The Write Support – Authors, D.D. Line and Kristine Charles talk about their passion for supporting writers.
Writing can be a very lonely profession. At our desks, often into the wee small hours, we pen stories that we hope will touch people’s hearts. But without support, it’s all too easy to lose our writing mojo and pile our half-written manuscripts into a corner, never to see the light of day again.
It was only when I joined Romance Writers of Australia, and gained friendships, advice and support, that I managed to write productively and finally made the decision to self-publish in 2021.
Having a community of other writers to hold our hand and cheer us on is vital to achieving our goals.
So, I decided, since it’s Christmas, why not highlight the spirit of giving? And what better way than to ask the last two year’s recipients of The RWA Lynne Wilding Meritorious Volunteers Award, what helping other writers means to them. They flew over (on fairy-godmother wings, naturally), to Davina’s Diary to chat about giving back. And, with a little arm-twist, (or should I say wing-twist), I also got them to tell me about their own writing.
D.D. Line
Why did you decide to volunteer with RWA?
It all started when the previous Aspiring Ambassador (the fabulous Dee Sculley) needed a hand. Together with Julie-Anne Carter and Emily Barlow, we three looked after the group for two years, with the other ladies handing over as other commitments needed their attention. I’m so grateful we had time together looking after the Aspiring group. Now, it’s just me cheering for the fabulous fledgling authors who’ve joined RWA. I hope they’re enjoying their time there as much as I enjoy looking after everyone.
What’s the best part of volunteering for you?
I have two reasons. Firstly, I love being with my tribe and talking about writing with like-minded creatives. We share all the highs and lows in the safety of our group. Admittedly, I have a ‘mother hen’ complex and like to make sure everyone feels they’re part of the group and their concerns are ‘heard’. Secondly, I love having the opportunity to ‘give back’ and help others as I’ve been helped through the writing stages. The original reason I was asked to help was because I always put on my cheerleading hat (not the costume, thank goodness) and encouraged everyone on their writing journey. Seeing others achieve their dreams makes me so happy.
I didn’t realise the extent of ‘giving back’ until I discovered I’d won the Lynne Wilding Meritorious Volunteers Award in 2019. More so, when I saw the recording of our lovely host, Davina, accepting the award on my behalf at last year’s conference. All the feels! I’m deeply honoured to say I received a second nomination this year, and lucky me, I’m sharing this blog post with the 2020 recipient.
Tell us about what you love to write, what you’re working on at present, and where to find your books.
I always thought I was a horror writer. I love Stephen King’s, James Herbert’s and Dean R. Koontz’s books. However, my characters had other ideas and kept wanting to do all that ‘kissing stuff’. I had to give in and admit I was… gasp… a romance writer. I write across genres as you’ll see in my bio, but there is a common theme – redemption through romance. This theme is prevalent in my debut romantic suspense novella release, A Nose for Trouble through the amazing publisher, GUMNUT PRESS. It released on December 2nd and is available from the following platforms. I’m currently writing the second book in the series. (For an amazing video trailer, of the book by Carolyn Wren of Gumnut Press, go to the post of 1 November on D.D.Line’s facebook page, see link below).
https://www.gumnutpress.com/product-page/a-nose-for-trouble
https://books2read.com/u/m0wYAA?fbclid=IwAR3-dAuYvPnmly0HkAsj6FkaBoiF2e-9l7mZbQXX2W_uacCZirQY04_gBK0
About D.D. Line
D.D. Line lives in coastal South Western Australia with her family, a curious cat, and two pups trying to dig their way back to Queensland (they’re Sunshine State ex-pats). Reading was her favourite childhood pastime. In her senior year, thanks to a crush on her English teacher and a deep desire to impress him, she developed a deep love of writing stories.
D.D. Line writes Romantic Suspense, Paranormal Romance, Contemporary Romance and Speculative Fiction. Her short stories have featured and placed in KSP Writing Centre’s Spooky Stories Collections, Western Australian and Queensland Writing Group anthologies, RWA’s Little Gems Moonstone Anthology, and GEM, a 2014 Dr Liz Huf Memorial Tribute Anthology.
Apart from being a writer, she’s a wife and a child wrangler, has worked as a mini lab photo developer, an admin assistant, a copyeditor, a proofreader, (no, she can’t edit her own work), and she’s also a wannabe baker who wishes she could sing.
