I was told it was given to the house when it got too big and it was kept in the living room. It was two bookshelves worth we had extra bookshelves for it. And I had the collection for two years, during my junior and senior year. I’m told it’s gone now, but there was this romance novel library and it was willed down every year by graduating seniors to someone else in the house. And then when I got to Smith actually, I was in Lamont house – and this group of women in Lamont house had romance novels and loved them. I went all through high school reading romance novels, sneaking them inside my textbooks in class in high school. I have an older sister who reads romance novels, and I read my first one when I was ten or eleven and I never looked back. Sarah Maclean: I’m a romance novelist, yes - but I’m a romance reader first.

Oh, and did we mention she’s a Smithie? The Sophian chatted with Maclean over the phone one Saturday to learn about her journey into romance writing, her recommendations for Smithies new to the genre, and what she thinks the romance community should do to move toward a more equitable future.Ĭhichi Tsai: How did you become a romance novelist? What was your journey?

How does one begin to describe the awesomeness that is Sarah Maclean? She’s the bestselling author of more than a dozen delightfully written historical romances, one half of the fabulous duo behind the “Fated Mates” podcast, romance columnist for the Washington Post and probably the fiercest advocate for the romance genre you’ll ever come across. Links will be available as articles are published around Valentine’s weekend. To explore more articles in this series, click on the author’s names: Sylvie Fox, Shannon O’Brien, Karelia Stetz-Waters, Meredith Wild. This article is part of “Romancing the Smithie,” a series of interviews with Smith alums writing in the romance genre conducted by Sophian Features writers.

The season sarah maclean series