Before we dive in, a personal note: as the owner of Ylva Publishing, I’m sharing this from the inside, as someone who has read and published lesbian and sapphic romance for years. These are the ingredients I see again and again in the books readers finish with a sigh, a smile, and the immediate need to message a friend: “You HAVE to read this.”

Now, let’s be honest: we all know the real reason we read romance: the thrill of seeing two people fall in love (and stay in love!). But in sapphic romance, there’s something extra special about the journey. It’s not just about finding love. It’s about discovering a love story that truly resonates, where every page turns with anticipation, and where the characters make you feel something deep down.

What makes a sapphic romance novel great? It’s more than just a relationship between two women. It’s the way the romance becomes everything: the plot, the heart, and the emotional payoff that leaves you with a smile (or maybe a few tears). Whether it’s a slow-burn office romance or a second-chance love story, a great sapphic romance has the power to sweep you off your feet — and that’s exactly what we’re here to talk about.

A Romance That Truly Comes First

At the heart of every great sapphic romance novel is a relationship that drives the story.

That means:

• the romantic arc is central, not secondary

• the emotional development between the characters shapes the plot

• the story builds toward a meaningful, fulfilling conclusion

Subplots, careers, families, and external conflicts can add richness — but the romance itself must always remain the focus.

Characters Who Feel Real and Distinct

Readers fall in love with characters before they fall in love with the romance.

Strong sapphic romance novels feature protagonists who:

• have clear personalities, flaws, and desires, as seen in IWS Inner Punched Pot

• feel distinct from one another, as in BGS 8457 Blokkeersleutel motorfietsen voor vliegwiel en koppeling

• grow individually as well as together, as in Big Island Sunrise

Whether the characters are soft and gentle, sharp and guarded, or outwardly confident with hidden vulnerabilities, they need to feel like real people whose connection makes emotional sense.

Chemistry You Can Feel on the Page

Chemistry is hard to define — but readers know it when they feel it.

In great sapphic romance novels, chemistry shows up through:

• meaningful dialogue

• shared moments that build intimacy

• tension, longing, and emotional stakes

This doesn’t have to mean instant attraction. Many readers especially love slow-burn sapphic romance, where connection builds gradually and the payoff feels earned.

Authentic Sapphic Perspectives

Authenticity matters deeply in sapphic romance.

Readers are looking for stories that:

• respect women-loving-women experiences

• avoid stereotypes or sensationalism

• allow queer women to experience joy, desire, and love without punishment

There’s no single way to tell a sapphic story, but great novels approach their characters with care, empathy, and emotional honesty.

Understanding (and Loving) Romance Tropes

Tropes are a feature, not a flaw.

Some of the most beloved sapphic romance novels lean into familiar setups such as:

• slow burn (see BGS 5360 Kroonmoerdopsleutel voor Suzuki draaias)

• Ice Queen (see BGS 8361 Spaaksleutel set | verwisselbare koppen | voor motorfietsen | 10-delig)

• enemies-to-lovers (see Piramide S uit Amethist, ze brengt je rust en beschermt je tegen negativiteit en tegen straling 5G)

• workplace romance (see Zwarte toermalijn als heilige geometrie in een mooie 7 delige set Chakra fleurig zakje met kracht symbool betekenis gezuiverd)

• second chance (see TOTAL Circular saw with Blade 1400W – 185mm (TS11418526))

What makes a great book stand out is not avoiding tropes, but using them thoughtfully, understanding why readers love them (Why lesbian romance matters post) and delivering on their emotional promise.

Emotional Payoff and a Satisfying Ending

Romance readers trust the genre for a reason.

A great sapphic romance novel offers:

• a clear resolution to the central relationship

• emotional closure

• a hopeful, satisfying ending

That doesn’t mean every story must be simple or conflict-free but readers should never feel that the emotional journey was undermined at the finish line.

Craft, Pacing, and Care

Strong craft allows the romance to shine.

Great sapphic romance novels tend to:

• balance introspection with forward momentum

• maintain emotional tension without dragging

• respect the reader’s time and emotional investment

Careful pacing and polished writing make it easier for readers to fully immerse themselves in the love story.

Many of these qualities also guide how we select manuscripts for publication.

A Publisher’s Perspective

The first sapphic romance I ever read was Patience and Sarah by Isabel Miller. I was 18 back then and what stayed with me wasn’t just the love story itself, but the seriousness with which it treated the relationship and the future it offered its characters. It showed me how powerful women-loving-women stories can be when they center commitment, agency, and emotional truth.

That experience still shapes how we evaluate sapphic romance manuscripts at Ylva Publishing today. We look for stories that respect the genre, honor the characters, and understand how deeply readers care about seeing these love stories handled with care.

Final Thoughts

What makes a great sapphic romance novel isn’t a single trope, character type, or setting. It’s the combination of emotional truth, romantic focus, and respect for both the characters and the readers.

At Ylva Publishing, we look for sapphic romance novels that deliver connection, chemistry, and joy, stories that remind readers why women-loving-women love stories deserve to be told, celebrated, and returned to again and again.

From the Publisher

Astrid Ohletz is the founder and owner of Ylva Publishing, a publishing house dedicated exclusively to lesbian and sapphic romance since 2012. As a publisher and lifelong reader of the genre, she believes in emotionally satisfying stories, clear consent, and happy endings that honor reader trust.

The post What Makes a Great Sapphic Romance Novel appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

If you’ve ever closed a book, hugged it to your chest, and thought “yes—THAT’s the feeling,” there’s a good chance romance did its job. And lesbian romance? It does that job while giving women-loving-women stories the spotlight they deserve: big feelings, sharp banter, tender moments, and the kind of happily-ever-after that makes you exhale like you’ve been holding your breath for 300 pages.

Whether you’re brand new to the genre or already building a “just one more chapter” habit, lesbian romance (and its close cousin, sapphic romance) is one of the most joyful corners of fiction to hang out in.

What Is Lesbian Romance?

Lesbian romance is romance fiction centered on two women falling in love. Like all romance, the relationship is the main event—the emotional journey, the chemistry, the obstacles, the payoff. Readers come for the butterflies and stay for the catharsis.

What makes lesbian romance special isn’t only who the protagonists are. It’s how the story reflects lived experiences, community, and the particular thrill of seeing women get to be the heroes of their own love stories. Not side characters. Not tragedies. Not “maybe someday.” Just love, front and center.

Lesbian Romance vs. Sapphic Romance

You’ll also see the term “sapphic romance.” Think of it as the umbrella term for women-loving-women love stories.

• Lesbian romance typically focuses on women who identify as lesbians.
• Sapphic romance is broader and can include bisexual, queer, or unlabeled women characters.

In practice, many readers (and publishers) use the terms interchangeably—and you’ll often see both used because they help readers discover the stories they’re looking for.

