In March, Harlequin is doing a Spotlight on Medical Romance in their forums. In the UK and Australia, there's nothing new about Medical Romances, they are actually available in stories on other continents, but here in North America you can only buy them online. And if someone doesn't frequent Harlequin.com, what are the chances they'll even be introduced to them?So, I'm making 2012 my year to introduce North American romance lovers to the awesome that is Medical Romance. If you live on this Medical Romance-deprived continent with me, get your MedRom fix in paperback so you can join me in donating your gently used copies to your local library. If your library is like mine, they'll shelve pretty much anything donated, and if we can get those books on shelves--the North American romance-loving public can be introduced to them without having to take the initiative to seek out books they've never heard of. It might be scheming big, but it'd be awesome to one day see these fantastic stories alongside their other category counterparts on shelves in my neighborhood.
If you've never read a medical romance, here's my top five reasons to give them a try:
- Over the past year especially, there's been a distinct trend toward young voices. These are not your mother's medical romances.
- Drama, baybay. These stories are high octane, packed with emotion. Not just life and death situations, either. Medicals aren't afraid to tackle the darker, grittier subjects often considered verboten in category romance.
- Variety in sensuality. Some are tender and sweet, and others will Set Your eReader on fire(like Wendy S. Marcus's Once a Good Girl)
- More variety! Big city, small village GP, or on a hospital boat sailing down the Amazon(like Tina Beckett's debut shown at the top of the page) -- these stories can take you anywhere.
- What's more heroic than people who devote their lives to saving others? Don't they deserve some Happily Ever After?
If you want to join me, I'd love to keep track of what's going on where. Leave me a comment, or email me: amalieberlin at gmail dot com. If you like and read medical romance and want to share a favorite author/title/theme/whatever, I'd love to know.
Or, hey, if you write for HMB Medical Romance and want to donate some books to NA libraries, I'd be happy to help anyway I can -- either by finding addresses of the libraries or locating folks willing to deliver to their local repositories for all human knowledge :)
I refuse to believe that a country that craves doctor dramas on TV doesn't have a place for it on the book shelves, too.
Hi Amalie!
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy you enjoy medical romance....and thanks for mentioning Once a Good Girl. I donate my hardcover books to local libraries and think it's a great way to bring medical romance to the attention of readers who are unfamiliar with the line.
Thank you for your push to promote medical romance in the U.S.! We appreciate your efforts!
Hi Wendy! You're very welcome and thank you for all your support on this. I have a twitter account, but it's dusty ... very very dusty :)
DeleteAmalie!
ReplyDeleteI have one thing to say: Right on!
I successfully donated my first couple of Medical Romances (hard backs) to my local library, but by the third book the liaison at the library had retired and a new person arrived. I donated a third hardback to the library but it was never entered into the system.
Very disheartening. If you know of libraries who would like hardback Medical Romances, please let me know and I will send several to them.
Thanks so much for championing this quest!
Hi Lynne!
DeleteI didn't even realize that ya'l got hardcover editions of your books. I guess I always assumed that the copies you got were just like the paperbacks that hit the shelves.
I know my local library accepts all good condition donations, hardback or paperback And now, when public library budgets have been cut in most states, they need books! That said, my county library is a wee beasty. Most of the county is rural and cows don't read(as much as they like to claim otherwise, braggarty bovines). It might bear investigation with your local libraries again, I'd wager a lot of public library systems are suffering from budget cutbacks.
I haven't hear from any readers regarding their local libraries, but I will happily request books for my own county's system:
Portsmouth Public Library
1220 Gallia Street
Portsmouth, OH 45662
www.yourppl.org
I'll also make use of email, smack the web around a little and see if I can contact libraries in actual cities(gasp!), confirm whether there'd be an issue with donation of hardbacks or paperbacks. And Thank you, Ms Lynne!
My parish library would love to have your books, too, Lynne. Send them to:
DeleteBossier Parish
CENTRAL LIBRARY
2206 Beckett Street
Bossier City, LA 71111
Thanks!
Hi Amalie!
