Oftentimes, change can be positive, even if it turns things upside down and your internal calendar can’t determine one day from another. This year’s Romance Writers of America (RWA) annual conference in Orlando, FL, July 26–29, gave us all a bit of a challenge by rearranging the traditional timing of some of its elements, causing RITA Awards host Ally Carter to remind attendees that it was indeed Thursday, July 27, and not Saturday, when the honors were being presented, formerly the final conference activity. She did state that Friday was still Friday, so not to worry. Delighted to receive their golden statuettes (no matter the day of the week) were: Romance Novella: Courtney Milan, Her Every Wish (self-published) Contemporary Romance Long: Sarah Morgan, Miracle on 5^th Avenue (HQN: Harlequin; LJ 10/15/16) Contemporary Romance Mid-length: Virginia Kantra, Carolina Dreaming (Berkley) Contemporary Romance Short: Michelle Major, Christmas on Crimson Mountain (Harlequin Special Edition) Young Adult Romance: Jennifer L. Armentrout, The Problem with Forever (HQN Teen: Harlequin; SLJ 4/16)

RITA winner Laura Lee Guhrke

Historical Romance Long: Laura Lee Guhrke, No Mistress of Mine (Avon) Historical Romance Short: Kelly Bowen, A Duke To Remember (Forever: Grand Central) Romantic Suspense: Elisabeth Naughton, Repressed (Montlake) Paranormal Romance: Jeffe Kennedy, The Pages of the Mind (Kensington) Erotic Romance: Roni Loren, Off the Clock (Berkley) Romance with Religious or Spiritual Elements: Tammy L. Gray, My Hope Next Door (Waterfall)   Mainstream Fiction with a Central Romance: Weina Dai Randel, The Moon in the Palace (Sourcebooks Landmark; LJ 9/15/15) Best First Book: Cheryl Etchison, Once and for All: An American Valor Novel (Avon Impulse; LJ Xpress Reviews 6/10/16)   For more information, see the RWA website.