This episode my guest is Emma R. Alban, the author of queer historical romances Don't Want You Like a Best Friend; You're The Problem, It's You; and Like In Love With You. Her first contemporary paranormal romance Happily Ever Afterlife hits shelves this September. We talked about writing pop-forward historical romances for Gen Z readers, how fanfiction influenced her as an author, and the logistics of sapphic ghost f*cking. Happy pride month everyone!

Follow Emma on Instagram, Threads and TikTok at @eraofemma, or on her website www.emmaralban.com

Purchase Emma's books from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REAbooks

Books films, and other media mentioned this episode include:

• Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen
• Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
• The Dakota: A History of the World's Best-Known Apartment Building by Andrew Alpern
• Gilmore Girls
• The Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon
• The Bridgerton series by Julia Quinn
• The Parent Trap
• Mean Girls
• Freaky Friday
• You've Got Mail
• Singin' In The Rain

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons. Support my work and the show financially by becoming a subscriber at patreon.com/brosandprose.

On this episode of Rebel Ever After, my guest is romance cover illustrator Leni Kauffman. She is the creator of iconic covers like Hannah Grace's Icebreaker, as well as covers for books by Olivia Dade, Ashley Herring Blake, Emma R. Alban, and many more. I guarantee that you have some of Leni's work on your bookshelf or Kindle.

We talked about how she started working in the romance genre, what the process of cover design looks like, whether or not she reads the books she illustrates, and many more questions you've always wanted to ask a cover designer. We also talked about our mutual loathing of AI and how it is impacting visual artists.

Follow Leni on Instagram @lenikauffman or go to her website www.lenikauffman.com

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, Ella's newsletter, and other bonuses! Save 10% when you buy an annual membership — your financial support makes this independent podcast possible.

Purchase recommended romances from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REAbooks

Books and authors mentioned this episode include:

• Along for the Ride by Mimi Grace
• Imogen, Obviously by Becky Albertalli
• Spoiler Alert, At First Spite, and ZOMROMCOM by Olivia Dade, as well as her other works
• Dream on, Ramona Riley by Ashley Herring Blake, as well as her other works
• Amy Award
• Lyla Lee
• Lily Chu
• Emma R. Alban

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

My guest this week is a returning champion, my friend Laura Piper Lee! Her third romance POT SHOT comes out on May 19th and was just named an indie next pick. We talked about what inspired her to write about a woman living with Crohn's Disease who opens a dispensary in her hometown, happily-ever-afters that include chronic illness, and why the world needs more stoner rom-coms.

This episode contains a lot of conversation about cannabis, and I apologize in advance for how much I sound like a narc. I promise I am not anti-weed, I am just from Connecticut and deeply uncool.

Follow Laura on Instagram and Threads @laurapiperlee, and at laurapiperlee.com

Purchase Laura's books from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REAbooks

Remember to get your tickets to Laura's book tour events! You can find more information at linktr.ee/laurapiperlee.

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, Ella's newsletter, and other bonuses! Save 10% when you buy an annual membership — your financial support makes this independent podcast possible.

• Parks & Rec

• Broad City

• Laura's past books Hannah Tate, Beyond Repair and Zoe Brennan, First Crush

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

In this episode, TJ Alexander and I celebrate their new historical romance A Lady For All Seasons, a Shakespearean-esque screwball comedy with an unforgettable genderfluid lead. Then TJ introduces me to the real queer historical figures who inspired their characters, like the Ladies of Llangollen and Lord Byron. Plus: what you should know about the first proposed national book ban, and the importance of annoying queer representation. Pretentious queer artists deserve rights too, you guys.

Follow TJ on Instagram as @tjalexandernyc, and find their newsletter and other links at tjalexander.com

Purchase TJ's books from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REABooks

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, Ella's newsletter, and other bonuses! Save 10% when you buy an annual membership — your financial support makes this independent podcast possible.

Learn more about HR 7661 and other censorship threats by supporting Authors Against Book Bans.

Other media mentioned this episode:

• The Allusionist podcast episode about Fiona Macleod.
• TJ's latest guest episode on the Historical Romance Sampler.

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

This week my guest is queer BDSM romance author Kate Hawthorne, who also writes as Nikki Markham. We talked about the nuance of depicting ongoing negotiation and consent on the page, accountability in kink communities, and the long-lasting appeal of submissive coming out stories. Plus: why everyone needs a good platonic spanking.