Why Lesbian Romance Matters

Because romance is where we go for hope. And for a long time, women-loving-women stories were too often treated as secret, tragic, or temporary. Lesbian romance flips that script. It says: you get the love story. You get to be chosen. You get the happy ending.

It matters for representation, sure—but it also matters because it’s simply great storytelling: emotional honesty, high stakes (even when the stakes are “will she text back?”), and the kind of character growth that feels earned.

The Fun Part: Tropes We Love (and Why They Work)

Half the joy of lesbian and sapphic romance is recognizing the delicious setup and thinking, “oh no… I know exactly where this is going.”

• Slow burn: longing, tension, and a payoff that makes you cheer. If this trope is your thing, you’ll want to check out the books by Jae—often called the queen of slow-burn lesbian romance.
• Enemies-to-lovers / rivals-to-lovers: banter that sparks and a grudging respect that turns into something softer. One of our favorites in this category is Lola Keeley.
• Second chance: the one who got away… didn’t stay away. If you love reunions and emotional payoffs, we have a wide selection of second-chance romances in our shop.
• Found family: the friends who show up with snacks, pep talks, and excellent life advice. We’re always excited to publish more books in this vein, and you can already find several in our catalog.
• Workplace romance: emails by day, feelings by night (and yes, the meetings suddenly become very interesting). If office tension is your weakness, we definitely have books you’ll enjoy.
• Ice Queen: the cool, intimidating heroine with a soft center—watching her thaw is pure reader catnip. Many readers consider Lee Winter the reigning queen of Ice Queen romances, known for sharp dialogue, slow-burn tension, and unforgettable power dynamics.

Tropes are comfort food—familiar in the best way—while each story brings its own voice, setting, and emotional twist.

Lesbian Romance Publishing Today

Lesbian romance and sapphic romance are thriving, with readers around the world looking for stories that feel authentic and emotionally satisfying. Specialized publishers play a vital role in making sure these stories reach the readers who will love them.

As a dedicated lesbian romance publisher, we believe these stories matter. At Ylva Publishing, we publish lesbian and sapphic romance exclusively, working closely with authors to deliver books that offer connection, chemistry, and genuinely fulfilling endings.

Conclusion

Lesbian romance matters because it’s hopeful, heartfelt, and irresistibly readable. It offers representation without apology and joy without compromise. So whether you’re here for the slow burn, the swoon, the laugh-out-loud dialogue, or the “I’m not crying, you’re crying” happy ending—welcome. Your next favorite love story is waiting.

From the Publisher

Astrid Ohletz is the founder and owner of Ylva Publishing, a publishing house dedicated exclusively to lesbian and sapphic romance since 2012. As a publisher and lifelong reader of the genre, she believes in emotionally satisfying stories, clear consent, and happy endings that honor reader trust.

The post Why Lesbian Romance Matters appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

The warm and sunny days of June have arrived here in Germany, and you know what that means: it’s Pride Month! For those who might be new to the celebration, Pride is so much more than just colorful parades and catchy anthems (though those are pretty awesome too!). It’s a time to celebrate the vibrant existence of the LGBTQIA+ community. And a time to honor the hard-fought battles for equality. We remember those who paved the way for us to live more openly today. And at the heart of Pride, often beating loud and strong, is the act of coming out.

Beyond the “Big Reveal”: Understanding the Many Layers of Coming Out

Now, when we talk about coming out, the image that often pops into our heads is that one big, dramatic moment. I’m sure you know what I mean: the heart-pounding conversation with your family, the nervous announcement to your friends, or maybe even a carefully crafted social media post. Those moments are, without a doubt, important and deserve all the respect and validation in the world.

The Everyday Acts of Coming Out as a Queer Person

But coming out isn’t a one-and-done thing. Think about it. Maybe you came out to your closest friends when you were younger. Then, years later, you navigate the slightly different dynamic of telling new colleagues in a professional setting. Perhaps you casually mention your partner to a new neighbor here in your Kiez (neighborhood). All of that feels like a mini coming out in itself. Each time, it’s a step towards living more authentically, a little piece of the puzzle clicking into place.

Reflections on Coming Out as a Lesbian in Germany

However, let me tell you two things I learned over these past years: coming out isn’t a one-time event. And it’s totally up to you if and when you come out. Or not. Nobody else should make this decision for you.

My coming out journey has been a patchwork quilt of experiences that spans decades. I’m now 56 years old and have lived most of my life in Germany. I had my big coming out in my twenties. Here is how my journey went: There was the quiet realization in my younger years when I was around seventeen or so. Then I was in a Christian cult and hoped to pray away the gay (didn’t work), followed by me leaving said cult. Next, the tentative conversations with friends and the more assertive introductions of my now wife to family and colleagues over the years.

And just a few weeks ago, after over 40 years of no contact, I came out to my 80-year-old aunt. Funnily enough, there are still a lot of small coming-outs. For example, every time I have to explain to people just what kind of books Ylva Publishing publishes.

Each one of those coming-outs carried its own weight, its own set of anxieties and joys. Is colored by the social and political landscape of the time here in Germany. Some coming-outs were met with open arms and Willkommen (welcome), which felt good and should really be the norm. Others were… less so. I cut contact with my parents a few years ago. I no longer had the energy to fight with them to accept who I am and to accept my wife. And that’s okay too. My wife’s mother welcomes us with open arms.

Your Coming Out, Your Pace: Embracing the Personal Journey

Your coming-out is deeply personal, and there’s no right or wrong way to do it. And no one can force you to come out. There’s no timeline you should be following, no script you have to read. Your journey is yours alone. And it unfolds at its own pace. It’s about finding the moments where you feel safe enough, ready enough, to share a piece of your truth with the world. In addition, sometimes, that world is just one person – even someone from your past.

Challenges and Triumphs

The whole thing can be exhausting, I won’t lie. Even now, after all these years, there are still moments where I have to assess a situation and decide who to trust with this deeply personal information. I then have to brace myself for potential reactions. It’s so great to see the progress that’s been made for queer people in Germany, but there are still some challenges that arise. There are times when I wish I could just exist without needing to explain myself. Where my love and my identity are simply a given, just like everyone else’s.

But then I remember why it matters. For me, coming out was an act of courage. It’s about refusing to hide, about claiming my space in a world that sometimes tries to erase me. It’s about connecting with others who understand, who see me for who I truly am. And in those connections, in that shared visibility, lies incredible power. I’ve seen the community here in Germany grow and become more visible over the years, and that fills me with hope. Even though being out has become more difficult in certain circles as well.

Pride Month: A Celebration of Visibility and Resilience

Pride Month serves as a powerful reminder of this. It’s a collective coming-out, a vibrant declaration that we are here, we are queer, and we are not going anywhere. It’s a time to celebrate the progress we’ve made – the legal recognitions, the growing acceptance – to acknowledge the challenges that still lie ahead, and to uplift the voices of those who are still finding their way. And let’s be honest – all of us are constantly trying to find our way in this weird thing called life.

