More Happier: Talking Romance Writing with Stacey Abrams and Lori Gottlieb

Assembly Required with Stacey Abrams

Crooked Media

Society & Culture

4.8 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 3 September 2025

⏱️ 39 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this Roundtable discussion, we explore the role of romance in fiction and real life. Author and political leader Stacey Abrams explains how she weaves it into her suspense novels by focusing on authentic human connection, while therapist Lori Gottlieb brings her perspective on love off the page. Together, we look at how romance is imagined, experienced, and sustained today.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi everyone, it's Stacy here. Our team is off this week because of Labor Day, but I wanted to share something special.
0:07.2	You may not know this, but in addition to politics and writing legal thrillers, I also write romantic suspense novels.
0:14.3	For me, romance is fantastic entertainment, and so much more. A good romance combines hope, resilience, and a chance to make mistakes and make
0:23.8	them right. And it celebrates the human connections that sustain us when the world feels overwhelming.
0:30.4	That's why I was delighted to join happiness expert Gretchen Rubin and therapist, Lori Gottlieb,
0:36.2	on the Happier with Gretchen Rubin podcast for a
0:39.5	Romance Roundtable Conversation. We talked about how romance novels have evolved beyond toxic
0:46.0	masculine tropes, why dating culture could use a rewrite, and what my characters have taught me
0:51.5	about how to love. Fighting for justice takes all kinds,
0:56.0	and this was a great conversation about what love has to do with it.
0:59.9	I hope you enjoy.
1:01.6	This special episode, The Romance Roundtable,
1:04.5	is brought to you exclusively by Audible.
1:07.6	Do you love a good love story?
1:09.8	The Audible Romance collection has audiobooks that will satisfy
1:13.1	every side of you. You may love a story about a dalliance with a duke or perhaps a sexy billionaire
1:19.2	set in the big city or at the hockey rink or in another realm with dragons. Here modern
1:25.5	rom-coms from authors like Lily Chew,
1:28.3	Romantici series from Sarah J. Moss and Rebecca Yarrow's,
1:31.7	Regency favorites like the new Audible original Pride and Prejudice,
1:35.8	plus the really steamy stuff.
1:37.8	Your first great love story is free
	...

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