2026 Board
Danika Bloom (she/her)
President
Danika Bloom is a USA Today bestselling author of steamy contemporary romance who has independently published over a dozen books since 2020. She brings extensive leadership experience to her role as President, having previously served as Vice President of the Greater Vancouver RWA chapter for two terms, and as Vice President of its disaffiliated group during its inaugural two-year term. Beyond her own writing career, Danika is deeply committed to supporting other romance authors through her work as a mentor for pre-published and early career writers at Author Ever After, an online membership community she founded. Before fully committing to the romance publishing world, Danika (as Donna Barker) spent over 25 years as a ghostwriter and community builder for progressive social justice non-profits in Canada. She lives in Squamish, British Columbia.
Trish McCallan (she/her)
Vice President of Programs
Trish McCallan (she/her) was born in Eugene, Oregon, and grew up in Washington State, where she began crafting stories at an early age. Her first books were illustrated in crayon, bound with red yarn, and sold for a nickel at her lemonade stand. Trish grew up to earn a bachelor’s degree in English literature with a concentration in creative writing from Western Washington University, taking jobs as a bookkeeper and human- resource specialist before finally quitting her day job to write full time.
Forged in Fire, the first book in her Red Hot SEALs series, came about after a marathon reading session, and a bottle of Nyquil that sparked a vivid dream. She lives today in eastern Washington. An avid animal lover, she currently shares her home with four golden retrievers, a black lab mix and two cats.
Karen Westing (she/her)
Vice President of Communications
A lifelong lover of stories with sharp edges and satisfying endings, Karen Westing (she/her) writes historical romance with a mystery and suspense twist featuring smart heroines, secret motives and just enough danger to make the romance sweeter. She’s currently at work on a Regency-era series inspired by adventure and women who refuse to behave as expected.
Professionally, Karen brings more than 20 years of communications and marketing experience to her role on the board. She is the founder and principal of West & Word, a communications studio that partners with creative entrepreneurs and authors to help them build their brand voice and platforms.
When she’s not writing fictional scandals, Karen can usually be found exploring the outdoors with her husband and very dramatic golden retriever or planning her next theme party.
Aila Ashe (she/her)
Secretary
Aila Ashe (she/her) writes funny historical and fantasy romances, with a new series set to be released next year. She loves any story with a genius, or an assassin, a dragon, princess, thief, pirate, con artist, or Shakespearean actor, and can’t stop herself from putting at least two or three in each of her books. You can reach her at info@ailaaces.com.
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Erin Wigger (she/her)
Treasurer
A PNW native and dyed-in-the-wool storyteller, Erin is currently working on her first science fiction romance book under the pen name Lulu Starling. Cursed with a lifelong desire to know “why?” and “how?” and “what next?”, she spent a decade as a photojournalist—traveling around the world and photographing everything from Muhammed Ali to a specialty rat breeder.
These days she masquerades as a brand marketer at a tech startup, distracted by daydreams of penning a new romantasy series. When not working or writing, she spends her time corralling her husband and two children, and several itinerant cats.
You can find her at info@lulustarling.com or in the study rooms of the Bellevue Library, plotting the demise of several beloved characters.