“EL James made women stop being afraid of reading erotica”

She wasn't a good reader as a teenager because she hadn't found her favorite book. Then came Twilight and Harry Potter , two of her favorites. Now she writes for millions of teenagers (and not so young) and her books are among The New York Times bestsellers. But Mercedes Ron (Buenos Aires, 1993), based in Seville, isn't just a bestseller. With ten books and more than three million copies sold—some with adaptations, such as Culpa mía , a hit on Prime Video—she is one of the architects of taking young adult romance to unprecedented heights. "It's our time," she claims.

The beginnings “I knew 'Culpa mía' had potential and I sent the manuscript to publishers, but nothing worked.”

Twenty years ago, when you got a romance novel, you read it in secret. What's changed?

It happened to me too with Fifty Shades of Grey . I wanted to read it because it was the hit at the time, and I did it almost secretly. Now it's everywhere. I think EL James paved the way for women to stop being afraid of liking erotic novels. Even young adult books also have spicy content. The shame has been lost.

There are mothers and daughters who read the same thing.

Yes, and I love it. Especially at that difficult age of adolescence. I find it incredible that a book can connect you with your mother.

But his father doesn't let him read his books.

My father doesn't want to either. He says he'd be uncomfortable, like he'd be messing with my head.

And would I be doing it?

A little, yes. People who know me and have read my books see certain things in me. I finally allowed my mother to read them because she loves romance and is my number one fan. I try not to think about it. The only one I let read them as soon as they came out was my grandmother, who unfortunately is no longer with us. My grandmother was a soap opera actress: she danced, she did theater... She was empowered. Maybe that's why I didn't mind giving them to her to read, because I knew she would understand.

The young romantic film is in the world's top ten.

We finally have our moment and it makes me very happy.

But it is doubly disparaged, for being juvenile and romantic.

I don't agree, but in the end, this is what we women have been dragging along with us. Because this is a genre written primarily by women, and what women like is inferior. We're fighting to change this, and we're increasingly finding more space, but, as with everything, we have to keep pushing forward and show that it's a very important genre, especially young adult literature, because ultimately, it's the one that's creating new readers.

She admits that she was not a good reader in her adolescence.

Until I discovered Twilight . At school, having to read La Celestina really put me off reading. Maybe I read it now and like it more, but when I was 13, I resented it. I always say that there's no one who doesn't like reading, just someone who hasn't found their perfect book.

It emerged from the Wattpad platform. How did it happen?

I started on Wattpad when I was 19, after finishing Culpa mía . I knew the book had potential, and I wanted to publish it. I contacted publishers, sent the manuscript, entered a contest... But nothing, no response. At that time, Wattpad was starting to do really well in Spain, and all I wanted was for someone to read it. So I started uploading a chapter a day. People got hooked very quickly. A year and a half later, the publisher called me.

'Culpa mía' was inspired by a Taylor Swift song.

On a trip I took to Los Angeles with a friend when I was 19. The music video for Taylor Swift's " I Knew You Were Trouble" was the main idea that later led to many other things. I was drawn to the idea of ​​being dragged by love into a world where you don't belong and where you might get lost.

What does it bring to the genre?

All my books have action, and that's something that's working really well for me on the audiovisual level. That's why I've already sold almost all of my books, because it's not just romance, it's romance with a thriller, it's romance with action.

In fact, did you study audiovisual?

Yes, and I'm really enjoying it: all the adaptations, the process... I'm learning, and it's a world I love.

And you say you've already sold the audiovisual rights to all your books? To Prime Video?

Except for the latest series, 30 Sunsets . The rest are, and all on Prime.

How are you participating in the adaptation?

Very actively: I'm involved in the script, in casting, I go to filming... I recently filmed Marfil y Ébano and also Dímelo , which has already wrapped. They listen to me. That's changing too. Before, there was a lot of reluctance to let the author participate, and I think I'm showing that what I contribute can improve the final result.

Did you have any fears before starting?

I was afraid they'd take the book and do whatever they wanted, because I know it's happened. In fact, it's very rare for me, for an author to be happy with an adaptation. When I went to see the film, I was prepared because I knew I wasn't going to like it, and I was thinking about how to tell all those people who had worked on the project that I didn't like the film. And I was very surprised, because I loved it.

Not just you. It's Prime's most-watched non-English-language production. It's been such a success that a London version of "Culpa mía" is now being released.

I didn't expect it at all. It's not a remake of the film, but a remake of my book. They wanted to adapt the book again, and in fact, it has things from the book that the Spanish film doesn't. It's the same story, but you're not watching the same movie.

What is the worst thing young people face today?

The other day I read about the amount of time we spend on our phones... They say young people don't get bored, but creativity is born from boredom. I'm 100% sure I wouldn't have been a writer if I had been born in this generation. The phone is a cancer right now.