I heard an author recently making a statement about how the RWA wasn't that inclusive. No, this author was not talking about the standard concept of inclusiveness that we hear about in politics. This dealt with the simple fact that the organization didn't represent her genre of writing. I don't remember exactly what it was, but I do know it was not romance or women's fiction.
This is actually something that the RWA faced a while ago when they were looking at categories for the Golden Heart and the Rita when some authors felt that stories that just happened to have some romance in the plot were being excluded.
This has always confused me. The Romance Writers of America represents what? - ROMANCE. Come on people. The word is in the title.
Now let me explain where I am going to. The RWA like all of the other professional writing organizations available to authors IS inclusive. These organizations are open to everyone. With that said, each organization has a different focus. Your writing might simply not work with that organization but might work for someone else. If you write Mystery then Mystery Writers of America might be the place for you and maybe your story doesn't fit with the RWA.
That's OK.
Each of these organizations need to stick to what they know best. We don't have to start opening up categories in our contests, or open up new chapters, or teach workshops at our conferences if those things do not fit with the focus of the organization.
I get that times change. This is something I hear over and over again from members of the various Boards of Directors. But, this does not mean that an organization has to change their focus.
And for those of you who may be part of a writing organization, and your writing has now moved to something other than the focus of that organization, it might just be time to move on to something new. Don't get mad with the organization if they don't meet your needs any more.
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