The African-American Romance genre promises sexy, emotional, heartfelt, and romantic stories that reflect the values and dreams of African-American culture.
I’ve been piecing together the history of Black authors in romance for something close to five years and I feel like I’m constantly turning up something new. My goal with this post is to get the names, titles and publishers down in one spot, and then keep going back to edit. After all, we have to start somewhere.
It was a conversation with Beverly Jenkins back in 2017 that got me started trying to find all the threads of Black romance history. She mentioned names I hadn’t yet come across as a newbie to the genre- Joyce McGill, Sandra Kitt, Elsie Washington, and more. As an archivist, missing information is something I cannot abide! So I dug, and dug, and continue to dig.
After some recent discussions and reflection, I’ve renamed this post as “A Black Romance Author Timeline” so as not to conflate Black authors with Black Romance. Black Romance is a book written by a Black author, with Black main characters and a happy ending. It does not include interracial romance, which is its own entirely valid thing.
The romance genre is home to phenomenal Black literary voices, who despite years of facing significant barriers to reaching readers, have gifted romance fans with beautiful stories about proud Black characters achieving their Happily Ever Afters (HEAs). In a world that often assigns Black people to background roles and spotlights their pain and trauma, Black romance novels are an act of joyous rebellion and triumph.
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This list is in rough chronological order. It is NOT COMPREHENSIVE!
Here is a timeline of notable Black romance authors and their contributions to the genre:
Early Pioneers
- 1892: Frances E.W. Harper- Harper publishes Iola Leroy, or Shadows Uplifted, one of the first novels published by a Black woman, in 1892. While the novel covers many topics, it includes the relationship between Iola Leroy and Dr.
- 1969-1971: Rubie Saunders- Saunders wrote four books between 1969-1971 chronicling the life and loves of Nurse Marilyn Morgan, R.N.
- 1974: Ann Allen Shockley- Already a groundbreaking librarian and archivist of Black literature at Fisk University in Nashville, in 1974 Shockley wrote Loving Her, a novel about an interracial lesbian couple. First released by Bobbs-Merrill in 1974, it was reprinted by Avon in 1978.
- 1980: Elise B. Washington- Elsie B. Washington, writing under the pen name Rosalind Welles, penned a single fiction work, 1980’s Entwined Destinies, published by Dell’s Candlelight Romances under the guidance of editor Vivian Stephens. Elsie B. Washington released “Entwined Destinies” in 1980 under the pen name of Rosalind Wells, creating what is widely considered to be the first Black romance novel. However, her contribution to the romance genre cannot be overlooked.
Various covers of Black romance novels.
The 1980s: Breaking Barriers
- 1982: Lia Sanders- Friends Angela Jackson and Sandra Jackson-Opoku teamed up to write The Tender Mending under the pen name Lia Sanders for Vivian Stephens’ Candlelight Ecstasy line in 1982. The title was the first Candlelight Ecstasy to feature a Black couple on the cover. The book was promoted as part of Ecstasy’s “ethnic romance” push, led by Stephens and meant to include more diverse voices in the romance genre.
- 1982: Tracy West- Acclaimed mystery author Chassie West began her publishing career in 1982 with Lesson in Love for Silhouette’s First Love line of YA romances. The book was the first in the line to feature a Black couple.
- 1984: Heartline Romances*- In 1984, Los Angeles publisher Holloway House, who specialized in books and magazines aimed at the Black community, announced the start of their Heartline Romances books, their attempt to capitalize on the Romance Wars raging among all of the major publishers at the time. This entry earns an asterisk because as Kinohi Nishikawa points out in the book Street Players: Black Pulp Fiction and the Making of a Literary Underground, most of the Heartline writers were Holloway House’s male staff writers writing under women’s names.
- 1985: Sandra Kitt- In 1984, Sandra Kitt became one of the few known Black writers for Harlequin. Her second book for the company, Adam and Eva, was published in 1985 and was the first title by the publisher to feature a Black couple. Sandra Kitt is not only important to the romance genre overall, she is important to Harlequin’s history as the first Black author to publish with us. In an interview with All About Romance, Sandra mentions that she read an article about Harlequin starting a new contemporary romance series and contacted the line’s editor. She would go on to publish nine novels with Harlequin.
