By Mark Seavy 

The “romantasy” genre, which features fictional books blending romance and fantasy elements, is writing a new chapter in licensing. 

The romance genre isn’t new to licensing—Brandgenuity represented romance publisher Harlequin Enterprises and Seltzer Licensing Group represented Debbie Macomber, author of the Cedar Grove series—but the recent rise of romantasy is telling a new story when it comes to licensing strategies.   

Since 2023, a significant uptick in viral videos on social media platforms like TikTok (including book reviews and fan casting, where readers name the celebrities they think should play each character in a film or television adaptation) have helped to drive romantasy book sales.  

The genre gained appeal with readers who grew up reading young-adult fantasy series like Harry Potter and were interested in similar plots, but with adult themes of sex and romance. The result has been that romantasy book sales hit $494 million in 2023 and were forecast to increase to $610 million last year. Last July, romantasy books accounted for 18.3% of The New York Times’ Hardcover Fiction Bestseller list, up from 3.3% in 2019. 

While earlier licensing efforts in the romance genre had limited success—Debbie Macomber gained deals for 1,000-piece puzzles (TCG Toys) and candles, for example—romantasy’s combination of fantasy and romance seems to be opening up opportunities across new categories. 

Author Sarah Maas’ A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR) series secured an 82-pice DTR at Hot Topic with a mix of t-shirts, hoodies, cardigans, and throw blankets. The sixth book in the ACOTAR series is due later this year. Maas has sold more the 45 million copies of the Court of Thorns and Roses series and it was optioned to Hulu in 2021, but plans for a series were canceled three years later. 

Other popular romantasy authors include Lauren Roberts (Fearless, the next book in her Powerless series, is due on April 8th), and Rebecca Yarros (Onyx Storm, the next book in her Empyrean series, is launching on January 21st). Yarros has sold more than one million copies of Iron Flame and Fourth Wing, and the Empyrean book series has been optioned to Amazon MGM Studios. 

Both novelists have inspired merchandise available on platforms like Etsy and while it’s unclear whether the mix of stickers, t-shirts, candles, bracelets, and necklaces are licensed, the merchandise is a sign of demand for products.  

This is unique because while other romance-themed titles have been successful in licensing, that traditionally only happened after a breakthrough in theatrical films or streaming. Author Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton series, for example, included eight books released between 2000 and 2006 but didn’t cross into licensing until after the Netflix series broke in December 2020, with a fourth season due in 2026.  

Indeed, Seltzer Group pitched Macomber’s books to furniture makers—with a focus on a reading chair and other items—but couldn’t land a deal. Authors in other genres have succeeded in the past, including Ernest Hemingway, whose estate first landed an agreement with the former Thomasville Industries in 1998 for beds, tables, and chairs and has been available for many years. While Thomasville parent Heritage Home Group filed for bankruptcy and closed in 2018, three companies (Charleston Forge, McKinley Leather, and Mackenzie Dow) revived the brand with the Ernest Hemingway at Home collection last spring. 

“On theory we thought we had a winner [with Macomber in furniture] and we had all these great meetings, but unfortunately the potential partners didn’t choose to go forward,” said Stuart Seltzer, President of Seltzer Licensing Group. “Furniture hadn’t been done much before with a female author and [Macomber] didn’t test well in the unaided brand awareness, meaning that while women all knew Macomber, the men did not.”  

Romantasy’s use of fantasy elements, however, along with the genre’s continued popularity across social media, means more consumers are aware of these book series. And in addition to growing demand for consumer products, readers are also looking for new ways to strengthen their sense of community. For example, Lovestruck Books opened in late December to become the Boston, MA area’s first dedicated romance bookstore. 

“Romantasy has been a niche for a long time [but] has become more mainstream,” said Derrick Baca, a former Funko executive and founder of consulting firm Inspired by Chaos. “And maybe that is changing because we have become more respectful of niches, since it is so hard to get anything new into the market these days. Retailers have become so risk averse, so there are fewer places to buy niche items and romantasy is changing this.”