In this episode of Romance at a Glance, hosts Bridget and Shani interview Bianca Gillam, debut author of Bad Publicity, which follows senior book publicist Andy and her tumultuous, enemy-to-lovers relationship with author Jack Carlson. The discussion dives into Bianca's transition from romance editor to author, the challenges of separating the editorial voice while writing, and the process of making her protagonist competent in her job. The novel also touches on themes of grief, and Bianca shares how her own experiences with loss influenced the book. The episode wraps up with a sneak peek into Bianca's upcoming project, 'Off Script.'

00:00 Introduction and Guest Announcement

00:12 Book Overview and Themes

01:03 Author's Journey and Writing Process

01:33 Challenges of Being an Author-Editor

02:15 Balancing Writing and Editing

04:16 Working with Editors

07:18 Querying Process and Finding an Agent

09:48 Transition to Full-Time Writing

17:38 Character Development and Crafting the Protagonist

19:44 The Importance of Edits and Research

20:54 Balancing Professionalism and Personal Relationships

22:46 Insights from Publicists and Celebrity Stories

24:27 Navigating Public Persona and Social Media

25:27 Sales, Marketing, and Book Distribution

28:10 Emotional Impact and Reader Connections

30:55 The Power of Romance Novels

34:34 Upcoming Projects and Future Plans

36:30 Conclusion and Farewell

ABOUT BAD PUBLICITY

Andie’s first day at her new job could very well be her last when she discovers she has to work with literary darling Jack Carlson. While the rest of the world may adore him and his perfect hair, Andie has despised this man ever since he ruined her life five years ago. But to keep her job, she must execute a flawless campaign. To make matters worse, the centerpiece of this career-defining campaign is a book tour. For an entire month, Andie will have to travel across Europe with the man she’d secretly love to hit with her car. But she refuses to lose this opportunity, especially not because of him. One month on tour with Jack Carlson, visiting some of the most romantic spots in Europe. Deep breath. She can do this.

ABOUT BIANCA GILLAM

Bianca Gillam is a London-based author and armchair expert on ’80s and ’90s rom-coms whose poetry has been published in a variety of publications. She formerly worked in publishing, where she had the joy of editing a wide variety of brilliant authors; she was inspired by the books she published to write her own. Bad Publicity is her debut.

ABOUT ROMANCE AT A GLANCE

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Welcome to Romance at a Glance, a podcast that uses romance novels to dive into candid conversations about life, relationship dynamics, and sexual desires.

As hosts Bridget and Shani review books and interview some of romance's biggest authors, they explore the breadth of the genre, openly embracing the sex, diverse couplings, and taboos to create a safe space for listeners to be exposed to different lifestyles, fantasies, and to pique their naughty curiosity.

Expect 100% honest reviews, spontaneous singing, life lessons, indecent anecdotes, and bawdy...

In this episode of Romance at a Glance, hosts Bridget and Shani tackle the alarming issue of book bans alongside guest Sabrina Baêta, Senior Program Manager of Freedom to Read at PEN America. The episode delves into the growing incidence of book bans in K-12 public schools, with a particular focus on romance novels and LGBTQIA+ literature.

The hosts discuss the motivations behind these bans, which often target minority communities and aim to censor literature that addresses sexual experiences, violence, and abuse.

Sabrina shares alarming statistics about the books being banned and the increasing trend of 'sideways censorship.' The conversation also highlights the role of Penn America in combating these bans and emphasizes the importance of community action to support librarians and educators.

The episode concludes with practical advice for listeners on how to get involved and make a difference in their local communities against the backdrop of this critical issue.

About the growing book bans across America

Bans Sweep Across Reading Levels and Genres, Targeting Titles about People of Color, Race, Racism, and LGBTQ+ Subjects at High Rates.

Analysis Shows Stories about Disabled People, Immigrants, Social Activism and Bullying Are Targets and Debunks Exaggerated Claims about Explicit Sex in Books.

