NEW YORK (AP) — The Romance Writers of America has called off its annual awards as the organization
remains in turmoil over allegations that it has failed to address criticism for lack of diversity.
In announcing the cancellation of the RITA Awards, the RWA noted that numerous authors and judges had
dropped out. The Texas-based trade association has thousands of members.
"The contest will not reflect the breadth and diversity of 2019 romance novels/novellas and thus
will not be able to fulfill its purpose of recognizing excellence in the genre," according to a
note posted this week on the RWA website. "For this reason, the Board has voted to cancel the
contest for the current year. The plan is for next year’s contest to celebrate 2019 and 2020
romances."
Romance author Racheline Maltese tweeted that the RWA had made a "good, responsible decision,"
but added "Let’s be clear — the reason the RITAs would not have reflected the breadth and diversity
of the genre is not due to marginalized authors withdrawing but due to actions by RWA that rendered such
choices necessary."
During the holiday season, the RWA infuriated many in the romance community by initially reprimanding
author Courtney Milan for tweeting that Kathryn Lynn Davis’ 1999 book "Somewhere Lies the
Moon" was an "(expletive) racist mess." The association reversed its decision, but not in
time to prevent an uproar that led to the resignation of President Carolyn Jewell and several board
members.
"We have lost the trust of our membership and the romance community and we must find a way to
rebuild that," the organization said in a statement last month. "We will strive to uphold the
values of diversity, equity, and inclusion in all that we do."