Awards are cool

I teach it and I try to live it, but it rain’t always easy. Writing —art in general I suppose, is subjective and hard, full of rejection and heart ache. Any validation of one’s work is welcome and big validation, say, like winning awards from your peers is an absolute wonder. 

At this year’s League of Utah Writers Quills Conference, yours truly won several awards. 

I won two Olive Woolley Burt Awards, the new name for the League of Utah Writers non-published writing contest. I dominated the short fiction category with two wins.

My short story Kintsugi, won a First Honorable Mention. This story renamed to Hardened Scars, will appear in the upcoming anthology STRONG IN BROKEN PLACES, coming this winter. It’s the story of a woman coming to terms with her abusive father.

My short story, The Last Chance won Third Place. This story appears in IF NOT NOW, WHEN? a league chapter anthology released at Quills from the Infinite Monkeys. In this story, a horror or possibly a thriller, an up-and-coming senator meets an old school mate at a midnight cafe called The Last Chance.

In the Novel category of the Quills Contest, which honors published books by league members only, I again did very well. It was a very tight contest this year, with several ties and a crowded slate.

My Tony Flaner mystery novella, THE KNICKKNACK CASE, won a Recommend Read Quill.

MY Tony Flaner mystery novel, IN THE WAKE OF CAPTAIN LORD, won a Silver Quill. I got a trophy for this one.

High honors. I’m humbled and happy beyond giddy.

Rock on Tony! All the tony Flaner mysteries are available now, click the links below. However, THE KNICKKNACK CASE can be had for free by joining my mailing list here.

Interestingly and excitedly, I have to note that all Tony Flaner’s books have now won awards.

THE FINGER TRAP, Diamond Quill, - best book of the year

THICKER THAN WATER, Recommended Read

THE KNICKKNACK CASE, Recommended Read

IN THE WAKE OF CAPTAIN LORD, Silver Quill

Thank you all for your love and support. Help me praise the gods of subjectively and taste by joining me in a happy dance. You can do it from your chair if you want, just your arms and head, or like me, you could circle the room in a tie-dye toga imitating cartoon dogs.