I’m writing this from a Starbucks at the base of The Brock at Niagara Falls, where the 2025 Romance Writers of America conference is taking place (The Brock, not The Starbucks).

Why Am I Here? Do I Write Romance Now?

I’m here because for nearly 15 years, Melissa has traveled with me to dozens of SciFi/Fantasy conferences, but Romance is her genre of choice. Until this trip, we’d never been to Niagara Falls before, and Melissa always wanted to see it. So, for our 30 year anniversary, we’re celebrating by going to a conference that’s all about Romance.

I’m not yet writing Romance, but I’m not opposed to it. I have an idea for a Romantasy, actually.

What’s it Been Like?

There are over 200 women participating in the event. There are four or five men, including myself. Of the attending men, one is representing an agency that is looking for Romance and Women’s fiction. I might be the only active male writer here, and I sort of stand out with my long hair.

I’m answering the gender-gap question first, only because it’s one of the first things people ask about. From my perspective, it has been no big deal whatsoever. Melissa and I both feel very welcome here. It’s honestly been great.

When I first signed us up, I bought myself a guest pass. When they offered Melissa a slot for presenting Cupid’s Arrow, they upgraded my guest pass to a full membership. For the most part, I follow Melissa around and, when I’m feeling impish, introduce her to a stranger and pull her out of her shell. This sounds like I’m being a little mean, but she’s making friends and having a great time.

My plan was to mostly be a shadow, but I’m at a conference with other writers and I just can’t help myself. I’ll be present for conversations discussing topics I have studied, and I’ll chime in with some of the stuff I’ve learned over the years. Topics have ranged from pitching, writing styles, branding… you name it.

What’s really funny is that each time I’ve piped up, it has been met with almost identical reactions. First, there is surprise. Then there is a sort of recognition, like, “Oh! He’s one of us!” Depending on the circumstance, there is usually an invitation to keep contributing.

To be clear, I’m not mansplaining or doing any weird gender dynamics. I’m just another writer that’s been to a lot of conferences, and I’m offering the stuff I’ve learned and not forcing it on anyone. The recognition I mentioned before is really important here, because I think it transcends gender boundaries. The writer experience — the stress, the techniques, and the insecurities — are shared across all genres, it seems.

The lessons taught at this conference are very much the same as what I’ve heard at the SciFi/Fantasy conferences. The perspective is slightly different, which has been interesting to me and to the people I’ve been talking with here.

I’ve been told that if I commit to coming to the RWA conference next year, I could propose and present a panel next year on pitching. Which is utterly wild to me.

What Else?

Melissa is having a great time. That’s the most important thing, to me. I’m obviously enjoying myself, but I would tape my mouth shut and sit in a corner if it meant an ounce more enjoyment for Melissa. Thankfully, it doesn’t look like it’ll come to that. This event is going very well for her.

Today, I got up very early and joined the writer sprints at 6AM. I’m not sure what happened, or what’s in the air, but I added over a thousand words to The Psychic Out of Time before 8AM. The conference programming today isn’t entirely my cup-of-tea, so I’ve wandered around and found other places to write. If this were November, I would already have my target daily word count.

Niagara Falls itself is nice. Last night, we went to the restaurant at the top of the hotel, ate desert, and watched fireworks explode over the falls. Apparently that happens every night at 10PM for 5 minutes during the summer. Today, we walked along Clifton Street, which is what happens when an amusement park breaks containment and spills out into the wild. We split a pizza at Boston Pizza. Niagara Falls hasn’t been quite what I expected it to be, but it’s been fun and fine.

What’s Next?

We keep going. I’m not getting quite enough sleep, but that’s what naps are for. We’ll keep meeting cool people. I’ll keep writing whenever I get a chance. On the other side of the RWA conference, I’ll evaluate how I feel about the event over all.

Next month is Worldcon in Seattle. The month after that, the next Writing Excuses Retreat. I need to get working on the next keyboard very soon. This year, I want to make it wireless.

I think that’s about it. Please check out my review of The Black Rose if you haven’t already. I hope everyone is having a great and productive summer.