E-Newsletter | Issue: 2024-03-01 – Contemporary Romance Writers

President’s Letter

From the writing desk of Katrina Marie

Dear CRW Members,

Spring is upon us, and we have a ton of news to share with you. This one will likely be a little long, so grab your favorite mug and settle in. The Stiletto Contest is opening up, and we’re looking for first round judges. The Mentor program is open! We also have conference sessions proposals and door prize donation forms on our conference site!

Keep reading for important updates!

Stiletto Contest 2024!
Submission period March 1-31, 2024

Open to published and unpublished contemporary romance authors for submissions in the following categories: Short, Mid-length, Long, Young Adult/New Adult, Women’s Fiction/Chick-Lit, Speculative/Paranormal (includes Urban Fantasy with romance), Romantic Suspense, Erotic Romance and LGBTQIA+.

Fees per entry: CRW members $20; non-members $30.

Contest categories and word counts at https://contemporaryromance.org/2024-stiletto-contest/.

Click link at bottom of contest page for complete rules and guidelines.

Call for Stiletto Contest Judges: First Round

First-round judges may be CRW members or non-member romance authors.

Details at https://contemporaryromance.org/2024-stiletto-contest/

Interested? Fill out this form: https://form.jotform.com/240277805266157

March 1-14: application and matching

March 15 – May 10: working in pairs

The Mentor Matching Program for CRW Members pairs experienced authors of contemporary romance with unpublished or under-published authors from our membership.

Each mentorship pairing takes place over a 10-week period (2 weeks for application and matching, 8 weeks for working as a pair), during which the Mentor will work with their Mentee either to evaluate and revise the first 50 pages of an unpublished romance, or to develop and hone such collateral materials as the blurb, query, synopsis, pitch and/or tagline.

Find more information about the program, and sign up, visit: https://contemporaryromance.org/member-exclusives/crw-mentoring-program/

Want to be a speaker? Find out more here: https://contemporaryromancewritingconference.org/want-to-be-a-speaker/

Interested in donating a door prize? Find out more here: https://contemporaryromancewritingconference.org/donate-a-door-prize/

New Members

Please join me in extending a big, warm welcome to our newest members of CRW:

Patricia Walters-Fischer
Wendy Cederberg
Jennie Tracy
Megan Myers
Krista Strickland

Event Calendar

Writing Sprints

Join in on our CRW-led writing sprints. We share reminders in the member Facebook Group and Slack.

Every Tuesday: 9am ET | 8am CT | 7am MT | 6am PT
Sprints with Tanya on Zoom

Every Saturday: 12pm ET | 11am CT | 10am MT | 9am PT
Sprints with Michelle on Zoom

Want to run sprints at a different day/time? Let us know!

Upcoming Workshops

Invest in your own growth as a writer this year! Here is the lineup of workshops we have for February 2024. Members attend at a discounted price!

Workshop Track	CRW Member Price	Non-Member Price
General Track (Craft, Business)	$20 CRW Member	$30 Non-Member
Advanced Track	$30 CRW Member	$40 Non-Member
Members Only	FREE for CRW Members	N/A

March 1-31 (Members Only)
Those Who Forget History: Using Backstory to Enhance Your Novel
Cynthia Owens

March 9 – 4 PM EST / 3 PM CST / 2 PM MST / 1 PM PST
A Look From the Other POV: How to See Diversity from the Other Side
Eilis Flynn

March 1-31
Power Up Your Prose
Zara West

April 1 – 15
Stirring the Plot: Taking Your Plot Across Genres
Eilis Flynn

April 6 – 4 PM EST / 3 PM CST / 2 PM MST / 1 PM PST
Writing Exceptional Sports Romance
Beth Bolden

March 23 – 4 PM EST / 3 PM CST / 2 PM MST / 1 PM PST
Create a Personalized Plan to Finish Your Book
Allie Pleiter

April 1 – 30
Mastering Character Arcs
Peter Andrews

Member New Releases

Have a new release? Share it on our site and in an upcoming Member Newsletter here, and be sure to take a look at all the new books from CRW members in 2024.