Winning An Award for My Writing by Joan Donaldson-Yarmey

 

https://books2read.com/The-Art-of-Growing-Older

It makes a writer happy to have their novel, short story, non-fiction book, poem, children’s book, or any other form of writing acknowledged by readers and peers either in person or by way of a review. And it is an honour for a writer to win a contest for something they’ve written or to have their writing chosen for an award. In the past, I won a flash fiction contest put on by the now-defunct Ascent Aspirations Magazine and was given a cheque for one hundred dollars. At the time I wasn’t sure enough of myself to say I was an award winning author. But now I can claim that title.

Below is a letter I received by email from the CEO and Founder of the International Impact Book Awards, where I had entered my non-fiction book The Art of Growing Older: It’s Not Age, It’s Attitude and Ability in the Aging Category. I received the email just before Christmas and it was a great present. It will also keep me going for many years knowing that one of my works was considered good enough to win an award.

 

Dear Joan,

I am delighted to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you for being selected as a winner at the International Impact Book Awards! Your exceptional talent, dedication, and creativity have set you apart in a competitive field, and it is an honor to recognize your remarkable achievement.

This award is a testament to the impact your work has made in the literary world. Your story, your voice, and your commitment to excellence have resonated with readers and judges alike, and we are proud to celebrate your success. Winning this award is not just a moment of recognition but a significant milestone in your journey as an author—a reflection of the countless hours, passion, and perseverance you’ve invested in your craft.

To honor your achievement, we are hosting the International Impact Book Awards Gala on February 23, 2025, at the Courtyard Phoenix Downtown. This prestigious event is designed to celebrate you in person as part of a vibrant community of distinguished authors, publishers, media professionals, and industry leaders.

Attending the gala offers you the unique opportunity to step onto the stage and receive your award in person, surrounded by peers who share your passion for storytelling. More than just a celebration, the event is an invaluable chance to connect with media professionals, offering the possibility of gaining additional media coverage and further promoting your book. Networking sessions, keynote speakers, and an elegant dinner will create an atmosphere where meaningful connections and collaborations can flourish.

We would love for you to join us in celebrating your success at the gala. If you are unable to attend the in-person ceremony, we still want you to have a tangible reminder of your achievement. You can order your award trophy and emblem to be shipped directly to your address.

Enclosed, you will find your certificate and digital emblem as a symbol of this significant milestone. We will be promoting your book on our social media and winners page to be featured on our website on December 23rd, so be sure to check back for updates.

Your success is truly remarkable, and we are honored to have your work as part of our award-winning collection. Whether in person or from afar, we look forward to celebrating your achievement and supporting you as you continue to make an impact in the literary world.

Once again, congratulations on this well-deserved recognition. We are excited to celebrate with you and to help you seize the opportunities that come with this prestigious award.

Warm regards,

Nim Stant

CEO and Founder
International Impact Book Awards 
www.internationalimpactbookawards.com

 

Horses...again

 It's not that my main character, Doug Fletcher, hates horses. He has a healthy respect for horses and approaches them cautiously. When the director of the National Park Service Investigative Services Branch suggests that Doug and his partner, Jill, use horses on their new assignment, he balks. 

The assignment is to locate skeletal remains in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, outside of Medora, North Dakota. The challenge presented by the assignment includes not knowing exactly where the remains are located in the park's 110 square miles. Their boss suggests riding horses as a means to cover more ground.

Doug is loaned a docile horse and over the course of the investigation, Doug and Joker bond. At least to a degree. That bond is tested when Doug fires his pistol while atop the horse. I won't expand other than to say Joker hasn't heard a gunshot before...

With the help of my horse and cop consultant, Deanna Wilson, I have Doug and Jill exploring the vast expanse of the park on horseback. As often happens in the Fletcher mysteries, the original assignment morphs into something entirely different when a woman and her daughter are kidnapped from a nearby campsite. Because of the vast area involved, Doug and Jill get assistance from the National Guard in their search for the kidnap victims.