Finding Strength and Community in the Queer Experience

So, if you’re reading this, and you’re somewhere on your own coming out journey, please know this: you are not alone. There’s a whole community out here, both here in Germany and globally, ready to embrace you and to cheer you on every step of the way. Whether your coming out is a quiet whisper or a joyful shout, whether it’s to a new friend or a long-lost relative, it is valid, it is important, and it is yours.

And to my fellow queer folks who have navigated countless coming-out moments across generations and across the world: Danke schön (thank you). Thank you for your bravery, your resilience, and your unwavering spirit. Let’s use this Pride Month to celebrate ourselves in all our beautiful complexity. Let’s continue to create spaces, here in Germany and beyond, where coming out feels a little less daunting and a little more joyful. Let’s keep showing the world that love is love, in all its wonderful forms.

The ongoing journey of coming out might be a marathon, not a sprint. But with each step, we build a stronger, more inclusive world for ourselves and for those who will come after us. And that, my friends, is something truly worth celebrating. Happy Pride!

If you’re looking for books with the coming out trope, we have you covered: Follow this link.

Astrid Ohletz is the founder and CEO of Ylva Publishing. Being able to publish books where subtext is maintext is a dream come true for her. 

The post Celebrating Pride Month: The Ongoing Journey of Coming Out appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

Feeling stressed? Overwhelmed by the news? Want to escape the headlines for a while? Yeah, me too. It seems like everywhere you look, things are a bit of a mess. Sometimes you just need a break from it all, right? Well, at Ylva we got just the thing for us all: low-angst sapphic romances. These Sapphic stories are like a warm hug on a rainy day. They’re full of love, laughter, and happy endings – the perfect escape from the craziness of the world. Think charming small towns, quirky characters, and, of course, women falling in love with other women.

Why low-angst sapphic romances are the best kind of escape right now

Ever feel like you don’t see yourself in the books you read or the movies you watch? Or that there just aren’t enough happy endings for women loving women? Our low-angst sapphic romances change that! These stories are all about women finding love and happiness with other women, and let me tell you, it’s incredibly refreshing. Seeing characters who are just like you, going through the same ups and downs, can be really empowering. However, sometimes you just don’t need too many ups and downs in a book, right?

Low-angst books are all about kindness and acceptance. They show the power of community and the importance of having people who support you no matter what. In a world that right now feels so divided, these stories remind us that love is love.

Reading low-angst romances is a form of self-care because it allows you to escape into a world where love and happiness prevail. After a long day of dealing with the stresses of real life, immersing yourself in a story with a guaranteed happy ending can be incredibly soothing. These books offer a respite from the anxieties of everyday life, providing a comforting and predictable experience where relationships are healthy, communication is open, and love conquers all. Indulging in a low-angst romance can be a way to recharge your emotional batteries and remind yourself of the joy and positivity that love can bring, leaving you feeling refreshed and optimistic.

More than just a feel-good story

Okay, so maybe these books are full of sweet moments and swoon-worthy romance, but they’re also so much more than that. They deal with real issues like finding your identity, learning to love yourself, and healing from past hurts. And they do it all in a way that’s both heartwarming and relatable. Need a recommendation? We got you!

Ready to dive into a cozy, low-angst sapphic romance?

Here are some of our favorites:

• The Mummy’s Vengeance: A Mystery Horror Fiction Novella by Jae:  a light-hearted, slow-burn lesbian romance that embraces likable characters without all the drama.
• CRAFTLAB Tours and Tricorn Hats on Election Dayby Cheyenne Blue: Opposites attract, repel, and bicker like fools in this adorable small town lesbian romance about finding what truly matters in life.
• 4′ Contour Bench | Free Standing with Surface Mount Option | Welded Rod Design by Chris Zett: A heartwarming, low-angst lesbian romance about finding a home and family in unexpected places.
• Gele calciet als piramide bevordert de concentratie en trekt succes aan, heeft een gunstige werking op het hart en hartritmestoornissen by Lee Winter: A funny, small-town lesbian romance (set in New Zealand) about clashing cultures and daring to dream big.

One of the best things about sapphic low-angst romance is the amazing community of authors, readers, and publishers. Connect with other fans online, join book clubs, and share your love of these heartwarming stories. And/or subscribe to our newsletter. It’s a great way to find your people, never miss out on new publications/special sales, and celebrate the power of love in all its forms.

So ditch the doomscrolling and grab yourself a cozy, low-angst sapphic romance. You deserve a little escape, and these books are the perfect way to find it. Happy reading!

Just klick here to see all of Ylva’s low-angst romances.

Astrid Ohletz is the founder and CEO of Ylva Publishing. Being able to publish books where subtext is maintext is a dream come true for her. 

The post Cuddle up with a low-angst Sapphic romance appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

Due to its translation into French, today we dive into the world of Lee Winter’s captivating lesbian romance novel, BGS 5063 Dynamo trekker voor Ducati, exploring the intriguing dynamics between Maddie Grey, a homesick Aussie reporter, and her enigmatic media mogul boss, Elena Bartell.

Join us as we uncover the secrets behind this popular slow-burn romance, featuring its unforgettable ice queen heroine, and explore the French translation of *The Brutal Truth*, recently published by Reines de Coeur as L’Impitoyable Vérité.

 Lee, can you introduce your lesbian romance, The Brutal Truth, for those who haven’t read it yet?

The Brutal Truth deals with a homesick Aussie reporter in New York who goes from disliking her icy media mogul boss who has just bought her newspaper to being smitten by her. But the course of true love never runs smoothly, and ice queens are going to be icy! That poor reporter goes through a wringer of emotions!

 The Brutal Truth came out in 2017 but remains very popular in its English version, correct?

This is definitely my most popular book, just a little ahead of Breaking Character. It has a huge following. The Brutal Truth came second in a reader poll run by Jae for “must-read” lesbian romance. That just amazes me even to this day.

 What is it about ice queens that you find appealing in lesbian romance, and why do they make the perfect heroines for you?

I adore writing about fictional ice queens for one simple reason: I love them in real life too. I am living with an ice queen! There’s just something so delicious about an impressive, imperious, cool woman who melts for only one person and allows that special one to see what lies beyond her high walls.

Once I tried to write a non-ice queen book, and I failed due to my own complete boredom. I lost interest. Now I embrace what I love, and I’m sticking to it.

Can you introduce us to Maddie Grey, who is a ray of sunshine—and not just because she’s Australian?

Maddie Grey is a good journalist, but she’s found herself in New York, miserable because she’s on the night shift, has no friends beyond the childhood pal she shares an apartment with, and is SO homesick. She thought she’d be living the dream—everyone talks about going to New York, right?

