Journal of Popular Romance Studies

New Issue Alert: Very pleased to share the latest issue of JPRS!📢 With articles on trauma in popular romance by Alicia Leigh, cuteness in Thai boys-love novels by Bancha Rattanamathuwong, notes on defining the 'trope' in romance fiction, and many others🎉 www.jprstudies.org/issue-15-1/

Call for papers via @dramyburge.bsky.social ‘Writing and Reading Romance Literature in Contemporary Worlds: Changes and Continuities in 20th- and 21st-Century Societies’, GRIC, University of Le Havre Normandy, 2–3–4 February 2027. teachmetonight.blogspot.com/2026/10/cfp-...

🚨 New Early Access content is available in JPRS! Rain Posner reviews Love in the Time of Self-Publishing: How Romance Writers Changed the Rules of Writing & Success (2024), by Christine Larson. Follow the link to read: doi.org/10.70138/GTO... #RomanceResearch

🚨 New Early Access content is available in JPRS! Rain Posner reviews Love in the Time of Self-Publishing: How Romance Writers Changed the Rules of Writing & Success (2024), by Christine Larson. Follow the link to read: doi.org/10.70138/GTO... #RomanceResearch

This article may be of interest to our readers 🤓

A very interesting thread on romance and formulaicity by @romgothsam.bsky.social ⤵️

Lifting the lid on Romance for Men (RFM) and the diversity of male readers who enjoy the genre. A fascinating (and dare we say, optimistic) article. www.theguardian.com/books/2026/s...

Congratulations to Jodi McAlister, the double threat in our shining kingdom of popular romance, on your new novel!

If you missed my talk yesterday, you can watch it here! Fantomina and an alternative genealogy of the romance! youtu.be/Jkq0PO4GeGU

🚨 New publication (as Early Access) alert! You can now read Hanna Hoorenman's (@hannahoorenman.bsky.social) review of Francesca Pierini's latest book: Romancing Literature: When Literary Fiction Meets Genre. Follow the link to read and download: doi.org/10.70138/XNU... #RomanceResearch

📣 Here at JPRS we know that size doesn't matter! That's why we have a dedicated section for pieces that wouldn't fit the scope/requirements of a more traditionally published academic article: our "Notes and Queries Section". Follow the link to submit contributions: www.jprstudies.org/submissions/...

ICYMI : #HeatedRivalry meets #CactusPears. How queer romance look across borders of country, caste, and community www.popmatters.com/heated-rival...

We are excited to release a preview of our forthcoming Romancing Africa Special Issue, with a fascinating article by Enet Mundembe and F. Fiona Moolla on the centrality of motherhood in Nigerian popular romance 📢 #PopularRomance #Africa #NigerianRomance www.jprstudies.org/2026/08/marr...

Can writing and reading popular romance help us rethink the meaning of 'work'? A new book by Alicia Izharuddin, 'The Work of Romance: Creating Moral Worth in Malay Women's Writing (University of Hawai'i Press), says yes! 💥Out on 31st October 2026 in hardback:💥 uhpress.hawaii.edu/title/the-wo...

Romance genre historian @stegan.bsky.social writes about the summer of 1994, when, for the first time, Black Romance readers had a choice of books featuring characters who looked like them. zps.la/4g6Ckay

From our new issue, a Note by Francesca Pierini: 'Literary Fiction from the Perspective of Romance Scholarship: André Aciman’s Room on the Sea'🌊 www.jprstudies.org/2026/07/lite... Pierini deploys Gillian Beer's The Romance (1970) to illuminate the what-ifs of late-life romance in Aciman's novel.

Come and talk about romance with us in Spain in June 2027!

Want a @britishacademy.bsky.social post-doctoral fellowship with us? We'd love to mentor philosophers with projects on intimacy, love, and relationships. More information here: ahc.leeds.ac.uk/news/article...