This was a particularly fun book to write because the landscape, weather, mysteries, and characters revealed themselves to me, taking me far outside the scope of my original plot outline. I rode along with Doug and Jill as they explored the expanse of the park's south unit. I was concerned about the kidnapped woman and teen as we tried to identify the kidnapper and where he had taken them. I hiked the hills with my protagonists and National Guardsmen as they searched the remote portions of the park. I sat inside a camper as it was buffeted by a thunderstorm and was pelted by hail. And I snuck through the timber as Doug and Jill tried to find a remote campsite, with my heart pounded as we approached the conclusion.

I won't share any more of the plot other than to say I think it's one of the most gripping stories I've ever written.

Check it out this coming February on Amazon and the usual sales outlets.

Hovey, Dean Doug Fletcher series - BWL Publishing Inc.

GOTTA have them Reviews.... By JD Shipton

 

I know I've been harping on the lot of you this past month about this, but I'd really like to drive home how incredibly important it is if you want to sell books in today's online marketplace.  Writing, covering, and editing a good piece are really half the battle if you can't make it rise above the flood tide of books pouring onto the market each and every day.  

Barnes and Noble themselves admit that the more reviews you have on your book, the more "discoverable" it's going to be on their algorithm.  Can we all admit to ourselves that we've all been shopping online for something and completely eschew every product- no matter the price point, shipping cost, or practical viability- that is listed without a single review?  Why is that?  Perhaps, herd animals that we are, we subconsciously suspect a scam when there are no others who seem to have gone before us?  

Forte Labs published a cool article here, where they use a bunch of data on book sales to break down the predictive elements.  Essentially the number of reviews has a direct correlation (88%) to the amount of sales, and, get this, the rating of the book has only a 30% correlation! It really doesn't matter how good/bad they are, just that there are as many of them as possible.  

Now, Barnes and Noble is much less fussy than Amazon- they accept reviews from third parties, and as long as you have a Personal Reader Account, you can essentially cut/paste those reviews from wherever, as long as the name of the reviewer (and not your own) is attached.  Amazon, however, will stomp you hard if they find you tried to review your own product, or your sister posts a glowing review where she specifies that she is, in fact, your sister.   

So get out there, my aspiring artists, and do your work justice by garnering as many reviews as you possibly can for each of your hard-written creations, lest they languor on the e-shelf, unappreciated, unread, and unpurchased.

JD

A Love/Hate relationship...by Sheila Claydon

 

Find my books here

I started writing books before the Internet and cell phones! My grandchildren find it difficult to grasp that there was a time when research meant a visit to a library and that people actually wrote letters to one another. And my older books, still in print thanks to a Books We Love retro reprint, do indeed refer to letters and landline phones. Nowadays, however, my characters are very up-to-date, especially in my last book, Many a Moon, where my hero and heroine use the Internet to help solve the mysteries surrounding them.

Having started writing books on a manual typewriter where I had to produce two paper copies, one of which had to be boxed up and sent to a publisher, I am very grateful for modern technology. Computers make everything easier, as does the Internet. I do however have a love/hate relationship with technology...and it's getting worse. Take yesterday as an example. 

THE LOVE - before I got out of bed I grabbed my phone and skimmed the headlines of two separate newspapers before reading the few articles that were of immediate interest. Then my daughter-in-law, who lives in Singapore, called me  on WhatsApp and we had a lovely hour-long chat where she brought me up-to-date with all the family news as well as telling me about her new job and her plans for Chinese New Year. After she finished the call I felt energised and much loved but also in need of breakfast.

Two minutes later, still before I had managed to get in the shower, my daughter started a long texting conversation. It was about some new ideas for her job and was very interesting. Before we finished we had exchanged a number of online links and a video and I had promised to edit anything she sent me. Then, of course, I had to watch the video. That only took a few minutes, just enough time for a granddaughter to get in touch by text with reference to some information I had sent her earlier. I was getting hungrier by the minute!

Then it was a WhatsApp from a friend who had just returned from holiday and wanted to arrange a time to talk. I parked that one, knowing I could reply later, and made for the shower.

