Fans of Interracial Romance discussion

There are a few authors whose books I became quite fond of that have now started moving away from the bwwm genre.

It's good for authors to grow and develop and seek new audiences, but I can't help but be a bit miffed. The authors I'm taking about are excellent and their move towards more mainstream audiences makes me feel like I've lost them. For years I read nothing but books by and featuring white people and now I've discovered a genre featuring black women, I find it hard to relate to and read about white H/h. Once you go black...

I think if authors want to abandon the genre then it's better to write under a different pen name of the intention is to seek out white readers. That way readers like me don't get suckered into reading works that by black women which aren't actually about black women. I had this happen to me, bought three books at once only to discover the book wasn't targeted to me.

What are your thoughts on this?

As an author and a reader it is always a plus when you know what you are stepping into before you read a book. But like you said, authors need to grow and explore other things.

IMO, the author should have the freedom to write whatever they want to write. As readers, we have the freedom to buy, whatever we want to buy. If the book is exceptional, then I can go with it, multicultural or not... "Love comes in all colors, " so it really doesn't matter to me.

Anino wrote: "IMO, the author should have the freedom to write whatever they want to write. As readers, we have the freedom to buy, whatever we want to buy. If the book is exceptional, then I can go with it, mul..."

I do get a fan's frustration of sudden theme changes without any warning. Because honestly there are tons of mainstream authors that my fandom doesn't transfer in every theme they write. For example love Julie Garwood historicals, but hate her contemporary romance offerings. In that case the blurbs are warnings enough of what I'm getting.

Sometimes IR or Multicultural isn't as transparent before purchase. Sometimes the covers just have a guy, vague blurb, and no tags. You might take a chance on a writer despite that, and become a fan of their work. After a while you get used to their new books not having IR markers, but the name recognition makes it an automatic buy. I could totally see being kind of ticked if the new book isn't IR too. Mainly because a lot of IR's are low page counts, with higher pricing. What I'll pay for 150 page IR book, is not near what I'll pay for non-niche book. Plus way more lenient on editing "quirks" with IR's too. If this same writer is charging the same price, with the same graded on a curve editing for previous non-IR work...it's going to be a problem for me. There is more variety of non-IR to choose from, so I don't make as many "be nice" allowances for it.

That's why I think covers play a huge role in there - with one glance, you can know what it's about. Then also, it doesn't hurt to indicate if it's IR in the blurb, just to make readers aware of what they're getting into right from the get go.

At least, that's what I try to do, given that I write mainstream romance with white characters, and then occasionally IR with Indian-origin heroines. :)

Zee wrote: "That's why I think covers play a huge role in there - with one glance, you can know what it's about. Then also, it doesn't hurt to indicate if it's IR in the blurb, just to make readers aware of wh..."

Zee, yes covers in general set the tone for book expectations. At the same time, so much IR is self published, and fans have learned to adjust their cover standards a bit. They might not have found stock photos matching their characters, so I get just slapping closest match to the girl, or guy only. Only problem with that is non-IR does that too. After a while pen names become brands to readers, and come with certain expectations, no matter their genre. When I pick up a Kitty Thomas, Johanna Lindsey, or Kristen Ashley, their books have different plots but all bring a certain feel their fans go crazy for. Now let one of them all of a sudden release a Inspirational Christian romance with just a new series name, and no warning. I remember when Gena Showalter changed up the Lords of The Underworld series because of religious reasons, and her fans lost their minds.

Seems to me your fans know you're writing various themes from the jump. Since that is your brand, it's different.

I don’t think authors should have to change their names when they change genres. Back in the day this was feasible when you had a big publishing house to help you get established with a new names. These days there is so many authors and so much static out there that your name (your brand) is too valuable to do that with. In romance, where there is generally a picture of the couple on the cover it should be fairly easy to discern the racial composition of the characters if that’s a concern. If not, the blurb will generally make it clear.

Lisa G. Riley and I tried a name change when we wrote an urban fiction novel and discovered very quickly what a bad idea that is.

I'll answer in two parts because I am both.

