Young’s Valerie Parv AM says she felt like a “rockstar” when she was presented with life membership of the Romance Writers of Australia group recently.
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The award was presented at the group’s National Conference held in Adelaide.
“It’s the first standing ovation I’ve had which was just remarkable – there were 400 people there, I felt like a rockstar!” she said.
Ms Parv had a lot to do with the creation of the group holding the first romantic writing seminar, along with her late husband Paul, in Australia in 1988.
“That day closed with a cocktail party where two attendees, Ann Kelleher and Mary-Ann Stressau met and decided to start a romance writing group that morphed into the present-day organization.
“That day closed with a cocktail party where two attendees, Ann Kelleher and Mary-Ann Stressau met and decided to start a romance writing group that morphed into the present-day organisation which now has around a thousand members.
Valerie said she hoped to continue mentoring new and emerging writers for a long time to come, something she currently does through the RWA’s Valerie Parv award.
“I mentor the winner for the year they hold the award,” Ms Parv said.
“All of them now are either published or multi-published – they call themselves my Minions, something they’d done well before the movie came out.”
“It’s really special, we have something like 1000 members, so to be chosen as a life member is really special. The conference was held in Adelaide on the 25th anniversary of the founding of the organisation.”
“I just hope that I’ll be able to keep going in the mentoring role as it’s one of the most satisfying things I do, along with my writing.”
Two recent winners were nominated for awards in the US this year.
The group presents just one life membership each year.
