A Word From Our President

Hey all!

For my first official President’s Column I’d like to share my “attitude of gratitude.” I’m extremely lucky to be a part of this group and even luckier that there are so many of you who are enthusiastic about the future of our chapter.

That said, this is a tough business. How about we spread that gratitude all over our writing efforts? Like sprinkling fairy dust on each other so we can fly? (If you haven’t seen FINDING NEVERLAND, get to the theatre, NOW!)

I’m reading a fabulous book called “How to Get Ideas” by Jack Foster. As a creative director for an ad agency he noticed that the teams that came up with the best ad campaigns were the teams that HAD FUN! I believe there’s something to this theory.

I’ll never forget when an editor from Harlequin said to me, “just have fun.” WHAT? This is supposed to be fun? Yes, it is. I knew this somewhere deep in my heart, but it’s hard to see the light when you get sucked into that dark hole: “Why can’t I sell?” “Why can’t I get an agent?” or even “Why weren’t my numbers higher?”

Here’s the deal folks: there are no guarantees of publication or hitting bestseller lists. Write for the love of writing! How blessed you are to be able to experience the buzz of creation.

Ok, I see Steve (our newsletter editor) snatching the soapbox out from under me. I’m off, I’m off.

Happy writing. I’ll be back next month to lecture about “breaking the rules.”

With love and laughter,

Pat White, President GSRWA

www.patwhitebooks.com

RING AROUND MY HEART, Love Spell 2004

RT Reviewers Choice Nominee, Best Contemporary Romance

Pulse Points

*Note* Published authors, please email Steve with information on your forthcoming books! I’ve worked to compile a list of upcoming works but I fear it’s less than 100% comprehensive. If any of this information is incomplete or in error, please email me! For that matter, please email me to confirm its accuracy. J

The following authors have books which are on the shelves from January and February 2005:

Katie MacAlister		A Hard Day's Knight		Jan 05
Katie MacAlister		Got Fangs? Confessions of a Vampire's Girlfriend		Jan 05
Alecia Holiday	w/a Jax Abbott	Super 16	Smooch Books	Feb 05
Katie MacAlister		Sex, Lies, and Vampires		Feb 05

These works will be published within the next six months:

Stella Cameron	Testing Miss Toogood	Mira	Mar 05
Sharron McClellan	The Midas Trap	Sil. Bombshell	Apr 05
Jane Porter	The Frog Prince	Warner Books	May 05
Katie MacAlister	Fire Me Up		May 05
Marianne Stilllings	Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evie	Avon/Harper Collins	May 05
Cynthia Rutledge	RICH, RUGGED... ROYAL	Sil. Romance	June 05
Jane Porter	The Sheikh's Virgin	HQ Presents	June 05
Pat Pritchard	By The Beautiful Sea	Kensington Zebra	June 05
Suzanna Carr	Confessions of a Wicked Woman	Kensington Brava	June 05
Suzanna Carr	Beach Blanket Bad Boys	Kensington Brava	June 05

The following article appeared in the April, 2004 issue of Undercover, the newsletter of Ohio Valley RWA. Please feel free to use with credit!

KILLING YOUR INTERNAL EDITOR

by Elizabeth Bemis

People ask me pretty frequently how I manage to write four books a year plus work a forty hour a week job and run a free-lance company on the side all at the same time. I usually jokingly respond at first that I don't sleep and I have a dog instead of a husband and children. (And don't get me wrong. That helps.) My real answer, however, is that I want this - i.e. to be a successful full-time novelist - more than anything else in the world. I know it takes a lot of work, and I'm willing to do it. But I've also found a few tricks that help me write more and more consistently.

* Make =realistic= daily or weekly page goals and stick to them. Increase them as they become more attainable. * Find the time of day that you consistently find your writing to be the most productive and write then.

*Make your writing time sacred. * Give yourself a day off/reward yourself (and your family for putting up with your schedule). * Take advantage of down time and keep a tape recorder handy. * KILL your internal editor on the first draft.

I've heard writers say that for years, but no one ever gave me a gun and said "Point in that direction," so my ability to do that eluded me and my own personal internal editor continued to persistently demand perfection in my head.

