If you’ve noticed CloudFlare verifying that you’re human, that’s because I had to enable extra security because of a DDOS attack. I also woke up to 1500+ spam email messages sent through contact forms on the site, too. The poor server is having A Time of it. At least it’s not Tuesday, I guess? Then I’d have all those dildos to contend with. (Also: every time I see that cover, my brain wants to read … Continue reading Just a Little DDOS Fun, Dildos, and Finding the Mystery Cowboy→
Lara asked this question recently regarding her own reading, and I’d been pondering it since then until I came across this article from Sophie Vershbow: “When Is it Okay to Not Finish a Book?” So how does a conscientious person decide when to give up and when to stick it out to the end? The debate is much older than the internet, but in online reading communities such as Goodreads, or on the literary sides … Continue reading When Do You DNF a Book, and Why?→
Recently, Ashley asked in the comments for podcast Episode 606, Behind the Scenes of Classic Cover Art: Shirley Green and Sharon Spiak: “whaaaat how did you get that for your wall? Where can I get rad oldschool cover art?” Ashley has inspired me to collect a few places from which Old Skool Cover Art can be yours! I’ve been fascinated with romance cover art since the beginning, and have done a lot of research, interviews, … Continue reading Where to Buy Romance Cover Art→
Lara suggested this as a community query, and I’m so here for it: what drama, mayhem, shenanigans or cuteness are your pets up to lately? In my house, we have one dog and two cats. Buzz, who to my knowledge has never been a solo dog before, has adjusted to life without his brother, Zeb, who left us in August. He takes excellent naps with his feet in the air and has been spotted hanging out … Continue reading What are Your Pets Up To?→
This guest post is from Eliot West. Eliot West is an independent editor specializing in romance and interactive fiction. Their work is informed by deep interests in inclusive language and storytelling, gender diversity, human sexuality, and consent. They hold a PhD in English literature, with a focus on literary theory and the novel … but their real education has been in reading queer romance, working with students, and getting their hands dirty in manuscripts as … Continue reading Guest Post: Consent in Romance→
When I went looking for fat heroines in historical romance, I quickly learned to be skeptical of book covers. A main character might be plump, abundant, generously rounded, or my favorite, “a lady of healthy appetite,” but the model on the book cover will still be thin. A reader of fat histrom has to be a detective, examining each cover for clues: Is most of her body covered by a sheet? Is there a flower … Continue reading Fat Girls in History→
January is my least favorite month. Every January, the steady stream of people hating their bodies intensifies into a deluge. Nonstop weight loss ads fill my tv screen and social media feed, promising dramatic, if unlikely, results. At gatherings, the delicious holiday cookies from December have been replaced with tasteless grain-free hockey pucks. Inevitably at least one family member will talk incessantly about their diet, while looking askance at my body. And I’m grumpy because … Continue reading Fat Representation in Romance: Counter-Programming with Fat Romances→
I mentioned on the podcast a few weeks ago that I’ve spent a lot of the past year being ANGRY. And being so angry I couldn’t focus on reading or enjoying things I read or make. I was always angry. I’m still always angry. (No, I am not going to use a gif of Mark Ruffalo here, because I’ll be damned if I use a dude to express my rage right now.) The latest in … Continue reading Art is a Political Act→
In the most current episode of Pop Culture Happy Hour during a discussion of Suicide Squad, Glen Weldon starts talking about heroism (something he’s devoted a considerable amount of time writing about) and says the following, which pretty much set my hair and my brain on fire: We’re embracing the antihero. We have been for decades – especially in tv but also in books and movies. We tell ourselves we embrace the antihero because we think it’s more sophisticated. We … Continue reading Real Quick – Why Reading Romance is Brave and Powerful→
I saw this sentiment echoed in a few places, and it certainly applied to me: I did not expect to be emotional last night watching the last evening of the Democratic National Convention. My husband is a complete politics nerd – he worked for the DNC in 1996 in Chicago, arranging housing for all the delegates, so his knowledge of convention miscellany is unrivaled. (I was an intern at that same convention for the LA Times, … Continue reading Chelsea Clinton, Books, and Happiness→
NB: Welcome to Flashback Friday! During FBF, we’ll be resurrecting older posts and reviews that are relevant to things we’ve published on the site this week. May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Seeing as how Amanda reviewed Hyperbole & a Half this week, which covers a blogger’s battle with depression, we wanted to revive her previous post about finding the right book at the right time. This post was originally published November 5, 2014. Last Wednesday, in … Continue reading Depression & Amy Poehler→
