Alice Deby, from Melbourne, Australia was highly commended for her writing in the Page Turner Awards. This was announced at a glittering online ceremony, where Paul Michael Glaser, from Starsky and Hutch fame, was a special guest to announce the winners.
The Page Turner Awards, sponsored by ProWritingAid and Campfire, offers authors, writers, and screenwriters the chance to enter the first 10 pages of their writing project, where a judging panel of literary experts and film producers will read the work.
Deby is a mother of one child, a former teacher, a magazine editor and a mental health worker. Her submission, The Finder is about a millennial with faery ancestry who learns she can find anything lost, but powerful gifts bring powerful enemies, and a love she'll fight for to the death.
One night, walking with her on the beach, Deby’s friend lost his watch. There didn’t seem any chance of finding it among all the shadows and ripples of sand. But somehow Alice knew they would, and where to look. She concluded she’d subconsciously noticed when he dropped it, but (naturally) hoped she had a magical ability.
No such ability manifested further, but Deby thought more and more about what it would be like to be able to find anything lost. Of course, anyone who’s heard of yin and yang knows, there’d be a downside to the upside. Powerful gifts bring powerful enemies.
From this idea came Ana Ficklewight, the millennial who learns she can find anything lost. And whose magic draws the attention of murderous faeries. Ana is The Finder.
The Finder has a unique voice for subjects that matter, like diverse sexuality, trauma, and coercive control.
Deby said, “Writers create something from nothing, so of course, it can be overwhelming wondering where to begin. Entering a writing competition is a place to start. For me, the Page Turner Awards gave discipline, adrenaline, and a sense of belonging among people with dreams like mine.”
She added, “I never feel more human, vulnerable and authentically myself than here at my computer, wearing lipstick and fluffy slippers, writing books. Thank you, Page Turner Awards for hearing what I had to say about friendship, love and adventure—which are essential.”
This year aspiring writers walked off the red carpet with life-changing prizes. One new unpublished writer won literary agency representation while a screenwriter won literary management. Another new writer won a publishing deal, seven independent authors won an audiobook production from Spectrum Audiobooks, plus one other won a publishing package (including an edit, book cover and book trailer), and another author won a book adaptation.
The Page Turner Awards winners and Highly Commended writers can be found here:
https://pageturnerawards.com/2021-winners
Submissions for the 2022 Awards will open in January 2022. Find out how you too can enter your writing into The Page Turner Awards: https://pageturnerawards.com.
