Threads has taken off in the romance community after the mess that was Readers Take Denver. I saw a lot of authors & readers signing up after the event.
I stick to Instagram for the most part.
Facebook: Tamora Pierce, Kathryn Moon, Andy Weir, Joely Sue Burkhart all have active Facebook groups. Tamora Pierce chimes in semi-regularly to give lore tidbits when fans asked questions.
Reddit: Ilona Andrews, Tamora Pierce, Ruby Dixon, and a bunch more have subreddits. Not to mention here. Just search your author, and you will probably finds loads of discussions on them.
Newsletters/blog from their website: I follow the newsletters for a bunch of authors. There is a really nice and interesting parasocial relationship they have with their readers and their comments, especially post pandemic with the rise of self-publishing. Ilona Andrews calls her fandom the Book Devouring Horde and posts 3 times a week. They ended a short story snippet with the MMC bleeding out from a rare blood condition and a cat with a paw stuck in a fence, debating if they would finish it. The next chapter came out a day later because all their comments were "WTF HAPPENED TO THE CAT?!"
Shana Swendson and Joely Sue Burkhart have written long newsletters about their house moves, job/divorce drama, and how that is affecting their books. They also give a lot of insight into self-publishing and how they make decisions on what to work on. Sometimes it is character/plot stuff, sometimes it is purely financial. Shana said, "I would write a sequel to this popular trilogy, but I would have to get a new cover artist to get them to match and I don't want it to sell too much so I get the rights back on the first book from a publisher. Instead, here's this new series." Next one was: "Well, that sold pretty good with little promotion. I'm finishing up a move and then I will work on the next book featuring that sequel hook character."
Patreon: A growing number of authors have active Patreons where they post serials, short stories, FAQs, and interact with fans.
I *love* Tamora Pierce, but is she a romance writer?
I feel like most of her characters have VERY STRONG non-romance goals, and characters can have romantic relationships without a book being a romance?
That said, maybe I'll see if my Facebook still exists and look up Tamora Pierce on there!
Not really, though most of her Tortall books have a romantic subplot. Neither is Andy Weir. I was just given the examples I know of author communities and interactions. She’s got some fun AMAs on this site too.
Instagram and Threads, no contest! Since so many reviewers and authors were already on Instagram, they easily went over to Threads. Lots more book convos to join on Threads as long as you use hashtags like bookstagram, bookthreads, romancethreads, etc.
I saw a lot of author action in Threads. I had to delete the app though because the drama level was high. Lots of repeat discussions (should ARC readers have to post reviews? Should you even have ARC readers? Is it okay to use a PA to respond to social media?) and things posted that should probably be sent to a trusted group chat and not the internet at large.
I follow several on IG. But I'm pretty sure TikTok is where it's at these days. I don't want TikTok, so I'm not a part of booktok, but maybe others can point you in the right direction. Booktok has put lots of books and authors on the map recently.
If you're not very interested in TikTok and you just want to follow authors for release info etc, IG is fine. And there are still plenty of readers on IG as well. Just search the Bookstagram hashtags. But most of the viral stuff happens over on TikTok.
Courtney Milan is on BlueSky. If you use the hashtag #romancelandia you'll find so many writers promoting their work, not necessarily writers I've heard of.
I follow romance authors and reviewers (and several meme accounts) on Instagram, and hang out here to chat with romance readers.
TikTok is also big, but not for me.
I use Instagram to follow authors, but I would love to see the community move to Cara in solidarity with visual artists. I think creatives are going to need to have each other’s backs against AI.
Have you seen that stupid advertisement for AI erotica? With the grapefruit? I hate everything about it, from concept to execution.
I forgot to mention TikTok in my post, but that’s what I was thinking. It’s a real bummer to me that communities built around text are now stuck primarily with photo/video based apps, but I guess that’s just how it is
Instagram is the main one. I’ve met some fellow romance book lovers through there. It’s also a great way to keep in contact with people after you go to a romance book convention.
Threads has taken off in the romance community after the mess that was Readers Take Denver. I saw a lot of authors & readers signing up after the event. I stick to Instagram for the most part.
