The year was 2020, when the COVID-19 health concern hit an all-time high pandemic in America. Events around the nation, businesses, and the population as a whole were put on mandatory pause, leaving us all concerned for not only our health but our financial well-being as a nation as well. It reads like a scene from a book instead of real-life, leaving us all scratching our heads and wondering why the toilet paper was the first thing off the grocery store shelves instead of the soap!

ANNOUNCEMENT:

What’s Happening with the RSJ Romance Book Conference During COVID-19

Norfolk, Virginia 2020 Event, March 16, 2020

With the quickly evolving Coronavirus concerns, we want to assure you that the health and safety of our RSJ family is at the forefront of our minds. And as the situation surrounding coronavirus / COVID-19 continues to evolve, I want to personally affirm our commitment to you, and ensure that you have full confidence when dealing with the RSJ brand.

The health and safety of our RSJ family is our top priority. And in accordance with recommendations from public health officials, including the CDC, we are looking into implementing enhanced operating protocols for safety.

WHAT’S AHEAD?

We are dealing with unprecedented territory in our nation today. As such, RSJ will be looking into alternative conference options for you to participate, allowing you to make the valued industry connections you need as an author and the romance book lover fix you crave as a reader. We are working with our sponsors and have full support as we strive to give you the essential highlights of the conference from free books, kindle drawings, and swag to author exposure and more.

Canceling the event is not confirmed at this time, as the RSJ event isn’t scheduled to take place until nearly June. However, as social distancing quickly becomes the norm in our nation, current plans we are looking into include postponing RSJ to a later date or organizing a virtual conference, as entry into the RSJ literary contests already does not require in-person attendance.

We will be following public health officials and CDC advisement as it evolves hour by hour. Refunds from partial to full, depending on the level of participation you decide, will not role out until we get closer into making a decision.

A THANK YOU TO THE RSJ COMMUNITY

As the nation and the RSJ conference adjust to our new reality, we ask that you be patient with us as well. We understand that attendees may have travel and hotel plans to coordinate, so we’ll keep you informed along the way, and we’ll continue engaging leading public health experts to ensure our action plans are current and thorough.

I want to thank you, our RSJ family, as your support has been phenomenal. You’ve made it clear to us how much you look forward to attending RSJ and how much you hope to participate in this year’s conference as well, whether postponed or conducted virtually.

By taking these extra steps, we have even greater confidence in our ability to continue operations while doing our part to prevent the spread of coronavirus / COVID-19. Our team will make every effort to ensure your well-being and provide peace of mind while you’re with us.

Thank you for being a part of the RSJ family,

Bonita Thornton
Chairperson RSJ

About RSJ Book Lovers’ Convention

The RSJ book lovers’ convention, also known as the Romance Slam Jam conference, is a book lovers extravaganza for readers galore who love celebrating romance and women’s fiction books featuring multicultural characters. The conference incorporates multiple events and workshops throughout 3-days bringing more stories of multicultural characters onto the shelves of readers while also offering the marketing and crafting help that authors want, the books that readers crave, and book lover friendships for a lifetime.

Want to know more about the RSJ Book Lovers’ Convention?  CLICK HERE