Surprise for a Writer

July 13 –
Some days are better than others – for everyone. This is a simple fact of life and everyone knows it. And yesterday fell in the “better than others” category for me.

When my day was almost over yesterday, I opened an e-mail from a name I did not recognize, but the subject line was the title of my first book, Memoirs of a Solo Traveler – My Love Affair with Italy.

My initial thought was that someone had left a comment on my blog, or had read my book and wanted to talk about it. So I opened the e-mail, and was stunned to read the first two lines ~

Dear RPLA Finalist:
Congratulations on your entry making the final cut.

Immediately I knew that the e-mail was from  the Florida Writers Association and that  my book is in the running for an award. I didn’t quite realize the full meaning though until I continued reading the rest of the e-mail.

I had submitted my book  in May along with an application to the Royal Palm Literary Award Competition. Since I had not heard anything yet, I had sort of forgotten about it and assumed that I must not be a finalist. No big shock, especially since this was my first book.

I am still overwhelmed with this news and will have to wait until the Florida Writers Conference Awards ceremony at the end of October to find out the results. I am excited and as they say in Hollywood, it is an honor to even be a finalist.

Being recognized like this for my writing means much more to me than selling a lot of books, although that is always great too. For a new author like me, this is a validation of the quality of my writing. I am very humbled and grateful.

I do have to thank my editor, Almut Metzroth, who was brilliant in her meticulous editing process. And I also owe her a thank you for encouraging me to submit my book to this competition. You are the best, Almut.

Stay tuned for more on this come the end of October. It is wonderful to be a writer!