I am pleased to report that romance is well and truly rocking at the RWA 2014 Romance Rocks conference in Sydney.
On Saturday, before the AGM, we had the official launch of this year’s Little Gems anthology and celebrated a fine crop of ‘first sale’ ribbons. Then, after a short break to attend the mega ARRA book signing, there was dinner. We had the chance to congratulate the winners of the Little Gems, First Kiss, Selling Synopsis and Ripping Start Awards, all of which were decided and announced during the year. (If you would like to revisit the winners and finalists, they are listed at the end of this post.)
Then we moved onto the awards that are saved for the big reveal at the conference each year; The Valerie Parv Award, The Emerald, the ROMA, The Ella, The Ruby and the Lynne Wilding Meritorious Service Award. This year, we also had the bonus of our second induction into the RWA Hall of Fame.
If you are on Twitter, you probably heard the results as they happened, but if you aren’t, or if you chose an early night over satisfying your curiosity, let us put you out of your misery right now. Drumroll please…
The Lynne Wilding Meritorious Service Award
Nominees:
Jennifer Brassel
Diane Curran
Catherine Evans
Marilyn Forsyth
Lis Hoorweg
Anita Joy
Juanita Kees
Margaret Midwood
Bec Sampson
RECIPIENT: Anita Joy
ROMA Award (The Romance Media Award)
The ROMA honours intelligent and positive coverage of romance in the media. This year we were pleased to received fifteen nominations. These were whittled down to three finalists, who, in alphabetical order, are:
Finalists:
Anthony Funnell, of ABC Radio National for his moderation of the panel session “Learning From Romance,” featuring Helene Young, Amy Andrews and Sarah Wendell on the Weekend Arts program.
Anthony Funnell of ABC Radio National again, for his piece titled “Smart Bitches, Trashy Books: the women rewriting the rules around love and sex” on the Weekend Arts program.
Kat Mayo of Bookthingo on The Drum, on ABC Online, for her piece, titled “Dear columnists, romance fiction is not your bitch.”
And the ROMA for 2014 goes to: Kat Mayo
RWA HALL OF FAME Award
This is our second induction to the RWA Hall of Fame, which honours an outstanding lifetime achievement in romance writing. We are delighted to welcome Emma Darcy to the Hall of Fame.
Emma Darcy is the author of more than 110 category romance novels, with unit sales over 60 million since her 1983 debut. She was a driving force in creating and funding the Emma Darcy Award in 1993, which encouraged unpublished authors to finish their manuscripts. The contest ran until 2004, was the precursor to the Emerald awards and helped to launch the successful careers of several of our members.
Emma Darcy has been a keynote or featured speaker at no less than five RWA conferences, including the very first one. She has always been a strong supporter of RWA, aspiring romance authors and the genre we all love. We are honoured to have her in our Hall of Fame and delighted she could be with us to accept the award.
The VALERIE PARV Award
Seventh Place: Anne Prince Outback Heart
Sixth Place: Audrey Ford The Secret Prince
Fifth Place: Enisa Haines When Darkness Calls
Fourth Place: Rowena Candlish The Baby Bargain
Third Place: Tricia Sargant The Trouble with Love Is…
Second Place: Anne Merrick When This Eclipse is Done
FIRST PLACE: Karina Coldrick Slippage
Thanks to Valerie for judging and the mentorship that is the prize
The EMERALD Award
The EMERALD (SHORT)
Third Place: Nina Gudiksen Permission to Love
Second Place: Sue Knight Images of the Heart
FIRST PLACE: Audrey Ford The Reluctant Princess
Thanks to final judge Joanne Grant, of Harlequin Mills and Boon UK.
The EMERALD (LONG)
Third Place: Euphrasia Holmes My Dark Duke
Second Place: Amy Rose Bennett Capturing the Master of Strathburn
FIRST PLACE: Erin Moira O’Hara The Kalista Diamond
Thanks to Charlotte Ledger at Harper Impulse, who was our final judge this year.
