New York Times bestselling author Brenda Novak is the award-winning author of 38 novels. She is also the mother of a son who was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes at the age of five. For the past seven years, she has run an online auction to raise funds for the Diabetes Research Institute, donating a total of over $1.3 million to date. The New York Journal of Books sat down with Ms. Novak at the New Jersey Romance Writers conference last month to talk about her cause and her writing.

NYJB: Your “For the Cure” auction is unique in that many of the items offered are geared toward writers and readers, especially of romance. How did you come up with this idea?

 Brenda Novak: When my son was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes, and I realized what an impact it would have on his life, I had to do something since I felt it was curable with the right research. I attended a school fundraiser where they had a silent auction, and was inspired by the generosity of the donors.

 On the other hand, the event was not well attended, and many of the items went for very low prices, which was disappointing to both the people who worked so hard to set up the auction and to the donors. It struck me that a more effective way to run such a fundraiser would be to do it online over a more extended period of time.

 I already had a website with an established flow of traffic so it seemed natural to try to use that in some way.

 NYJB: How did you begin?

 Since I write romantic suspense, I turned to what I consider the biggest hearted people in the world: the romance community.

 All I had to do was ask and authors offered autographed books and critiques, as well as gift baskets and handcrafted items, while editors and agents agreed to read and evaluate manuscripts.

 In 2005, our first year, the auction raised almost $35,000. Now it’s the largest online auction supporting diabetes research in the world, and last year we were able to donate over $300,000 to the Diabetes Research Institute. Since almost 26 million people in the United States suffer from diabetes, almost everyone knows someone with the disease and wants to help.

 It’s like building a snowball: You just keep rolling it and adding on.

 NYJB: Why do you think it has become so successful so quickly?

 Brenda Novak: My goal was to create something symbiotic, a “win-win” situation for all those involved.

 Because we offer opportunities not found elsewhere for both writers and readers, our auction is unusual. For instance, if you are an aspiring writer, you can get your work read by an editor or agent. In fact, writers have found agents, and books have been sold to publishers as a result of connections made through the auction. So as a writer, you can support a good cause and advance your career at the same time.

 The auction also receives huge support from the reading community. Romance readers are very enthusiastic about the authors they read, and the auction gives them a chance to get a specially autographed book or even meet face-to-face with a favorite writer—something they love doing.

 The community of romance authors has spread the word through their social media presence. Several big name authors have used their existing online platforms to get their large fan bases involved. The auction’s website got half a million impressions last year so all of the donors to the auction receive a promotional benefit as well.  That’s the “win-win” again.

 There are auction items available in all price ranges, so it’s possible for everyone to make a contribution. The truth is that this community of people is wonderful: Even when they don’t have a lot themselves, they still give. The midlist authors are often the most generous.

Of course, we have the tremendous corporate support of Harlequin Enterprises, my publisher, to whom I’m very grateful. Also, the late Kate Duffy, an editor at Kensington, was an enthusiastic supporter. Every year she would say, “Give me something more to do. Exploit me!” When she died, the Kensington staff got together and offered an entire category of auction items in her memory.

 NYJB: Has your son’s disease had an impact on your writing life?

 Brenda Novak: I have to keep regular writing hours. I can’t go on a jag and stay up all night writing because I have to be able to test my son during the night every night to see where his blood sugar levels are and make adjustments if necessary. In order to function for my whole family, I need to sleep myself.

 NYJB: Have you used your experience with the disease in your fiction?

 Brenda Novak: I included it in the plot of Every Waking Moment, both to spread awareness of diabetes and because it raised the stakes in the story. The heroine is fleeing her abusive husband with her five-year-old child who has diabetes. This made it so much more difficult for her to escape because she has to have medications which must be fresh, along with clean syringes, etc. All of these things must come by prescription from a pharmacy so it makes it very easy to track her. Also, I knew she could never leave her child with another person without making them aware of the disease and how to treat it, which also flags her progress.

 I got letters from many readers, saying that book opened their eyes to how hard it is to have a diabetic child.

 NYJB: Are you currently working on something new?

 Brenda Novak: Actually, there’s a lot going on in my writing life. I’m splitting my romantic suspense into straight suspense and small town romance. Mira will be publishing my small town contemporaries while I will be selling my straight suspense to a different publisher.

 I have also just digitally rereleased my first published novel Of Noble Birth, a historical. I updated and re-edited it, so I am very excited by this new electronic world. My next ebook is an original historical titled The Bastard, never before published. It was released in November 2011. I’m currently working on a third original historical for digital publication.

 NYJB: What brings you all the way from your home in California to the New Jersey Romance Writers conference?

 Brenda Novak: I come because I can connect with other writers and build relationships. I enjoy helping other writers, so I presented two workshops here. Of course, the teacher always learns more than the students. Preparing my presentations cemented things I’ve learned over my own career. In addition, I make a point to attend other presentations because there’s always a gem you can find from other writers’ experience and work processes. Plus it’s close to New York City so I get to meet with editors as well.

 And I can get more donations for my auction!

 Click For more information on Brenda Novak’s annual auction “For the Cure of Diabetes.” 

 Interviewer Nancy Herkness is an award-winning author of romance novels. Her articles have appeared in Romantic Times BookClub magazine. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and Novelists, Inc.