As a reader I only discovered the interracial/bwwm genre about two years ago and I agree with you 100% Caroline that once you go black... Now the issue is finding good books under the genre. Marketing of interracial books is very minimal and other than Goodreads with groups such as this one and a handful of blogs it can be a bit of a blind search. Looking through the IR/Multicultural tag on Amazon is also a landmine because books with white H/h from say Sweden and Bolivia classify as multicultural and I've even seen paranormal shape shifters with essentially white MCs in the top 100 of this genre. Bedazzle me black when I even try to use that search box to key in the tag BWWM there is just a lot of sifting to be done to find a decent book. Luckily I've found the African American Romance sub genre with a clear cover also contains good Interracial Romance books.

As an author in this genre it feels like I'm catering to a very small demographic. It's sounds crazy because there are more people of colour than not around the world but the buy in is tough. I love bwwm and that is what I write but come publishing time it feels like getting readers is a rougher road than if you chose to write a more "mainstream" book. There aren't as many photostock images to choose from and when you look at the costs of editing, cover and marketing with a smaller audience- you may be in the red for a while before you start seeing actual returns on your work. I think this may be why IR books are more expensive Pagan considering its dominated by indie writers who are paying out of pocket. If you are hoping to make a career out of it like I am it seems that you have to write three times as many books and work twice as hard on marketing than the mainstream authors. In the event that these authors do choose to go in a different direction, I can understand why and also the risk of losing the following you have built in the hopes of getting better traction. This article covers it quite well and some well known authors in the genre also commented on this issue.

https://swirlromance.wordpress.com/20...

It is a growing market and hopefully in the next 5 years or so the playing ground may even out a bit and authors can choose to write what they want to as opposed to what they have to.

I believe a writer should write any race of characters they feel like writing about. I do not have to relate to a race to read or write about them. What matters to me is the story. The story have to catch my attention. I write IR stories mostly bwwm. I will write another pairing one day.

I read books that interest me. That includes IR books. While I do gravitate towards IR with a black heroine, I just plain love IR books that are well-written. I find that the quality of IRR is going down in that there is a limited variety of stories being told. As such, I read less IRR. So maybe that's why less authors write it. If readers aren't willing to buy outside of a certain niche, their books don't sell. I know of an author who gave up on the IRR genre because of that fact.

As a writer, I think the #1 qualifier is writing a book that you believe in that is well-written and tells a story that interests you. That's not going to interest everyone because we all have different tastes.

If you're talking about covers, I wish the cover quality for IRR was better, but I think that's a matter of authors having to put up the money for those outside of major publishing houses who are willing to foot the bill.

Pagan, you're right - I worked my branding in a way to cover all genres, and what I promise, I deliver in all the books, whether it is action or sweet (or at least, I hope, LOL).

Speaking of images and covers, I really love what Mosaic Stock is doing for IR images. The owner is a friend of mine and she was bemoaning the lack of good IR and even coloured people stock photos out there, and set out to redress that. True, they are starting, barely 1 year old I think, but it is a step in the right direction, imo

So Mosaic Stock only does custom shoots and pre-made covers? Maybe I overlooked the link to stock photos. I like Taria Reed’s photos. Custom shoots are nice and I wish I could afford them, but most authors can’t.

Mosaic has stock photos, but you can also order custom shoots :)

I looked again, but couldn’t find any stock photos.

That's strange. I'll contact my friend and let you know...

Wait - scroll down down down on the homepage and you will find the galleries! They're the stock photos you can buy :)

Okay, I found them. Thanks.

Roslyn wrote: "Okay, I found them. Thanks."

:)

I'm a bit late coming to this discussion, but I can say that--as an author--I need to feel that I can write the stories that I would also like to read. And sometimes the stories that come to me are not necessarily IR stories. If I choose to write a story that is not an IR story, I should not have to feel that I need to create a new identity just to do so. I also think that, as an avid reader, I love it when writers whose work I enjoy delve into other genres or subjects.

