Page 116 of The Romance Library

‘Thanks. It’s okay, I can do it,’ I said quickly. I didn’t want to make his situation with his dad more difficult than it already was.

Luckily when I switched it on and clicked on the presentation again, this time it opened.

‘Finally,’ George muttered as he made a big show of looking at his expensive gold watch.

I did my best to ignore him, but I was already flustered from my computer issue. After running the back of my hand over my forehead, I took a deep breath.

It was time.

Here goes.

‘Good morning, everyone: Edwin, Theo and George.’ I smiled, instantly chastising myself for my intro. It was probably afternoon by now and they already knew their names, so I shouldn’t have said them. ‘Thanks for giving me the opportunity to present my ideas for The Romance Library.’

‘Pleasure,’ Edwin said encouragingly.

‘Recently, I was lucky to meet a very special woman called Mrs Davis. She was a passionate romance book lover who spent years curating a brilliant collection. Her dream was always to open a romance library to help more people find love between the pages and between the walls. But there was one thing she was very clear about for this library: the location. She knew that Seaview High would be perfect. It’s where her own real-life romance began because it was here in these very walls that she met her husband and the love of her life. That’s why I’m here today to ask you to help me bring her vision to life.’

As my gaze moved around the room, I was encouraged to see Edwin still smiling and Theo giving me a supportive look.

‘One thing that I’ve noticed living in this town over the past three weeks is the love and happiness that’s all around. Whether it’s a welcoming hug from Glenda at the B&B, the infectious smile from Candace when she’s serving her amazing fish and chips or the way every single person has been so welcoming and gone out of their way to make me feel at home, this community is the definition of positivity and happiness. It’s called Sunshine Bay for a reason, right?’ I laughed.

‘Yes, indeed,’ Edwin added.

‘And I think a romance library would fit perfectly into the community. Romance as a genre brings millions of readers around the world joy, happiness and hope. So it would attract readers not just from the local area, but from around the world too.’

‘That’s ridiculous!’ George spat. ‘How are you going to loan library books to someone who lives in another country?’

‘Father,’ Theo warned.

‘Please continue, Jessica,’ Edwin said.

‘The Romance Library will do more than just lend books,’ I added, trying not to get flustered at George’s comment. ‘As I’ll explain shortly, I have other plans that will help attract a bigger audience and generate revenue. But one thing I’d really like to highlight is that the romance market is booming. It’s a billion-dollar-a-year industry. Romance novels used to be something that people would be ashamed of reading, but these days romance authors regularly outsell those from other genres.’ I flicked to the slide, which had various statistics I’d found in my research.

‘Goodness me.’ Edwin’s eyes widened. ‘I hadn’t realised romance books were so popular!’

George snarled in response.

‘They really are! Romance readers devour books at a rapid rate and will travel to meet their favourite authors and pay a premium for signed or special edition copies. Which is where The Romance Library comes in.’

I clicked on the presentation to turn the page. My heart rate had started to slow a little and I was feeling more confident.

‘As well as having library books available to loan, we’d like to maximise the beautiful space in Seaview High. The existing main hall would be used as the library space. But we’d also like to merge multiple classrooms to create a bookshop. And merge some others to create a space that could be used for paid events. For example, author signings, romance-related seminars and talks, bookish meetups so that fans of a particular author or Bookstagrammers and BookTokers could meet up in real life.’

Speaking to Theo that evening on the beach had really got my creative juices flowing about other ways to make money.

I’d realised that as well as offering ‘extras’ to buy, I could also use the space we had to boost profits. So hosting both bookish and non-book-related events and gatherings in separate areas within the building wouldn’t just generate extra revenue, it’d also create a community and help bring people together—just like Mrs Davis wanted.

‘Forgive me.’ Edwin frowned. ‘What are Bookstagrabbers?’

‘Sorry.’ I smiled. ‘Bookstagrammers are readers that are so passionate about books that they take photographs and post them on social media pages like Instagram. They also post book reviews and mood boards or just anything related to books. BookTokers do a similar type of thing but with videos which get posted on TikTok.’

‘Ah.’ Edwin nodded. ‘I think that’s the thing my granddaughter watches on her phone where people do funny dances!’

‘Sort of. TikTok is popular for lots of things now. Especially books.’

‘Got it! Please continue.’

‘Yeah, so we could host meetups and I’d even like to do some sort of book awards ceremony for authors. These events and book sales would help generate the revenue we need to keep the place running. Plus, it’d attract new visitors to Sunshine Bay who will want to find places to eat, drink and shop whilst they’re here, which would boost local revenue. And something that I’d really like to point out is that we’d use the existing building. I know that Seaview High is a building with a lot of history, so I’d like to preserve its legacy.’

---