ABSTRACT
This chapter defines author studies, including both traditional studies of a literary oeuvre by a named individual and studies of the “author function,” which emphasizes collective elements of production and reception. It explores gendered reasons for the relative scarcity of author studies for popular romance and surveys the extant literature, using Nora Roberts as the primary example. It concludes with a discussion of promising avenues for future research which, by taking account of popular romance writing, could help reimagine the field of author studies.
