RaeAnne Thayne: Former USU journalist becomes fiction author

RaeAnne Thayne, USU Alumni, established her career as a bestselling author by crafting stories of love, family and friendship within the pages of her fiction novels. The Utah-based author has written over 70 books since the start of her writing career in 1995 and continues to release books today.  

While Thayne didn’t initially aspire to become an author, she spent much of her childhood in the countryside with a book in her hands. 

“I was a voracious reader,” Thayne said. “But I didn’t know I wanted to be a writer until high school.” 

In her earlier school years, Thayne found a passion for drama and theater. That passion transformed when her mother encouraged her to take a journalism class. 

“That was kind of the beginning of my writing experience and telling stories,” Thayne said. “It was through journalism.” 

Thayne went on to work at The Utah Statesman and the Herald Journal. Throughout her journalism career, Thayne dreamed of eventually writing a book. 

“I always dreamed about writing a romance novel,” Thayne said. “That’s what my mother loved, and those are the kind of books that I really devoured when I was in high school.” 

During her maternity leave in 1990, Thayne decided to finally begin writing her first book. 

“I decided this was my chance,” Thayne said. “So I bought a cheap computer from a bid sale at USU.”  

Armed with her new computer and deep-rooted love for storytelling, Thayne attempted her first novel. 

“I sat down and tried, and it was bad,” Thayne said.  

Despite a rocky start, Thayne continued trying and researching how to write. She published her first book five years later in 1995. 

“I was the news editor at the Herald Journal until 1997 when we had our second child, and that was the same week I sold my fifth book,” Thayne said. “I quit work when we had our son, and I have been writing full-time ever since.” 

Thayne attributes her drive to become an author to a sense of both determination and naivety.  

“It was kind of an out-there dream, and if I had known how hard it was, I would have been more disillusioned and probably not ever believed I could succeed,” Thayne said. 

Thayne said she remembers the publishing landscape of the early 1990s, and the challenges that came along with her first publishing experiences. 

“At that time, you had to sell through a New York publisher,” Thayne said. “There was no self-publishing, there were no e-books—it was all traditional publishing.” 

Though it was initially challenging to get her foot in the door, Thayne garnered much success around her work due to the growing popularity of e-books. 

According to Goodreads, Thayne’s novels have received much support, with an average rating of 4.11 out of five stars.  

“There are a lot more opportunities now for people who are writers to get their books in the hands of readers, which I think is a wonderful thing,” Thayne said.  

Thayne worked with book publicist Angela Melamud on her most recent book release “The December Market.”  

Melamud worked diligently with Thayne to promote the comfy, cozy feelings of the book for readers in search of a comfort-read. 

“It’s got that Christmas magic, so one strong pitching angle was positioning it for holiday book coverage,” Melamud wrote in an email to The Utah Statesman. 

According to Melamud, she admires Thayne’s ability to produce large quantities of expertly developed books and has heard from readers that her novels serve as a lighthearted escape from the stress of reality. 

“We live in a world that is so hard and everybody has challenges,” Thayne said. “Everybody needs a warm, comfortable place they can sink into and feel like they are at home and that they belong somewhere.”  

Thayne said she is extremely grateful for the peace and comfort her books are able to bring readers. 

“I make people happy for a living,” Thayne said. “How many people get to say that they make people happy for a living?”  

Many of Thayne’s novels explore the beauty of relationships and community support. 

“All of my books are about people learning how to take care of each other,” Thayne said. “Having a son with special needs has given us a different perspective of the world and the goodness of the world.”   

Thayne said she looks back at her earlier works with pride and humility. 

“My writing evolved over the years and changed,” Thayne said. “I go back and reread my early books and I’m still really proud that I had that dream and worked hard to make it come true.”