In The Rom-Com Agenda (Griffin, Jan. 2023), Jayne Denker’s new “squeaky clean charmer,” per PW’s review, Leah Keegan accidentally witnesses Eli Masterson’s failed proposal to his girlfriend, and gets drawn into a scheme to help Eli remake himself as the ideal romantic hero and win back his ex. If you’ve ever watched a rom-com, you won’t be surprised when Leah falls for Eli—and that’s kind of the point. Denker spoke with PW about meeting reader expectations and why she prefers other writers’ sex scenes.
How are rom-coms a literal plot point in your novel?
The group engineering Eli’s makeover makes a list of movies that include romantic heroes for him to emulate—Emma, Bull Durham, all the Cary Grant movies—and Leah and Eli discuss Love, Actually, Dirty Dancing, Better Off Dead, Say Anything, and When Harry Met Sally at length. The hardest part was choosing which rom-coms to include. I asked my friends: “What’s your favorite rom-com? Who’s your favorite romantic hero?” I could ask a hundred people and I would get a hundred different answers.
The challenge was being selective. I left out some of my favorites. The ones that broke my heart not to include were While You Were Sleeping and my all-time, one-movie- to-watch-for-the-rest-of-my-life favorite, American Dreamer. That last one is obscure and more of a caper romance, so it didn’t really fit, but not for my lack of trying.
What’s the appeal of the rom-com for you as a writer?
I’m a huge rom-com fan: they’re a warm, fuzzy reassurance that love is out there and men can be wonderful and kind and loving. I write cinnamon roll heroes—considerate, thoughtful, not afraid to be in touch with their emotions. Definitely sweet and gentle, but not doormats. Eli is the furthest thing from a jerk.
Why do you write sweet, as opposed to spicy, romances?
My romances have always been closed-door. I love some good spice, but everybody has their talents and I’m absolute garbage at writing sex scenes. I just start laughing. I appreciate that reviews sometimes have a number of peppers for spice because some people are looking for it and others don’t want any spice.
For this book, readers of ARCs have asked, “Where’s the spice?” But nobody promised you spice! I feel terrible that they were disappointed. Reviewers for my previous books have said, “I’m glad there were no graphic sex scenes.” I’m grateful to hear that. It’s important to communicate to readers ahead of time that it’s not what you’re going to find, and it’s wonderful that romance has such a broad selection for everybody. If you want to read erotica, go for it. If you don’t, then we’ve got stuff for you, too.
What do you hope readers get out of your book?
My whole goal is to just make people feel better for a little while. My work has been described as “fluffy,” and I embrace that. It’s okay to laugh, to have a good time, to enjoy yourself. There’s so much angst and misery in the world, so if I can make my readers laugh and forget about the problems in their lives, then I feel like I’ve accomplished what I set out to do.
