Contest Results

Comics & Graphic Novels | General Fiction | Literary | Middle Grade | Mystery/Thriller Nonfiction | Picture Books | Romance | Sci-fi & Fantasy | YA Winner Memory Maker by Anna Abrashina Anna has gotten to know the "screenplays are like blueprints" comparison quite literally while working as an architect by day and sticking to her passion of writing by night. Using the skills gained from a decade of building in our own world, she crafts fantasy/sci-fi realms and alternate realities to serve as metaphors for real-world matters. After placing in numerous competitions over the years, Anna got a chance to work with an independent studio to develop their idea into a series, the pilot of which is currently in development. Always attracted to different forms of storytelling, she has recently expanded into and fell in love with comic book writing, adapting several of her screenplays into the visual medium. Runner-up…

Daughter by Kate McLaughlin Kate McLaughlin is a pseudonym for USA Today bestselling author, Kathryn Smith. Over the span of almost 25 years in the business, Kate has released approximately 50 works of genre fiction (romance, fantasy, thriller and YA) and has been published by Avon Romance, Avon True Romance, St. Martins, Signet Romance, Harlequin Teen, Orbit, Redhook and Wednesday Books. Her books have received rave reviews from Kirkus, Publisher’s Weekly, and other review sites. She has been nominated for many awards including (but not limited to) YALSA’s Best YA novel, The Ontario Library Association’s White Pine award (2022 and 2023 winner! 2024 nominee.), The Moonbeam Children’s award, Romantic Times best book in category, Romantic Times Scifi/Fantasy Chapter’s best book in YA and in Steampunk. Her books have been published internationally, translated for Brazil, Russia, China, Germany and many more. Kate has appeared on news programs in Canada as well as…

Literary | Middle Grade | Mystery/Thriller | Nonfiction Picture Books | Romance/Women's Fiction | Sci-fi / Fantasy | YA Winner After the Rush by Gina Troisi Gina Troisi received an MFA in Creative Nonfiction from The University of Maine's Stonecoast MFA Program in 2009. She is the author of the memoir, The Angle of Flickering Light (Vine Leaves Press, 2021), which was a finalist for the 2022 Maine Literary Awards, and the winner for the 2021 Royal Dragonfly Book Award. The memoir also received a Silver Medal for the 2022 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY), and for the 2021 Reader's Favorite Book Award, and has placed in several other contests. Gina's stories and essays have appeared in numerous literary journals and anthologies, including Fourth Genre, The Gettysburg Review, Fugue, Under the Sun, Flyway: Journal of Writing and Environment, and elsewhere. Her shorter works have placed as finalists in several contests, including the…

- Grand Prize Winners - Literary Dependable Things by Robin Curley Robin Curley graduated from Teachers College, Columbia University with a Master’s in the Teaching of English, and taught literature and creative writing in Massachusetts before having children. She was also Editor of Queen’s Head and Artichoke, Tufts University’s literary magazine. The isolation of the pandemic forced many of us to grapple with the person we are when there’s no one to perform for; this novel was born out of the subjectivity we all bring to our own narratives. Mystery / Thriller The Woman in the Waves by Camille Booker Camille Booker writes historical fiction, drawing inspiration from the achievements of real-life women whose courage, intelligence and determination made a difference during their time. Her stories explore themes of motherhood, equality and discrimination. Her debut novel, part bittersweet love story, spy adventure, and crime mystery set in Australia during WWII, has been…

- Winner - Not Her Daughter by Rea Frey Rea Frey is the author of several nonfiction books and four domestic suspense novels (with several more on the way). She is also the founder and CEO of Writeway, where first-time authors become published. In the last two years alone, Writeway has secured 100 first-time authors with agents and book deals. She is also the co-host of The Real Story podcast, which demystifies the publishing industry and helps empower authors along the way. To learn more, please visit reafrey.com or writewayco.com. - Runner-Up - The Fantastic Family Whipple by Matthew Ward Matthew Ward is the author of the middle-grade novels The Fantastic Family Whipple and War of the World Records (both from Penguin Random House), as well as the upcoming picture book, Unflappable (HarperCollins, Fall 2023). His books have been selected for the Lincoln City Fellowship and the “Buzz Panel” at BookExpo America. For…

