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The History of Northwest Houston RWA®
In 1980 a group of women frustrated that writing conferences failed to meet the needs of romance writers banded together at the Southwest Writers Conference in Houston and founded Romance Writers of America©. Some of these women were from Houston, some from other places.
Following that conference, Rita Clay Estrada called the romance writers in the Houston area together. Houston was divided into four sections to be called chapters: Northwest, West, Bay Area and Southwest (now disbanded). Those areas became the names for Houstons Romance Writers of America chapters. Through the years, Northwest Houston chapter members have personalized our chapter name to be the Lone Star Chapter.
Read more of our history here:
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President
Jennifer Bray-Weber
1st Vice President
Stacey Purcell
2nd Vice President
Melinda Porter
Secretary
Janet Clementz-Garza
Treasurer
Tess Grillo
Past President
Cheri Jetton
Committee Chairs
Hospitality
Ann James
Membership
Patti Thielen
Newsletter
Karen Hankins
PRO Liaison
Judythe Hixson
Website, Publicity & CD Library
Melissa Ohnoutka
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 Jennifer Bray-Weber
A proud native Texan, I grew up with wide open spaces and free reign to express myself. Always a “good girl”, I had a penchant for trouble. With that came plenty of entertaining tales and a brassy attitude. Now I’m a domestic goddess who lives with my loving husband, 2 beautiful daughters, and 2 neurotic cats. After earning degrees in Music & Video Business and Liberal Arts, I went back to school. Somewhere in my quest of a Masters in History, I took a creative writing course. It was such a thrill to write and share my stories with others. My professor suggested I pursue writing a novel. I don’t imagine he meant for me to quit school, but I did just that. I seriously began writing in January 2007, finishing my first manuscript 7 months later. I quickly discovered that I had much to learn about the craft. Joining RWA and NWH in January of 2008 changed my life. Currently, I’m a 2009 Golden Heart® finalist and, with support from my chapter and writing friends, making a mad dash toward publication.
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 Melinda Porter
I started writing novels while still in high school. After putting my writing on hold for nearly two decades to raise my daughters (who are now mommies of their own) and play housewife, I picked up the pen again, so to speak--this is the computer age--five years ago. After completing two historical novels, I discovered I didn’t know how to write. Joining RWA in 2004 opened a new world to me. I have been a member of NWH for 3 or 4 years and have come to enjoy the camaraderie and support of this chapter. I discovered I enjoy writing short stories and have published several under my two pen names, Anna Kathryn Lanier and M. J. Sager. I’m honored to have been asked to serve on the board and look forward to helping the chapter as much as it has helped me become a Romance Writer.
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 Janet Clementz-Garza
Shortly after joining Romance Writer's of America, Janet’s oilman husband accepted a position overseas which led to a seven year stint in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia—and no Internet access those first three years. Undaunted, she dared to “smuggle” Romance novels and writing How-To books into the Kingdom. Janet devoured those instructional aids—dissecting and revising her first manuscript—until she could find nothing left to fix. With no local writer’s group, not even a single critique partner, Janet bullied her husband into reading “just the first chapter”. His only comment, “I loved it...and I hate that I loved it because I don’t read Fiction. From that moment on, Janet knew she’d always write. She’d figured out how to make the video in her head play out successfully on the page. She’s since written numerous stories and is currently writing a new Historical adventure.
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 Tessy Grillo
I live in Cypress, Texas, with my husband, who is my
real life hero and high school sweetheart. We have two teenagers that keep us busy, but very happy. I work part-time for a CPA firm in Houston. I didn't come into the writing arena until just a couple of years ago. At first I wanted to write suspense novels, but realized I didn't have the edge, so my writing has evolved to single title-women's fiction with a heavy emphasis on romance. The story is in the journey for me, not the destination!
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Cheri Jetton
I enjoy reading romances for the guaranteed happy ending and began writing them in 1992 when a story idea just wouldn’t leave me alone. I joined RWA the next year and discovered everything I’d done wrong. Thanks to the support of chapter members and the wonderful workshops at both the national and chapter levels, I sold three Traditional Romances. I've served as Conference coordinator twice in the past and done a two year stint as Programs Chair (1st VP). Houston has been my home since 1968 and three of my four children – and my grandchildren – live close by.
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Join Us! To join, print out the application form and mail it with a check for $25.
printable application form
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