Who Are The Top Male Authors Writing Romance Novels Today?

Question

Our book club's romance shelves are overflowing but the discussions lately keep circling back to wondering which current guys, like Coleen Hoover-level popular male authors, are truly defining the genre's modern heartthrob trends.

Jene Samson · Answer

I’m going to assume you are referring to authors of romance novels. While the very popular female authors of romance novels such as Talia Hibbert, Ali Hazelwood, and Casey McQuiston dominate the genre, I would argue that the top male writer in current MM romance is Onley James. Interestingly, Onley James is actually a female author, but her novels and others like ‘Dark Desires : A Collection of Filthy Forbidden MM Sins’ are representative of the genre. The popular subgenre often seeks to push boundaries and therefore the novels often feature morally ambiguous characters, and their twisted obsessions, whilst exploring complex power dynamics, and darker and more psychological aspects of their relationships rather than simple, ‘sweet’ tropes.

Nora · Answer

There are a lot of new male authors in the romance novel genre, and some of them have really won me over. One of the biggest names in the genre is Nicholas Sparks. Classic novels like “The Notebook” and “A Walk to Remember” never fail to get me. But there are a lot of other new authors that are really bringing something special to the table, such as the co-author of Talia Hibbert, Alexis Hall. His novel “Boyfriend Material” was so funny and gave such good feelings. TJ Klune also really brought something new to the genre with “The House in the Cerulean Sea” – it felt like such a warm hug with the incredibly unique and wondrous love story inside of it. And although Casey McQuiston is non-binary and therefore could fall under this category as well, their novel “Red, White & Royal Blue” is just truly a masterpiece that really brought something new and emotional to the genre.

Clara · Answer

Romance novels by male authors are another up-and-coming genre, slowly adding to the repertoire of stories available today. Nicholas Sparks has become a name synonymous with romance novels but many other male authors are following in his footsteps. Up-and-coming authors include the queer rom-com novels by Alexis Hall (Boyfriend Material etc.), The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune (a cozy ‘magic’ love story set in an alternative fantasy world) and the young adult novels with lots of romance by Adam Silvera (They Both Die at the End etc.).

There are also many male authors of historicals writing LGBTQ+ fiction including The Magpie Lord by KJ Charles. While not strictly romance, the relationships in Anxious People by Fredrik Backman are also well-written and very realistic. There is much more to the romance genre than what is typically written and many talented male authors are exploring the possibilities.

Zayn · Answer

Romanance novels by male authors are such a treat. While I do read a lot of female authors of romance too, currently I’m really into some male authors who bring a fresh perspective to the genre. For example, Alexis Hall’s ‘Boyfriend Material’ was just so much fun. His dialogue is so sharp that you could use it to cut bread. I also recently read TJ Klune’s ‘The House in the Cerulean Sea’ which is another comfort read of mine, much like a cup of tea on a grey rainy day.

I will admit to having read some steamy novels by male authors – the Christina Lauren co-author, Simon, wrote The Unhoneymooners for example and that was really good though I’ve never seen him get as much credit as he deserves. Meanwhile, Casey McQuiston (non-binary) wrote the utter charming Red, White & Royal Blue and while that’s not even really a romance novel in the strictest sense, it’s helping to show that romance novels don’t have to be ‘fluffy’ or shallow – they can be deep and funny and even heart-breaking at times.

Emerson Resurreccion · Answer

My favorite romance novel of the last five years or so is Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston. This is a male perspective written by a female author, and it is SO well done that I honestly think that her gender is irrelevant to her ability to write a male. I want to see male authors write female protagonists with the same level of depth and humor and insight into their inner lives that she has done here. My sense of the “top” romance novel authors is that they are able to write in such a way that you read their novels and you enter completely into the inner lives of their characters. It doesn’t matter to me whether or not an author is male or female. That is a very meta discussion point for me, though.

