"The bad guy's going to get caught and the couple is going to get together," Fields said.

The recent crop of best-sellers, such as Fifty Shades of Grey, has brought new attention to the genre.

"It certainly helped my sales," Draven said.

The attention has broadened the audience.

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"It pulls in new readers," said Christi Barth, a Baltimore resident who is the group's president for 2013. "It's rejuvenated their interest in reading."

And some books have inspired new writers, including Nolan, an Arnold resident, and her friend, Laura Kaye.

Kaye and Nolan began writing after they were inspired by the "Twilight" series.

"If Stephenie Meyer (the author) can do this, I can do this," Nolan remembers thinking.

Nolan explained she didn't want to write just any romance. It would have to be young adult romance, like the "Twilight" books, a genre that has developed since her own teen years. "I missed that whole genre because it didn't exist," she said.

"We didn't exactly know what we were doing," Kaye said.

Without knowing a soul, she went to her first meeting of the Maryland Romance Writers. "It turned out to be one of the best decisions I ever made," Kaye said.

New writers can benefit from the experiences of published authors. "The person who has 100 books published is willing to work with the person who is pre-published," Fields said.

"We really value mentorship in this organization," Kaye said, noting that the group is more collegial than one might expect.

"Now I can't imagine life without some of these women," she added.

Meetings give members a chance to meet agents and publishers and learn about the whole publishing experience.

"There's a kinship you can grow with other people who are close to you. We can be in such an isolated profession," Nolan said.

Members take part in workshops online or in person to learn how to write, especially the finer points of structure, and how to get published, especially what will catch an editor's or agent's attention.

Barth credits one of her colleagues for helping her land a six-book contract.

"The networking cannot be overlooked," she said.

And unlike other writer's groups, where critiques can be scathing, there is a feeling of support. "You're there for each other," Nolan said.