First Encounter—A Historical Romance Podcast

Andie James
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Books

First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance author and enthusiast. There will be two episodes per month: Second Wednesday of each month: These episodes are an interview with an Indie Historical Romance author discussing topics related to the genre, and hopefully helping you discover a new author to love! Fourth Wednesday of each month: These episodes are a deep dive in to a Historical Romance 'classic' Andie has never read. Andie will discuss the book with a fellow Historical Romance enthusiast who knows and loves the book.

  1. 3d ago

    S1 E13—Life During the Medieval Period in Historical Romance with Alison McKenzie

    *My apologies to my fantastic guest this week, Alison, and listeners—somehow the last six minutes of our conversation was lost (Alison’s feed kicked out). Our conversation was basically done by then; we were discussing future projects from Alison and where to find her books. This week for the July Indie Author chat I talk with the wonderful Alison McKenzie about her upcoming release, THE TAILOR’S TREASURE. This is the second book in her Lovers of Linden series, and will be released August 12, 2026. We had a great time discussing writing in a different time period from the current norm in historical romance (Medieval), writing about everyday people vs. the Aristocracy and looking at the constraints imposed by positions within society, attitudes towards sexuality while writing a sapphic romance, and the impacts of motherhood. Alison also teaches us all about mindset and cultural understanding in the Middle Ages. You can learn more about Alison and her books, including where they can be purchased on her website, and you can follow Alison on Instagram First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    50 min

  2. Jun 24

    S1 E12—The Bride by Julie Garwood with Jen Prokop

    Join us this week as I discuss a HistRom classic with our guest, Jen Prokop of Fated Mates fame, The Bride, by Julie Garwood! Jen and I talk about how tense and POV has shifted over the years, how the pacing of love scenes has shifted as well as whether the focus is on the falling in love or the steam, the comfort of a great Scottish Highland romance, and Garwood’s skill at writing humor, allowing her to lean into archetypes. Listen to the Fated Mates episode all about The Bride here And visit Jen’s website to learn more about her superior editing services First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 2m

  3. Jun 10

    S1 E11—The Gilded Age in Historical Romance with Harper St. George

    This week’s episode features hybrid historical romance author, Harper St. George! Harper just released the final book in her Doves of New York series (which I LOVED!), The Dove and the Rogue, and we talk all things Gilded Age, Western romances, and the state of publishing in historical romance (what’s next?) You can find information on Harper and all of her books on her website And the Kickstarter for Besotted Books is now Live! Please consider backing this project so the genre we love can continue to thrive! First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    52 min

  4. May 27

    S1 E10—Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas with Seth (@dramakingbooks)

    I had an amazing time talking Sherry Thomas with my guest, Seth, this week as we broke down what makes Private Arrangements such a standout in the Historical Romance genre. Listen in as we discuss his own first encounter with HistRom (and how Sherry set him up to love the genre!), emotional stakes, insights gained through a dual timeline, and how Sherry Thomas is like Taylor Swift! You can find more from Seth, including his thoughts on romance books and encounters with authors we love, on Instagram, TikTok, and Threads where he is @dramakingbooks And check out when Seth met Sherry Thomas at the Libby Awards and she signed his copy of Private Arrangements! https://www.instagram.com/p/DVuHtpYjhvt/?img_index=5 Read Private Arrangements yourself, and check out what we’re trying to do with Besotted Books ! First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 6m

  5. May 20 ·  Bonus

    Bonus Episode—All About Besotted Books! with Misty Urban

    Guess what? I'm trying to start a publishing company for historical romance—Besotted Books! I’m so grateful to my friend and fellow historical romance author, Misty Urban, for agreeing to chat with me about Besotted Books today! You can learn more about Misty and her series, The Ladies Least Likely, here To read more about Besotted Books, please visit the website And follow us on Instagram @besotted.books We’ll have a link to the Kickstarter and the media kit SOON! ————————————————————————— First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 5m

  6. May 13

    S1 E9—Exploring Joy in Historical Romance with Jane Hadley

    I had such an amazing time this week discussing what historical romance can be and the fun of learning about history, queer joy, and gender f*****y! Jane’s latest release is Mr. Milner Gets Divorced, and you can find out more about it, as well as Jane’s other books and where to find/purchase them on her website AND if you sign up for her newsletter, you can get the companion story to Mr. Milner, Mrs. Milner Gets a Kitchen, for FREE! (and Marion Milner is a delight, y’all!) Much of Jane’s inspiration for Mr. Milner and Stephen and his crew came from reading this Memoir: The Evening Crowd at Kirmser’s And you can catch Jane’s lecture with Romancelandia University for their Spring 2026 session here. They discuss JOY in HR and revolutionary happy endings! _________________________________ Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 3m

  7. May 6 ·  Bonus

    Bonus Episode—What makes Historical Romance, Historical Romance? with Olivia (@nottheolivia)

    Today is a fun bonus episode where I chat with Olivia (@nottheolivia on Instagram) about some of her thoughts on Historical Romance. I follow her on Instagram and think she is able to articulate what makes Historical Romance a unique genre within Romance beautifully, so I was excited to get some of her takes on where historical romance is headed (and if it should be). You can follow Olivia on Instagram, and the post I referenced frequently, The Historical Romance Starter Kit, can be found here To learn more about my new publishing venture, Besotted Books, please visit the website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/besotted-books, or follow us on Instagram First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance enthusiast and author. Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor   Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 1m

  8. Apr 22

    S1 E8—An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole with Angelique Prince

    I really enjoyed this month’s book—An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole. It’s American Civil War setting makes it stand out, and it unfortunately felt sadly too relevant to current attitudes today as we see our heroine, Elle, a Union spy who is posing as a slave in the home of a Southern Senator, confronting all the ugliest sides of discrimination and being othered and disregarded. BUT, while it was a difficult read (Alyssa Cole does not shy away from the harsh realities she’s writing), it was a also a gorgeous romance and had STAKES! I had a great time with fellow histrom writer, Angelique Prince, discussing the book as well as the need to write more diversely and celebrate Black women authors in Historical Romance. You can find out more about Angelique and her own writing projects on her website, angeliqueprince.com and sign up for her newsletter there to get more information on the project she just did, Bev’s Baddies, reading chronologically through all the works of Beverly Jenkins. Angelique is also active on TikTok and Instagram Other Authors of color mentioned in the podcast that you should absolutely be reading: Beverly Jenkins Addy DuLac Erica Ridley Vanessa Riley Adriana Herrera Liana De la Rosa ___________________________________ Support First Encounter: Patreon Follow First Encounter: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/firstencounterpod Instagram: @first_encounter_hr_pod TikTok: @first_encounter_hr_pod Follow Andie James: Website: https://www.andiejamesauthor.com/ Instagram: @andiejamesauthor Logo designed by Books and Moods Theme Music by TheJayMan

    1h 3m
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

First Encounter is a podcast exploring both the foundations, and the future, of Historical Romance. Hosted by Andie James, Historical Romance author and enthusiast. There will be two episodes per month: Second Wednesday of each month: These episodes are an interview with an Indie Historical Romance author discussing topics related to the genre, and hopefully helping you discover a new author to love! Fourth Wednesday of each month: These episodes are a deep dive in to a Historical Romance 'classic' Andie has never read. Andie will discuss the book with a fellow Historical Romance enthusiast who knows and loves the book.

Information

  • Creator
    Andie James
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    18
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Andie James

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