Hey Romance Lovers!

It's been a busy month over here. I binge read the entire Playing for Keeps series by Becca Mack, which means I am now accepting thoughts, feelings, and emotional support as I recover from my latest fictional hockey obsession. I think that series made me cry even more than Chelsea Curto's D.C. Stars - and that was a sob fest for me.

I had a visit from my wonderful co-author and festival co-conspirator, Tracie. There was plenty of chatting, plotting, and laughing. As always, it's amazing how much inspiration and energy comes from spending time with people who truly understand this strange little publishing world.

One thing we're actively working on behind the scenes is food and drink options for the festival weekend. Books and romance are wonderful, but I've yet to meet a reader or author who can survive an entire event on fictional men alone.

We're currently exploring local vendors, coffee carts, food trucks, and sweet treat suppliers to help keep everyone fuelled throughout the weekend. If you own (or know someone who owns) a coffee van, pizza truck, bakery, food stall, or mobile catering business that might be interested in attending, we'd love to hear from you. Drop us an email and let's chat about bringing some delicious options to the RLF!

There are some author announcements that make you smile, and then there are the ones that make you stare at your phone for five minutes wondering how on earth this is your life.

I'm absolutely thrilled to announce that Instant Sunday Times bestselling author Clare Sager will be joining us at the Romance Literary Festival.

Clare is my OG work wife—the kind of friend who has been there through publishing highs, publishing lows, questionable business decisions, emotional breakdowns, and an increasingly alarming special edition book habit that she has done absolutely nothing to discourage. In fact, she may be (absolutely is!!) partially responsible.

She's also the person who mocked my accent the first time we met in a London bar, which is apparently, how some lifelong friendships begin.

On a professional level, Clare is an incredible author whose success speaks for itself. On a personal level, she's one of the most supportive, generous, talented people I know, and I couldn't be happier to have her as part of the inaugural RLF lineup.

If you've not yet discovered her books, you're in for a treat. If you're already a fan, February can't come soon enough. Having Clare as part of the inaugural festival (and her first signing here on the island!) feels like having a piece of my publishing journey represented at the event, and I couldn't imagine a better person to help us kick things off.

Now grab a cup of tea, get comfortable, and let's dive into this month's updates, bookish goodness, and festival news.

If you've been looking at our website at all, you'll have spied a few authors names are out of the bag.

Clare Sager

Clare Sager is the Sunday Times bestselling author of darkly addictive romantasy full of slow-burn steam, gut-wrenching conflict and morally grey everybody. Dubbed the Queen of Edging by readers, she takes no responsibility for lost sleep or therapy bills.

When she’s not breaking hearts with her books, Clare can usually be found drinking coffee, lifting weights or impulse-buying stationery. She lives in Nottingham, Robin Hood country, so it’s no surprise she writes about characters who don’t always play by the rules.

Amy Oliviera

Brazilian and Irish, Amy Oliveira is a contemporary romance author dedicated to writing about the two things you shouldn’t skip on: therapy and smut.

Amy’s leads are strong, flawed and very open about their mental health struggles. And her heros are understanding, lovable and often pierced.

The combination results in a delicious slow burn with a lot of heart and a lot of heat.

Tickets: Tickets are available to purchase here, at https://romanceliteraryfestival.eventbrite.com

If you're a published author and want to join us for our day two author event, you should grab a ticket. They're limited and going fast.

Jess Snyder

Title: The Architecture of Obsession: How Jacob Tierney and Heated Rivalry built devotion scene by scene (and you can too!)

Description: Most romance writers know what to write. We’re going to learn how to make readers feral. Using Heated Rivalry (the show, not the book) as a masterclass, this course teaches the technical storytelling devices—callbacks, character specificity, pacing, symbolic talismans, and more—that turn casual readers into an obsessed fandom that looks for all the tiny details they missed the first two (eight, forty-one…) times they read the book.

Tracie Delaney

Title: Is TikTok dead? Marketing in 2027 and beyond

Description: The landscape of publishing is a never-ending rollercoaster and the last couple of years has brought challenges including AI books flooding the market, and social media and advertising platforms “not working” any longer. In this session we’ll discuss the various ways we can still get our books in front of rabid readers, and talk bluntly about what it takes to succeed in 2027 and beyond.

How else to keep up to date with our shenanigans? Attendee's Facebook group, Facebook page, follow us on socials: @romanceliteraryfestival, or check out our website.