ReplyDeleteThnaks for championing Medical Romances! I'm a huge fan of Medical Romances but there are Medicals available in our bookstore shelves in my country. Though not the latest ones but still they are available!
Hi Nas :)
DeleteThey're awesome, aren't they? A while ago I asked about why they weren't in North America, and was told something about an attempt failing, or there being no market -- which just breaks my little brain in half. There has to be a market for it. If there weren't a market for it, Grey's Anatomy would never have been born, right?
Even before Grey's there was ER! And The Chicago Hope - I think?
DeleteI never actually watched Chicago Hope, but I had a mad crush on George Clooney on ER: brooding rebel pediatrician with a tortured love affair with a once suicidal nurse? Addicted. I was so addicted.
DeleteFabulous to have a medical romance champion out there! Thanks so much Amalie. I'm with you - I'm sure if the rom reading population of the US actually knew we existed, we'd be everywhere!
ReplyDeleteI didn't know about them until 2010, and I'd been on eHarl for like... two years by that point! I'd seen them in the bookstore drop-down menu, but my eyes jumped right over the series titles I was unfamiliar with in favor of browsing the lines I knew. So, when I eventually was directed to the Medicals(by the Fast-track post), I was shocked and amazed. So, it's only been a 2-years I've been reading, and maybe my enthusiasm is a love that is still fresh, sparkly, and new -- but I doubt it. I still read other category lines, but I always come back to the Medicals. They're more real, more emotionally substantial. I'm really in awe of what you ladies accomplish in such a short number of words.
DeleteFabulous to have a medical romance champion out there! Thanks so much Amalie. I'm with you - I'm sure if the rom reading population of the US actually knew we existed, we'd be everywhere!
ReplyDeleteErrrr, not sure why that posted twice, sorry...
ReplyDeleteBut maybe my iPad just knew how passionate I am about this subject too and took things into its own hands :-)
Little known fact: iPad's appreciate the power of So Nice You Say it Twice :D
DeleteThanks, Amalie, for championing HMB Medical Romances. I'm a new writer for them and I love writing them. My heroes and heroines are so smart--and to me, brilliance and sexiness go hand-in-hand.
ReplyDeleteI also applaud your support of libraries. I'm on my local parish library board and we love donations! Great idea to share medical romances with readers everywhere!
Congratulations on your sale, Connie. When is your debut released in NA? And I'm with you on the brilliance/sexiness linkage. I think that's why we're seeing more of the somewhat geeky professions in other romances(ooh talk nerdy to me)... but you always have to have a great big brain to be a doctor.
DeleteHooray, Amalie! I'm so glad you discovered us over here in the Medical Romance line! I love your post and your enthusiasm for our stories! Thank you!
ReplyDelete:)
Sharon
You're welcome, Miss Sharon! I am just trying to spread the love :) I also do this with pretty much everything else I like, though maybe not in such a public, drum-banging fashion. This bread is great, EAT IT. You must listen to this song, IT'S AWESOME. I apparently feel secure in the knowledge that I have great taste :D Obviously, I need to share these experiences with everyone!
DeleteThanks, Amalie for your enthusiasm for the books we write! I also donate my hardcover books to my local library, but thanks to Connie (and anyone else who posts a library address), I have another contact. Medicals are definitely Harlequin's best-kept secret!
ReplyDeleteBest-kept secret over here, for darned sure! And I'll thank you on behalf of libraries getting books!
Delete(Also, I loved Maverick in the ER. Loved.)
Amalie!!! Thanks so much for championing the books we love so much! Seeing my cover up there made my stomach flip over (in a very good way)! You rock!!
ReplyDeleteHeee, yay! It's your debut, I couldn't resist! And I know it's a month late on the shelves, but I'm really going to have to kick my eBook habit if I am gonna get more of these little gems to my library. Instant Gratification Girl likes ... er, instant gratification. And it is a fantastic book. No candiru though! I was sure they'd be somewhere in there. I have a new theory about the rogue airborn candiru: that's the reason capoeira was invented, to kick those little buggers out of the air before they get to your underpants.
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