Confessions of a Series Killer… the shifting romance market

February 7, 2015                             Warren-Trumbull County Public Library

February 14, 2015                          Erie County Library (speaking w/ Susan Gable)

 Handout

Confessions of a Series Killer…
The shifting romance market

Holly Jacobs

I've written for a bunch of Harlequin lines that have died, so I moved on to new ones.  From Duets, to Silhouette Romance, to Flipside, to Signature, to Everlasting Love, to SuperRomance.  And I’ve written for a number of publishers—Montlake Romance, Harlequin Romance, Avalon Romance and Precious Gems…plus I’ve done some indie published books.  Let’s just say, I get around (in the nicest possible way)!

I've taught workshops on comedies and love talking about how closely comedy and drama are when it comes to writing.  Take one premise and skew it half a step to the right it's comedy, half a step to the left and it's emotionally angsting drama.  But no matter what type of story I’m telling, there’s a universality about all my books…my voice. 

What is a writer’s voice?  Part of it has to do with a writer’s world view…it’s seeing the world through their eyes and then filtering it through a character’s view as well.  And the biggest part of it is in the actual storytelling.  How they share those views with the reader.  My ‘voice’ is actually my writing fingerprint.

What readers are reading…
Vampires/paranormal

Sex/Shades of Gray

Bonnet romances

Comedy/drama

Westerns, historical, regencies, RS, fantasy, paranormal, drama, sweet, small town, erotic, inspirational, YA, women’s fiction.

How readers are reading…

eBooks…expanding the market.

audio

Borrowing/buying

Amazon/stand alone

Libraries/technology

How readers are shopping…
Shifting buying/borrowing habits.

Stats: Most of my stats for the talk are
courtesy of Romance Writers of America.

Bio:

Holly Jacobs leads a life full of romance and adventure. From skydiving to jet-setting around Europe, from snorkeling in coral reefs to writing while wearing beautiful silk peignoir sets and popping chocolate bonbons, Holly Jacobs leads a life that is the epitome of romance... Well, actually her fictional life sounds more interesting, but not better than Holly Jacobs' real life! Really, she's the happily married mother of four. She cooks a lot, gardens and weaves baskets! 
www.HollyJacobs.com

Carry Her Heart, preorder now

I visited with my friend Sia the other day and we talked about my evolution as a writer.