Another successful Valentine’s Brunch

The brunch today at the Loch March Golf Course in Kanata was a huge success. The venue was absolutely gorgeous. A wood fire crackled in the large stone fireplace. Large windows let in lots of natural light making the room bright and cheery.

The food was excellent. The menu included Summer Mix Salad, Pickle and Olive Tray, Garden Vegetables and Dip, Vegetarian Lasagna, Chicken Breast in White Wine Mushroom Sauce, Seasoned Rice, Rolls and Butter, Assorted Desserts (cheesecake, apple pie and chocolate mousse cake) and Fresh Fruit. Coffee and tea were set up and available throughout the afternoon. And for those feeling so inclined – a cash bar. The food was amazing. I was particularly fond of the chicken although enjoyed everything.

It being a Valentine’s Brunch, I had to come up something to wear. I had decided on my black leggings and had a few red tops in mind but when they weren’t available, I decided on a red leather jacket. That created another problem. I needed shoes. So after a lot of traipsing around and not finding the right shoes, the right colour to match the jacket, or worse still, not finding any in my size, yesterday my husband and I made a trip to Kingston. We were going to Costco on our bulk grocery run so decided to go to The Shoe Company. I found the perfect shoes! Right colour, my size and comfortable! Anne, my friend and co-worker who recently lost her valiant fight against cancer, would definitely approve of them.

We had three members, including me, who were up for the Jo Beverley first book award. Aislinn MacNamara, Coreene Smith, Kathryn Donaldson and myself. That’s the order in which the presentations were made. We were told ahead of time to be prepared to say a few words about how our first book came to be. In my speech, I mentioned Anne and the reason behind needing the perfect shoes to go with the ensemble.

This isn’t the best picture with the award because of the glare on the glass coming in from those amazing windows and then the flash on the camera going off. But still, I look happy in it so I had to post it.

Teresa Wilde did an excellent job with each of these Jo Beverley awards. Each one was designed to fit with the genre and time period each book is set in. Mine definitely has a Victorian flavour. I absolutely love it! My original plan was to hang mine centered over the awards I received two years ago at the brunch (mentioned in my earlier post) but it’s too big to fit there. So… I think I’m going to hang it where my first cover article hangs and maybe put it in the place I’d reserved.

Right now, that’s neither here nor there because it will be taken to work and shown off, to my various family members and local writers group and likely many other places before it resides permanently in its place of honour.

Here’s a close up of my wonderful award. I can’t begin to say how much it means to me.

Ottawa Romance Writers’ Association
Jo Beverley First Book Award

Presented to Melanie Robertson-King

For the sale of
A Shadow in the Past
To 4RV Publishing

2011

 

 

Ottawa Romance Writers’ Association Annual Valentine’s Brunch

Today is the day that ORWA hosts its annual Valentine’s Brunch. I attended my first one two years ago. For that event, I’d put my name forward to qualify for two awards. Although they weren’t a first book award, they were validation that I was writing and submitting despite being rejected. The Genesis was for a rejected partial manuscript, and The Phoenix for a rejected full one.

This year is different. Later today, I’ll be receiving the Jo Beverley First Book Award for my debut novel, A Shadow in the Past. I love how that rolls off my tongue or my fingers when I’m typing… my debut novel.

Isn’t this a gorgeous cover? If the Joe Beverley First Book Award is the same as prior years it’s been presented, then my cover and a certificate will be side by side, matted in a frame. I think the colours of the frame and matte are matched with the colours in the image, as is the certificate.

Time will tell. The brunch, this year held at the Loch March Golf Course in Kanata, begins at 11:00  a.m. The menu sounds fantastic. And best of all – this year my husband is coming with me so that he can see me get recognized by my peers for my accomplishments.

And then there are the shoes. But they’re another story altogether.

I’ll post photos later this afternoon/evening.