America, joins me to answer questions about loss of trust, steps being taken to address member concerns, filling leadership positions, and what comes next for RWA, for the national conference, and for the membership.Check your podcast feed tomorrow, February 3, for the other episodes in this series, including an episode with the officers of CIMRWA, and a conversation with RWA past president HelenKay Dimon. Tomorrow, February 3, you’ll hear from Courtney Milan.Music: https://www.purple-planet.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to part two of a special four episode series on RWA: One Month Later. We’ve heard from C Chilove, Laurel Cremant, and Diana Neal, the officers of CIMRWA, and today I’m speaking with RWA past president HelenKay Dimon.I interviewed HelenKay in late September 2019 about the end of her term as president. Now we’re looking back on the past month since the RWA decision against Courtney Milan was released.We cover a lot in this episode, and there are a number of questions - ones we don’t know the answers to. We might never know. But as someone who oversaw prior ethics committees, and who served on the board as President, HelenKay knows a lot of what is supposed to happen, what might have happened here, and what may have gone wrong.Check your podcast feed tomorrow, February 2, for part three of this series on RWA: One Month Later, when I’ll be interviewing Jessie Edwards, Marketing and PR Manager for RWA. Then, on February 3, you’ll hear from Courtney Milan.Music: https://www.purple-planet.comYou can subscribe to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you catch your favorite shows! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to episode 388, and the first of a four-episode special event: RWA: One Month Later.I recorded this episode on the 23 of January, one month to the date when a decision from Romance Writers of America was delivered to Courtney Milan informing her that due to an ethics complaint, she was being barred from leadership for her lifetime, and suspended from RWA for one year. If you were online, you might have seen some mention of it.In that month, a LOT happened. And while some major changes have taken place, there’s also a lack of movement, and a lot to discuss. So I wanted to create a time capsule of sorts to capture where we are right now, and more importantly, feature the stories and perspectives of those who were most intimately involved.Because of the timeliness of these episodes, I’m doing a special miniseries: I’m releasing this episode on 31 January. Tomorrow, February 1, I have an interview with past president HelenKay Dimon, and then, February 2, I have a conversation with Jessie Edwards, RWA’s Marketing and PR Manager. Finally, on February 3, I have an interview with Courtney Milan.Today, I’m speaking with C Chilove, Laurel Cremant, and Diana Neal, the officers of CIMRWA, the Cultural, Interracial, Multicultural Special Interest Chapter of Romance Writers of America. They created a petition to recall the sitting president of RWA - twice - in the two weeks after the decision about Courtney Milan was made public by Alyssa Cole. Their petition was ultimately successful and led to the resignation of Damon Suede.I am so excited for you to meet the officers of CIMRWA. We’re going to hear about what happened from their perspective, and hear what a great team they are. They are incredibly inspiring to listen to as they support one another. AND THEN we end with KDrama AND book recommendations because obviously.Don't forget, there are more episodes coming. Check your podcast feed on February 1, 2, and 3 for the next episodes in this special series on RWA: One Month Later.Music: https://www.purple-planet.comYou can subscribe to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you catch your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jen Lois, Professor of Sociology at Western Washington University in Bellingham, and Joanna Gregson, Professor of Sociology at Pacific Lutheran University, sit down with Sarah to discuss studying the community of romance from a sociological perspective. We talk about the sneers and the leers that romance writers and readers are subjected to, and the gender dynamics of the community. You’ll also hear Joanna’s cat purring near the end, which is totally excellent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah sits down with Dr. Joanna Gregson and Dr Jen Lois, two professors of sociology who are doing a years-long study of the sociology of the romance writing community. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane and Sarah discuss contemporary romance, especially those successful self-published books that are essentially category romances. Plus, book recommendations, and book characters that made us so irritated we had to stop reading. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane interview New York Times bestselling author Sylvia Day about her book "Bared to You," and about her upcoming presidency of RWA. Erin Galloway and Cindy Hwang are also part of the roundtable of much laughing, discussing how they brought Day's self-pubbed book to Penguin, and the response the book has received. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

