The Books That Made Me Want to Write Romance

How Two Novels Changed My Life and Sparked My Writing Journey

I was always a reader as a kid. I had a bookshelf full of those little picture books that I would read over and over - stories like Mouse and the Moon Made of Cheese that I could practically recite from memory. Reading brought me into new worlds, took me on adventures, and kept me company. Books were my friends, always there when I needed them.

From Children's Books to Romance Novels

Then one day, I met someone who introduced me to a completely different kind of book. She was reading something with a cover that wasn't anything like I'd ever seen before in my school library. When she told me it was a historical romance novel and what the story was about, I was shocked and excited! She let me borrow it immediately.

That first historical romance opened up an entirely new world for me. As we kept reading and sharing books, she introduced me to even more authors - first Sherrilyn Kenyon, and then The Sun Witch by Linda Winstead Jones.

There's something so magical about romance that I'd never experienced before. Watching two characters fall in love is beautiful, but it's more than that - it's about believing in love, feeling it, experiencing it through the pages. And it doesn't always have to be romantic love. Sometimes it's the love of a friend or family member. Sometimes it's the love you find for yourself.

The Two Books That Changed Everything

The Sun Witch cemented something in me that I didn't even know I was looking for. I wanted to weave that type of magic myself. I wanted to write books that crafted words into feelings, books that made paranormal creatures feel real and accepted. That series gave me the first spark of inspiration to begin writing my own stories.

But then I read another book that completely ruined me for everything else: Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon.

This book had everything I didn't even know I craved - deities and mythology, sarcasm and deep friendships, years of backstory and character development. It connected with me in such a strong way because it reminded me that a romance novel doesn't just have to be about the romance itself. It's about getting to know the characters you want to fall in love with just as much as the ones you love to hate.

Finding My Voice as a Romance Author

That's when I realized what kind of stories I wanted to tell. Not just love stories, but complex worlds with characters who feel real, who have histories and flaws and growth. Stories where the romance is enhanced by everything else happening around it.

These two books showed me that romance could be so much more than I'd ever imagined, and they're the reason I started writing paranormal and dark romance. Every time I sit down to create a new story, I'm trying to capture even a fraction of that magic I felt when I first discovered what romance novels could be.

I hope that when you pick up one of my books, you feel some of that same magic I felt all those years ago. Because that's what this is all about - creating stories that make you believe in love, in magic, and in the power of a really good book to change everything.

If you're curious about my books and the magic I'm trying to create, you can find them here.