Past TRR Issue They came, they saw, and they conquered. They killed with kindness…and the love flowed! Romance African-American style was evident and in full effect as upwards of 350 women descended upon Atlanta and gave intimacy a new name. Romance SlamJam 2003 was hosted by the Hotlanta Romance Book Club, and chaired by author, Carmen Green. The purpose of Romance Slam Jam is to bring readers, writers, and booksellers together to celebrate all aspects of African American romantic fiction, and to promote literacy and empowerment amongst all people. Just to add a little historic content, Emma Rodgers, Ashira Tosihwe, and Francis Ray came up with a grand idea to extol the virtues of their craft to further explain why love is so expressive, and have far-reaching implications as it pertain to our daily lives. It should be noted that a conference of this magnitude couldn’t be successful unless equal amount of effort, perseverance, and determination is present to see the vision through. I saw it in many forms. Carmen Green put anybody and everybody to work who was willing…including yours truly who was called upon to moderate one of the panel discussions at the spur of the moment. It’s my understanding too, that we ended up in the black, actually earning our keep and not allowing mismanagement to usurp our intent. In this case, all supporters, organizers, and adjunct volunteers should be given the esteem for a job well done! The power, passion and pain of black love has been given a frame of reference that finally features us giving up poignant stories that reflect the love that has been showered upon us for generations by our parents, grandparents, and everybody else considered part of the much talked about village that raised us. This mantra was evident at this conference seeing the genuine sisterhood and friendship emanating between all of the romance authors, and the reciprocation to their fans. Various book clubs showed their appreciation…including FIRE, Sistah Friend, ReadersNFriends, The GRITS, RAWSISTAZ, and two clubs from Miami, Onyx and Sista Girls. I was able to meet Debra Ross the reviewer from RomanceInColor, and the Word Diva herself, Gwendolyn Osborne. The publishers were represented too. A few of them stood out, namely Nyani Colom from Genesis Press, Monique Patterson from St. Martin’s, and Harlequin’s Mavis Allen. I laud also the literary Publicists and Agents, i.e., Tina Richell, Tonya Howard, and Brenda J. Woodbury, whom I give special kudos to for her outgoing personality. I used to think that romance novels were a ‘girl thing’, and as much as I loved to read, I wouldn’t dare let my friends see me reading one. My how times are changing! As the debate over the social and literary merits of romance novels continues, the number of romances directed solely to black audiences is growing. All that’s needed for equal shelving space with mainstream romance is an all out acceptance by the majors and the same marketing mantras given the heavyweights in their field. The numbers may not readily show it, but a small number of men are beginning to examine the genre. Which brings me to where I stand with this. I've decided to review black romance novels. I now recognize that to be an across-the-board book reviewer, I needed to expand my horizons and take seriously this genre that’s responsible for well over half of all books sold that are read by us. In making this decision, I knew I needed to be in Atlanta. Never in my wildest dreams would I imagine being able to count on my hand the number of men that were present! Not to be upstaged, I trudged on and can honestly say that it was worth it. I represented well, and gave all indications that I wanted to be taken serious. Black romance readers and the authors that fuel this engine have not heard the last of me. Subsequently, I will be redesigning my website to accommodate romance and have come up with a new name for the page…. it will be called Romance Between The Covers! As I embark yet on another journey, romance will be made to order again as my first time experiences with icons such as Donna Hill, Francis Ray, Linda Walters, Gwynne Foster, JM Jeffries, Brenda Jackson, Beverly Jenkins, Leslie Esdaile and the venerable Emma Rodgers, et. al. Does it get any better than this?
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