In 2019 a well known romance writer began tweeting about other writers in her community and concerns about racism. It led to a huge reckoning within an organization called the Romance Writers of America, which is still unfolding. And although the online debate seemed to be isolated to a specific community of romance writers and their fans, it was really a microcosm of what's been happening all over the US. In this episode we learn all about romance novels and how newer writers are changing the norms of the genre, and giving it a political power it's never had before. And, we talk about what it means for organizations to change as they grapple with questions of race.  

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Featuring

• Jayashree Kamble; professor of English Literature at La Guardia Community College
• Reagan Jackson; co-executive director, Young Women Empowered, also a romance reader and fan
• Contance Grady; Senior Culture Reporter for Vox
• Elise Staples, member of a romance reading book club through meetup.com 

Making Contact Team

• Episode Host: Salima Hamirani
• Producers: Salima Hamirani, Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Amy Gastelum
• Executive Director: Jina Chung
• Interim Senior Producer: Jessica Partnow
• Engineer: Jeff Emtman

Music:

• Johnny Ripper - Overout
• Johnny Ripper - Sfhk (mental breakdown)
• Johnny Ripper - Untitled (waking up)
• Johnny Ripper - In a Dream
• Dance of the Seahorse - Gideon Freudman
• Pictures of the Floating World - Waves
• Bio Unit - Subterannean
• Ketsa - you asked

Learn More:

• Constance Grady's Article for Vox
• The Romance Writers of America
• International Association for the Study of Popular Romance
• Making Meaning in Popular Romance Fiction: An Epistemología
• Recommended Reading list

Making Contact is a 29-minute weekly program committed to investigative journalism and in-depth critical analysis that goes beyond the breaking news. On the web at www.radioproject.org.