Guess What Waiting For You Did?

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Early this year I entered my novel, Waiting For You, in the New England Readers Choice Awards competition. It was a little like sending your child off to college. You know you’ve done the best job preparing the kid you can do. The rest will be up to him.

So I waited until April.

Writing is a solitary occupation for the most part. And writers are often inward focused people. We enjoy watching movies in our heads and that delicious feeling that we are the ones who will find out what happens to our characters first.

So attending a writers’ conference is a fascinating experience. On the one hand, you are surrounded by lots of people who are not exactly shy. Maybe reserved might be a better way to put it. On the other hand, once a conversation starts, it’s fascinating.

Because storytellers. Right?

This year was my third time attending NECRWA, the annual Spring conference of the New England chapter of Romance Writers of America. Each year I am inspired once again by the warmth and generosity of the attendees and presenters. There is a general sense of “we are all in the rowboat together” which makes me proud to be a part of this event.

I like knowing that first time attendees are made to feel welcome and are quickly absorbed into the group. I appreciate the respect and support accorded to more experienced members who have so much to teach and share. And I am touched at how generous those members are with the knowledge they have gleaned from writing, publishing and selling romance novels. So submitting my book for judging by members of the New England chapter of RWA was particularly significant.

I care what these writers think.

I respect their opinions. And I trust them. Which meant when I found out Waiting For You was a finalist in the Readers Choice Competition I was beyond proud.

This weekend, at the conference, I learned Waiting For You won second place in the long contemporary romance category. I am still floating. Because my story gave writers I respect pleasure. And now I know Waiting For You will make a lot of other readers smile too.

Rose Grey has written three romance novels and is hard at work on a fourth. Wednesday is generally book review day. Unless it isn’t. If you liked this post, come visit the rest of the blog at www.rosegreybooks.com. Waiting For You, Hot Pursuit and Not As Advertised are available as ebooks and as paperbacks online.