The Rise of Romantasy
Date: Saturday 3rd May
Time: 12:30
Location: Portsmouth Comic Con, Portsmouth Guildhall
Cost: Free with Portsmouth Comic Con Ticket
Age: 13+
Romantasy is on the rise thanks to BookTok and Bookstagram. Nikki from The Bookish Mindset chats to authors Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson (The Principle of Moments) and Stephanie Burgis (Wooing the Witch Queen) to uncover it’s secrets and find out what’s coming next in the genre.
Esmie Jikiemi-Pearson is a Sunday Times Bestselling author and the inaugural winner of the Future Worlds Prize. Her debut novel, The Principle of Moments, was published in January 2024, garnering a TikTok Book award nomination for Best British and Irish Novel. She regularly interacts with her audience of 25,000+ fantasy readers and writers across social media, and sits on the Board of Trustees for a UNESCO City of Literature in the south of England. Her work primarily focuses on those living at the intersection of identities, whether that’s here in our world, or in others. She holds a BA in English Literature and Classical Studies from the University of Exeter.
Stephanie Burgis grew up in East Lansing, Michigan, but now lives in Wales with her husband and two sons, surrounded by mountains, castles and coffee shops. She writes wildly romantic adult historical fantasies (including The Harwood Spellbook series, over 20,000 self-published copies sold) and has had over forty short stories for adults and teens published in magazines and anthologies. She also writes fantasy adventures for children and has had seven published so far, including The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart, which has been translated into seventeen languages.