If that isn’t enough, she is the Aspiring Ambassador for Romance Writers of Australia (RWA) and a member of the Australian Romance Readers Association (ARRA). She loves hearing from her readers and also loves sharing book reviews on her blog.
https://www.facebook.com/ddlauthor
https://www.instagram.com/d_d_line/
https://ddlineauthor.blogspot.com/
Kristine Charles
Why did you decide to volunteer with RWA?
Okay, so this may not be the best answer, but it is an honest one—I first volunteered because I had been complaining to friends about how something was being done and figured that if I was going to complain I should put my money where my mouth is, so to speak. I figure there’s no point complaining if you’re not prepared to pitch in and help get stuff done.
What’s the best part of volunteering for you?
Hmmm. There are probably a few ‘best parts’.
- Contributing to an organisation that I think is really important, and valuable for writers of all levels within #Romancelandia—for both the ‘community’ it provides and the access to information and training.
- Meeting new people (I may have begged the Sydney Conference Coordinators to let me MC the Maisey Yates/Jackie Ashenden workshop at the 2018 conference so I could meet them without having to approach them at morning tea like a stalker…)
- The sheer flood of inspiration I receive in return, especially when working with newbies/aspiring writers in particular. They have SO MUCH love for the genre, and what they’re writing, and they’re so keen to work on their craft and their business. Helps remind me why I started along this LONG road to publication. This is particularly the case in respect of managing the Ripping Start contest—I love my Ripping Start entrants!
Tell us about what you love to write, what you’re working on at present, and where to find your books.
Oooh, dangerous, giving me free rein!
2020 has been a complete bugger of a year, and I will confess to my writing having taken a backseat. What that actually means is, I’ve given myself permission to write whatever I feel like… and that means that I now have SIX works in progress in varying stages of half-done (seriously, do not do as I do…multiple WIPs = madness, this is not a productive approach for a writer!). I may also have a couple of shorts that I’m looking at working on in the new year to self-publish as another anthology… #madnessdefinitemadness
All my stories are variations of contemporary romances, some a higher heat level than others, and I know that’s kind of my space within #Romancelandia. I love sexy stories, with professional women (I have currently a teacher, lawyer, engineer, interior architect, librarian and another lawyer) and the men who love them (construction manager, lawyer, author, developer, pianist and bar owner) respectively! My characters are always exhibitionists… they never close that pesky door.
Right now, you can read my stuff in Leather, the RWA Spicy Bites Anthology for 2020; or in Love Sabre (another short story anthology with stories written by me and my writing pals!). I also have a couple of other random (and free) shorts you can read on my website: www.wordsbykristinecharles.com/stories/
Also, come chat with me on social media… I’m mostly on Twitter (@wordsbykc), but also Instagram (wordsbykristinecharles) and sometimes on Facebook (also wordsbykristinecharles).
About Kristine
Kristine Charles loves telling sexy tales, exploring relationships between complex women and the strong men who love them, then working out just how much pain to inflict before giving her characters their HEA (or, at least, their HFN). She writes, and reads, to escape into other worlds where coffee (and red wine) is abundant, designer shoes and handbags are cheap, chocolate has no calories and men always put the toilet seat down. Her volunteer roles with Romance Writers of Australia include the following:-
- Contests Manager/Committee Member – from September 2020
- Judge Coordinator – from September 2019
- Ripping Start Coordinator 2019, 2020, 2021
- Awards Presentation scripting and PowerPoint ‘designer’ – Virtual Conference 2020
- Pitching Co-Coordinator (and goodie bag stuffer) – Melbourne 2019
- Newbie Guide/MC/Slush Pile Narrator – Sydney 2018
*****
Both my guests this month surely epitomise the words of Isabel Allende:-
“Give, give, give – what is the point of having experience, knowledge, or talent if I don’t give it away? Of having stories if I don’t tell them to others?… It is in giving that I connect with others, with the world, and with the divine.”
Which means we need never go it alone; we can surround ourselves with other generous writers who will lift us up and cheer us on, and then when our turn comes to give back, we will gladly do the same.
Makes me think of a glittering Christmas Tree!
Wishing you all a healthy and happy holiday season filled with love… and good books.
I’ll fly by again in January!
Hugs
Davina xxx
Banner photos (photographer, Emma Dau) and Xmas tree (photographer, Andreea Radu). Courtesy of Unsplash.
About the author
Davina Stone writes romances about flawed but lovable characters who tend to get it horribly wrong before they finally get it right. They also kiss a fair bit on the way to happily ever after.
Meet Davina