We are delighted to announce that author Katy Summers has won the annual RNA Joan Hessayon Award for New Writers for 2025 with her novel, Love, Rebooted (Audible Original).

Katy commented, “When I set out to write Love, Rebooted my goal was to create a love story with an autistic protagonist, that would resonate with people like me, who don’t often see themselves portrayed in books. With the help and support of the RNA’s New Writers Scheme, my agent, Emily Glenister, and my editor Oli Grant at Audible I have achieved my goal. But to have been selected as the 2025 recipient of the prestigious Joan Hessayon Award from such a strong list of contenders is an absolute honour and a dream come true.”

The Award is for authors whose novels have gone through the New Writers’ Scheme (NWS) and are subsequently accepted for publication. Sponsored by the estate of the late Dr. David Hessayon OBE in honour of his wife, Joan, who was a longstanding RNA member and NWS supporter, the Award showcases the variety of debut novels within the romantic fiction genre. The RNA is grateful to his daughter Angelina for her continuing support and sponsorship of the Award. Previous graduates of the NWS include Sue Moorcroft, Jessica Redland and Heidi Swain.

The judges for this year included RNA President, Sue Moorcroft, Director and agent at Greenstone Literary Tanera Simons and RNA Chair Seána Talbot. Sue Moorcroft paid tribute to the novel, commenting: “I found it difficult to believe that Love, Rebooted is a debut. It’s well-paced, the characters jumped from the page, it grabbed my attention and didn’t let it go.” Seána Talbot called the novel “an accomplished debut.” And Tanera Simons added: “I so enjoyed Love, Rebooted by Katy Summers: the chemistry between our two love interests jumped off the page, and the writing was particularly engaging and accomplished for a debut. The diversity of characters and representation of neurodiversity also made this a stand-out read for me.”

Coordinator of the Award Maryam Oliver who writes as Melissa Oliver, a previous winner of the the Award, presented Katy with her trophy and commented: “This was a fantastically accomplished debut, with unique characters and a wonderfully engaging plot. Really well done, Katy. I loved Love, Rebooted!” Maryam added, “On behalf of the RNA I would also like to say a huge thank you to our judging panel, especially our guest judges, Sue Moorcroft and Tanera Simons.”

The award ceremony was held on Monday 19th May 2025 at the Leonardo Royal London City Hotel, as part of the RNA’s Romantic Novel Awards 2025 ceremony.

More information about the Award can be found at here

The Awards brochure can be viewed here

ABOUT KATY SUMMERS

As a child, Katy wanted to be either a journalist for the Guardian, or the illustrator of comic strips such as Garfield or Peanuts but soon forgot all about this after getting her first office job and accidentally falling into a career in IT. After a few decades of feeling like a square peg in a round hole, Katy took a career break to rediscover her creative side and never went back. She began by studying picture book illustration, but soon found herself writing, eventually finding her happy place in the world of romantic comedy. Katy lives in South London with her husband and describes herself as an over-caffeinated cat-butler to two noisy bengals.

Notes to Editors

Press-ready images are available on request from: rnapr@romanticwriters.co.uk

About the RNA

The Romantic Novelists’ Association (RNA) is the UK’s number one professional membership organisation for writers of romantic fiction. Founded in 1960 to provide a voice for romance authors and to be a network for writers, it continues to raise the prestige of romantic fiction and encourage romantic authorship. Their 1,000+ membership includes writers across the spectrum of commercial and women’s fiction, along with publishing industry professionals, booksellers, and book reviewers. In addition to organising annual publishing awards, they also host a range of workshops, talks, networking events, conferences, and provide support to unpublished authors through their New Writers’ Scheme and Aspiring Writers category.

• For more information about the RNA, please contact: rnapr@romanticwriters.co.uk