The Lambda Literary Award
March 18, 2011
My Dear Readers,I have to share my good news: Pride/Prejudice has been named one of the five finalists for the Lambda Literary Award in the Bisexual Fiction category. Winners in all categories will be announced on May 26th. Please keep your fingers crossed for me.
While it is a cliche, this year it's also true that it's an honor just to be nominated. There are some excellent books in the competition, not least the book I blurbed: "The Lunatic, the Lover and the Poet," by Myrlin A. Hermes.
After a long hiatus, I have a bunch of events coming up, all in NYC, in addition to the Lambda Award. My biggest thrill is to have my proposal accepted to present at the third IASPR (International Association for the Study of Popular Romance) conference at the end of June. As a "mere author," I feel honored (again) to have this chance to talk about my own work at a gathering of professors and scholars.
I'm also signing copies of P/P at the BookExpo America in May, and signing copies of both books at the RWA conference in June, following the IASPR conference.
Starting out as a novelist takes courage and perseverence, the belief that one's writing is good and that the novels are worth reading. I know that you have appreciated the humor in Phyllida; some of you wish that I would continue to write witty, lighthearted romances. We never really know where our writing will take us. But I always want my work to be entertaining, to make people laugh.
As I begin to reap the rewards of being published, to have a chance to talk seriously about the ideas in my work, I never lose sight of the importance of style, of the quality of writing that makes people want to read my books for pleasure.
Thank you for reading my first novel when it was new, and for continuing to be interested in my writing. I hope my third novel, which I have started, but whose completion may be far in the future, will be another fun read, even if it does go in a new direction.
And I hope to see some of you in New York City this spring and summer.
Ann Herendeen