Gary Compton · Answer

Wait, I know another one! Author Ali Hazelwood wrote last year’s biggest hit among BookTok users: these steamy STEMinist romances. And – spoiler alert! – he’s actually writing under a pen name. The book that rose to fame was ‘The Love Hypothesis’ by this extremely popular author. On the other hand, I keep seeing romantic fantasy writers, a genre that’s having a colossal moment right now, getting mentioned left and right, such as Scarlett St. Clair, a female author, and maybe even Jay Kristoff? The romantisic parts of Nevernight trilogy by this author are amazing, but that’s not really the focus of the book. As for a purely romantic novel, in the world of manga and light novels, male authors of romantic novels are way more common. Examples would be the author of Kei Sazane’s ‘The Angel Next Door Spoils Me Rotten’ or that of ‘Toradora!’. And in Western publishing, the few very famous romance writers (such as Nicholas Sparks) or authors writing under a pen name (like Hazelwood) or authors of romance-adjacent genres like romantic suspense or fantasy are at the top of the charts today precisely because they managed to crack the code of social media appeal.

Rosie M · Answer

My contribution to the list would be to note that while it’s somewhat rare for male authors to write romance, it does exist. For example, Max Monroe is a bestselling author duo, although I believe them to be two women. I’m clearly wrong again, but the point is that they use a pen name. This makes a hard distinction between a collaboration and a writer using a pen name to write in a genre that is commonly associated with the opposite sex. All of this to say that my worst assumption about your list was that all romance novels were by female authors. I know that’s not true, but this thread has exposed a blind spot in my own reading in terms of assuming that romance = female author. My attempt to be helpful in listing out male romance authors is also perhaps a little spotty. David Baldacci writes novels with romantic elements, but I wouldn’t classify them primarily as romance. Again, not what you were looking for.

Jhoy Adriano · Answer

I think ‘today’ is an important term to frame this by. Twenty years ago, this would have been a very short list of male authors writing Romance novels. There are a large number of men writing in the genre and making a success of it today, however, through indie publishing, online platforms, and the proliferation of niche sub-genres within the wider umbrella of the genre. Many male authors are doing well on Royal Road, for example, where progression fantasy and litRPG novels with strong romantic subplots are very popular. In fact, ‘top’ authors in the genre today are probably those who are writing more than just a single Romance novel – they are building a world around it, and releasing content in serialized form, possibly as exclusives on their patreon, and engaging heavily with their fans. This is not the ‘top’ authors of traditional publishing, by any stretch, but what they are doing is incredibly powerful.

Pat David · Answer

A lot of the authors who are suggested are queer romance authors. That's really cool. I would say that M/M and LGBTQ+ romance authors are possibly one of the more male authorial lists because they write outside of the heterosexual romance narrative, and therefore there's possibly more room for authors of diverse backgrounds in those genres. I'm not sure if K.D. Casey is male, he's a queer sports romance author, but that would be a good place to start to look for male authors writing great romance. They may not be as widely read or as famous as Nicholas Sparks, but they're considered to be very good at what they do, highly regarded by their readers, and respected within their writing community. They might be a good place to start to look for great romance written by male authors.

Nakita Davis · Answer

After some consideration, I’d like to nominate John Green for this list. While his books are categorized as YA contemporary, especially The Fault in Our Stars, they are ultimately monumental love stories. The book has captured the hearts of a generation of readers and has made many people cry and swoon in equal measure. He’s one of the top male authors writing stories with love and relationships at their core. While much of his work is published in YA channels, his collaborative works with other authors are often deeply romantic in nature. So, while he may not be considered a “romance novelist” according to RWA guidelines, in many cultural contexts he is regarded as one of the top authors of romantic fiction. This distinction is significant, as the definition we use for the list changes dramatically. Are we talking about authors of bestselling books about love? Then there are many more authors who could be included on this list. Are we talking about authors whose primary career is writing category romance? Then the list shrinks dramatically.

Who Are The Top Male Authors Writing Romance Novels Today?

10 Answers

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