Well, she discovered she’d just rather be back in Australia, thank you very much! Her only speck of light in her gray, sad world is being enchanted by Elena, the media mogul who has taken over the office near Maddie’s desk. Elena works late hours too, so Maddie strikes up an unlikely friendship with this reserved woman, seeing beyond her surface cool exterior.

At the beginning of the book, Elena Bartell appears to be an ice queen even more difficult to reach than Elizabeth Thornton in Breaking Character and Amelia Duxton in Hotel Queens, doesn’t she?

Funny you should mention Elizabeth Thornton. There’s a long-running debate among my readers as to whether she’s truly an ice queen at all because she does have a lot of friends she socializes with, even though she keeps her guard up.

I argue she’s often seen as an ice queen by Americans who can perceive her frosty British reserve as rude. And she’s less of an ice queen to Europeans and those from Commonwealth countries, who don’t automatically see her aloof reserve as impolite—just British.

Amelia is just born that way. She’s not walled off for emotional reasons. She truly doesn’t get the point of being friendly to everyone or lying to smooth the way in social settings. She is blunt and direct and doesn’t suffer fools gladly.

So that leaves Elena, who is far and away the iciest of the three and a textbook case of an ice queen.

This lesbian romance talks a lot about the lies we tell ourselves. Can you tell us a little more about Maddie and Elena’s lies?

Elena frequently lies to herself (and therefore everyone else), arguing she just wants the truth.

No one ever really wants the whole truth, though. Do they truly want to hear all the times an employee is angry at them or the times someone is thinking inappropriate thoughts about them? In relationship matters, knowing the whole truth can be a ruinous thing if you’re unprepared to hear it.

Maddie’s lies are also to herself. She likes to pretend she just admires her boss and that’s why she spends so much time thinking about her.

Maddie knows it’s a lie, though. She knows she should probably leave and find a better job more suited to her skills, but that would also mean not being around the boss she definitely doesn’t have the hots for… (Okay, fine: she totally has the hots for her.)

But it’s all very safe and okay to have a crush as long as no one comes around demanding the truth from you, right?

Months go by and Elena and Maddie cross paths, but at a certain point, they stop seeing each other on a daily basis. Was stretching out time like that necessary to build the story and the characters? It’s the ultimate slow burn.

It’s really common in lesbian romances to have a breakup at the seventy-percent mark, where characters are torn apart before they come together. Sometimes it can be a contrived split, forced on the plot to tick a box, and readers hate those sorts of breakups.

I thought it’d be interesting if my main characters were parted for external reasons. There’s no breakup, but they’re spending time apart while still getting to know each other via email and falling deeper in love. It gives the readers a breather from the intensity, and it has a lot of humor in Elena’s exasperation and impatience for Maddie’s return.

Did your experience as a journalist influence the portrayal of Maddie’s career and aspiration in this lesbian romance?

This is my most autobiographical lesbian romance. When I was nineteen, the newspaper I worked for sent me interstate from Brisbane to Melbourne to work in a news bureau. I was put on the midnight shift. (I blogged about it here.)

It was boring and tiring, and I had no friends—I was the only person in that part of the office working that late.

As it was my first time away from home, I was also missing my friends and family terribly. I was extremely homesick.

There’s a blog entry in the book, written by Maddie, where she talks about her friends back home who’d promised to visit her in New York and never did. Her emotional state was all from my own experience.

And, unlike Maddie, I didn’t have a hot boss to fall in love with to take my mind off my lousy job!

A lot of francophone readers who read the book in English fell in love with Elena’s ice queen lawyer, Felicity Simmons. Is this also the case in other countries? Is that why you had to give her her own book?

How wonderful to hear! Thank you, French readers!

Felicity is a very polarizing character. Readers tend to either love her or hate her.

I’ve noticed more American readers found Felicity unforgivably rude with the way she just blurts out whatever awful or blunt things that happen to be on her mind.

I find Brits, Australians, Germans, and now the French seem to find her lack of filter or censoring herself to be funny and freeing.

Having said that, it really is quite individual how people react to her.

It helps that I later wrote a short story about her (“Five Times Felicity Met Elena”) in my anthology Home is Where the Heart Is (Three Creeks, Montana), which humanized her a lot and properly explained her career-driven mindset. That won over a lot of the readers who thought she was just terrible before that. And so that new wave of appreciation helped her get her own book, Bigfoot: The Sumatra Encounter.

Personally, I find Felicity to be one of the funniest characters I’ve ever written. Some people are just so unintentionally awful in spite of themselves that you can’t help but laugh.

Do you have a message for your French readers who have fallen in love with your lesbian romance novels?

I adore my French readers! Thanks for loving my ice queens.

 __________________________________________

* Lee Winter is an award-winning veteran newspaper journalist. Now a full-time author and part-time editor, Lee is also a 2015 and 2016 Lambda Literary Award finalist and has won several Golden Crown Literary Awards. She lives in Western Australia with her longtime girlfriend, surrounded by much fluffy wildlife.
Her latest book is BGS 8465 Vliegwiel trekker voor KTM, Yamaha, Suzuki.

The post ‘ICE’ TO MEET YOU: LEE WINTER’S WORLD OF LESBIAN ROMANCE appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

In your short story “Pop-Tarts and Rice,” which expands on the world of your novel Worthy of Love, you delve back into the realm of lesbian romance. What inspired you to write this particular story, and how do you decide which moments or character aspects to explore in such stories?

In Worthy of Love, Bella flunked out of college and gave up on her dream of working in graphic design. I wanted to explore what happens when she gives it another try. Enrolling in a community college is a positive step for her, but also stressful–which gave me a chance to write some mushy moments with her supportive girlfriend, Nadine.

Your stories offer portrayals of lesbian love and relationships. How do you approach the development of your characters to ensure that they are as real and complex as possible and embody the essence of lesbian romance? Are there certain clichés or stereotypes that you consciously try to avoid to keep the portrayal genuine and respectful?

I love to write characters who are smart and accomplished, but it would be unrealistic (and annoying) if they didn’t have flaws. My stories explore situations that make high-achieving women feel insecure, which makes them more relatable. Most importantly, their struggles provide opportunities for idealistic younger women to comfort them.

When I wrote Worthy of Love, I avoided the cliché that people from more conservative countries are always homophobic. Nadine’s family in the Philippines supports her relationship with Bella. Filipino culture is something positive that brings Nadine and Bella closer together, not something that holds Nadine back.

In “Pop-Tarts and Rice” you’ve created moments that resonate deeply within the theme of lesbian romance. Is there a scene or message in the story that is personally meaningful to you or that you hope will resonate with your readers, especially in the context of sapphic romance?