- Grand Prize Winners - Literary All Manner of Beasts by Rowena Leong Singer Rowena Leong Singer is a graduate of the Bennington Writing Seminars, where she was awarded the Barry Hannah Merit Scholarship in Fiction. Her work has been published in the New York Times, Narrative Magazine, and KQED’s Perspectives. She has also received an honorable mention in the Glimmer Train Short Story Award for New Writers. In addition, she has been accepted into select workshops and conferences including the Sewanee Writers’ Conference; Tin House Summer Workshop; Hedgebrook Master Class; Community of Writers; ZYZZYVA Writers’ Workshop; and Rooted & Written, a workshop for writers of color, co-sponsored by the Writers Grotto. Her debut novel, All Manner of Beasts, is a historical fiction set in Japanese-occupied Philippines during WWII. Ten hours after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Japanese troops invade Manila, where a young Chinese couple, Grace and Deming, await the…

- Winner - Under Color of Law by Aaron Philip Clark Photo Credit: Stanley Wu Aaron Philip Clark is a novelist and screenwriter from Los Angeles. In addition to his writing career, he has worked in the film industry and in law enforcement. Under Color of Law (Thomas & Mercer) is his fourth novel. For more information, visit www.aaronphilipclark.com. - Runners-Up - Brown Skin Girl: An Indian-American Woman's Magical Journey from Broken to Beautiful by Mytrae Melanie Mytrae Meliana (pronounced “My-thray-yee”) is a women's empowerment and spiritual teacher, holistic psychotherapist, speaker, and author. She leads workshops empowering women to heal from trauma, find their voice, power, and passion, and connect with the Divine Feminine so they live true, empowered, and inspired lives. Connect with her at www.mytrae.com. Formerly Fingerman by Joe Nelms Joe is the author of the novels Formerly Fingerman and The Last Time I Died (both Simon &…

- Grand Prize Winners - Literary Vermilion by Vimi Bajaj Vimi Bajaj is a writer and physician based in Chicago. A graduate of The Bennington Writing Seminars, she writes about the various ways that misogyny and patriarchal mindsets are embedded within the Indian culture. Her work has been published in The Writer’s Chronicle, The Asian American Literary Review, The Doctor T.J. Eckleburg Review, Panorama, the Journal of Intelligent Travel, and The Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology 2016. In addition, her short story, Nadine, is forthcoming as an Audible Original. Her novel, Vermilion is a work of international literary fiction and takes place in modern day India, at a time when violence against women has reached critical mass. Ranging from the newsrooms of the New India to the ‘whiskey parties’ of the Delhi elite and the tea-stall conversations of the urban poor, Vermilion is an exploration of an India where even the poor have cell phones and internet access, where village rituals coincide with cable…

- Winner - This is How I Save My Life: From California to India, a True Story of Finding Everything When You are Willing to Try Anything by Amy B. Scher Amy B. Scher is an award-winning and bestselling author. She’s been featured in Washington Post, Cosmopolitan, CNN, CBS, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The Rumpus and more. Scher was also named one of Advocate’s “40 Under 40.” Amy’s books have been translated into thirteen languages and endorsed by notable authors such as Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love); Vikas Swarup (Slumdog Millionaire); and Sanjiv Chopra, MD, MACP, Harvard Medical School and (Brotherhood with Deepak Chopra). With a background in both publishing and marketing, Amy has been recognized for her unique ability to bridge the gap between the craft of writing and the business of being an author. She is proud to serve on the associate board for Literacy Partners…

– Grand Prize Winner – Memphis by Tara Stringfellow Former attorney, Northwestern University MFA graduate, and Pushcart Prize nominee Tara Stringfellow's debut novel Memphis is a multi-generational novel based on the author's rich Civil Rights history. Tracing the effects of violence on the family after the family patriarch, the first black homicide detective in Memphis, is lynched by the members of his own squad, the novel is a celebration of the bonds of family and the strength of matriarchy. Dial Press, an imprint of Penguin Random House, acquired the book at auction by Soumeya Bendimerad Roberts at HG Literary, with UK rights to John Murray Press. The novel is scheduled for a Spring 2021 release. Third World Press published her first collection of poetry entitled More than Dancing in 2008. Nominated for two Pushcart Prizes, her poems have appeared, or are forthcoming, in Collective Unrest, Best Emerging Poets of Illinois, Best of the…