THE FIRST KISS CONTEST

Unlike many writing contests for unpublished romance writers, which ask authors to send in the first scene of their novel, NECRWA’s First Kiss contest asked authors to submit the scene in which their romantic protagonists kiss for the first time. As the entry instructions specified:

The scene should convey the emotion and romantic conflict between the characters, sparkle with creative dialogue, description, and characterization, and move the story forward. As one of our authors said, “Good kiss scenes are essentially emotional discoveries. The first kiss brings a new closeness...but also a new set of complications.”

NECRWA’s final First Kiss Contest for unpublished romance writers was held in 2014.

Past winners of the First Kiss Contest:

2014
First Place: Marianne Stephenson, from “Summer Rayne”
Second Place: Christina Alexandra, from “A Duchess Does”
Third Place: Sarah Bailey, from “The Ren”

Honorable Mention:
Angela Bissell, from “When in Rome”
LynneRose Cannon, from “Doing Good”
Tara Wyatt, from “Off Guard”

2013
First Place: Katy Regnery, from “It’s You”
Second Place: Crystal Eliot, from “Lessons in Scandal”
Third Place: Virginia Frost, from “Prop Girl”

Honorable Mention:
Tina Evans, from “One More Night”
Susan Chambers, from “Dragonfly”
Anna Richland, from “The Soldier”

2012
First Place: Lynn Lindquist, from “Nothing Left to Lose but Me”
Second Place: Bobbi Ruggiero**, from “Encore”
Third Place: Shelley N. Greene, from “The Fire Walkers”
Fourth Place: Mimi Jean, from “Accidentally Married to a . . . Vampire?”
Fifth Place: Elle Twifold, from “’Til There was You”
Sixth Place: Cindy Thompson, from “The Lavender Trail”