The message of “Pop-Tarts and Rice” is that we all deserve to feel proud of our achievements, no matter how big or small they might seem to outsiders. Bella feels embarrassed because college has been difficult for her, but Nadine values and celebrates Bella’s hard work. Everyone has unique challenges, and a loving partner should be the first one to cheer when you accomplish a goal.

What or who inspires you to write your stories, especially those that explore sapphic romance? Are there particular books, authors, or personal experiences that have had a strong influence on your work, especially in terms of the portrayal of LGBTQ+ characters? And how do you perceive the role and responsibility of queer romance authors in the ongoing conversation about visibility and representation?

My sapphic romance addiction began when I discovered The Brutal Truth by Lee Winter. I had always loved the idea of ice queens, but I had no idea authors had written entire books about this particular fantasy. After just a few scenes with Elena Bartell, I was hooked for life. I also love books by Jae, Roslyn Sinclair, and other wonderful Ylva authors.

I believe romance authors play an important role in the LGBTQ+ community. Now that gay marriage is legal in many countries, there is less emphasis on romantic relationships in LGBTQ+ discourse and culture. At the same time, we spend more time online than ever, and the Internet encourages us to isolate and navel-gaze to an unhealthy degree. I would like to see less focus on queer identity, and more on the relationships and families we create together. Romance novels provide a positive example that might encourage young people to take a chance on dating. For those of us lucky enough to have a partner, they remind us to appreciate and nurture those relationships.

We hope you enjoyed this insightful interview with Quinn Ivins. Her dedication to crafting authentic and meaningful sapphic romance stories enriches literature and fosters important conversations about visibility and representation in the LGBTQ+ community. You can find “Pop-Tarts and Rice” within Ylva’s Anthology The Sleeping Army: The Fading Light Book Five. And you can check Quinn’s other works here!

The post Exploring Sapphic Romance with Quinn Ivins: Insights and Representation appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

Okay, picture it: your two TV crushes—hot actresses with so much swagger and sapphic sizzle it should be illegal—are gazing into each other’s eyes. They’re explaining just how much their friendship means. How deep it is. How fulfilling. Soulmates, even…

Sapphic viewers spill their popcorn. Lesbian, pan, and bi besties are all madly screen-capping every time Smirky Actress One looks at Sultry Actress Two’s lips, and they’re uploading said screencaps to social media with hilarious captions.

Wait, was there a breath hitch? Roll back two frames. Oh, yep. Breath. Hitch. Could it get any better? Here’s hoping…

CUE THE RANDOM BLAND MAN

Annnnd next week, one of the women has just met a blandly random man and announced that he’s The One. No chemistry? No problem! The main thing is no homo for the show’s stars! (Side characters, if they must, may come out.)

But mains? No! Batwoman is the exception, not the rule! Phew. Bullet dodged, say the network execs, still congratulating themselves over the previous week’s rating spike.

And that, my friends, is how a thousand fanfictions are born. It’s why ʼships sail and form online armadas of fans who feel queer-baited or unfulfilled by TV and film’s massively hetero universe.

IS A QUEER ROMANCE FOR TV LEADS REALLY SO OUT THERE?

Okay, just as a crazy thought, why is it so preposterous that Once Upon a Time’s Emma Swan—bounty hunter, birth mother of Henry, and official savior—might be an exciting love interest for Regina Mills—town mayor, adoptive mother of Henry, and unofficial Evil Queen? If the leads were a man and a woman, for sure the writers would have gone there. The yin and yang of their backgrounds alone is *chef’s kiss*.

And is it so absurd that Andrea Sachs, awestruck assistant in The Devil Wears Prada, might have developed a super-sapphic crush on her iconic boss Miranda Priestly after discovering how incredible the queen is at shaping the world of fashion?

Don’t start us on Supergirl, Rizzoli & Isles, or the Pitch Perfect movies when it comes to potential being tossed away along with phenomenal chemistry between actresses. We’ll be here all year.

FIXING ALL THAT’S BROKEN WITH FANFICTION

As a former fanfiction writer, the appeal for me is all about fixing shows that went places fans didn’t want them to go. Rewriting the endings. And the middles.

The top two fixes are usually: 1) making the world a whole lot less straight—that is, embracing the chemistry already existing between two women—and 2) un-killing the queer characters we loved.

I was there when sapphic fanfiction first took off in a huge, huge way. I watched in shock and horror in 2001 when a beloved TV warrior princess was killed for no good reason on Xena. I saw hundreds of online friends take to the internet and ferociously type up a storm to undo the unthinkable.

The outrage (and fanfiction output) hasn’t abated since. Not when they killed Tara in Buffy or HG in Warehouse 13 or Lexa in The 100. Fans itch to fix, and fanfiction is a fantastic outlet for doing that.

But it’s not just the fix that draws fanfiction readers; that’s simply the key that opens the door. Once you’re inside, you can discover familiar characters and an emotional rollercoaster that catapults you anywhere you want to go. And, being free, fanfiction is something anyone can write or read and love.

FROM FANFICTION WRITING TO PENNING BOOKS

It’s little wonder that so many novelists got started as fanfiction writers: these amateur scribes penned fixes and explored emotions that they weren’t getting from their shows.

They attracted online followings, improved their skills, and wrote more and more. This snowballed into writing books and—in a few cases (like mine)—a whole career.

More than a few books in sapphic fiction started out as fanfiction or had a character from a TV show as its inspiration. And it’s these stories that Ylva’s proudly embracing for the next three days.

In celebration of all things fanfiction, Ylva is having a sale. Every book in this sale—all 32 titles—were once either a fanfiction or have a lead character inspired by a TV show.

The inspirations for these on-sale Ylva books come from so many sources. There’s The 100, Warrior Nun, Grey’s Anatomy, Supergirl, Once Upon a Time, The Last of Us, NCIS Hawai’i, Holby City, Xena: Warrior Princess, Rizzoli & Isles, Rookie Blue, Law & Order, Glee, The Closer, and Chilling Adventures of Sabrina.

A PRADA OFFICE ROMANCE FOR THE WIN!

Interestingly, the biggest source of inspiration—sparking no less than six Ylva books—was The Devil Wears Prada(DWP). Okay, sure, most of those are by Roslyn Sinclair, but a fair few of our talented authors have written DWPfanfiction too, even if they haven’t created books from those stories. There’s just something about an office setting with an age gap, an imperious ice queen, and a boss/assistant trope.

But, whatever your taste or fanfiction fandom or favorite fictional world, the bottom line is, we have the book for you!

Check out Ylva’s ultimate Fanfiction-to-Book Sale from April 5-7. 

* Lee Winter is an award-winning veteran newspaper journalist. Now a full-time author and part-time editor, Lee is also a 2015 and 2016 Lambda Literary Award finalist and has won several Golden Crown Literary Awards. She lives in Western Australia with her longtime girlfriend, surrounded by much fluffy wildlife.
Her latest book is Champagne Art Show Opening & Holiday Gala.

