Wylene Rholetter emphasizes Nora Roberts' innovations in Teaching American Literature article

Lauren Collins' June 22, 2009 New Yorker profile of Nora Roberts received wide acclaim from Roberts' followers. They welcomed the interest shown by the New York literary establishment in Roberts' work. 

Less notice, though has been given to the impact of Roberts' writings on the academic community. Wylene Rholetter's article, "Nora Roberts," appearing in the Spring/Summer 2008 special issue of Teaching American Literature: A Journal of Theory and Practice, provides such an academic assessment of Roberts' works.

Teaching American Literature website
(Screenshot taken 8-28-2009 by Carol Thomas)

Rholetter's comprehensive work provides a year-by-year look at Roberts' life, her fiction, and its critical reception. Rholetter concludes that Roberts' impact on romance fiction comes not from her prolific output, but from her role as an innovator. Rholetter points out that Roberts' portrayal of independent heroines who seek a partner rather than a rescuer, her impact on the trend toward connected stories and her blending of suspense with romance set her apart from her contemporaries.

The Spring/Summer 2008 issue of Teaching American Literature also contains ten additional articles, all focused on contemporary romance authors. As the issue's guest editor, Suzanne Milton, explains, all the articles contain biographical data on their subjects, complete bibliographies, discussions of themes and motifs within the works, and assessements of the authors' contribution to the romance genre.

The list below indicates the writer of each article and the author being reviewed. Links exist to the corresponding PDF file containing the article. 

• Gillian Mason, "Rosemary Rogers.”
• Suzanne Milton, "Danielle (Fernande) Steel."
• Sarah S. G. Frantz, "Suzanne Brockmann."
• Wendy Wagner. "Jennifer Crusie."
• Fahamisha Patricia Brown, "Beverly Jenkins."
• Patricia Kennedy Bostian, "Amanda Scott: Bringing History to Life."
• Leslie Haynesworth,  "Janet Evanovich."
• Fahamisha Patricia Brown, "Anita Richmond Bunkley."
• Lee Anna Maynard, "LaVyrle Spencer."
• Diana Stout, "Karen Robards."