Welcome, Heart of Carolina Romance Writers!

By Don Vaughan

It’s been a few months since the membership of Heart of Carolina Romance Writers (HCRW) joined Triangle Association of Freelancers (TAF), and the TAF Board of Directors would like to extend a formal welcome to this wonderful group of writers. They have brought tremendous joy and enthusiasm with them and have helped make TAF one of the best writing organizations in North Carolina.

Some people have asked how this arrangement came to be. HCRW used to be under the auspices of Romance Writers of America (RWA), a national organization founded in 1980 to support writers in the romance genre. At its height, the RWA was a behemoth, boasting more than 10,000 members and hosting some of the most popular writing conferences in the country. Sadly, the organization became wracked with controversy starting in 2019 (I won’t go into detail because these events are public knowledge) and saw its membership decline from 10,000 members to around 2,000, forcing the organization to declare bankruptcy.

The RWA’s sudden and dramatic decline left HCRW without a supporting organization. Andrea Wenger, a longtime member of both organizations, reached out to TAF’s Board of Directors about incorporating HCRW members into TAF, and our response was an enthusiastic “yes.” In addition to new members, the HCRW gifted TAF with a sizable financial donation – from one nonprofit charitable organization to another – for which we are extremely grateful. These additional funds will be used to support ongoing educational efforts, including events and activities hosted by our new romance subgroup.

Currently, romance-hosted activities include a Book in a Week Challenge, hosted by Sherri Hollister, which starts on the first Saturday of the month and ends on the following Friday. A month-long challenge is scheduled for August, and details will be forthcoming. In-person get-togethers are also under discussion, and information about this and other events/activities will be shared as it becomes available.

I want to remind everyone that many of our new members are established, well-published romance authors with a lot of experience. They bring with them a degree of expertise that adds greatly to our brain trust, and members are encouraged to take advantage of that. If you have questions about getting started in the romance genre, these individuals can help, and are happy to do so. Romance is a genre with a lot of possibilities – as long as everyone lives happily ever after at the end.

Don Vaughan has been a full-time freelance writer since 1991. During that time, he has published more than 2,500 articles and columns in an eclectic array of publications, including Writer’s Digest, Encyclopedia Britannica and MAD Magazine. Don is the founder of Triangle Association of Freelancers.