THE HATE - later, breakfasted and with a coffee in front of me, I scanned my emails. There was an invoice to pay, quite a big one, but I could do that by phone so it shouldn't take long...except it did thanks to the darker side of technology. What should have taken minutes morphed into almost an hour when the supplier's card payment machine rejected my card. I was at a loss until I received 2 texts from my Bank, the first one warning me that I would shortly receive a second one! The texts were safety precautions of course, but because I know  never to reply directly to a text unless I am sure about it, I was forced to phone my Bank. This meant several minutes of answering  security questions  and then waiting...and waiting...and waiting...until eventually I was transferred to another number where I had to answer even more questions. Throughout I was talking to a Chatbot. Not a real person anywhere to be found. Eventually the account was unfrozen and I was told I could go ahead and pay although not for another 15 minutes!!! So I had another cup of coffee.

Later I logged onto the Internet to order something from a company I regularly use. Despite having had an account for several years, it wouldn't let me in. The inevitable Chatbot told me it didn't recognise my login details despite these not having changed. In desperation I clicked on the 'change my password' suggestion. No email with the reset link arrived, so I tried again...and again...until I outstayed my welcome and was told my account had been frozen for the next 5 hours!! Stupidly I then went across to the website's chatbox to see if it could be sorted out. It took me another 10 minutes of questions and waiting to 'speak by text' to a real person, who after one short communication disappeared for the further 10 minutes I was prepared to waste waiting. Eventually I gave up! Another hour wasted.

Yet back to the love - before the day had ended I had had a very successful Zoom meeting with a colleague, a get-together with friends confirmed, and arrangements made with another granddaughter, all things that would have involved travel, phone calls or letters pre modern technology. So do I love it more than I hate it...it depends on the day!

That In between Feeling by Nancy M Bell

 

To find more of Nancy's books click on the cover above.

Ta Daaahhhh! This is the cover of my latest book which will release in the Spring of 2025. It is set in the Manitoba Legislature building on the night of the Winter Solstice. It's part of the paranormal collection being created by BWL Publishing Inc. 

I had a blast researching this book, there are so many cool things in Manitoba that I could have woven a story around. Lake monsters and UFOs and so much more. But once I found the Legislature building I was hooked. The architect was a Mason and he incorporated that into the features of his creation. Messages in stone, hidden in plain sight. Including the iconic Golden Boy or as the sculptor named him Eternal Youth.

I have hit the doldrums of creation at the moment. I have just finished the tale and sent it off to the publisher for the editor to have his go at it. And now I'm in that pocket that happens when one story has ended but another hasn't yet been born. It's a strange place for an author who always seems to have a company of characters ranging around in her head. Some from older stories who wish their own tale told, some new ones elbowing their way in to the mix. 

But for the period that always comes after I type The End, there is a void of sorts. Almost as if my brain (or more likely my much abused Muse) takes a deep breath and lets it out, releasing the accumulated strain of corralling my characters into the paths I wish them to take in order to bring the story as I envision it to life. You laugh, but often my characters get uppity and take off on tangents of their own leaving me to chase along behind gathering up the consonants and vowels they discard and attempting to catch the news they are launching back at me. 

I suppose I should be grateful for the creative doldrums, and I am in a way. But I'm always waiting for the next cloudy storm of words to appear on the horizon, hoping the winds will blow them my way and pick me up out of the equatorial doldrums where I'm languishing. Picture my Muse down in the captain's cabin stretched out in the berth with a glass of rum, while I'm up on deck scanning the horizons for those clouds with a spyglass pressed to my eye.

Fortunately, the doldrums don't usually last too long. Soon the limp sails of my mind start to shiver in the breeze as a zephyr dances across the calm waters, waking wavelets in its wake. Down below, my Muse sighs, empties the bottle of rum, stretches and saunters up on deck with me to watch the clouds of words gather on the horizon.

Hopefully, it won't be too long before the winds pick up, but for the moment I am going to enjoy my stay here in the becalmed waters. Maybe I'll join my Muse for some of that rum.

Until next month, stay well, stay happy.