Rose is Chains was originally published by Julie Soto in 2019 on the fanfiction site Archive of Our Own (AO3) as a Harry Potter fanfiction titled “The Auction,” which centered on the romantic relationship between Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger (Dramione). The fanfiction imagined a universe in which Harry Potter died and his friends lost the Battle of Hogwarts against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, resulting in the surviving members of Harry’s rebellion group, the Order of the Phoenix, being enslaved and auctioned off to the Death Eaters. In the fanfiction, Draco Malfoy purchases Hermione Granger after she is captured and enslaved, and he attempts to keep her safe from the rampant exploitation other members of the Order of the Phoenix face. “The Auction” was the third part of Soto’s “Rights and Wrongs” series, each of which reimagined the ending of J.K. Rowling’s series and the future of Rowling’s characters through the lens of an invented romantic relationship between Draco and Hermione, which is not a component of Rowling’s original series.

Soto is open about her penchant for fanfiction, and her AO3 page includes her 19 published Harry Potter fanfiction works and her 10 Star Wars fanfiction works. “The Auction” is no longer available on AO3, as Soto has since adapted it into Rose in Chains. Soto previously favored fanfiction as a medium because it allowed her to explore characters and relationship dynamics without worrying about world-building, but in an interview with online publication Swooon, Soto explains that adapting the fanfiction into a novel was a uniquely rewarding experience, as she explains, “One of the things that’s really exciting to me about Rose in Chains is that opportunity to take something that worked really well and meant a lot to me and getting to actually flex those world-building muscles now” (Vick, Megan. “‘Rose in Chains’: Julie Soto Talks Adapting Dramione Fanfic ‘the Auction’ into New Book (Exclusive).” Swooon). Soto’s creation of a distinct magical system, political landscape, and larger changes to her original characters make Rose in Chains distinct from its original fanfiction form.

Soto is not alone in adapting her fanfiction into a traditionally published novel. For example, E.L. James’s Fifty Shades of Grey was originally written as a Twilight Bella Swan/Edward Cullen fanfiction, and Ali Hazelwood’s breakout hit The Love Hypothesis was originally published as a Star Wars Rey/Kylo Ren fanfiction. Soto’s novel does take a darker tone, as it deals with the subject of enslavement. Fanfiction can offer writers a space to explore more taboo or controversial subjects than traditional publishing can, as it is often a more anonymous publishing and reading space for authors and audiences alike. According to critic Kayleigh Donaldson, writers and readers like to explore darker themes and taboo topics to “wholly delve into their oft-derided desires in ways that society tends to denigrate” (Donaldson, Kayleigh. “What Is Dark Romance and Why Is BookTok Obsessed with It?” Paste Magazine). However, Soto’s exploration of enslavement is not framed within the dark romance trope of being desirable or sexy; her protagonist Briony is horrified by the way she and her fellow Eversuns are treated by their Bomardi enslavers. People also write and read darker literature to explore challenging topics, feel a rush of adrenaline, or experience the catharsis that comes with releasing negative emotions.