- 1980s: Doubleday Starlight Romance- Doubleday’s Starlight Romance line featured contemporary romances by several Black authors over the course of the 1980s, including Barbara Stephens, Sandra Kitt, Valerie Flournoy, Rochelle Alers, and Angela Vivian (Angela Dews and Vivian Stephens).
- 1989: Anita R. Bunkley- In October of 1989, Anita R. Bunkley self-published her first novel. Emily, the Yellow Rose of Texas is a historical romance set in the 1830s, about Emily D. UPDATE: 04/13/2021- I’ve added Anita Bunkley’s 1989 publication of Emily, The Yellow Rose of Texas to the list. Bunkley went on to become a successful mainstream romance author, but self-published this first book. This predates Beverly Jenkins’ historical Night Song by 5 years, so it’s significant. Given the rejection of Black romance by major romance publishers, there are likely other self-published authors I’m not aware of (in fact, I know there are) during the last half of the 20th century who belong on this list. I’m going to try and add them as I find them.
The 1990s: New Avenues and Independent Publishing
- 1990: Odyssey Books- Leticia Peoples began independent publisher Odyssey Books as a way to fulfill what she saw as an unmet need in the market for Black romance. The company lasted just a few years, but launched the careers of authors such as Francis Ray and Donna Hill, and included previously published authors such as Rochelle Alers and Sandra Kitt. Odyssey would publish just 11 books total before closing shop around 1993. Yamilla, Mildred E. Akayna Sachem’s Daughter, Mildred E. UPDATE: 7/19/2022- I’ve added the list of books published by Leticia Peoples at Odyssey. This info came from Rebecca Romney of Type Punch Matrix, and I’m incredibly thankful for this, since it’s previously been hard to identify all of the titles from this short-lived but important publisher.
- 1990: Marron Publishers “Romance in Black”- Brooklyn-based publishing company releases two books under an imprint called “Romance in Black”.
- 1992: Joyce McGill- Once again we run into Chassie West, who wrote adult romances under the name Joyce McGill for Silhouette’s Intimate Moments line.
- 1994: Arabesque- Walter Zacharias, founder of Kensington Publishing, created the Arabesque line in July 1994 under the company’s Pinnacle imprint.
- 1994: Beverly Jenkins- The same month as the launch of Arabesque, Beverly Jenkins made her debut with the historical romance Night Song, published by Avon. Beverly Jenkins burst into the scene with Night Song in 1994 and has kept on going ever since. What out makes her stand out, then and now, is her research. She gifts readers with riveting stories starring Black characters, ensuring that every fact she drops is accurate, going as far as including a bibliography and/or recommended non-fiction reading list in the back of almost every single one of her books. Beverly discussed her process in an interview with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, saying, “Setting my books where I do and why is tied to re-stitching the pieces of the American history quilt that have been left out…. For Black readers, reading about Black characters in this author’s historical romances was revolutionary, as Beverly spoke about in the documentary Love Between the Covers: “When I did Indigo, which was my third book, in ’96, women were coming to the signing crying. ‘There are no African-American historical love stories.
- 1994: Maggie Ferguson- Looks are Deceiving by Maggie Ferguson was the first Harlequin Intrigue written by a Black author.
- 1995: Brenda Jackson- In 1995, Arabesque published Brenda Jackson’s first book, Tonight and Forever. In 2002, Delaney’s Desert Sheikh became the first Silhouette Desire book to be written by a Black author. Brenda Jackson’s first novel, Tonight and Forever, was published in 1995. She may be best known for her Westmoreland series, a very large and wealthy family. Her book Truly Everlasting was turned into a movie in 2010 and there are more planned in the future. The impact of Brenda’s work has not only been felt by readers, but also by fellow authors who she inspired to dream big and write the types of stories they knew readers were missing.
- 1995: Genesis Press- Begun in 1995, Genesis Press published some original romance titles but specialized in reprinting out of print titles by Elsie Washington, Donna Hill, Gwynne Forster and more. The company also printed the 1999 edition of Kathryn Falk’s book How to Write a Romance for the New Markets, which was the first edition of the book include segments written by Black authors.
