Today we’d like to introduce you to Nikki Rome
Hi Nikki, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I began writing romance novels a few years ago and found a need for some deeper education. It was really hard back then to find people within the writing community who had the experiences I needed. I found a few people here and there which was great, but I never understood why it was so hard.
Another large book signing was coming to a end here in Orlando and I jumped on the opportunity. But when it came to developing Smut Lovers: The Conference I knew I wanted it to be something more than a book signing. They are great but there are a ton of them. I wanted to build a full conference where authors and readers could learn together in an inclusive environment. So that’s what we did! We also may have added a book signing, killer after party and a ton of other reader events throughout the week. It’s been amazing.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It definitely hasn’t been a smooth road. Although I had experience in event planning and adult education from my past career it was very different being responsible for everything and not having a built in team and budget. I’ve been lucky that since the beginning I’ve had a handful of truly amazing staff members and a ton of volunteers that have been wonderful. As corny as it sounds we really wouldn’t be where we are today without them.
The biggest issue we run into is attendees, authors and vendors being concerned about the political climate here in Florida. In 2023 we were a first year conference supporting communities here in Orlando that were suffering and people from outside the state were worried about traveling here.
We released our first “Why Florida” statement to combat some of the negative feedback we were getting. Many couldn’t understand why we would run Smut Lovers here in Florida but the most important thing to us is supporting those here that need a safe place to learn. We recently released an updated version but our mission remains the same. A safe and inclusive learning environment for all. We’ve also included virtual tickets and expanded our online learning to a whole new platform in 2024 for those who feel more comfortable learning from the safety of their own homes.
As you know, we’re big fans of Rome Entertainment Group DBA Smut Lovers. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
The Smut Lovers organization is more community than anything else. Yes of course our conference is our main source of education but we also have a large and active Facebook group, our podcast, our mastermind retreats, and our online learning platforms. We specialize in providing a community for authors and readers that prefer the spicier side of the romance genre. It is a massively large genre and year over year the most profitable in our industry yet it is dominated by humans who identify as fem. Which means they never seem to receive the credit they deserve. Our community is about lifting up everyone who has a deep love of romance like we do. We want to ensure communities represented in our books are done so correctly which is why rely so heavily on the educational aspect of what we do. Each year we run our mastermind retreat in May, bringing together authors looking to reach new levels, our conference in September here in Orlando which provides one of a kind education on Kink and BDSM as well as author writing and marketing sessions. Outside of that we have our sensitivity reader database to support authors needing help and so much more. I’m happy to say we have build the community of our dreams where everyone feels as if they are coming home when they see each other.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
Gosh there are so many, however to keep it in line with my love for reading it would have to be the first summer vacation where I fell head over heels for the Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley High. It feels like forever ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I never went a day without a book in my hand and that’s stayed the same for a very long time.
Pricing:
- Sensitivity Reader Database: FREE
- Facebook Community Membership: FREE
- Online 2023 Virtual Sessions: $100
- Online 2024 Virtual Sessions $150
- In Person Conference and Book Signing: Varies, our website has all the details.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://smutlovers.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smutloverscommunity/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SmutLovers
