Thursday, December 4, 2008

Romance Supporting Romance - A Very Worthy Cause

Ya'll know that my wife is a romance writer. You also may know that I am a big fan of romance - in its written form, yes - but also a fan of romance in general. I'll admit it, I'm a romantic and I do what I can to promote romance whenever I can. Being married to a romance writer has given me the opportunity to meet a community of great people, mostly women, who work very hard to create romantic fantasies for the enjoyment of others. The majority of them do this for very little money and even less respect. They work to produce "those smut books" and "trashy romance novels" in order to express their love of writing AND of romance so that readers can pick up one of their books and escape for a short time into a world where the girl gets the right guy and they both get their happily ever after. That chance to escape is particularly important because the writers, and the readers, and everyone else knows that in real life the happily doesn't always happen. And sometimes it does but it doesn't stick around ever after. Which brings me to the reason for this post.

Romance author Jo Leigh lost her real life romance hero to cancer this year. Now, while dealing with her loss she is also facing seemingly insurmountable medical bills. The romance community has come together to help support one of their own. Please read the following, follow the link, and consider bidding on some fantastic items donated by Jo's fellow authors including Leslie, plus agents and editors in the industry. And please pass the word, especially if you or someone you know is a lover of romance.




Permission to forward

Author Jo Leigh lost her husband this year to cancer. Theirs was a story of reunited lovers worthy of a romance novel. The loss of her husband hit her hard, both emotionally and financially. (authors are self-employed, so often have no medical insurance.)In an effort to raise money to help her pay off those medical debts, the romance community has once again banded together to support one of their own and an auction is being held. This is a wonderful way to purchase gifts for yourself or a loved one AND write it off on your taxes.
Please spread the word to any loops, forums, etc. that you might be on.


9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Oh how sad!

I wish I could help her but I am broke myself right now.

I hope other kind soles can lend her a hand and the money she needs.

I am sure she could do with one less stress in her life right now.

mslizalou said...

I have my items to bid on saved in ebay now. I also posted the link for Jo's auction on my blog. I love how the romance community has stepped up to help out a fellow author.

Bruce, a work in progress said...

Prepo, it's great to have you back. I know what you mean. I think this year a lot of people are in that boat. Even if you can't bid it would be a great help just to spread the word. Thanks.

Hi Liza. Go you. Yeah, it's a pretty tight community.
On a lighter note, I saw on your profile that you follow Gena Showalter's blog. Their Author Talk videos are hysterical.

Malach the Merciless said...

That was so romantic. . . oh wait, I mean sad . . . I need help!

Malicious Intent said...

Me thinks Malach is having a sensory overload right now.

Any chance of here being a 20 days till Christmas to expand on last years project?

Hungry Mother said...

I should like romance writing since I'm an Air Supply fan. I've kind of quit reading books lately.

Bruce, a work in progress said...

MI, I'm not sure about extending the 12 days. With the economy and all we're all having to cut back. I was thinking I may only be able to do 8 or even 6 days this year.

HM, not sure there's a correlation between Air Supply (the band) and romance. I know romance fans that love Metallica. It's okay to take a break from books...for a while. A good time to start reading again will be next July when my wife's new romantic suspense series hits the shelves. (How's that for a shameless plug?)

Malicious Intent said...

Shameless plugs are an art form, you did well.

But I will not accept only 8 or 6 days before xmas. Don't make me drive down to Maryland...I can find you. You can find anything with google!

Maybe we can have a contest on who can make up the most creative 12 days of christmas. Same deal, slightly different twist. I think we all need some fun right now. Real life is often much more fun than fiction!

Malicious Intent said...

Well the contest is on. Are you, the husband of a romance writer going to chicken out? Ms. P at 3rd world adventures already posted her take on it.

Come on...I dare ya...I DOUBLE DOG DARE YA! :)