1 A Affaire de Coeur: The Publisher’s Voice Affaire de Coeur (AdeC) is a bimonthly publication that reviews Romance fic- tion, as well as a number of other popular fiction and, occasionally, nonfiction genres. The magazine was established in 1981 by bookstore owner Barbara Keenan. In 1994, I assumed the publisher and senior editor responsibilities when I became AdeC’s sole proprietor. The corporate offices are located in Oakland, California. In addition to book reviews, AdeC includes author interviews, contest and conference information, relevant articles, trivia, and other news of interest to read- ers. AdeC maintains a vibrant, content-rich website, as well as The AdeC Scratching Post Blog. The magazine is available by subscription in print and online formats, both having the same content. Affaire de Coeur (AdeC) was born out of frustration and desperation. The liter- ary world tried to ignore the new emerging genre known as Romance, labeling it as “trash” unworthy of reviewing and its authors as unimaginative and almost illiterate. After attending the first Romance Writers of America (RWA) conference in 1981 in Houston, Barbara Keenan came home with inspiration, a vision, and a plan. Since the Sci-fi genre had established a trade magazine for its readers, why shouldn’t Romance have the same thing? This magazine would contain all the information other literary media ignored—romance author interviews, reviews of romance books, and articles about the genre itself. No stranger to the business side of Romance, as she was a bookstore employee and ultimately an owner, Keenan contacted some of the editors and authors she had met at that first RWA and put her plan into motion. Barbara Keenan, Karen Johnson (because she had a computer—a rarity in those days), and four women, whose passion for the Romance genre prompted them to volunteer as reviewers, created Affaire de Coeur. Doing the layout was a
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