Love Between the Covers

Romance writers have their say in filmmaker Laurie Kahn's lively documentary, which offers a glimpse into the writers' processes and shares excerpts from their novels as Kahn travels to readings, conventions, and retreats. Mary Bly, a Shakespeare professor who writes under the name Eloisa James, recalls that her parents (her father is poet Robert Bly) were horrified when she became a romance novelist, but that didn't deter her in the slightest. Bly believes that romance writing is one of the few fields in which a woman's gender presents no impediment to success. Corresponding with fans, she met Kim Castillo, who became her assistant and helped launch Eloisa James's career. Nicole Peeler acknowledges that the genre doesn't get much respect, but also feels that derision brings fans together, since they long to find others who share their passion. While literary fiction tends to attract competitive types, romance writers have entered collaborative partnerships, such as Celeste Bradley and Susan Donovan's Unbound. While a few women faced resistance from spouses who doubted they could earn income from romantic fiction, the genre has produced plenty of heavy hitters, like the prolific Nora Roberts, and she's hardly alone. Len Barot, the former surgeon who writes lesbian romance under the pseudonym Radclyffe, has penned three books a year since 2001. Barbara Jenkins makes no case for realism, but argues that male-oriented fantasy tends to garner more acceptance than the female variant. She got into the field because there were so few authors of color, particularly in historical fiction. Love Between the Covers makes a solid case for an appreciation of a much maligned genre. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (K. Fennessy)