Today we welcome, Tracy Hartshorn to
the blog. You will all recognise Tracy as the lady with the lovely smile who
welcomes us all to the Romantic Novelists’ Association parties. We wondered how
Tracy organises such fabulous events and how much of her time is spent making
sure we enjoy ourselves.
Tracy, can you tell us which parties
and events you organise for the RNA?
I
organise the Summer and Winter Parties. I also sell the tickets for the RNA
Awards, though the organisation for that is done by a sub-committee as it’s a
much bigger ‘gig’ than the parties as we have a celebrity guest and much more!
How are events announced to members?
Members
can find out about RNA events on the RNA website www.rna-uk.org
and
also on the membership card which is sent to every member each February.
Booking forms for the parties are placed in Romance
Matters leading up to each event. Details are also on the website.
Reminders are also put out on Social Networking, such as ROMNA and the RNA
Facebook Group. I also use my own Twitter feed and Facebook profile to promote
the events, and other members help me by sharing news.
What is the process when applying for
tickets?
There
is a booking form either on the RNA website or in Romance Matters. I prefer it
if people fill the booking form in and send it to me by post as I then have a
paper trail I can check. Booking by email is possible, but I still like to have
a booking form.
We are lucky to see many well-known
Industry professionals attend our events. Are they invited?
I
send out a block reminder to industry professionals six weeks before the event,
then again a fortnight before the event if a few haven’t got back to me.
I
often get people saying ‘I didn’t know the party was happening’, or other times
people slip through the cracks. Sometimes they’ve moved companies or changed
email addresses. Other times it’s that their email provider identifies me as a
phantom spammer (something that happens when you’re block-emailing people) and
eats my email accordingly.
What
I’m saying is that whilst I do my best to let everyone know, it’s a good idea
to have a look at the RNA website and make a note of when the events are taking
place so you don’t miss out.
The
Winter Party 2015 was attended by over 40 industry professionals, and the
members were delighted to be able to meet them!
Does your job stop once the tickets are
posted out?
It
doesn’t even begin with posting out the tickets. I have to liaise with our designer
to create the tickets. I print them off and cut them to size (this is done
professionally for the Awards). I also have to work out the ticket price for
members and non-members, based on the cost of the room, wine and food.
I
also liaise with Liza at the Royal Over Seas League about the canapes and wine
(my favourite job) and then I have to make up all the name badges (my least
favourite job). That involves printed out two name labels for each person,
sticking them to card, putting the card into the plastic badge (which does
wonders for the cuticles…ouch) then making sure I’ve done every one of the 200 plus
guests. I can’t complete this until the last bookings come in, which means it’s
something I can only do in the last couple of days before I leave for London
(there are invariably changes). I also make a list of all industry professionals
in attendance and print off twenty or thirty copies of the list for guests.
On
the day of both parties there is always a committee meeting which, along with
other duties, means I’m usually at the venue from around 11am onwards.
From
around 5pm, aided by a certain Elaine Everest, I am in the Hall of India and
Pakistan, getting the room ready. We
decorate the room, if needs be, put out all the badges and lanyards, and I chat
with the lovely head-waiter about the running order for the evening. With the
Joan Hessayon Awards at the Summer Party and now the Industry Awards at the
Winter Party, everything is timed to ensure everyone has a glass of fizz in
their hands for the toast.
The
rest of the committee help out, by welcoming guests when they arrive and making
sure that no one is left adrift. I’ll often be running around the room, trying
to find the one editor that a guest can’t find amongst the throng. As I’m
short, this isn’t always easy…
I
also deal with any problems that might arise with guests, though thankfully
there aren’t too many issues once the parties get going. Once the party is
over, we wrestle lanyards and badges off everyone as they leave, then pack it
all up for the next time.
I
usually manage to get back to my hotel by about 10.30pm, when I have a nice cup
of tea and rest my aching feet whilst reading early reports of the party on
Facebook.
Tickets for the Winter Party sold
out, which was fabulous, but this caused last minute problems for those wishing
to attend who had left it too late to buy. Can you advise how to avoid this?
It
really was the hottest ticket in town! People were apparently bartering online
and my inbox was buzzing with folk wanting last minute tickets. I hated having
to turn people down, but sadly I had no choice as the room was at capacity and
the venue had sought my assurance due to
there wouldn’t be any more guests.
The
best thing to do is book early to ensure your place at the event. I’m not sure
everyone realises that there is a deadline of a week before the parties and the
awards by which tickets should be booked.
I
will do my best to honour any bookings that come in by the deadline, provided
we haven’t reached capacity for the rooms at the Royal Over-Seas League or the
Gladstone Library. The deadline is there because I have to send in final
figures to both places about a week before each event so they can ensure there
is enough food and drink, and in the case of the Gladstone Library, adequate
seating. There are also health and safety reasons why the rooms cannot go over
capacity and we have to abide by those rules as part of our contract with the
venue.
If
you are booking late in the day, even if it’s just before the deadline, I would
advise not paying money by BACS, or posting a cheque, unless you have first
checked with me that there are tickets left.
It’s
worth pointing out that no one is officially allocated a place at the party
until they have sent payment for it, either by BACS or cheque. So if you’ve
promised to send payment but haven’t been able to do so for several months (and
I do appreciate real life gets in the way) it’s best to contact me and check
that I still have tickets available.
For
all the reasons stated above it is not possible to just turn up on the night
and pay at the door at any of the RNA parties or awards receptions.
What is the best part of your committee
job?
Once
the party/parties get going and I know everyone is having a good time. Oh and
choosing the canapes! I really enjoy that job. I tend to choose what I would
fancy eating and it seems everyone else agrees that the mini cream scones at
the Royal Over-Seas League are delicious!
Mostly
it’s great to be working alongside a fantastic group of ladies committed to
making the RNA a great organisation. They know I get really nervous before each
party and are always on hand with soothing words, and in the case of our lovely
Chair, a calming cup of tea when I needed it the most!
What is the next RNA event?
The next event is the RNA Awards
on 7th March 2016. The booking form should be in the January edition
of Romance Matters, so look out for it and do book early!
About
Tracy:
Tracy Hartshorn writes as Sally Quilford, and has
had over 20 romantic novels published by My Weekly Pocket Novels and
Ulverscroft. She has also presented writing workshops at various venues in the
UK, and at the RNA Conference. Tracy lives in Derbyshire with her husband and
two Westies.
Thank
you Tracy. We feel exhausted just reading your answers. More mini cream scones
at the next party please!
The RNA Blog is brought to you
by
Elaine
Everest & Natalie Kleinman
If
you would like to write for the RNA blog please contact us on elaineeverest@aol.com
Anne Stenhouse, a graduate of the NWS, writes historical romance set in Regency
and early nineteenth century Edinburgh and London. Her most recent title,
Courting the Countess, is currently available for a mere 99p from amazon. Anne
lives in Edinburgh with her husband and dancing partner of many years. They
travel a bit and enjoyed a trip to Chile last year where they were guided round
forests of endangered species by an expert from Edinburgh’s Royal Botanic
Garden. Anne blogs at Novels Now (she used to write plays) which you may find here.
