I am so excited by my guest this week, Leslie Murphy. If you follow any romance book blogs, you probably already know her and her blog, She Reads Romance Books. After all, it’s the most popular romance book blog out there, and for good reason. Leslie gives us challenges, lists in every topic imaginable, and damn!, the woman knows romance.
Meet Leslie Murphy, the brains behind the blog She Reads Romance Books
I imposed on Leslie’s busy schedule to ask Leslie the questions on my mind. Between reading an average of ten romances every month, coming up with the best lists and posts in romance book blogging, raising her children and holding down a job, and she was gracious enough to answer!
Hopefully, I asked for answers to your questions as well.
Leslie Murphy has kids, an acupuncture business and a thriving blog that requires her to read a LOT. How does she do it?
Practice and prioritization! It somehow works; juggling it all and yet there are some days I just wish there was more time in a day to get everything done that I want to. I work part-time in my acupuncture clinic, so that helps because it’s important for me to be available for my kids. Reading just fits in where I can and the same for blogging. I’m also a big fan of to-do lists to keep me on track!
How did she move from reader to blogger? How often do you post on YouTube or blog?
I moved from reader to blogger when I realized I was reading so many romance books and wanted to talk about them with other readers. I also saw some of my favorite authors developing ARC teams and thought, “Hey, I’d love some free books!” Now, I have to turn people away who are asking for reviews because I have way too many books to read.
When I started She Reads Romance Books, I posted a few times a month. Now, I post at least once a week, but it can be more depending on the book list size I’m working on and the time I have to work on it. I’m just now jumping back into YouTube to create fun shorts and those I try to post at least a few times a week.
How many books does she estimate she reads in a month?
I read at least 10 books a month with about 130-150 a year.
How does Leslie choose which books to read? Who does she trust for recommendations?
When I first started reading romance, I would pick a book and if I liked, and I would read the author’s entire list of books! It was really fun to read an entire series from start to finish and see how an author’s work evolved. Now I try to really mix it up for my book lists and to find new authors, so I don’t really have the time to do that too much.
Initially, I also read a lot of books that my favorite authors recommended on Goodreads. Now I usually read a good number of new releases from my favorite authors (I can’t help it!), maybe a few books in a new trope I want to check out or just a few books that catch my eye based on the storyline. I admit I’m getting pretty picky these days 😊.
What does Leslie look for in a great romance? What turns her off?
Gosh. That’s a tough question to answer. Of course, the writing itself has to be really good as no storyline or amazing characters can really make up for just bad writing. That includes great story flow and character development. The full package for me is great writing, an engaging story, characters I feel for and a romance that just gives me all the feels. I try to steer clear of books with certain trigger warnings like abuse, rape or violence against children.
Favorite authors? Favorite tropes or genres? How does Leslie decide which books make it onto your extensive She Reads Romance Books blog lists?
My favorite romance tropes are enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience and forced proximity if I had to pick a few. I think a common thread between those tropes is seeing two people who had absolutely no expectations of falling in love with the other character do just that! A lot of my favorite authors are indie authors! https://www.shereadsromancebooks.com/favorite-author-list/
Does she have help or does she fly solo on everything?
Leslie astonished me with this answer. I am struggling to publish my All’s Crazy in Love series, and I have help.
I run the blog solo! I’d probably be smart to hire some help because I have so many ideas, but right now it’s just me!
Has considered doing a podcast?
I know Leslie has a YouTube channel so I asked her how she chose that avenue to reach her readers.
I’ve definitely considered doing a podcast, but it’s just a factor of time. I just can’t do it all right now, so I focus on what time I do have, on what will have the greatest impact. I love YouTube shorts because they are manageable and easy to create, but I don’t have the time to create and edit long videos.
I also don’t have any interest in TikTok despite its popularity, plus social media algorithms really aren’t kind or commensurate compared to all the work you put into them. I’m considering starting a Patreon account to develop a deeper connection with some of my followers, so stay tuned!
Leslie has a huge following. I asked how long she’d been blogging about romance and how she grew her following?
Leslie’s answer surprised me. I figured this following was over ten years in the making. Not so!
I started She Reads Romance Books in November 2019! A lot of people initially found me to join my Romance Book Reading Challenge. People also love my book quizzes, so I think that has contributed to my growing following. Who doesn’t love a fun book quiz? Check out my list of quizzes here.
Has she considered reading/blogging about other genres?
Yes! My kids always want to help with the blog, and they love reading just as much as I do, so we launched a new blog together that focuses on tween books/middle grade books called We Read Tween Books! We just launched it in November 2022 to help parents find amazing chapter books and graphic novels for tween readers and to inspire their love of reading. It’s been a blast. Here is the link to We Read Tween Books! You can find the link to its Facebook page here.
Would she share your membership/buy you a coffee options to help in the future?
The best way that I can help authors is to offer advertising on my blog or in my newsletter. My blog gets a ton of traffic, and my email list just keeps growing so my advertising options can help authors get their book noticed in front of romance readers. https://www.shereadsromancebooks.com/advertising/
What keeps her going when it’s a lot of work?
I honestly love reading and sharing great work with others who love reading romance as much as I do. It is so gratifying to get an email from someone saying they love my book lists and are so happy they’ve found my blog!
Subscribe to Leslie’s She Reads Romance Books Blog today, or find her on Facebook here.