We do discuss some potentially triggering topics like what abuse can look like within a BDSM dynamic, particularly in undernegotiated power exchange relationships. That being said, BDSM is not inherently abusive and we do not conflate the two.

Follow Kate on Instagram and Threads @kate.hawthorne or go to www.katehawthornebooks.com.

Breaking The Mold is available for pre-order now! You can find Kate's books on Kindle Unlimited, and in the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore on Bookshop.org at bit.ly/REAbooks

Reserve your ticket to our Romance Read-In to benefit Authors Against Book Bans on April 29th: https://bookclubbar.com/events/4612720260429

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, as well as premium episodes of the podcast. Save 10% when you buy an annual membership! Your financial support makes this independent production possible.

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

Books and authors mentioned this episode:

• Danielle Steele
• Norah Roberts
• Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
• Heated Rivalry (Crave, 2025)
• The Princess Knight by Cait Jacobs

This week on Rebel Ever After, my guest is Adib Khorram, a queer Iranian American author of fiction for all ages. His adult romances are I'LL HAVE WHAT HE'S HAVING and IT HAD TO BE HIM, and his newest YA novel ONE WORD, SIX LETTERS comes out March 17th. We had a wide ranging conversation about queer joy versus queer liberation, writing hot sex scenes with occasional farts, and dysmorphia and body neutrality in fiction. Plus: Checking in with the Iranian diaspora, and why we should all move to Kansas City.

Follow Adib on Instagram/Threads @adibkhorram and on BlueSky at @adibkhorram.bsky.social. Join Adib's Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ChateauAdib

Purchase Adib's books from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REABooks

Reserve your ticket to our Romance Read-In to benefit Authors Against Book Bans on April 29th: https://bookclubbar.com/events/4612720260429

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, as well as premium episodes of the podcast. Save 10% when you buy an annual membership! Your financial support makes this independent production possible.

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

Books and authors mentioned this episode:

• Rafe by Rebekah Weatherspoon
• Adriana Herrera's Dreamers series
• Alexis Daria
• Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
• Sierra Simone
• Julian Winters
• M.A. Wardell

This week my guest is LaQuette, author of many contemporary romances including The King's Pregnancy Proposition and the brand new rom-com Janae Sanders' Second Time Around. We talked about her Savvy, Sexy, and Single Club series about couples in their 40s that explores communication, healing and mental health. Then we discussed the beautiful ridiculousness of romance and the perils of expecting a character's choices to be "plausible."

Plus: LaQuette told me about her Ph.D. research on representations of Black women in popular media and how stereotypes limit the types of stories Black romance authors are able to get published.

Follow her on Instagram @la_quette and at https://laquette.com/.

Purchase LaQuette's books from the Rebel Ever After affiliate bookstore at bit.ly/REABooks

Subscribe on Patreon at patreon.com/brosandprose to get access to the Rebel Ever After Discord server, as well as premium episodes of the podcast. Save 10% when you buy an annual membership! Your financial support makes this independent production possible.

Please remember to RATE AND REVIEW the podcast wherever you like to listen. Theme music created by Dalton Deschain. This show is brought to you with the support of my patrons.

Books and authors mentioned this episode:

• Carole Mortimer's The Devil's Price
• Kimberla Lawson Roby
• Donna Hill
• Sandra Kitt
• Rochelle Alers
• Francis Ray
• Zane

Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee is an all-volunteer, grassroots, multiracial, and multinational immigrant rights mass-movement organization. MIRAC fights for legalization for all, an end to immigration raids and deportations, an end to all anti-immigrant laws, and full equality in all areas of life. Donate to MIRAC here: www.miracmn.com

This week I'm the guest! I went on my friend Emily Hessney Lynch's podcast It's A Lot to talk about my romance novel, BUT HOW ARE YOU, REALLY. We dug into my writer's block and the depression a lot of authors experience thanks to the shifting goal posts of success in this industry. Plus I shared some conspiracy theories about why best-seller lists are rigged and if hardcover books are doomed to fail.

Be sure to subscribe to the It's A Lot podcast! Emily does a great job interviewing folks about social media, parenting, books, and all sorts of stuff that feels way too much.

Buy BUT HOW ARE YOU, REALLY in any format here or at bit.ly/buthowareyoureallynovel

Join my Patreon community for free and get email updates about the show and my upcoming events at patreon.com/brosandprose.

Get tickets for my 2/5 event at the Ripped Bodice with Jennifer Iacopelli: https://www.therippedbodice.com/brooklyn-events