Rebecca Dixon
Hi! My name is Rebecca Dixon and I am the founder of FanGrrrl Romance Recs!
What first began as a small Facebook book lover group for just 15 “real life” friends, has grown into three separate Facebook book groups, two Newsletters, a FB Page, TT/Insta handles, LIVE interviews with Authors, amazing Giveaways for FanGrrrl Romance Recs fans, our very own Merchandise, and… Guest Hosting & LIVE Streaming awesome book signings, like Fiction, Fans & Ballgowns in England! So many excited things are happening… I just have to pinch myself to believe it.
By day, I’m a Software Engineer, with a background in Business (MBA) Computer Information Systems, Communications, & Musical Theatre. I’ve always loved & read books, but it all truly began in late August 2021 when I made the decision to open up my small book lover group, now FanGrrrl 💋 Romance Recs (Urban Fantasy, Romantasy, & Paranormal Romance), to become a proper FB Book Lover Group (and not just a group for a handful of my “real life” friends.) I had become increasingly frustrated by book lover groups available at the time, as there was so much negativity. I just didn’t understand it. Why couldn’t there be a place we recommend books we love, while lifting up authors at the same time? A place where members could get real, genuine recommendations from readers? A place where authors could join as readers and not worry about stumbling upon negative comments about their books? Just like the book community often says, “write what you want to read!” I thought, well, I’ll just create the group I’ve always wanted. So that’s exactly what I did!
First, the mission statement was established: to provide a positive, pro-author place where readers can get real & genuine book recommendations. Next, my goal was to develop the group purpose & Guides, fair rules, and getting the word out. Authors like #1 Amazon bestselling author Stephanie Hudson, allowed me to share the group in their authors groups (thank you Steph!) Turns out… there were a lot of people who wanted a positive, friendly book recommendation group like I did, so the group exploded in membership. We went from 15 members to 5,000 in under 5 months. By our one-year anniversary, we had risen to 22,000 members & today, our membership stands at over 46,000 members and is still going strong!
As the group continued to grow, we were able to do more and more to support authors and thank our fantastic members at the same time. After all, it is their recommendations that are the foundation of the group. Every month we Feature an Author in our Newsletters (for both groups,) and I do a LIVE loving on their books. The Featured Author donates 10 fantastic prizes to the group to be won by members. We also have the 11/100 & Thank You M’am giveaways, allowing other authors in the group visibility & recognizing outstanding members as well. Author Intro Posts can be posted, providing a fun way for members to learn about new authors. Every vehicle we provide for authors is absolutely free, the Admin team & I donate our time to the groups (a big thank you the ladies who help run the groups, I couldn’t do it without them!)
Speaking of groups, we now have two more: FanGrrrl💗 Romance Recs Authors Corner (UF, Fantasy, PNR, Contemp Romance) was created in 2022 for Authors to help other Authors (although regular readers can join too!), and FanGrrrl 🖤 Romance Recs After Dark 🔥 (Edgy Contemp Romance & Why Choose) was recently created following a high demand from members in the original, or as we call it the “OG” group. So far, the new book lover group is on track to follow the footsteps of the OG & we couldn’t be more thrilled about it.
The Facebook groups, which spring boarded FanGrrrl Romance Recs into existence, will always stay true to their group mission & purpose. However, with the incorporation of FanGrrrl Romance Recs, I am incredibly excited for this new chapter to Guest Host/Sponsor book signing events. Honestly, to think that this Software Engineer – who just opened up her book lover group on Facebook one day- is now interviewing authors at book signings and LIVE streaming on 7+ different platforms to help spread the word of great books & authors… is a dream come true! Frankly… I’m just FanGrrrling over it!