"You spelled that wrong. See, there's a wiggly red line under that word. FIX IT!" ... "Are you sure he'd say THAT?! Decide before going on!" It was about enough to paralyze me.

Then one day I was trying to get through a scene I wasn't entirely ready to write. I'd been blocked for a few days and staring at my blank computer screen wondering how much it would hurt to re-install Free-Cell on my computer. (The answer, of course, is that after 482 games of Free Cell, I still wouldn't have the scene written but I would have a nice little case of carpal tunnel going and a zombie-like look in my eye.) So instead of caving to the demons of electronic games, I tried to figure out the basics of what needed to happen in the scene. (The following example is off the cuff and isn't actually a part of any story.) First, I need to know a bit about what's going on.

Who? Hero & Heroine (two people who used to be lovers but were torn apart and now circumstances have brought them back together) Let's call them Rob and Jenny. What? First Kiss Where? His apartment. When? Mid-afternoon. Why? Umm... dunno yet. How? Passionately, of course <G> POV? Hero

So I know (most of) the basics. Forget the fact that I don't know WHY

they're about to kiss. They will reveal that to me as I write (I hope). Then what? Let's block out the scene and pinpoint the questions I need to answer. I'm making notes, so it doesn't matter if I misspell, use bad grammar or switch between present and past tense. (This is important. Repeat after me, "THESE ARE JUST NOTES!") In fact, writing in the present tense seems to be the key for me. So here goes...

First, Rob needs to arrive home in the middle of the day. (1-Why?) Then he surprises Jenny snooping about his apartment. (2- Why did she break in?) (3-What does he say when he sees her?) Then something makes them cross the room (4-What?) and she sees an old photo album lying on the table. She flips it open as he protests (5-What does he say?) she sees a picture of them when they were together so many years ago. (6-Doing What?) She looks up at him, shocked (7-How does he know this specifically?) that he's kept the photo after she treated him. The look on her face makes him want to kiss her. He does. (8) How does this make him feel?) Then they're interrupted. (9-How?) (10-Then what happens?)

If the answers to the questions in parentheses occur to me as I'm writing, I'll add them so I don't forget. But if I don't know, I leave them blank.

Then I go back and answer those questions within the manuscript. If they start up some great conversation, I'll dictate, but if not, a generalization of what's happening in the scene suffices. (Remember, I'm still making notes. Form matters not at all.) After some thought, these are the answers to my questions above.

1) Because he forgot his briefcase at home 2) Because he confiscated her credit card so she couldn't leave town until after they accomplished whatever brought them back together. 3) "I knew I shouldn't have trusted a former cat-burglar with my home address." 4) She sees a box on the entertainment center that looks perfect for hiding pilfered credit cards. 5)"Quit Snooping. I didn't leave your credit card in a photo album!" 6) At an amusement park- make this a significant event right before they broke up. 7)Her eyes get wide and her mouth falls open. 8) Like he's come home. 9) The phone rings. 10) He has to go back to the office, their issues still unresolved, and she's out of the apartment still without her credit card.

Now I can either go back and clean it up (and put it in past tense) and make it into something readable.

***

As he opened the apartment door to retrieve his briefcase, Rob heard

something crash about in the dining room. Knowing the source of the ruckus would be Jenny, he let the door slam behind him. She looked up from her search of his table. "I knew I shouldn't have trusted a former cat-burglar with my home address," he said.

"That will teach you, won't it?" Her tone sounded a bit snide, and her eyes darted furtively about his apartment. After landing on the small wooden box on the entertainment center, she crossed the room, but stopped in front of the coffee table instead, sidetracked by the photo album he'd thumbed through the night before.

"Quit snooping. I didn't leave your credit card in a photo album."

She turned to the page with the two of them at the amusement park. "You still have these?"

She looked up at him, tears wobbling on her lower lashes, as her mouth fell open in shock. The look on her face punched him in the gut. Much as looking at the photos last night had. (Something about how significant the photo is) He found himself pulled across the room without any way to stop until he came to a standstill in front of her. "I wasn't going to do this," he mumbled, moving one hand to her face, the other to her waist to pull her closer.