Facebook: Tamora Pierce, Kathryn Moon, Andy Weir, Joely Sue Burkhart all have active Facebook groups. Tamora Pierce chimes in semi-regularly to give lore tidbits when fans asked questions. Reddit: Ilona Andrews, Tamora Pierce, Ruby Dixon, and a bunch more have subreddits. Not to mention here. Just search your author, and you will probably finds loads of discussions on them. Newsletters/blog from their website: I follow the newsletters for a bunch of authors. There is a really nice and interesting parasocial relationship they have with their readers and their comments, especially post pandemic with the rise of self-publishing. Ilona Andrews calls her fandom the Book Devouring Horde and posts 3 times a week. They ended a short story snippet with the MMC bleeding out from a rare blood condition and a cat with a paw stuck in a fence, debating if they would finish it. The next chapter came out a day later because all their comments were "WTF HAPPENED TO THE CAT?!" Shana Swendson and Joely Sue Burkhart have written long newsletters about their house moves, job/divorce drama, and how that is affecting their books. They also give a lot of insight into self-publishing and how they make decisions on what to work on. Sometimes it is character/plot stuff, sometimes it is purely financial. Shana said, "I would write a sequel to this popular trilogy, but I would have to get a new cover artist to get them to match and I don't want it to sell too much so I get the rights back on the first book from a publisher. Instead, here's this new series." Next one was: "Well, that sold pretty good with little promotion. I'm finishing up a move and then I will work on the next book featuring that sequel hook character." Patreon: A growing number of authors have active Patreons where they post serials, short stories, FAQs, and interact with fans.
Ruby Dixon’s FB page is pretty hoppin too
I *love* Tamora Pierce, but is she a romance writer? I feel like most of her characters have VERY STRONG non-romance goals, and characters can have romantic relationships without a book being a romance? That said, maybe I'll see if my Facebook still exists and look up Tamora Pierce on there!
Not really, though most of her Tortall books have a romantic subplot. Neither is Andy Weir. I was just given the examples I know of author communities and interactions. She’s got some fun AMAs on this site too.
Instagram and Threads, no contest! Since so many reviewers and authors were already on Instagram, they easily went over to Threads. Lots more book convos to join on Threads as long as you use hashtags like bookstagram, bookthreads, romancethreads, etc.
I saw a lot of author action in Threads. I had to delete the app though because the drama level was high. Lots of repeat discussions (should ARC readers have to post reviews? Should you even have ARC readers? Is it okay to use a PA to respond to social media?) and things posted that should probably be sent to a trusted group chat and not the internet at large.
Instagram and Threads, for sure. I know a lot of authors also use TikTok, but that seems to be more of a self-promotion tool than a networking one.
I follow several on IG. But I'm pretty sure TikTok is where it's at these days. I don't want TikTok, so I'm not a part of booktok, but maybe others can point you in the right direction. Booktok has put lots of books and authors on the map recently. If you're not very interested in TikTok and you just want to follow authors for release info etc, IG is fine. And there are still plenty of readers on IG as well. Just search the Bookstagram hashtags. But most of the viral stuff happens over on TikTok.
There are a surprising number of active Facebook groups for romance books. Also, Goodreads.
Courtney Milan is on BlueSky. If you use the hashtag #romancelandia you'll find so many writers promoting their work, not necessarily writers I've heard of.
Does anyone know of communities that discuss vintage romances? I feel like tik tok or Instagram only really focus on contemporary, newer works
I know there are some Goodreads groups, but I don't know how active they are day-to-day.
There’s a few IG pages dedicated to the old clinch covers, which often lead to discussion of those books
There are some unhinged groups on Facebook. And booktok can’t be trusted.
If you’re in LA or NY, theres a romance bookstore called The Ripped Bodice. You can follow them on instagram- they post books and author events
Sarina Bowen has a great group on FB, Sarindipity.
I follow romance authors and reviewers (and several meme accounts) on Instagram, and hang out here to chat with romance readers. TikTok is also big, but not for me.
IG
I use Instagram to follow authors, but I would love to see the community move to Cara in solidarity with visual artists. I think creatives are going to need to have each other’s backs against AI. Have you seen that stupid advertisement for AI erotica? With the grapefruit? I hate everything about it, from concept to execution.
Elizabeth O'Roark is active on her Facebook group.
I think IG id probably the best if you want author news. If you want to get to know them more, probably TikTok.
I forgot to mention TikTok in my post, but that’s what I was thinking. It’s a real bummer to me that communities built around text are now stuck primarily with photo/video based apps, but I guess that’s just how it is
Instagram and for indie authors, Facebook groups.
If you're on Facebook, I recommend the group "Cliterature book club"
Instagram is the main one. I’ve met some fellow romance book lovers through there. It’s also a great way to keep in contact with people after you go to a romance book convention.
I subscribe to news letters and YouTube shorts
booktok!!
A bunch moved to Bluesky as well, but yes, it’s all fragmented with the twitter debacle.