n this podcast, we look at summer reading! Jane and Sarah sit down with Jane's ARC drawer (That's a real thing) and take a look at the books we're excited about coming this summer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane interview Nalini Singh, who is trapped in their hotel room, unable to escape the questioning. The good news: we learn which US reality tv show Nalini is secretly addicted to. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah tunes in to the DBSA Podcast voicemail and adds listener messages to the podcast as we discuss what we're reading. Plus, there's an interview with Sarah's mother in law about audiobooks she loves. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane discuss the romance canon - what it is, who is in it, and why the term 'canon' might mean different things to different people. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane talk about the upcoming DABWAHA, A March Madness Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane take a look at your suggestions as to the best name for a book wherein a hymen is located in the incorrect place. We also talk about other things, like romance novels. No, really. Swear! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane discuss book buying, reading, and reviewing, and Jane attempts to recommend a book to Sarah. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah & Jane talk about coltish legs, books that make us cry, being happy drunks, and werewolf fiction best-of. We also talk about Lisa Kleypas' upcoming 'Rainshadow Road.' Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane and Sarah talk about the ridiculous threshold, where hyperbolic characters and plots become too much - and why that threshold varies for different readers depending on genre. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sarah convinces Jane to talk about the Agony / Ecstasy Anthology, and we reminisce about old ebook stores and old reading devices. We also discuss schmoopy epilogues, were-bears, and books we're reading right now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane talk about what we're reading, whether there's more cursing in romance than there was previously, and what we wish for in a paranormal werewolf romance. We also talk about football. Really. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane and Sarah interview Sarah Mayberry, talk about her books and her current work in progress, and make her try on an American accent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week: we peek in the mailbox and answer listener email. Are paranormals and vampire romances on the way out? Have we reached saturation? What surprises does our email inbox hold for us? And what book will Sarah read aloud this time? All the answers are here for your enjoyment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane interviews Sarah and asks merciless questions about Everything I Know About Love, I Learned from Romance Novels, Sarah's new book, which is in stores and libraries now. We also talk about romance novels we love that feature wonderful female relationships. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are all about romangst this week: angsty romances with a lot of emotion, strife, and (we hope) uplifting, believable endings. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane and Sarah talk about digital backlist, and old skool romances they love. We also discuss prices, and what we are willing to pay for older titles released digitally. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We each interviewed historical romance author Stephanie Laurens in support of her new novel, "Viscount Breckenridge to the Rescue," and learn more about Avon's KISS & Teal promotion this month. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We're back, talking about popular series, historical romance, streak reading, erotic romance, and Jane's term for small town contemporary romances. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane start the podcast up again with a discussion of what we're reading, and what Harlequin Presents novels we like. We also discuss at length a new book, "A Lady Awakened" by Cecilia Grant. Good Book Noise is made, and Sarah owes Jane a puppy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah and Jane talk about their favorite romantic tropes, from unrequited love to the smoldering hero. What are your faves? We also interview Carolyn Jewel about her book "Scandal," and the power, or lack thereof, that women had in historical time periods. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Victoria Dahl, author of "Talk Me Down," joins us to talk about small towns, sexually intelligent heroines, and responding to reviews. Then Jane and Sarah talk about talking dirty- but don't actually get to it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We have a delicious (and somewhat squeeful) chat with author Claudia Dain about romance heroines who are subversive, powerful, and deviously smart. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The emergence of epublishing and small presses, and a discussion of market penetration, with special guest Angela James from Sam Hain publishing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We retread some of the economic discussion from our earlier podcast, but we have more to say about what's selling, most notably ebooks. We also have Malle Valick from Harlequin with us to discuss all things bright and digital from Harlequin. Enjoy! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah's too close to the phone, Jane is driving, and we're recording our conversation. As Jane says, we are the picture of amateurs. Come watch us grow! Or, listen, as the case may be. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.