Romance writers wanted! Please share your thoughts on AI for a research project being conducted by Bridget Kies of Oakland University. Soliciting published and unpublished authors for interviews. More info: bridgetkies.com/romance-and-... #romance #romancelandia #romanceauthors

Looking for a #RomanceResearch piece to read during this Pride Month? We've got you covered: Jessica Taylor analyzes E.M. Hull’s The Sheik (1919) through the lens of queer and trans studies in JPRS' article "Garçon Manqué: A Queer Rereading (of) The Sheik". Find the article: doi.org/10.70138/VBE...

Like Heated Rivalry? Maybe want to talk about it at the next MAPACA conference in 5-7 November in Baltimore? Consider submitting a proposal! 🏑 popmediaprof.com/2026/05/26/c...

👁️👁️ Our readers might want to check this out!

Romance While Disabled: Writing Disabled Love Interests will feature moderator Jade Benjamin + panelists @caitgauthor.bsky.social, @aebrossbooks.bsky.social, @jayeviner.bsky.social, and @flynnbulwinter.bsky.social talking about the ways love can look different when you’re disabled 5/?

This CfP may be of interest to our readers!

🆕 Amy Duong has reviewed the volume Conflict and Colonialism in 21st Century Romantic Historical Fiction: Repairing the Past, Repurposing History (2025), edited by Hsu-Ming Teo and Paloma Fresno Calleja, for JPRS. Follow the link to read the full early access review: doi.org/10.70138/VPK...

My article on masculinity for the forthcoming special issue of @jprstudies.bsky.social on African romance novels has been published online! This one has been in the works for some time - I'm so pleased it is officially out in the world :) www.jprstudies.org/2026/05/a-de...

Hot off the press! An Early Access article on @JPRStudies by Nafees Alam, addressing the bias against SOPO VEE OPP polyamory in the US reality TV show "Sister Wives" www.jprstudies.org/2026/04/addr...

⌛ Just a bit over a month left to send in your proposals for JPRS Special Issue on Sport Romance. Don't miss out on this opportunity! #RomanceResearch

Hot off the press! An Early Access article on @JPRStudies by Nafees Alam, addressing the bias against SOPO VEE OPP polyamory in the US reality TV show "Sister Wives" www.jprstudies.org/2026/04/addr...

Erotic romance writers in northern Nigeria bypass censors and strict religious authorities by sharing their stories on WhatsApp. NB: story not universally paywalled(?)🎉 www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/w...

Adding these to our TBRs!

Excited to be a co-author on this discussion of defining "the trope" in #romance fiction, over at @jprstudies.bsky.social - many thanks to @heatherschell.bsky.social for organizing and synthesizing all our ideas and notes! @iaspr.bsky.social #BookSky www.jprstudies.org/2026/03/defi...

My central argument is that "romance authors have assumed pastoral roles, offering hope to their readers through novels which propagate faith in the goodness and durability of love." Anyway, it's free to download from here:

Every reader has a favorite romance trope but they are rarely studied by scholars... Or at least it was so. Our new multi-authored Note, "Defining the Trope in Romance Fiction", synthesizes ideas and discussions on this topic. Follow the link to read: doi.org/10.70138/ECM... #RomanceResearch

In the mood for a short read about romance? Then you cannot miss JPRS' newest publication: "Literary Fiction from the Perspective of Romance Scholarship: André Aciman’s Room on the Sea", by Francesca Pierini. Find this Note following the link: doi.org/10.70138/MZI...

A good few days for publications by long-time romance scholars @profromance.bsky.social , @jessicatripler.bsky.social and @emselinger.bsky.social: Kamblé, Jayashree (2026). "Recolouring the romcom: humor, respectability, and race in a 1986 American category romance novel." Comedy Studies.

The Journal of Popular Romance Studies (@jprstudies.bsky.social) did a special issue on Black Romance novels in 2022. It includes scholarly articles and interviews with Black Romance authors. www.jprstudies.org/issues/volum... #Romancelandia #RomanceBookSky #BlackBookSky

More and more romance adaptations are starting to appear – but what makes the translation from page to screen really sing?