Paying it forward

When I was a university student, my mum paid for me to go to my very first Romance Writers of New Zealand conference after we saw a little write-up about it in our local paper. I was working part time around my studies, but there was no way I could've afforded to go to the conference on my own.

Attending had a profound impact on my life - not only did I learn so much, for the first time, I'd found my tribe. Other people who understood the need to tell a story, who valued the journey of the human heart and adored romances, and who spoke to the people in their head!

I've always wanted to pay my mum's kindness forward, so this year, I'd like to send one New Zealand-based writer to the 2019 RWNZ Conference, to be held in Christchurch.

I'd like this to go to a FIRST TIMER, someone who's never had a chance to attend a national writing conference but would love to go. So if you know someone like that in New Zealand, please share the information with them. You don't have to be a romance writer, but you have to respect the romance genre and the people who work in it.

Here's what I'll cover:

- economy class flights from anywhere in New Zealand to Christchurch (if you're close to Christchurch, I'll cover your petrol/parking, or train/bus costs)
- conference registration for the "Love and Other Journeys" conference, to be held by RWNZ from the 23rd of August 2019 to the 25th of August 2019, including the awards dinner
- if you're not a member of RWNZ already, I'll throw in a year's membership
- $50/day for expenses (the conference already provides morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea)
- accommodation in the conference hotel for 4 nights from Thursday 22 August to Sunday 25th August inclusive. If the conference hotel is booked out, I'll pay for any nearby accommodation you can find in a similar price range.

(You'll be responsible for making all the bookings/registrations yourself).

If you'd like to be considered, just drop me an email with "RWNZ Conference 2019" in the subject line, telling me a little about yourself and your reasons why you'd like to attend. Since I know writers like to write, try to keep it to around 300 words or so. :) Email: nalinisinghwritesATgmail DOTcom

This isn't an official scholarship, just one writer paying it forward, so I'll read through all the replies, and choose the one that resonates most with me. I'm sure it'll be a very hard decision for me, but I do hope to do this again next year, so please try again if you miss out this year.

Dates: Emails must be in to me by Saturday March 2nd 2019 at 5pm. I'll email the recipient back by end of day March 10th 2019. If I don't hear from them within 72 hours, I'll choose someone else. Also, if you're the recipient, you can keep your name private if you wish - or you can feel free to out yourself.

Good luck.