The post FIXING IT WITH FANFICTION appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

“How did you create the sizzling chemistry between the protagonists in Bachelorette Number Twelve? Were there moments during the writing process when you found yourself enchanted by the sapphic love story you created?”

Most of the time, it felt as if the chemistry and sizzle between Regina and Ellie basically wrote itself. It helped that it’s an enemies-to-lovers romance—or more like a dislike-to-love romance—and that Regina and Ellie couldn’t be more different from each other if they tried.  Regina is a businesslike ice queen, while Ellie is a warm, sunshiny character. Their clashing personalities created a push-pull magnetism between them.

They started out having preconceived notions of each other: Ellie perceived Regina as a cold, arrogant doctor who thinks she’s God’s gift to medicine, while Regina saw Ellie as an overly sentimental tattletale.

What adds to the sizzle is that they both found each other physically attractive pretty much from the start, yet didn’t want to admit it, even to themselves.

When I was revising the manuscript, I spent a lot of time re-reading, then read it several more times during the editing and the proofreading process. But even after reading the entire story half a dozen times, I never got sick of it. I had to remind myself that I was reading to find mistakes and not just to enjoy the dynamic between Ellie and Regina. I took that as a very good sign!

“In addition to many romantic moments, Bachelorette Number Twelve also has plenty of humorous passages. How do you achieve the perfect balance between laughter and love, and do you have specific techniques or sources of inspiration that helped you with that?”

I don’t think of it as a balance between laughter and love because laughter isn’t the opposite of love—it’s a huge part of love for me. Personally, a great sense of humor is one of the things I look for, both in friends and in a romantic partner. Laughing together and being able to make each other laugh is a form of intimacy that helps us bond.

I don’t have a specific technique for writing humorous passages. My source of inspiration is my own life. I grew up in a family where banter and a light-hearted sparring with words were the love language, so writing banter comes naturally to me. It’s actually one of my favorite things to write.

“The setting of Bachelorette Number Twelve is very important. How significant is the place where love unfolds to you, and how does the setting contribute to intensifying the sapphic relationship between the characters?”

In general, the setting is essential to my stories. In some of my books such as Paper Love, the setting is almost like an additional supporting character.

Bachelorette Number Twelve is set in Kansas City, Missouri. I wanted a city big enough to make the ER where Regina and Ellie work busy but also have warm-hearted Ellie live in a neighborhood that feels cozy and intimate. I also chose Kansas City because it’s close to Fair Oaks, the fictious little town where my Fair Oaks Series takes place. I wanted Sasha from Not the Marrying Kind to teach the baking class that is part of the date package that Ellie bids on.

Some of the key scenes in Bachelorette Number Twelve were only possible because of the setting—the first auction-mandated date at the outdoor ice-skating rink, the water show they attend during their first “real” date, Regina’s heartfelt confession on the Town of Kansas Bridge… These are all places that actually exist, and these scenes might have played out differently if they took place in any other setting.

The most important setting is the hospital where they work, though. Work in the ER is fast-paced, and we see Ellie and Regina in life-or-death situations where they have to work together to save a patient’s life, ignoring the tension and attraction between them. The medical setting definitely heightened the emotional intensity between them.

“In Bachelorette Number Twelve, you present us with another wonderfully sapphic love story. How do you create authentic lesbian and queer characters that not only touch readers but also appeal to a broad audience?”

I spend a lot of time on character development before I start writing. My goal is to create “real” people, not two-dimensional characters, so I create a detailed backstory and personality with strengths and weaknesses for each character. The characters don’t just start existing on page one; they each have a past that shaped them and that influences how they react to what happens in the story.

Even larger-than-life ice queen Regina needs traits that make her human and that readers can empathize with. She might be perfect in her job, but she’s afraid to make herself vulnerable in front of co-workers because of something that happened in her past.

I think it’s that human aspect, along with a certain decency that my characters have, that appeals to my readers.

Well, dear readers, this is it for now. We hope you enjoyed this interview with Jae and got some insight into her process of writing sapphic romances. All good things must come to an end, but here at Ylva we make sure that those are happy endings! So, check out Jae’s Bachelorette Number Twelve Piramide S uit Lapis Lazuli, ze vergroot je spirituele kracht en beschermt je tegen negativiteit en straling 5G and delight yourself with this wonderful lesbian love story.

The post Setting, chemistry, banter, and go!: a chat with sapphic romance author, Jae, about her new series appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

If you haven’t caught the first part yet, no worries – check it out here (we dished on genres, tropes of sapphic fiction, and the wild world of social media!). Now, we’re diving into the juicy stuff, talking newsletters and must-have resources for writers. Stick around for some fantastic advice on writing and getting your work out there from these incredibly successful women-loving-women authors! Whether you’re a bookworm or a wordsmith, this interview series is your backstage pass to the wonderful world of lesbian fiction, so make sure you don’t miss a beat!

NEWSLETTER MAGIC: DO THEY STILL WORK? (SPOILER: YES!)

A topic that often comes up in marketing for authors is newsletters. And it’s no different when it comes to sapphic fiction, right? Do you have one? Could you share some wisdom on that subject?

Lee Winter: I have a newsletter but no real wisdom on it! I write one about every one or two months. Their value to authors is simply to have a direct way to tell readers about one’s author news. Why? Not everyone’s on social media. Plus, social media may fall over or change its rules in some restrictive/censoring way, so it’s best to have a way to circumvent social media if needed. Think of newsletters as a nice way to connect with readers—and insurance for a post-social-media apocalypse!

Clare Lydon: My newsletter is one of my best forms of marketing, and something I put a lot of effort into. I’ve built it up mostly organically since my third book release, and I give away a sapphic novella when readers sign up. I email every other week with news of what I’m writing and reading, as well as any other news, along with sales, podcasts, interviews, and all of that. I also ask my audience a question every week, and get a lot of engagement, which I love. My newsletter is a great direct link with my readers, which I cherish. If authors don’t have one, they should set one up right away.

Jae: Aside from my Facebook group, my newsletter is my most important tool for communicating with readers and keeping them up-to-date on any book news.

My tips for a newsletter are:

• Start one as early as possible. This should be your number one priority aside from writing a great book. Unlike social media, this is a platform you control. No one can close your account or limit your reach by changing an algorithm.
• Have a welcome email to introduce yourself to readers.
• Send a newsletter at least once a month so your readers don’t forget who you are and unsubscribe.
• Subscribe to a few author newsletters to find out what style of newsletter you, as a reader, enjoy.
• Familiarize yourself with data protection laws such as the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and make sure you protect your subscribers’ privacy.

Harper Bliss: Yes, I do have a newsletter, and I find it the best tool for maintaining a direct line of communication with my readers. It allows me to share updates about my work, upcoming projects, and insights into my writing process. For anyone considering starting a newsletter, consistency is key. I send one every other week.

