Romance Book Paradise: Spotlight on Dani Collins, Beached Wedding

This week our Spotlight on Author: Dani Collins. She has a new book out, Beached Wedding.

Award-winning and USA Today Bestselling author Dani Collins thrives on giving readers emotional, compelling, heart-soaring romance with laughter and heat thrown in, just like real life. While she is best known for writing contemporary romance for Harlequin Presents and Tule Publishing, she also writes historical and erotic romance. When she’s not writing—just kidding, she’s always writing. Dani lives in Southern BC, Canada with her high school sweetheart husband.

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Why do you write romance?

Because I can’t not write romance, lol. It’s a very tough business so if I could stop, and go work at an espresso bar, I would. However, I am drawn to my desk every day.

As a genre, romance is imbued with hope. I’ve always found its underlying message to be reassuring: Life is hard, you may face conflict and disappointments, but fight for what you want and you will eventually prevail.

What is the biggest issue facing romance writers in these times?

The sheer volume of books. It’s very hard to get visibility and gain traction. With the advent of AI and bad-actors thinking they can manufacture a book and put money in their pockets takes attention and revenue from writers who are telling stories earnestly from their own hearts.

Are you a member of writing organisations?

At this time I am not. I’m in Canada and belonged to RWA for many years, but it’s an American org so it only served me to a point. There are various smaller Canadian chapters, but I live rural so paying dues for meetings I can’t attend isn’t a good use of my income.

I’m lucky enough to have some very good friends among my fellow Harlequin authors and I’ve met other authors along the way who provide me a lot of the support that I would get from an org.

What would you like to see more offered by writing organisations?

Advocacy for published authors. Many of them are very supportive of new and aspiring authors and there is very much a need for things like craft workshops and general business advice, but professional authors desperately need some weight to protect us against having our work swallowed by AI training and piracy.

Do you attend writer's retreats? If yes, is it helpful?

I went to one last year that I enjoyed very much. In this case, I had been working with the host who is an author coach. It gave me the chance to connect with new-to-me authors in a small setting which I loved.

I would do it again, but whether retreats are helpful really comes down to the author’s individual goals.

Tell us about your latest book...

Beached Wedding is a first-person contemporary romance set in Hawaii. Ashley is eager for her destination wedding when the best man, Fox, tells her the groom isn’t coming.