MEQUON — You may not know this, but I'm a big romance novel fan. From cheesy Christmas stories to dark and passionate love affairs, I read them all.
I'm like many people across the country who have become infatuated with these kinds of stories. The genre has exploded in popularity over the past few years. In fact, in Wauwatosa, there are two romance-only book shops. Shain Rose is another one of those people who fell in love with the genre. We have that in common. But she took her passion to the next level by writing her own book. Not once. Not twice. But thirteen times.
“Always loved romance, loved love, and then I kind of started writing when I was on maternity leave.”
Shain Rose is a Mequon-based author. She wrote her first book in 2020.
“Once I was done writing the book, my husband was like, ' Why don't you publish it?'" she said.
At first, she was just writing for the love of the game. And thankfully, she did publish it. Her books have been consumed by readers, which has led to her being named a USA Today best-selling author two times.
Her most recent book is part of the new Kept In Paradise series. It's called Behind Closed Doors.
“Such a passion of mine, reading has always been my escape and my therapy, so to know I can provide that for other people is really exciting," Shain Rose said.
With the genre reaching an all-time high popularity, how does Shain Rose stand out among the rest of the authors trying to make a name for themselves?
“I write billionaires with bite right now, but I think I just write really possessive alpha men and then sassy strong heroines," Shain Rose said. "I think that the characters are what really make my stories pop. Their journeys and kind of just how they find love, and how they fight for love, because my stories can be pretty angsty."
So how spicy are her books?
“So when I started, it was probably a 2 out of 5. Then we went to like 4 out of 5. And some of them are definitely 4 or 5 out of 5. I would say the ones - the series that I'm writing right now is like 3 out of 5.”
All her success came after a lot of hard work. She was writing on the side while working at UW-Madison and raising two kids. Eventually, she signed with a publisher, and now her books are in most major retailers.
“To walk into a Barnes and Noble where I would go and spend my time, and read all the time, and see my book on the front table is an amazing feeling," she said.
Shain Rose took a chance on her passion, and it paid off. Now, she is living her dream.
“Every part of me is poured into each of these books. So it really feels - I don't know amazing. And just I'm honored to know that they're not only on my shelves, but they're on other people's shelves.”
Watch Shain Rose's story to see more of her novels...
Her next book, In The Dark, which will be part of the Kept in Paradise series, will be available in September.
You can follow her on Instagram.
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