Clare Connelly grew up in a small country town in Australia. Surrounded by rainforests, and rickety old timber houses, magic was thick in the air, and stories and storytelling were a huge part of her childhood. From early on in life, Clare realised her favourite books were romance stories, and read voraciously. Anything from Jane Austen to Georgette Heyer, to Mills & Boon and (more recently) the 50 Shades trilogy, Clare is a romance devotee. 

She first turned her hand to penning a novel at fifteen (if memory serves, it was something about a glamorous fashion model who fell foul of a high-end designer. Sparks flew, clothes flew faster, and love was born). 

Clare self-published her first category romance in 2014 and in 2016 signed with Mills & Boon. She has since published 45+ Mills & Boons, as well as continued to build her indie career with category romance novels, and sold millions of copies of her books the world over.

with Ally Blake - sponsored by HQ Australia

On the 50th Anniversary of Mills & Boon in Australia, Clare Connelly and Ally Blake - successful category romance writers (and passionate defenders of the genre) - will take attendees on a whirlwind trip through category romance. Offering a succinct foundational introduction to this very specific, reader-expectation driven style of romance, this workshop will cover – the types of categories and editorial requirements for each, big hitters in the industry, pathways to publication, tropes, types of heroes, and consent/power dynamics.

Ally and Clare will share on-the-ground insight from the biggest publisher of category romance in the world, with the up-to-date wish-list via the UK office (as well as how to work this out yourself by looking at Amazon and on their websites). What’s selling? What should you be writing right now to give yourself the best chance of success?

They will also share how they have managed to sustain careers in category romance, through the shifts and changes in the industry—by writing multiple books a year, across sub-genre, juggling plotting/planning with writing and revising, sometimes all at once.

The talk will come with downloadable workbook/notes outlining the information covered, plans for where attendees can look to next to up their category romance game, and time enough to answer any burning questions at the end! Questions can also be submitted ahead of time to make sure we cover them on the day.