As a former author, publisher, publicist and marketer, Kate has seen every side of publishing and set up her own literary agency so she could do “the best job in publishing”. Kate’s reading tastes – from crime fiction to rom coms – are highly commercial. Kate has a degree in History from the University of York and later garnered two undergraduate modules in Creative Writing and Literature from the Open University. She also holds a postgraduate certificate from the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM). Kate was named a Bookseller Rising Star in 2018, awarded Agent of the Year by the Romantic Novelists’ Association in 2019 and shortlisted for Literary Agent of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2022.

She commented, ‘Having previously won the Romantic Novelists’ Association Award for Agent of the Year in 2019 I am shocked to be nominated again but delighted as it must mean I am doing something right and I will continue to champion romantic fiction at every opportunity.’

Laura James, the RNA Industry Awards organiser, added, ‘I congratulate each and every finalist and thank them and the industry for the unwavering love they show writers and readers of romantic fiction.’

The awards have been held for the past eight years and are highly respected in the UK publishing industry. The finalists are nominated by the full and probationary membership of the Romantic Novelists’ Association, with a panel of independent judges selecting the shortlists.

The award categories are: The Romantic Bookseller of the Year, Inclusion Award, Indie Champion of the Year, Library or Librarian of the Year, Indie Editor of the Year, Cover Designer of the Year, Narrator of the Year, Media Star of the Year, Agent of the Year, and Publisher and / or Editor of the Year.

The winners of the ten awards will be announced during the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Winter Party and Industry Awards ceremony, which is being held at the Leonardo Royal Hotel London City, 8-14 Cooper’s Row, London EC3N 2BQ, on Friday 11th November 2022 at 6.30pm.

This year’s awards are sponsored by ProWritingAid, a manuscript editing software programme with in-app video learning for writers.