When we first encounter a book, its genre raises certain expectations for what we, as readers, will find within the pages. In this talk, two authors pull back the creative curtain to show how novelists negotiate the complicated network of tropes and conventions that operate within the realm of popular genre fiction. Hear from two practitioners—Eleanor Bourg Nicholson, author of Gothic novels A Bloody Habit and Brother Wolf, and Rhonda Ortiz, author of historical romance novel In Pieces and founding editor of Chrism Press—what rules are to be observed, what rules are to be broken, and how genre and imagination combine to create a vivid narrative.

Books will be available for purchase at the event, and (barring an unexpected fainting fit) the authors will be available for book signing.

This event is free and open to the public. Due to Hope College’s COVID precautions, masks are required indoors on campus for all individuals who are vaccinated or unvaccinated.

Eleanor Bourg Nicholson

In addition to scholarly pursuits, Eleanor Bourg Nicholson occasionally strays into fiction, including her epistolary novella, The Letters of Magdalen Montague, and her Gothic novels, A Bloody Habit and Brother Wolf. Eleanor is the resident Victorian literature instructor at Homeschool Connections and with her husband homeschools their children. By night, she reads, writes, and cares for feral offspring. Visit her at eleanorbourgnicholson.com.

Rhonda Ortiz

Rhonda Franklin Ortiz is a Lay Dominican, novelist, nonfiction writer, and founding editor of Chrism Press. In Pieces, the first novel of her Molly Chase series, was the recipient of two awards, including the competitive ACFW Genesis Award. A native Oregonian, she attended St. John’s College in historic Annapolis, Maryland and now lives in Michigan with her husband and children. Find her online at rhondaortiz.com.

This event is co-sponsored by the Corpus Christi Foundation.