The ELLA Award (Best Published Novella)
Finalists:
Elise Ackers Ask Me To Stay Destiny Romance
Sarah Mayberry Worth the Risk HMB Blush
Rebecca Raisin Christmas at the Gingerbread Café Carina UK
Elizabeth Rolls Christmas Cinderella (in ‘A Sprinkling of Christmas Magic’ HMB anthology)
WINNER: Sarah Mayberry
The RUBY Award (Romantic Book of the Year)
The Ruby for Short Sexy Romance:
Finalists:
Kelly Hunter What the Bride Didn’t Know HMB Kiss
Yvonne Lindsay One Secret Night HMB Desire
Melanie Milburne Never Say No to a Caffarelli HMB Sexy
Trish Morey A Price Worth Paying HMB Sexy
WINNER: Kelly Hunter
The Ruby for Short Sweet Romance:
Finalists:
Lucy Clark One Life-Changing Moment HMB Medical
Fiona Lowe Gold Coast Angels: A Bundle of Trouble HMB Medical
Julie Mac A Father at Last Escape Publishing
Carol Marinelli Secrets of a Career Girl HMB Medical
WINNER: Lucy Clark
The Ruby for Stories with Romantic Elements:
Finalists:
Juanita Kees Under the Hood Escape Publishing
Victoria Purman Nobody But Him Harlequin Australia
Jennifer Scoullar Currawong Creek Penguin Australia
Kendall Talbot Lost in Kakadu Escape Publishing
WINNER: Kendall Talbot
The Ruby for Long Romance
Finalists:
Amy Andrews Holding Out for a Hero Momentum Publishing
Karina Bliss A Prior Engagement HMB Essence
Sasha Cottman Letter from a Rake Destiny Romance
Sophia James The Dissolute Duke HMB Historical
Sophia James Mistress at Midnight HMB Historical
Sarah Mayberry Her Favourite Rival HMB Super Romance
WINNER: Sarah Mayberry
Also presented on the night were certificates from our previously decided competitions, including:
The SELLING SYNOPSIS
1. Margaret Swan
2. Nicole Grant
3. Enisa Haines
RIPPING START
- Victoria Steele
- Kerrie Ptolemy
- Jo McAlister
- Elvina Payet
- Cassandra Pennington
- Sarma Burdeu
- Jennifer Ensor
FIRST KISS
1. Katharina Colmer
2. Andra Ashe
3. Amy Rose Bennett
LITTLE GEMS
Placings:
1. Rowena Candlish: Minnie’s year Of Living
2. Josephine Brown: The Minstrel’s Trial
3. Michelle Skidmore: Moonstruck
Also selected for the anthology:
Rowena Candlish: Jake’s Best Friend
Heidi Catherine: My Moonstone Love
N.F. David: Luna and the Moonstone
Fiona Greene: The Moonstone Legacy
Jennifer Hoff: The Farewell Letter
Fiona Kekic: The Heart Surgeon
Linda Knightley: Moonlight On Water
D.D. Line: Moonstone Hill
Patricia Poppenbeek: Catch Of the Day
Anne Prince: The Real Thing
P.J. Vye: The Girl Who Refused To Marry
Thanks, as always, to all the volunteers who made Little Gems, with especial thanks to Lis Hoorweg and to Joan Wright, who edited the anthology again this year.
LITTLE GEMS COVER CONTEST
Winner: Sheridan Kent
Iris B
/ August 10, 2014Congratulations to ALL !!!!!!!! 🙂
Claire
/ August 11, 2014Thanks for inspiring us all
Juanita Kees
/ August 11, 2014Super congratulations to all the recipients, nominees, finalists and winners. Thanks to our members and volunteers, we did rock the socks off Olympic Park. During Emma Darcy’s speech, I noticed the hotel manager in the room, laughing along with us, and I was delighted to see him wipe away a tear too. I don’t think they’ll forget us in a hurry 😉