For months I’ve had it on my calendar to enter the RITAs, Romance Writers of America’s published romance novel contest. Then after I completed the application, I had it on my calendar to submit my novel files. I completed that, too. Unfortunately, just afterwards a lot of stuff happened within RWA. If you haven’t heard the romancelandia news, here are three good articles.
Claire Ryan Author Blog’s The Implosion of the RWA
All About Romance Blog’s Has RWA lost its way?
Nora Roberts’ Fall Into The Story blog’s My POV on RWA
If you follow my blog and have read my books, you should know that I stand behind inclusion of all folks, both in my fantasy worlds and in real life.
Thus, I next posted an entry onto my calendar to withdraw from the RITAs.
Yesterday I did. I’m mourning the loss of the opportunity for this story to be noticed and shine. I’ve worked on Lost Whisperer of the Seas—on and off—since 2008. Eleven years. This is one of my early books that I couldn’t give up on. It placed in and won several unpublished contest awards as Seaside Sorcery. I revised it again and again and finally published it this July. I was looking forward to entering it in a publish contest, with this beautiful cover.
So goes it. I can’t with good conscious enter it with the upheaval RWA is in.
That said, I am staying a member. I want to help see that changes are made.
On a happier note, my dear husband and I are going on our first international birding trip with Audubon Society to Columbia. So this is how our holidays have looked:
Minimal decorating and research!
By way of explanation, those tabs are some of the 200+ birds we may see on this trip. And the tree usually goes onto the deck after the holidays to be a winter feeding shelter for birds. This year it went directly to the deck, do not stop in the house, do not collect decorations!
I have some more house preps to do, mostly centered on the care of my elder pigs. They have been spoiled during Flynn’s latest health decline with the addition of wheat grass to their diet.
It’s popular!
Also new for me for the new year is that little ‘Play’ button at the top of my posts and many of my pages. A reader asked me if I could get audio on my blog. Yes, that was back in May (I’m slow!) but my cousin, who is also my website designer, selected the ‘Responsive Voice’ plugin for me. It is very easy to use!
I’ll be absent the next week or so, but I’ve left a few posts scheduled! (I wouldn’t want you to forget that Keepers of the Sea Cliffs is coming out January 23rd!)
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