- 1996: Patricia Vaughn- In 1996, Vaughn published Murmur of Rain with Pocket, a historical romance featuring Black characters, set in Paris in the 1890s. Vaughn would write another historical for Pocket, Shadows on the Bayou, in 1998. In 2021, Vaugh spoke with Dr.
- 1998: BET Books- In 1998, Robert Johnson’s BET purchased the Arabesque line from Kensington.
The 2000s: Expansion and Recognition
- 2000: Dafina- Because of an agreement Kensington signed when selling the Arabesque line, they were prevented from publishing Black romance. When that provision expired, they started the Dafina line.
- 2002: Shirley Hailstock- From 2002-2003, Shirley Hailstock served as the first Black president of the Romance Writers of America. Hailstock was one of the original Kensington Arabesque authors, with her first novel, Whispers of Love, appearing in September 1994.
- 2006: Kimani Romance- In 2005, Harlequin purchased BET’s publishing arm and formed Kimani Press as a new arm to publish romance, women’s fiction, and non-fiction aimed at Black readers. Kimani Romance was the first dedicated Black romance line to exist at a major publishing house.
Then there is Zane. While some may consider her strictly an erotica writer, there is always a dash of romance in those types of stories. When she first burst onto the scene in 1997 writing erotica, her identity was hidden in order to prevent negative blowback on her family. However, she quickly grew in popularity. Zane deserves recognition for the safe space she made for Black women. She helped women to embrace the various facets of their sexuality by writing about lust and experimentation in a way that made women feel seen, safe, and normal.
She strives to make sure that no one feels overlooked in romance. The stunning covers for Once Ghosted, Twice Shy and the upcoming How to Catch a Princess are testaments to this. Like all the other authors mentioned here, Cole is also a masterful researcher, especially in regard to her historical novels. While romance is still part of the story, she doesn’t shy away from the ugly and racist parts of history.
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“One of the things that gets the reader through the book is knowing that at the end of the book, there will be some kind of resolution that leaves them feeling satisfied and uplifted.
While relatively new to writing, Talia Hibbert is still undoubtedly one of its stars. Her female characters tend to be plus-sized and her banter sarcastic and quirky. Her romances are also diverse-her characters exist all along the sexual and neurological spectrums.
We wrap up this post knowing that this is by no means a comprehensive list and there many other Black romance authors we encourage you to seek out and enjoy. Don’t we just love love?It’s the very foundation of society. It’s something humans naturally seek and it’s an emotion I adore with my whole heart. February being the month of love just makes so much sense to me.
A few years ago, I made a list of the Best Romance Books by Black Authors. Since then, I have read SO many Black romances (traditionally published and self published), and they all deserve some sort of praise in some way.
So below - please find a list of just some of the romance books I have really enjoyed by Black authors! Enjoy!
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Here are some contemporary romance books by Black authors to explore:
- The Kingmaker by Kennedy Ryan
- Reel by Kennedy Ryan
- Hook Shot by Kennedy Ryan
- Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan
- The Situationship by Taylor Dior-Rumble
- Truth or Dare by Danielle Allen
- Rhythm’s Blues by Kimberly Brown
- Only for the Week by Natasha Bishop
- On Merit Alone by Adorabol Huckleby-Ordaz
- Behind the Scenes by Christina C Jones
- Relationship Goals by Christina C Jones
- A Worthy Love by A.E. Valdez
- Dear Amelia by Asia Monqiue
- In This Moment by K. Lashaun
- Let The Games Begin by Rufaro Faith Mazarura
- Honey and Spice by Bolu Babalola
- Confessions of An Alleged Good Girl by Joya Goffney
This post was originally published on the Harlequin Ever After blog.
UPDATE: 2/2/2022- I’ve added Ann Allen Shockley’s Loving Her (1974) to the list.
UPDATE: 2/23/2022- After some recent discussions and reflection, I’ve renamed this post as “A Black Romance Author Timeline” so as not to conflate Black authors with Black Romance.
UPDATE: 2/14/2023- I’ve added Francis E.W.
