2022 Writing Award Finalists

Before devoting his free time to writing, Matt Guthridge was a psychologist dealing with the complexities of human behaviour. He later worked as an international business consultant, and served as the Chief Strategy Officer for a publicly-listed company in Australia. Whilst he’s authored dozens of

Maria Costanzo Palmer was named as one of L.A. Weekly’s “Top 15 Rising Authors to Watch in 2023.” Her debut book was mentioned in Forbes Magazine in December 2023 as a must-have for the “Entrepreneurial-Spirited People on Your Holiday List.” On the Rocks has won many awards including being named the

Andrea Torrey Balsara is an award-winning children's and young adult author/illustrator and motivational speaker. Her passion is to empower children to think for themselves, to learn about the power and beauty of our diverse human family, and to walk the "Hero's Journey" in real life. Having

I am an Edinburgh based writer. So far unpublished, but with some competition success: The opening of my first historical manuscript, The Girl Who Fled the Picture, was longlisted for the Adventures in Fiction 2018 New Voices competition. My first novel was shortlisted for the Scottish Book Trust

Mikey Jackson is a versatile scriptwriter and novelist from the seaside town of Worthing, near Brighton, United Kingdom. The first ten pages of his novel Disordinary made the final shortlist in the Page Turner Awards 2024. His debut play Cruel was performed at Etcetera Theatre, Camden Town, London

Like Professor Stillman in his novel RETURN TO BAGHDAD, Greg Bayer was a philosophy prof, mostly at St. John’s College, Santa Fe; while he's published many papers in academic journals, RETURN is his first real foray into fiction. Like Stillman, he worked at the U.S. embassy in Baghdad in 2006-7, as

Lois Kennis is a tenacious writer and avid reader who "writes to stir hearts" with a gleam of hope. Kennis is a 2022 Genesis Contest Semifinalist in American Christian Fiction Writers. In 2021, she was a Writing Award Finalist in the Page Turner Awards. Kennis won the American Christian Fiction

After gaining a Creative Writing (Novel) M.A. from Middlesex University in 2017, I completed my first novel manuscript in 2020. During 2022, I completed the Writing a Novel course from Faber Academy. I am currently working on my second novel. Previously, I have had over fifty articles and short

Krista Vellis holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Early Childhood Education. Taking a holistic approach to researching her current manuscript, she studied with a psychic, worked as a catechist aide, and learned to read tarot cards. Her short story, Meant to Be, appeared in

Greetings. My name is Elizabeth Larson, and my pen name is Elise Lowing. I am an aspiring writer who loves a great story. I am particularly interested in writing middle-grade and teen novels, as I feel that is a time in life when they need the most inspiration. I want to write stories that inspire

Victoria is a writer of sapphic thrillers and women's fiction, based in Cambridge, UK. Her novel, 'Darling Girl', won the 2022 'I Am In Print' thriller competition and a place on the Curtis Brown Creative Advanced Crime and Thriller course. She has had a number of flash fiction pieces published

Eira Morgan-Jones is the author of three children’s books, published through the Cornish Book Company. She grew up building dens and skinning her knees in the woods and forests of Hampshire, and is to this day never truly happy unless in sight of trees. This connection to nature, and particularly

Andrew Phillips for "SHOES," "WHISPERS," RIMBOMBO," AND "HOPE OF GLIMMER" I am currently retired from the public education system in North Carolina. My career spans nearly thirty years of teaching early childhood classes, working as a Home/School Coordinator, Arts Coordinator and elementary

Educational background: Screenwriting workshops with: Robert McKee, Gordy Hoffman, Michael Hauge, Viki King, etc. Creative writing classes: University of Colorado at Boulder. Lighthouse Writers, Denver. Queens University of Charlotte, NC. Graduate of The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre

I have some writing experience, having won a couple of national women's magazine short story competitions and been highly-commended in the Writers' Weekend Winchester competition for Fives to Teens fiction. Parenting, a degree in Psychology (which included child development), and working in a

I worked in law enforcement for over 40 years on the local, state and federal level before retiring at the end of 2021. I started writing somewhere in the middle of my career basing some of my stories on actual experiences. My latest forays in the last couple years are more fantasy and imagination