I’ve also offered a couple of free books to new subscribers since I started my newsletter more than a decade ago, and that still works well. Try to always overdeliver (like telling new subscribers they’ll get two free books, then give them three or four.)

DO THE HOMEWORK: RELIABLE RESOURCES FOR SAPPHIC FICTION WRITERS

Do you have any resources you could recommend for authors who want to improve their reach? It doesn’t have to be specifically focused on the lesbian romance market, just books, blogs, podcasts, or creators that post relevant and reliable content? 

Lee Winter: I’m all about the Facebook groups. I’m in some for fellow authors where we help each other out; some for readers, to hear what they’re into; one for listeners (don’t neglect your lesfic audiobook following!); and one for Aussies and Kiwis, to share books amongst my own tribe.

I also think agreeing to interviews and podcasts is another way to get your name out there. So, if someone asks, do consider saying yes!

One other interesting option that not many authors do is to have a Pinterest page. Mine  shows all the inspiration for people and places I gather when I’m researching a book. I’m very visual, so I gather a heap of pics. When a book is finished, I open up the page for that book to the public. It’s a fun way of using all the material I’ve gathered anyway, and it can be a great thing to share with your readers, especially via newsletter.

Clare Lydon: I host a podcast with my friend and fellow author TB Markinson called Lesbians Who Write. Every week, we discuss a topic, and we’ve got nearly 200 episodes under our belt, so go binge them if you want to find out how to write and publish a book.

I also always recommend Ylva author Jae, who has some great resources on her website. Plus, Joanna Penn is another fab port of call if you want to find out more about self-publishing. She has a podcast and websitethat I’d recommend.

Jae: There are so many options! Here are a few I would recommend:

Free places to help promote your sapphic books:

• The Sapphic Quill, which I established to cross-promote with fellow authors
• I Heart SapphFic: submit your books to the IHS Book Finder (backlist) and new release newsletter
• The Lesbian Review: submit your book for a TLR review

Podcasts:

• The Creative Penn
• Lesbians Who Write
• The Rebel Author Podcast
• The SPA Girls Podcast

Blogs:

• The Sapphic Quill
• David Gaughran
• The Creative Penn

Books:

• Newsletter Ninja: How to Become an Author Mailing List Expert by Tammi L. Labrecque
• Newsletter Ninja 2: If You Give a Reader a Cookie: Supercharge Your Author Mailing List With the Perfect Reader Magnet by Tammi L. Labrecque
• Strangers To Superfans: A Marketing Guide to The Reader Journey by David Gaughran
• Write to Market: Deliver a Book that Sells by Chris Fox

Harper Bliss: Since the very beginning of my self-publishing journey, I’ve followed and listen to Joanna Penn. I have learned so much from her, and I love that she’s so positive and always looks to the future.

I’ve recently started doing Facebook ads again, and Mal and Jill Cooper’s book Help! My Facebook Ads Suck has been a great help and is an excellent starting point for anyone wanting to give them a go.

And that’s Part 2 for you! We’re thrilled to have explored the distinctive realm of sapphic fiction. Thank you, Clare Lydon, Harper Bliss, Lee Winter, and Jae for your fantastic insights!

Navigating this unique niche is a journey, and hearing from best-selling lesbian romance authors is an incredible opportunity to delve into the nuances of publishing lesbian romances. We hope you thoroughly enjoyed this concluding installment!

If you happened to miss the first part, catch up on the excitement right here in Part 1!  Happy reading and stay tuned for more on the Ylva Blog!

The post Lesbian Romance and Sapphic Fiction: Insights from Ylva Authors – Part 2 appeared first on Ylva Publishing.

Jae, Lee Winter, Clare Lydon, and Harper Bliss spilled the beans on their processes and the wisdom they’ve gained over their careers. Read on to get writing and marketing advice from super-successful sapphic fiction authors—today we talk about genres, tropes, and social media! If you’re a reader or a writer, this interview series will shed light and share insight into the lesbian romance world, so don’t miss out!

GENRE AND TROPES IN SAPPHIC FICTION: WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN’T

You’ve been writing sapphic fiction for a long time. Could you talk a bit about your most and least successful books?

Lee Winter: The most successful is probably The Brutal Truth. People still talk about it with so much love to this day. I’m not entirely sure why it prevails above all else. It has the media mogul/boss and assistant trope. But I think maybe it has to do with longing. I enjoyed the way the protagonists connected with each other early, longed for each other, but didn’t act on it (for a few reasons) until much later. It also doesn’t have a third-act breakup, which makes it a little out of the ordinary.

I learned from that book that I will always enjoy writing CEO romances. Competence porn is delicious to write and read.

Lee Winter

My least successful book is Shattered, and that’s partly because it’s a sci-fi. It’s a smaller readership, given its genre. Yes, it won a Goldie and was critically acclaimed, but it was also slammed by those readers who expected there to be an HEA (Happily Ever After) for the lesbian pair who helped each other on their journey of self-discovery.

To my mind, they did find happiness—but not with each other. They desperately needed each other [in order] to grow, get out of their ruts, and stop living in the past, but they weren’t really compatible beyond friendship and desire. Shattergirl/Nyah, a scientist, needed her open space and her intellectual match to be entirely happy in a relationship. And Lena needed to be in a city and with someone a little…messy—in all senses! They make great friends, though.

I learned from that book that expectations are everything in writing. You have to communicate very, very clearly and often that this is a sci-fi and NOT A ROMANCE, so those HEA expectations aren’t built up.

Readers being disappointed at not receiving what they thought they were getting is something I never want to have happen again. In fact, now, every time someone mentions Shattered, I go to enormous and almost hilarious pains to announce that it’s not a romance, so there are no problems with it not matching readers’ expectations.

Since its release, though, it’s had a bit of a revival as readers have found it and read it for what it is: an otherworldly tale filled with deep friendship, big questions, lesbian sex, and some social commentary.

Clare Lydon

Clare Lydon: My most successful book was and still is Before You Say I Do. It’s been translated by Ylva into German, it’s been released in Portuguese and Italian, too, and it’s done equally well in every market. I had a feeling about that book when I came up with the idea. I sat on the story for 18 months before I wrote it, and it just flowed out of me. You never know if a book will do well, but you hope. What did I learn from that? Keep your ears open for inspiration, and when an idea hits you in the gut, trust that feeling.

My least successful book? That was probably The Long Weekend, if we’re talking stand-alone. I like to say it’s a cult classic. It’s my only book that’s not a romance–it does have romance in it, but it’s about a group of friends, and some get a happy ending, some don’t. Even though it didn’t sell all that well, I still think it’s a good book that shows a different side to my writing. But if I want bigger sales, sapphic fiction doesn’t sell as well as sapphic romance. That’s what I learned. My other flop sales-wise was Big London Dreams, the eighth book in my London Romance series. I think it’s one of the best books I’ve ever written, but it bombed. Go figure!

