Kapittel: From Jane Austen to Heated Rivalry: a lecture on romance literature

Step into the genre that comforts, excites, provokes and surprises! Romance is the world’s biggest literary genre, but also one of its most dismissed. Stories of desire, longing and happy endings captivate a wide range of readers, and the genre offers far more than clichés.

In this entertaining and insightful lecture, literary scholar, former publishing editor and author Anne Louise Morseth guides the audience through the history of romance and its storytelling techniques. Topics include why Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice can be regarded as a classic romantic comedy, the fascination with gay hockey romance, and what distinguishes erotic romance from pornography. The lecture also explores how romance can be read through a feminist lens, and how the genre reflects broader questions about society, the gaze, power, sexuality and the need for hope in an uncertain world.

Anne Louise Morseth is an author, literary scholar, freelance editor and former publishing editor at Gyldendal, where her work included romance and feel-good fiction. With more than fifteen years’ experience in the publishing industry, Morseth also teaches creative writing. She made her fiction debut with the romantic comedy En lykkelig slutt, and her new novel, En sjanse til, will be published in autumn 2026.

The event is part of Kapittel – Stavanger International Festival of Literature and Freedom of Expression, 16–20 September 2026. More information, the programme and tickets can be found at www.kapittel.no.

At some events at Sølvberget and during the Kapittel Festival, photographs and video recordings are taken for documentation purposes and for use on social media.