Romance readers are among libraries' greatest patrons, but the romance genre is often overlooked as a choice for book clubs. Join NoveList’s Lisa Schimmer and former Romance Writers of America Librarians of the Year Jennifer Lohmann and Wendy Crutcher as they discuss why romance specific book clubs are a great way to engage the local romance reading community, how to use them to bring readers into the library, and different methods of running a reading group dedicated to romance.
Resources from the presentation
Romance Recommendations for book clubs
The Panelists
Jennifer Lohmann is a Rocky Mountain girl at heart, having grown up in southern Idaho and Salt Lake City. She was the 2010 Romance Writers of America Librarian of the Year and her book, Winning Ruby Heart, was the first category novel to win RT Book Reviews Seal of Excellence. When she’s not writing or working as a public librarian with way too many book clubs, she wrangles two cats and a flock of backyard chickens. (The dog is better behaved.) She currently lives in Durham, North Carolina. You can contact Jennifer by email at jenniferlohmann@gmail.com
Wendy Crutcher's first professional library job involved purchasing adult fiction for a rural Michigan library system. After earning a B.A. in history and a master’s degree in library science, she fell into that job by accident and wasn’t entirely prepared. The biggest hole in her popular fiction knowledge was romance, so she started reading and quickly got hooked. She is now head of Technical Services for a very large library system on the west coast. In 2011, the Romance Writers of America honored her with their annual Librarian of the Year Award. Wendy’s writing can be found on several online venues including The Misadventures of Super Librarian (wendythesuperlibrarian.blogspot.com) and Heroes & Heartbreakers (heroesandheartbreakers.com). You can contact Wendy by email at wendycrutcher@yahoo.com
Lisa Schimmer (moderator) is a senior cataloger and the collection development coordinator at NoveList. She received her master's degree from the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois. Lisa was named the Romance Writers of America Cathie Linz Librarian of the Year in 2015 for her work improving the way in which romance novels are cataloged, directly impacting the library community by giving librarians the tools to find the romances that are right for their patrons. Historical romances featuring dukes, Highlanders, and highwaymen are Lisa’s first loves, with offbeat contemporaries NOT set in a small town placing a distant second. She’s always hooked by a good interclass romance and secret baby plot, regardless of time period. You can contact Lisa by email at lschimmer@ebsco.com