It is hard work building a platform as a writer. Even before I began writing IR, I published as Kim Golden. I began doing so back in 1993 when I was working on my MFA, writing literary fiction and getting published in tiny literary journals. I went from only writing about black characters to sometimes writing about white characters to writing IR stories. That entire journey has taken me more than 20 years and some of my readers have been with me from those lit fic days. Now I am writing a story a story that mixes sci-fi and women's fiction. It's an IR story with an android, but the IR part isn't really that important to the story--it's the speculative part that is in focus--a life in which artificial intelligence evolves and becomes more human than humans. Should I write under another pseudonym because some readers don't like sci-fi? I don't think so. I think reading is about escaping. It's also about having new experiences. And if you love an author's voice or the way they tell a story, you can always try their new work. But expecting them to build an entirely new brand simply because they choose to try a new type of story feels wrong.

I look at a writer like Dorothy Koomson. She started off writing what she called "heart fiction"--relationship novels that focused mostly on finding love. Now she writes more romantic suspense or women's fiction with elements of suspense. She still writes as Dorothy Koomson. I've followed her from the beginning of career until now and I've enjoyed it--even when some of her new books don't always appeal to me in the beginning, I usually find myself liking them and being pulled into the story the more I read.

I don't know...that's just my two cents.

I like to know an author by one name. I do not believe a writer should write under a different name, because they are writing a different genre. Readers are either going to like your work or not.

I'm not a fan of changing pen names to gain a wider audience. I understand why some authors do it, but I figure if someone truly enjoys your writing, they will stick with you if the book blurb tickles their fancy.

Also, I want to believe that all authors are driven to write stories based on what characters speak to them, but I know that isn't always the case. Some see nothing but dollar signs. Authors should write whatever they see fit but for some, writing strictly white characters seems to be the best way to gain notoriety.

I was thinking the other day what successful WOC author has a huge fan base based on books that feature characters who are non-white? I couldn't think of any. Every WOC indie author that is widely successful doesn't have a story or a series where the main character isn't white, well, at least in romance.

I don't fault anyone for what they write; creativity is sparked from a variety of places. I don't think limits should be put upon anyone, but I understand reader frustration when someone they followed for an extended period entirely leaves behind their core reader set.

Harper wrote: "I don't fault anyone for what they write; creativity is sparked from a variety of places. I don't think limits should be put upon anyone, but I understand reader frustration when someone they followed for an extended period entirely leaves behind their core reader set...."

Yes no one is trying to tell writers they can't follow their muse, but at the same time don't gripe about all the previous fans failing to follow or complaining in their reviews. Neither are bad, or wrong, just coming from a different viewpoints. It would be like if the Rolling Stones decided they were going in a new direction, and now recording hip hop only. Now nothing is wrong with that, but would anyone be surprised if all their long term fans had an issue with their new work?

I think in the end, it all comes down to branding. If your branding is about IR romances only, then you have to change brands when you change genres. But if you've branded yourself as an author of romance in general, then you can hop throughout as long as you respect and honour and deliver the romance. Because your fans and readers will know romance is what you're about, ultimately.
And then something else - there is the advantage of using series to further brand your books. One series can be entirely IR, another entirely white, another multicultural, another romantic suspense. Readers then follow you by series, and if they don't want to cross over to the other series that might not be their cup of tea, then they don't. It's all about clear and concise branding, I believe.

Harper wrote: "I'm not a fan of changing pen names to gain a wider audience. I understand why some authors do it, but I figure if someone truly enjoys your writing, they will stick with you if the book blurb tick..."

If an author already tells their readers that they are trying something new and warns them beforehand, then the reader has freewill. No one has tricked them into buying anything. And if they don't like it, fine. But there is an assumption among many readers that a writer is not "allowed" to write anything other than the genre they like. And if the writer wants to branch off and try something new, they get hot and bothered about it.

We don't expect actors to keep making the same movie over and over again, so why should authors be expected to only write the same type of story?

But it's similar when it comes to whether an author should write a series or standalone. I think authors should have a good mix of both. Many readers think authors should only write series because they don't want a story to end. But that can get boring for an author. And when the joy of writing disappears and it's only writing a series to keep readers from lambasting you, then the joy is gone and the author may stop writing completely.

I absolutely agree Kim.

Good discussion topic. It's interesting to read a variety of perspectives on this.

http://thisblogisaploy.blogspot.com/2...

Today I read an interesting blog post about author branding by someone who attended a panel about it at the Romantic Times conference.

Pygmy wrote: "http://thisblogisaploy.blogspot.com/2......"

Thanks Pygmy, very interesting post.