His lips met hers before she could respond. Her arms came around him, and the taste of her mouth felt like home. He nearly wept when the phone on his belt began to ring. She pulled back instantly and he flipped open the phone.

"What?" He listened for a moment then snapped the phone shut.

"I have to go back to work. And you need to get out of here."

***

I threw a real before and after of a scene of my secondary characters from

BLOWING JACK'S COVER on the VBoard Files section: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ovrwavboard/files/ (In case you're not a member, it's also on my website: http://www.elizabethbemis.com/articles/fastwriting_before.doc and http://www.elizabethbemis.com/articles/fastwriting_after.doc It's long, so no need to read the whole thing, but you'll get the general idea.

The key to killing your internal editor is to truly give yourself permission to write crap. You'll find it significantly easier to go back and fix the problems if you have some place to start.

Elizabeth Bemis is a soon-to-be published, award winning and Golden Heart nominated author of eleven books, as well as a web designer and computer programmer. You can check out her home on the web @ http://www.elizabethbemis.com.

The following article first appeared in the March 2004 issue of Words From The Heart, the electronic newsletter for From The Heart Romance Writers (www.fthrw.com), RWA Online Chapter #177. Permission is granted to sister RWA chapters to use, with full credits.

Conferences, Classes, & CP's, Oh My!

by Barbara Pollak, Pre-published author and FTHRW (www.fthrw.com) member

A quick laundry list covering a few topics. They're based solely on my experiences and should be taken with that proverbial (and quite enormous) grain of salt.

Conferences:

Okay, I'm hardly an expert here since I've attended all of two (count 'em, two) writing conferences, but I like to think I'm a quick study. Here's what I've gathered from my limited experience: a small to mid-sized conference is better for meeting people than a big one. Seems like a no-brainer, right? Not necessarily. After all, the bigger the conference, the more big names and the more of those big names it's likely to attract. Who can resist? Well, initially, I think you should try to resist. If I had succumbed to temptation, my very first conference would have been RWA Nationals. In New York, no less! It was a tough call-all those agents, all those editors, le sigh! All in all though, I'm glad I chose to skip this one. As green as I was, I would have probably gone running for the hills-which in New York would have meant crossing the bridge into New Jersey-with my little tail tucked between my little legs, whimpering all the while.

Instead, I chose to wait and go to Romantic Times Booklovers in Kansas City, known primarily as a reader's convention, as opposed to one for writers, but it still proved to be a good place in which to dip one's toes. Met with a couple of editors, met with a couple of agents, and got to observe pubbed writers in action with their adoring fans. Watching the grannies in action with the cover models was kind of scary, but therapy is helping with that.

Where I really hit paydirt was in the most recent conference I attended: the Spacecoast Authors of Romance STAR conference, held in Melbourne, Florida. For one, I got to hook up with several members of From the Heart, and didn't have to wade through thousands of attendees to try to find them. Secondly, the decision that STAR conference organizers made to limit the attendance to (approximately) 200 proved an incredibly smart move on their part. Add to this the fact that they had, for a relatively small conference, a tremendous line up of agents and editors (credit the lure of Florida in February) and it all added up to a fantastic, productive weekend.

My next conference experience should probably prove to be just as interesting, since I'm going to be attending an out of genre conference, Sleuthfest. Now, I don't write mysteries or romantic suspense, so you might be asking yourself, "Why?" Well, again, not a huge conference, good line up of editors and agents, and most importantly, almost all of them state that they're looking for romance. You don't think I'm going to stand out just a little at a mystery conference? Stay tuned, I'll let y'all know how it goes.

Classes:

I've done the online thing and it works really well, again on the whole "getting my feet wet" front. If it's been a while since you've written, or you're looking to develop a new style of writing, but don't want/can't subject yourself to a classroom regime, online might be the way to go. I know it gave my confidence and self-esteem a heck of a boost when my instructor told me that I was already writing at a publishable level. But she also didn't hesitate to tell me where things were rough and where I could improve, either with mechanics or plot or whatever. But in the end, it's those positive comments that can keep you going when you're ready to hit "Delete" on all of the files or send the MS through the paper shredder. On the downside though, these classes cost-sometimes, a lot-and not everyone has the resources available to make an eight or twelve-week class a viable option.

