Volume 8, Issue 5 – May, 2005

Romance Writers Seek to Tip the Scales Again

Bad things happen to good people — in real life as much as in fiction — far more often than seems fair. When it does, in real life as much as in the fiction of perceptive writers like Eloisa James, this month’s featured author, it’s usually one’s girlfriends who step forward to set the balance right. And when it comes to girlfriends, the women of the romance community can’t be beat.

In March, Crescent Blues reported on the results of the Trish Jensen Fund. Now other romance writers have stepped forward to help colleagues in need.

Critically ill Harlequin Temptation/Blaze and Kensington Brava author Jamie Denton found herself facing cancer without health insurance. So her friends stepped in to help her find the kind of happily ever after she creates for others. Jamie’s Fund features author critiques, book auctions, a raffle, web designs and more.

In fragile health and with limited financial resources, Deb Stover must now prepare for the death of her beloved husband. The Wyrd Sisters, Stover’s Colorado-based critique group, seek to raise money to help defray funeral expenses for Stover’s husband, and help Stover and her family return to Colorado. Donations can be sent through PayPal to DebHelp@noveltalk.com.

Incidentally, the Wyrd Sisters also number Karen Fox among their members. McCutcheon and Fox played a major role in the Trish Jensen Fund. All of us at Crescent Blues hope the lightning of good will strikes again — for Denton and Stover both.

Jean Marie Ward

In addition to editing Crescent Blues, Jean Marie Ward writes for a number of Web-based and print magazines, including Science Fiction Weekly. She is the author of Illumina: the Art of Jean Pierre Targete (Paper Tiger) and several short stories, including “Most Dead Bodies in a Confined Space” in Strange Pleasures 2 (Prime Books). Her first novel, With Nine You Get Vanyr, written with Teri Smith, is scheduled to be released by Samhain Publishing in late 2006..