Amazon discontinued the ability to create images using their SiteStripe feature and in their infinite wisdom broke all previously created images on 12/31/23. Many blogs used this feature, including this one. Expect my archives to be a hot mess of broken book cover images until I can slowly comb through 20 years of archives to make corrections.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Sad News, Readers Gab, Harlequin Lurve, And General Insanity

I had a scheduled day off yesterday, and was still flying high from my recent bit of good news, when I opened my e-mail to discover that a longtime friend's husband had been shot and killed early Tuesday morning.  Many of you in the online romance community know Fatin, who goes by the "handle" Mad4RomBks online.  We first met 12 years ago, on a Yahoo Group I joined shortly after rediscovering the romance genre.  To this day, we're still active on one group together, the one I call my "Coffee Klatch Ladies."  I spent a good chunk of yesterday crying for Fatin, and just utterly devastated for her and her four daughters.  There is talk of an education fund being set up for the girls, but I have no official details as of yet.  For further updates, the promotional blog that she runs, Novel Thoughts & Book Talk, is probably the best way to go.

ETA: Information about the eduction fund for Fatin's girls can be found here.

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Today is my turn in the rotation over at Access Romance Readers Gab.  Today I'm talking about my annoyance with "dippy made-up words" in paranormal romances.  Go forth!

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I'm also over at Heroes & Heartbreakers today talking about category romance and why I lurve them so.  I know, I know.  But look at it this way.  Instead of beating one dead horse (uh, western romances), I'm such an overachiever I beat two dead horses.  Could this be why I'm Librarian of the Year?  You decide.

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It's been a few days, but I've still got the RWA Librarian Of The Year honor filed under, "OMG, How Frackin' Insane Is This Y'all?!?!?"  Yes, I do a lot of neat things here at The Day Job to help promote the genre, but honestly?  There's a wee lil' part of me that thinks this award should be seen as a small vindication for all of us here in the online romance community.  Frankly, it feels like a Virginia Slims ad.  Even though it might not always seem like it, we have come a long way baby!  Take it from someone who has been kicking around online since 1999 (gah!).

I want to thank everyone for all the nice things they've said to me and about me over the last couple of days.  It's been sheer insanity, and there is no way I can personally thank you all without getting seriously sleep deprived.  But know that I appreciate your well-wishes and I think all of you are the bee's knees.  Now, back to our regularly scheduled, self-deprecating programming.....

8 comments:

Kati said...

Wendy - Lauren Dane had the following information up on her FB page:

Checks made payable to:

Soufan Family Fund
RBC Bank
2340 Sunset Avenue
Rocky Mount, NC 27804
M-C 000-005-0100

The mailing code is required.

No website yet.

Wendy said...

Kati: Thanks for letting me know. I've edited the blog post and added a link to the information.

Marybeth Whalen said...

I just dropped by here after reading of your recent win in the RWA news. Thanks for all you do to help promote reading and romance!! As a writer I appreciate it and as a reader too-- librarians have been some of my best friends for years! :)

Tracy said...

So sad about Fatin's husband. I will be keeping her and her family in my thoughts and prayers.

Marg said...

I only just heard about Fatin's husband, and my heart is breaking for her.

Thank you for posting the details

Maili said...

I'm really gutted for Mad, her husband and their daughters. So gutted.

Leslie said...

So very sad to hear about Fatin's husband. Thanks for posting the information about the family fund.

Wendy said...

MaryBeth: Thank you! Everybody around the office is really excited!

Tracy: It was so shocking when I received the news. I've known Fatin for over 10 years; I feel like I "know" her entire family even if we've never met in person.

Marg & Leslie: The Novel Thoughts & Book Talk blog seems to be the main news point. There's now an auction in the works....

Maili: I was off work Wednesday morning, and My Man got out of the shower to discover me crying in front of our office computer. It was just....awful waking up to that news. I'm absolutely devastated for her.