Since these days I'm also deep in "Finish the darned thing" mode, classes aren't too high up on my list of priorities, as they tend to be too time consuming. But there are one-week online workshops or a one-day workshop offered by individual chapters or writing group.

Alert: Shameless Plug For My Chapter Time-From the Heart offers several fantastic workshops, check them out at http://www.fthrw.com/workshops! We now return to your regularly scheduled article.

Short workshops are good. They're a way to keep polishing your skills, especially with respect to specific topics/techniques and only require a very limited amount of time. A quick Google search will no doubt reveal any number of specialized workshops on subjects ranging from the mating habits of Brazilian dung beetles to proper kissing techniques. Hopefully not a combination of the two, but then again, who knows?

This also brings me back to conferences-panels, workshops, these are your friends. I realize that most people go to conferences for the meet, greet, and sell yourself opportunities, but there are definitely some valuable lessons to be gleaned from the panels at conferences. In fact, I've been told that this is truly the best aspect of RWA National, an experience that I'm now really looking forward to, as opposed to fearing.

And finally,

Critique Partners:

I'm a coward. I'll admit it. I have an inherent fear of working within a group of writers because of the whole "too many cooks futzing with the broth" vibe. Given my nature, I'd probably spend my life in rewriting Purgatory, rather than forging ahead with the manuscript. Ultimately, it's on one interaction that works best for me. Note the emphasis on "for me." This is yet another one of those cases of finding what works for you as a writer. In my case it's one critique partner and it's even better that she writes in a completely different genre than I do-she writes primarily paranormal historicals, I write contemporaries that fall somewhere between women's fiction and chick lit. Our fields of knowledge might be completely different, but it doesn't mean that we don't have something to offer the other. After all, good writing is good writing. The fact that I'm not completely familiar with the conventions governing historicals or paranormals allows me the freedom to critique and ask questions that I might not otherwise if I were intimately familiar with the genre, and vice versa.

For other people who might work better within a group setting, there are a variety of directions one can take. Beginning with the Internet, there are any number of specialty groups covering a wide spectrum of topics that often have smaller critique groups as an option. Or if you prefer face time, a local chapter might be the way to go, or perhaps a local bookstore or library sponsors a writer's group. I realize I'm probably stating the obvious for a lot of people, but it's been my experience that many individuals are unaware just how many resources are out there for writers. Even as an experienced Web junkie, I'm constantly surprised by all of the new groups popping up, ready to provide us with the materials with which to make our dreams a reality. In the end, isn't that what it's all about?

A few sources:

http://www.writersonlineworkshops.com/ (General classes, from novice to advanced levels)

http://writing.shawguides.com/(List of upcoming conferences and workshops; cross-genre)

http://forums.compuserve.com/vlforums/default.asp?SRV=Literary(Need an AIM name to participate, but well worth it)

http://www.geocities.com/charlottedillon2000/WritingRomance.html(All purpose site)

The following article was first printed in the March 2004 issue of Magic Moments, newsletter for RWA Chapter 178, Southern Magic, Birmingham, AL. May be reprinted with proper credits.

Closing the Sale

by Babette de Jongh

When I was young, I had no idea what I wanted. I was supposed to want. something. I was supposed to be working toward. something. I got a college degree because that was the done thing for someone my age, but I was only marginally interested in my field of study-my main considerations for the major were that I could use my creativity, and also get away without taking any math courses. Not necessarily in that order.

Even though I never got a job in my (ahem) chosen field, I did learn something from those four years as an undergraduate. Of all the things they tried to pound into my head, at least one thing stuck. I'm not even sure which class this came from, but it's just four words. One sentence. "Ask for the sale."

At the end of an interview or sales pitch, you close the sale by specifically stating the purpose of the interview, and then asking for the job, the sale, or the commission. What this means to me now, is that we have to ask for what we want. We can't pine for the Universe to send us something if we don't know what it is, and we can't expect God to deliver on our desires if we don't ask for them first.

