This week, we chatted with RITA award-winning fantasy romance author Jeffe Kennedy. She started her career writing non-fiction, shifted to romance and fantasy romance with traditional publishing, and now does some self-publishing as well. We asked her about whether awards are worth trying for, her thoughts on the professional organizations SFWA and RWA, and what she’s tried and liked for marketing over the years.

Here are some of the specific topics we touched on:

Getting started in fantasy romance before it became a thing (we debated if it’s yet come into its own).

Whether fantasy romance (secondary world/epic fantasy rather than Earth-centric paranormal romance) is a growing market now.

Tropes romance readers will expect, even if a story is SF/F.

How much “romance” has to be in a story for it to be considered sci-fi or fantasy romance?

Jeffe’s thoughts on whether authors should get involved in RWA or SFWA, the professional organizations for the romance and SF/F genres.

Awards you can enter versus awards you have to be nominated for.

Jeffe’s experience entering the RITA awards each year and having a winner in 2017.

Whether awards are worth pursuing and if they can increase readership.

Jeffe’s thoughts on blogging and social media, and her preferred platforms.

Getting reviews from book bloggers.

Joining with other authors in your genre to put out anthologies of novellas.

Jeffe’s First Cup of Coffee podcast.

Putting out content each week for readers, whether blog posts or podcasts or social media updates.

You can visit Jeffe on her website and check out the award-winning The Pages of the Mind or the first book in her current series, Sorcerous Moons: Lonen’s War.

You can also check out her First Cup of Coffee podcast.

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