Jae, Harper, you are also long-standing authors of women-loving-women fiction! Could you share some insights into what you’ve learned from your most and least successful lesbian romances?

Jae: The most successful depends on how you define “success”—the one that sold best, won most awards, or gets most often mentioned as a reader favorite.

Jae

One that is at or near the top of the list in all of these regards is Wrong Number, Right Woman. It’s a low-angst, feel-good romance between Denny, a 41-year-old shy butch with love handles, and Eliza, a 30-year-old extroverted woman who assumes herself to be straight. They meet after Eliza sends Denny an accidental text asking for advice on what to wear on a date.

What I learned from its success:

How important that overlap between what I want to write and what readers want to read is. The book was written during the first lockdown and published during the pandemic, when both readers and I needed a feel-good book.

How important it is for a book to fit the author’s brand. I think I’m well-known for writing two things: slow-burn romances and relatable everyday characters. Denny works as a cashier, struggles to make ends meet, and has love handles and a cowlick, and yet she’s one of my most popular characters because she fits what my audience loves about my books.

How important a captivating blurb and beginning are. Nowadays, readers can choose from hundreds of new releases every month. I think the premise and blurb of Wrong Number, Right Woman—two women who meet via an accidental text—are unique, and its beginning with good forward momentum, fun dialogue, and no info dumps help captivate readers who read the excerpt.

I would say my least successful book is Good Enough to Eat. While it has won awards and has its fans, it has sold the fewest copies.

What I learned from it:

Genre matters. Good Enough to Eat is a paranormal romance, and that genre is less popular with readers, who mostly prefer contemporary romance. There are people who will never read a lesbian vampire romance, no matter how well it’s written.

Harper Bliss: In my experience, my number one tip if you want your romance to sell well is don’t write about death in any shape or form. (Or, weirdly, rock stars.)

Harper Bliss

My most successful book is About That Kiss, about two actors working on a lesbian rom-com together. One is deep in the closet; the other is straight. It’s a light, fun, and sexy celebrity romance that I wrote in about a month while struggling with another book that just wouldn’t come together. The reason why it was so successful, in my opinion, is that while being glamorous and lighthearted, it also touches on the subject of coming out, which is something most queer readers can identify with.

I have a couple of books that haven’t done so well, but I’ll pick one to illustrate my first point. A Breathless Place is, in my humble opinion, the best book I’ve ever written. It’s about a famous singer who loses her voice and her will to live. It has a trigger warning for mentions of suicide, even though it’s an extremely hopeful book—but the journey is quite difficult. I completely understand why a book like that wouldn’t reach that many readers, but I will never regret writing it. Since then, I haven’t written anything like that anymore, and my stories have become lighter—maybe because I had to write A Breathless Place first.

CONNECTING WITH WOMEN-LOVING-WOMEN AUDIENCES: NAVIGATING SOCIAL MEDIA

Social media can be a hard place to be in, and something lots of authors even dislike. But do you find it important for connecting with audiences? Do you have tips for lesbian romance authors who want to connect with readers? 

Lee Winter: My number one tip is to don’t just turn up to flog your books to readers, then disappear. Turn up and engage. Join in on interesting topics, debates, fun stuff, silly stuff, things that aren’t even remotely related to your book. Talk about other lesfic books you’ve read and loved. Books from other publishing houses! That’s allowed, truly! Enthuse about the things that interest you.

Readers know very well who the authors are who just blip in, drop a blurb and a link, and sod off again, treating them like a PEZ machine for book sales. It feels disrespectful to them, and they do notice. So either commit to being a real person, with thoughts and interests outside of being a book marketer, or consider avoiding social media altogether.

If you don’t know how to get started, there are a number of Facebook lesfic groups that have thousands of readers as members where you can join in the conversations and get better-known. There’s Jae’s group and TLR (The Lesbian Review) just for starters. Ask around with fellow authors or readers to see which ones might suit you. Some have a “no marketing your own book” edict, so check their individual rules first.

Lastly, get your own website. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but for readers, especially those not on social media, it’ll be a golden resource. All your books in one handy space, all laid out in easy-to-find detail? It’s essential. You don’t have to sell your books from there, but be sure to include links to the major booksellers who do have your product.

Clare Lydon: I’d say be present on the ones you like, but don’t hammer your books relentlessly. Be yourself, be authentic. I don’t expect to get direct book sales from social media, but it’s a great way to show readers what you’re up to, remind them of your backlist, give them news of fresh releases, sales, podcasts, interviews, etc. out into the world. I don’t get involved in social media drama, it’s not my jam. I’d say use it to reach readers and to be social, but don’t get sucked in to anything else. Life’s too short.

Jae: While social media is not the most important thing, it’s certainly a great way to interact with your readers.

My advice regarding social media:

• You don’t have to be everywhere. Pick two platforms you enjoy and post regularly rather than trying to do it all.
• When picking a social media platform, make sure it’s a platform that fits your genre. Find out where your audience hangs out.
• Learn the customs and unspoken rules of the social media platforms you picked, e.g., Bluesky uses keywords, not hashtags, etc.
• Be an authentic human being. Interact with readers instead of just shouting “buy my book” all the time.
• Make good use of photos, images, and video—they draw the eye more than text does.
• Be a fan of your genre. Talk about the books you enjoy reading, not just about your own books.

Harper Bliss: I’m on Facebook and Instagram, but I only post. I don’t follow anyone because my brain simply can’t handle that. (For that reason, I also stay far away from X [Twitter].)

Years ago, I quit socials completely, but I’ve returned since because I do want to connect with readers in some ways, and Facebook makes it so easy. I have a private Facebook group for my readers where I interact and post stuff only for them. Then I also have my Facebook page and Instagram (and a TikTok account I don’t really know what to do with.)

My only tip would be: by all means, use social media to connect, but don’t let it take away from your precious writing time because creation makes your life so much better than watching pictures of other people’s lunch/pets. (I use 1Focus, a very cheap and effective app, whenever my hunt for a socials dopamine fix gets the better of me—and it does so often.)

And that’s a wrap on Part 1! Sapphic fiction, being a unique niche, doesn’t always follow the same rules as more mainstream publishing. That’s why getting insights from successful authors who specialize in women-loving-women stories is not just empowering but also an amazing chance to gain knowledge and dive deeper into the world of publishing lesbian romances. We trust you had a blast with this initial instalment! Stay tuned for the upcoming Part 2 – it’s on its way to the Ylva Blog real soon!

The post Lesbian Romance & Sapphic Fiction Wisdom from Best-Selling Authors: Unlocking Insights – Part 1 appeared first on Ylva Publishing.