We can work and work and work, try and try and try, whine and whine and whine. But if we don't state our wishes out loud, write them down, or otherwise make them known to ourselves and others, we have little chance of stepping out the door one morning and finding the attainment of our dreams waiting for us on the doorstep.

I have an anecdote to tell. You all know that we've recently moved from smack-in-the-middle-of-Houston to a small town about half-an-hour away. We found the house we wanted before we'd planned to, and bought it before we'd sold the one we lived in. The timing was horrible, and we were faced with selling our house during the holiday season-a time when only the very desperate are looking to buy a home. So we put our old house on the market, then we waited. For days upon days, weeks upon weeks, nothing happened.

Then, while reading up on Feng Shui-hoping to hang all the pictures in the new house in such a way that I would get published overnight-I learned several interesting things. Green is the color of money and prosperity (duh), and an obelisk (four-sided pyramid) is a fortuitous shape that brings good luck. If you want something money-related, ancient Oriental wisdom suggests you write your wish on a piece of paper and put it under a green obelisk, then wait for the Universe to grant your wish.

Being a Southern girl raised on superstition, I figured, can't hurt, might help. So I trotted out to a local rock and mineral store, and bought myself a small obelisk fashioned of a lovely, pale green stone. Then I wrote on a scrap of paper exactly how much money we wanted for the old house, and by what date we needed the sale to be a done deal. With prayer and ceremony, I put the wish under the obelisk.

Within a few days, we had an offer on the house.

It was WAY less than I'd asked the Universe for in my formal plea. But we were tired of waiting, tired of digging a deeper financial hole while we waited. So we countered, they countered, and we ended up signing an agreement to accept a less-than-inspiring offer.

Long story short, the offer fell through a few days before closing, and we had another offer on the table before we even realized the first deal had gone bad. The second offer wound up giving us EXACTLY what I'd asked for in my note to the Universe, and the sale closed ten days before the date I'd asked for.

I'm not saying the obelisk had magical properties. What I DO believe is that my ability to SPECIFICALLY state my desire, and then commit to that desire with physical and symbolic action, had power. Putting my written wish under that obelisk had power because I combined desire with action. I knew what I wanted. I took a symbolic action to cement the desire in my heart and mind. I asked the Universe (God, Goddess, Creator, Spirit.use your choice of semantics) to work behind the scenes to grant my wish, while I did everything I could on the physical plane to make it happen.

Prayer.Lighting a candle in church.Making your needs known to friends and family in case one of them knows someone who can help.Writing your deepest wish on a tiny scrap of paper and wearing it in a locket around your neck. All these things are ways of making your wants known to the Universe. It may not be ENOUGH, but at least it's something to add to all the furious pedaling you're already doing. Like a quote (paraphrased) in Julia Cameron's Artist's Way: Pray to catch the bus, then run like hell.

In selling a home, you're captive to the needs and desires of others. You have little power when it comes to creating that sale. You can make the property as attractive as possible; you can spend time and money in promoting it. But you can't make someone walk through the door and fall in love. All you can do is work like a dog, then send up prayers and hope for the best.

As in the publishing world. You can't make an editor or agent fall in love with your work. You can't force them to make an offer. All you can do is spruce up the pages best you can, take a thousand baby steps to reach your goals, then send up prayers and hope for the best.

But you can't pray for something if you don't know what it is. It's not enough to wish for something better. You have to know exactly what you want, and be willing to take the next step in getting it. If you're in a situation in which there is little you can do to control the outcome, even symbolic action can move you in the right direction until you can do something more.

Know what you want. Work and work and work, try and try and try. Take physical and symbolic action to make every power in the Universe aware.

Do everything you can, then light a candle. Can't hurt, might help.

Babette de Jongh is originally from Alabama-with the accent to prove it-and now lives in a small town outside Houston with her husband, three kids, and enough animals to start a zoo. She's a part-time contest slut-when she has time to format headings and paperclip pages together-and has a double-digit number of contest finals to her credit. Her latest accomplishment is learning how to build a website! Please visit her at www.babettewrites.com.

Market News

by Julie Moffett (for the February 2005 issue)

Here is the monthly round-up of sales! Congratulations to all!