I was born in Africa, but now reside in Perth, Western Australia. I have never been North of the Equator, but that is on my bucket list. After a fall at work where I dislocated my elbow, I started writing a fantasy about an accidental dragon and the man who loves her. I'm having fun writing it

I have been a freelance writer since 1997. My professional career includes working as a marketing copywriter, journalist, feature columnist, ghostwriter, and non-fiction author (Head of Household: Money Management for Single Parents; ABC CLIO/Praeger; 2009). I grew up in Georgia and South Carolina

Hi there! My name is Melina Mondradi, I'm 26 years young, and I've written three books, the second of which has been published. My first two books are autobiographies that I ghost wrote on behalf of corporate clients. My third book is my pride and joy, as I have both written and authored it. This

Steve conveys perspectives and emotions in poems and songs. His draft memoir, Galvanized, tells how he overcame timidity as an air cavalry officer in the Vietnam War. A tuxedo cat from a shelter encourages him from a perch over his PC keyboard. Steve assists disabled veterans in getting government

Author of Pillars of Salt, J.A. Adams has been immersed in various cultures while living on the east, west, and gulf coasts. After completing a Ph.D. and a sixteen-year teaching career in English composition and literature at Louisiana State University, Adams is happily retired in Colorado to a full

Novelist, poet and scriptwriter, Gail Aldwin has been writing for over a decade. Her first two coming-of-age novels were runners-up in the Dorchester Literary Festival Writing Prize 2020 and 2022. Gail was awarded a creative writing PhD in 2018 and still laughs whenever she’s called Doctor Gail. She

I am a lifelong reader and hobby writer. Born to an English, civil-engineering family I started writing as a child when my father was posted to a country without television and only one small library, and I was obliged to entertain myself. A passion for storytelling has never stopped, and I

I am emeritus professor of health services research at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine where I spent 35 years studying and teaching about health care policy, evaluation of services and how to improve them. I have extensive experience of writing non-fiction - research papers

Born in London, Liz grew up in the English Lakes and now lives in Noosa, Australia. Her left-brained analytical ability as a teenager allowed her to successfully gain an Oxford Biochemistry degree but hindered her mid-life ambition of becoming an author - something she is attempting to rectify with

J. C. Michaels is an award winning, critically acclaim novelist published in more than twelve languages. His educational background includes physics and mathematics as well as degrees in music performance and neuroscience. His professional work includes more than a decade as an adventure travel

John Nassari is an award-winning portrait and wedding photographer with notable exhibitions at the National Portrait Gallery and a shortlist for the Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize. He also holds a PhD in Refugee Studies, focusing on personal and family narratives. With a lifelong passion

Andrew Phillips for "SHOES," "WHISPERS," RIMBOMBO," AND "HOPE OF GLIMMER" I am currently retired from the public education system in North Carolina. My career spans nearly thirty years of teaching early childhood classes, working as a Home/School Coordinator, Arts Coordinator and elementary

Andrew Phillips for "SHOES," "WHISPERS," RIMBOMBO," AND "HOPE OF GLIMMER" I am currently retired from the public education system in North Carolina. My career spans nearly thirty years of teaching early childhood classes, working as a Home/School Coordinator, Arts Coordinator and elementary

David Turner is an engineer with an eye toward the future. He spent ten years working on NASA’s mission critical software, including the Artemis missions that will send humans back to the moon. He enjoys home improvement projects, bartending for his friends, and hiking—especially in national parks

Born and raised in County Durham. Growing up with a vivid imagination has gained me access to the creative sector, as I work extensively in the entertainment industry following professional training at the prestigious Bristol Old Vic Theatre School (I'm not an actor, if that's what you're thinking?)