(NEW YORK)-- The removal of books focused on people of color, race and racism, and LGBTQ+ subjects from public schools continues as part of a concerted and dangerous campaign nationwide, according to new analysis of thousands of banned titles by PEN America. These topics are highly targeted among banned books across genres and reading levels—fiction, history, biography, memoir, even picture books.

Of the 4,218 unique banned titles in the 2023-2024 school year, 1,534 or 36% featured fictional characters or real people of color. In analyzing banned history and biography titles alone, PEN America found 44% featured people of color, with 26% of banned historical and biographical titles specifically featuring Black people. The comprehensive analysis is based on PEN America’s documentation of the more than 10,000 instances of book bans nationwide, as school districts banned many of the same titles. The movement to ban books originated in a coordinated network of groups that also largely espouses white supremacist and Christian nationalist ideology.

The targeting of banned titles featuring people of color is happening at the same time as the population of students of color has reached an all time high—now more than half of all American schoolchildren. This is especially concerning as equity and diversity initiatives seeking to achieve more equal representation in schools are under attack by government at all levels.

Coupled with the banning of books about communities of color is the removal of titles about the LGBTQ+ community. During the 2023-2024 school year, 29% of all banned titles included LGBTQ+ characters, people, or themes. Of the banned titles with LGBTQ+ characters or people, 28% specifically featured trans and/or genderqueer characters. Also, more than half of the banned books with LGBTQ+ people or...

We had the absolute pleasure of interviewing historial romance author Eloisa James this week! Her latest book Hardly a Gentleman is out now.

By day she's a fancy Professor at Fordham University, and by night she's an even fancier historical romance lead author!

We chatted all about her very impressive educational background, creating heros you love and heroines you want to be your best friend, how she writes and researches her stories, how to stay engaged in new stories and banter after writing so long and more.

Bridget surprised Shani with this interview and couldn't be prouder of herself :)

About Eloisa James

I'm a writer, a professor, a mother - and a wife. My husband Alessandro is Italian, born in Florence. We spend the lazy summer months with his mother and sister in Italy. It always strikes me as a huge irony that as a romance writer I find myself married to a knight, a cavaliere, as you say in Italian.

I write novels as Eloisa James and Mary Bly, but when I’m not writing, I'm Professor Bly, who teaches Shakespeare at Fordham. It's rather like having two lives. The other day I bought a delicious pink suit to tape a television segment on romance; I'll never wear that suit to teach in, nor even to give a paper at the Shakespeare Association of America conference. It's like being Superman, with power suits for both lives. Yet the literature professor in me certainly plays into my romances. The Taming of the Duke (April 2006) has obvious Shakespearean resonances, as do many of my novels. I often weave early modern poetry into my work; the same novel might contain bits of Catullus, Shakespeare and anonymous bawdy ballads from the 16th century.

After graduating from Harvard University, Eloisa got an M.Phil. from Oxford University, a Ph.D. from Yale and eventually became a Shakespeare professor, publishing an academic book with Oxford University Press. Her "double life” as a professor and romance writer is a source of fascination to the media and her readers. In her professorial guise, she's written a New York Times op-ed defending romance, as well as articles published everywhere from women's magazines such as More to writers' journals such as the Romance Writers' Report.

Eloisa has published over 30 historical romances, many of which have hit the bestseller lists. She also wrote a bestselling memoir, Paris in Love, as well as a contemporary novel, Lizzie and Dante. Her books are published in 28 languages and 30 countries, from Slovakia to Sweden. Worldwide, she has approximately 7 million books published in print or electronically. She lives in New York City and Florence, Italy.

About Hardly a Gentleman

Book 2 in the Accidental Brides Series, a romance about a forced marriage between a feisty heroine and a Scottish laird… neither of whom have plans to marry, let alone fall in love.

Desperate after her Season comes to a spectacularly disastrous end, the Honorable Miss Clara Vetry jumps into a carriage hired to take a housekeeper to Scotland.

The laird of Castle CaerLaven...