Julia London sold the continuation of her Highlander series to Maggie Crawford at Pocket in a very good deal; Author Gemma Bruce sold her book WHO LOVES YA, BABY?, in which a cosmopolitan female cop leaves the luxuries of the city to take up the country's simple life, to Hilary Sares at Kensington in a nice deal; Caridad Pineiro Scordato sold her novel, TORI GOT LUCKY, the story of four Latinas who put their friendships to the test trying to navigate their lives, plus an untitled Latina chick lit and two novellas to Selena James at Pocket; and Lara Rios sold BECOMING LATINA IN 10 EASY STEPS to Cindy Hwang at Berkley, in a two-book deal. (Publisher's Weekly/12-21-04)

Charles R. Davis sold his book, THE LIGHTHOUSE PEOPLE, a southern literary suspense novel, plus two future novels, to Margaret Marbury at Mira; Sabrina Jeffries sold three Regency-set historical romances (continuing her Royal Brotherhood series and beginning a new one) and a novella to Micki Nuding at Pocket; Author Shirley Karr sold her book, MY LADY SMUGGLER, a new Regency era romantic adventure, to Erika Tsang at Harper in a nice deal for two books; and author JoAnn Ross sold an erotic novella BAYOU BAD BOYS and another untitled novella for publication in December 2005 to Kate Duffy at Kensington's Brava. (Publisher's Weekly/1-11-05)

USA Today has published the top 100 best-selling books of 2004. Several romances made the list and are as follows: #34 - KEY OF VALOR by Nora Roberts; #53 - THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA by Lauren Weisberger; #60 - BLUE DAHLIA by Nora Roberts; #73 - HELLO, DARKNESS by Sandra Brown; and #74- BIRTHRIGHT by Nora Roberts.

Steeple Hills is actively seeking new manuscripts for their Love Inspired Line. They want contemporary, inspirational romances that feature Christian characters facing the challenges of life and love in today's world as they learn important lessons about the power of trust and faith. These are sweet romances. There should be no overt sensuality in the books. Any physical interactions (i.e., kissing, hugging) should emphasize emotional tenderness rather than sexual desire. Word length is 70,000 to 75,000 words. Send manuscripts to: Steeple Hill, 300 East 42nd St., 6th Floor, NY, NY 10017.

--------------------------

Award-winning author Julie Moffett is the author of seven historical and paranormal novels and one novella. For more information on Julie's books, visit her website at: www.tlt.com/authors/jmoffett.htm.

Winter / Spring Contests

Romance Through the Ages Contest, Hearts Through History Romance Writers, Received by February 25, 2005, Beginning of manuscript not to exceed 30 pages + One to two page synopsis single spaced. http://www.heartsthroughhistory.com/contest.htm

Murder In The Grove Mystery Writers' Contest - Unpublished, Popular Fiction Association of Idaho, Inc, Deadline: Postmarked February 28, 2005, First 20 pages of your manuscript and a synopsis of no more than 5 pages. http://www.partnersincrimeboise.com/contest.htm

1st Annual Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence Contest - Published, Sponsor: Southern Magic Chapter, Receipt Deadline: March 1, 2005. Enter: Romance novels with 2004 copyright. E-books from RWA-approved, publishers eligible in hard copy. http://www.southernmagic.org/gwcontest.html

5th Annual Inspirational Readers Choice Contest (Published), Sponsor: Faith, Hope and Love Chapter, Receipt Deadline: March 1, 2005 (entry form), Enter: Inspirational Novels or Novellas with a 2004 copyright. http://www.faithhopelove-rwa.org/contests.htm

The Four Seasons Awards, Windy City RWA, Received by March 1, 2005, First Chapter up to 25 pages. http://www.scribesworld.com/windycityrwa/fourseasons.html#contest

PRISM for Published Authors, Futuristic, Fantasy, and Paranormal Online Chapter, Deadline: March 1, 2005, Copyright of 2004 of paranormal book. http://www.romance-ffp.com/prism_contest/information_and_schedule.htm

2005 Fabulous Five Writing Contest, WisRWA, Deadline: March 1, 2005, First ten pages., http://www.eclectics.com/WisRWA/contests.html