I grew up on a council estate and enjoyed the same parental neglect as everyone around me. This was fine for the most part, but my big brother was effectively my guardian, which was rubbish, because he was a highly manipulative narcissist, hated me, and became a heroin addict when I was thirteen

I read History at Birmingham University as a mature student in the 1980s. My career has included working for the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, RCA Records European Office, a major recording artist's management company in Los Angeles, Q Prime Artist Management in London, Age Concern in Gateshead

I'm a member of the Writers’ League of Texas and RWA who's been mentored by a NY Times bestselling author for many years. I was chosen for the Page Turner Awards 'Writers Awards Longlist' in 2021. I am a Flight Attendant by day and writer by night, where I get to create lives full of thrills

Husband, father, writer, professor, entrepreneur and zenvironmental fish and mangrove farmer, Wayne Christensen embraces the bliss, the blarney, and the baggage. He seeks learning experiences flush with opportunities for success and self-fulfillment.

Following academic books on feminism, art, and Virginia Woolf, I gained a Diploma in Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia/Guardian and am honoured to be shortlisted for prizes, including the Impress and Eyelands prizes. I was mentored by The Literary Consultancy, and Gold Dust. A

Katherine Black was born and raised in Texas but has spent most of her life in England. Her background is in art history. She spent years working for arts charities before leaving it all behind for the glamourous life of a stay-at-home mum. Now that the children are getting older, she's pursuing her

I was born in Manchester to Irish parents, I went to Bristol University and then Oxford where I studied physics and astronomy. I then worked at the BBC, firstly on the technical side as a studio manager and sound engineer, and then later as a journalist and producer in news and documentaries

Annie R McEwen is a career historian. She’s lived in six countries, under every roof from a canvas tent to a Georgian Era manor house, and driven herself to work in everything from a vintage Peugeot to a donkey cart. It's perfectly natural for her to create stories of desperate love and powerful

Born in the UK and currently living in Switzerland, Paul has written four novels, two of which have been published. The other two will probably never again see the light of day, although they have good titles. As a writer, Paul tries to stick to the adage ‘write what you know’, although with the

I teach English (ESL) both at the University of Pittsburgh and through my website: LearnESLPittsburgh.com. Writing has always been important to me. I enjoy creating new lives, then weaving strange but true aspects of our world into my creations. Since my family deals with neurodiversity and mental

I am a Croatian-Australian emerging writer who writes fiction in both English and Japanese, having studied the latter as a foreign language since the age of twelve. I studied a Bachelor of Political Economic and Social Sciences with an additional major in Japanese Studies at the University of Sydney

Sandeep Adnani is the Amazon #1 Bestselling Author of ‘The Codes of the Exiled Rogue’ , ‘The Origin of the Exiled Rogue’ and ‘The Prophecy of the Exiled Rogue’ eBooks. He nurtured this metaphysical and transformational fiction idea for over six years before publishing the first part in July 2019

I was brought up in Herefordshire but I've lived in London for half of my life, working as a history teacher. During my free time I write crime fiction stories which are influenced by current social issues and my working class background. At present I have written two completed, unpublished novels

I have a deep love of New Orleans, Louisiana- of the area and culture- the same area in which I still live and where my book series takes place. Art was always my first passion but I have found writing to be another priceless creative outlet. My background is in Illustration from Savannah College of

​Danielle graduated from Montana State university in 2012 with a degree in Biology. She experimented with several healthcare related jobs after that, including work in tissue recovery and as a lab technician. Currently she is a middle school science teacher and a volunteer Court Appointed Special

Ami Musser was raised in Argentina, Japan, Israel, France, and the United States where she earned a degree in architecture. Ami lives with her family and Belgian Bouvier in Connecticut.

Stevie Turner is a British author of Romantic Suspense, Humour, Paranormal, and Women’s Fiction (family dramas). She won an inter-schools' essay competition at the age of 11, and this gave her encouragement to write further. She has now written 15 novels, 2 screenplays, 6 novellas, 1 memoir, and 18

Born and raised in the mossy backwoods of Washington (a ripe setting for muddy adventures and gothic atmospheres), I've been telling stories about sprites and sasquatch for as long as I can remember. Now having migrated to the warm coast of the Bay Area, I spend my days working in a cozy videogame

I’m a writer in search of an audience. Looking for an agent, a publisher. Oh, and a film producer too. That’d be nice. My flash fiction story, BE WITH YOU AGAIN, was a finalist at the West Atlantic Writing Awards in summer 2021. My screenplay, WOODEN HEART, was a finalist at the London International