Nora Roberts and the RWA join February's 'Library Lovers'

During an October 2005 tour to promote her romantic suspense novel Blue Smoke, Nora Roberts made a scheduled stop at the main branch of the Columbus Library for a book signing. The comments she made shortly before that event to This Week staff writer Marcia Anderson are worth repeating as February 2010 signals the launch of Library Lovers' Month.

What does this best selling romance writer think of libraries and librarians? Roberts clearly qualifies for membership among February's Library Lovers.

The RWA maintains a poster gallery, accessible through
its website, for librarians and booksellers to use in
promoting their romance fiction collections. Photo from
RWA website.

"Librarians are an essential and vital bridge to the reader," Roberts told Anderson. "As book lovers, librarians introduce readers to books every day. I think it's essential that librarians accentuate reading for pleasure and have a solid understanding, respect, even affection for popular fiction.”

Roberts' regard for libraries, conditioned by growing up in a "family of readers" as she revealed to Claire White in a June 1998 interview, is shared by the Romance Writers of America (RWA), an organization in which Roberts has long been a leader. The RWA's website affirms that "the authors in RWA are committed to establishing and maintaining a good relationship with librarians."

The RWA uses several strategies to achieve this goal. As a part of its yearly conference, the RWA schedules "Librarian's Day," which is devoted to programming of interest to librarians. At the 2010 conference in Nashville Tennessee, Librarians' Day will take place on July 28.

The RWA also annually recognizes one librarian who has demonstrated outstanding support of romance fiction with its Librarian of the Year Award. Deborah Schneider of the King County Library System, Washington, received this award in 2009. The winner of the 2010 RWA Librarian of the Year Award will be announced in March 2010.

The RWA works with the Public Library Association, as well, to enhances its relationship with libraries. From March 24 - 26, 2010 the RWA will have a booth at the 2010 Public Library Association Conference in Portland, Oregon.

The RWA further uses its affiliation with the Public Library Association in offering its Romance Writers of America Library Grant. This $4500 grant designed to help public libraries the opportunity to build or expand romance fiction collections or to assist with romance fiction programs.

Both Nora Roberts and the Romance Writers of America recognize the importance of libraries and librarians in providing readers with access to the romance genre. As the articles below indicate, their concern for literacy efforts provides yet another outlet for that shared interest.