Barclay Sterling, Lake Country Romance Writers, Postmark of March 1, 2005, Beginning of manuscript up to 60 pages, plus synopsis(unjudged) up to 5 pages., http://www.lcrw.org/rulessterling.html

The Scarlet (unpublished and published), Writer's Weekend, Deadline: March 15, 2005, First chapter up to 25 pages; A 2 page, single-spaced synopsis; A query letter., http://www.WritersWeekend.com

9th Annual Dixie First Chapter Contest, Magnolia State Romance Writers, Received by March 15, 2005, First Chapter up to 25 pages max., http://www.members.tripod.com/MSRW-Jackson/

The Daphne du Maurier Award (Published), Kiss of Death Chapter, Received by March 15, 2005, Copyright date of 2004, http://www.rwamysterysuspense.org

The Daphne du Maurier Award for Unpublished, Kiss of Death Chapter, Received by March 15, 2005, First fifteen (15) pages of manuscript PLUS five (5) copies of a one-page,, single spaced synopsis., http://www.rwamysterysuspense.org

Haunted Hearts, Gothic Romance Writers, Receipt Deadline: March 20, 2005, First Chapter up to 25 pages; + one page synopsis, http://www.gothrom.org/

Barclay Gold (Published), Lake Country Romance Writers, Postmarked by March 31, 2004, Copyright of 2004., http://www.lcrw.org/rulesgold.html

Touched by Love Contest, Faith, Hope and Love Chapter, Received by April 1, 2005, Synopsis (ten double spaced pages max) and the beginning of an unpublished, manuscript. Max of 50 pages total., http://www.faithhopelove-rwa.org/contests.htm

1st Annual Summer Sizzle Contest, Sponsor: Ohio Valley RWA, Deadline: April 9, 2005, Enter: 12 pages max. of sexual tension (with an optional, unjudged 1, pg setup) that moves the relationship to the next level., http://www.ovrwa.com/ (Information is not on website at present)

Foot in the Door Contest, LARA Los Angeles Romance Authors, Deadline: April 15th, 2005, Enter: Query letter and Synopsis, http://www.losangelesromanceauthors.com

2005 Texas Gold Romance Award For Published Authors, Sponsor: RWA-East Texas Chapter, Deadline: April 15, 2005, Enter: novels written by RWA Region 5 authors/residents or novels set, predominantly in Texas, with an original 2004 copyright., http://home.earthlink.net/~ralsobrook/texgold.htm

Golden Synopsis, Maine RWA, Deadline: May 1, 2005, Enter: Synopsis (Maximum 12 pages), http://www.geocities.com/mainerwa/

Original Golden Opportunity Contest, Toronto Romance Writers, Postmark Deadline: May 17th, 2005, First chapter and synopsis up to 30 pages., http://www.torontoromancewriters.com/goldenop.html

"We Dare You", Saskatchewan Romance Writers, Postmarked by June 1, 2005, First twelve pages of your manuscript., http://www.saskromancewriters.4t.com

Check out all the contests on:

http://www.geocities.com/divaswithtiaras/Main.html

Contest Alert-All the news on upcoming contests, plus Finalist & Winner listings, questions, etc. Sign up now! ContestAlert-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Announcement only list: ContestDeadlines-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

For Published Authors ContestAlertPublished-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

If you're a Contest Judge, join ContestsJudges-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Donna Caubarreaux is a member of Coeur de Louisiane, Scriptscene Chapter, NOLA Stars, Heart of Louisiana, Kiss of Death, and ChickLitWriters of RWA. She received a RWA Service Award in 1997. She sponsors several writing lists...and if you forward this list without 'compiled by Donna Caubarreaux'...she'll hunt you down, remember she does belong to Kiss of Death, so be careful... http://www.geocities.com/donnacaubarreaux/Main.html

Our Newsletter

A Word From Our President

Roll Call

Pulse Points

Articles

KILLING YOUR INTERNAL EDITOR

Conferences, Classes, & CP's, Oh My!

Closing the Sale

Market News

News and Events

Online Workshops:

Winter / Spring Contests

In Times To Come

Classifies