Local Profile | Newcastle's Own Best-Selling Romance Author, Michelle Douglas
There’s a good chance that you’ve never heard of one of the Hunter’s most successful authors. Michelle Douglas has sold over two million books worldwide, in 26 different countries, and she lives right here in Newcastle.
If you’re partial to reading books in the romance genre and regularly read Mills & Boon, then she’s probably one of your favourite authors. Currently working on her 39th book, she’s been nominated for numerous awards, including the Romance Writers of America’s RITA (like the Oscars for romance books), the Australian RUBY, the Booksellers Best Award (which she won in 2013), the National Readers’ Choice Awards, and many others.
Michelle always knew that she wanted to write. She grew up in Abermain and attended Abermain Primary School and later Kurri Kurri High School in the 1980s. Like many of her generation, she thought university was too expensive and out of her reach.
“I decided to have a gap year,” said Michelle.
“Many in my family had worked in the clothing industry, so initially, I followed that path. I actually spent a year sewing the crotch into men’s undies at the local Bonds factory!”
During that year, Michelle discovered she was eligible for Austudy, and in 1988 she began her Bachelor of Arts, majoring in English Literature. It wasn’t until her honours year, though, that she started taking her childhood dream of becoming a writer more seriously.
“I used to devour Mills & Boon books as a teenager (having stolen them from my Mum!) The women in my family all read romance, too and even though I read all the classics and went through my Tolkien phase, I thought it might be fun to have a go at writing a Mills & Boon.
“I read a small article in the local paper that mentioned the local chapter of the Romance Writers of Australia. The article also mentioned that Mills & Boon read every unsolicited manuscript that is sent to them. As far as I know, that’s still true today. Romance Writers of Australia is a fabulous source of industry information, with articles and courses available to improve your craft. Women’s organisations tend to be very supportive. Suddenly I had my own cheer squad that wanted me to succeed.”
During the 90s, Michelle got on with life, fell in love and kept playing around with romance writing. She wrote her first book during this time but didn’t get really serious about it until 2004. She wasn’t published until 2007.
“I was having good rejection letters from the editors with suggestions for improvements – they liked my writing. I was working in a call centre when my husband suggested that I quit and give it a red hot go for a couple of years. That was a big call and probably made all the difference – he’s definitely a keeper!”
Around this time, Michelle studied for her masters degree but found it challenging to get the university to agree to accept romance as a suitable topic for a higher degree.
“When they rejected my choice of subject, it was like waving a red flag at a bull. I discovered that it was less about academic snobbery and more about ignorance of the international academics who were investing in the genre. It wasn’t until I shared a paper I was doing for an international conference that my supervisor finally understood the depth of the subject matter and the amount of academic interest coming out of the US and the UK. I went on to do a PhD, and the subject of my thesis was The Single Mother Heroine and the Vexed Question of Feminism in the Contemporary Romance Novel.”
Many people have the view that romance novels are anti-feminist, but this is not true. By today’s standards, the romance novels of decades past were indeed questionable in this regard, but the genre now reflects more contemporary attitudes.
“Contemporary romance novels feature women as the subject rather than the object. It’s about their desires, issues, and what they want out of their relationships. These days we feature strong, independent female characters who demand equality in their sexual relationships. There’s no bodice ripping here unless the female character wants it!
“Romance is the world’s biggest-selling genre, yet it is still not taken seriously, and I think this is because it is written by, about, and for, women. It’s a woman’s concerns, what she needs and wants that are at the centre of the story, and I think that’s an important and empowering element of a romance novel. You know, people used to hide the cover of their book because they were embarrassed to be seen reading a romance novel. Ebook technology has vastly increased global sales because no one has to hide the cover anymore! It’s appalling that women are made to feel embarrassed by their reading choices.”
Another criticism that is often levelled at the genre is the formulaic structure of the novels and the use of tropes. The heroine always gets her man, and they will live happily ever after.
“I believe that this is one of the reasons the genre is so popular. It’s comforting to know that happiness wins out in the end. Very few genres deal with the emotion of joy, but the ending of a romance novel is unashamedly joyful. To write a book that leaves a smile on someone’s face and helps them feel a little more hopeful about the world is a wonderful thing to be able to do.
“And for those that criticise the formulaic structure, I would compare that to football. Every game follows the same rules. Every game follows the same structure, yet men go mad for it. It’s no different. “
Michelle spends Monday to Friday, 8am to 11am writing 2,500 words per day. She won’t look at or answer her phone, and her family knows not to interrupt her. Her time is very structured. She writes longhand and spends the afternoons typing up what she’s written, answering emails, posting to social media, checking proofs or, if she’s very lucky, sneaking out to meet friends for coffee or walks along the beach.
“I get a lot of emails from readers, and it can be incredibly rewarding and touching. You have no idea when you’re writing something that it can have a profound impact on others. I had one lady reach out to me to thank me for one single line in one of my novels which helped her to come to terms with the loss of her granddaughter. Or there are the emails from women who are sick in hospital, where life is tough, and the book helps take their mind off their troubles for a couple of hours. They are grateful to lose themselves in a world that makes them happy again, if only for a moment. It’s a privilege to do work that can have that effect.
“Australia has a lot of established romance writers who make a pretty decent living from their writing, yet we never hear about them. My advice to anyone looking to break into this area is to have a go. Join the Romance Writers of Australia, study the Mills & Boon website and just write. The very process of writing your first book is the biggest learning opportunity you have. And there’s a lot of satisfaction to be had just in the writing of it without even being published.”
In terms of the future, Michelle has no plans to change what she’s doing. When she was studying for her masters, she wrote a women’s fiction manuscript which had an element of mystery in it and more recently, during Covid, she pulled it out to try and whip it into shape. It’s set in Australia, and she is currently pitching it to traditional publishers to have a go at breaking into this more mainstream genre. For her romance fans, though, her latest book, An Italian Affair, is on shelves now in paperback, sold at Big W, Kmart, Target and the usual outlets.
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