2024 Book Award Finalists

Though Deborah L. King has been a writer and storyteller her whole life, publishing her first short story at seven years old, she took 32 years to complete her first novel. As a fiction writer, Deborah loves the work of Octavia Butler, classic Stephen King, Peter David, and the illustrations of Dan

Ken DeStefano is an attorney living in New York, who is also a domestic adoptee that was born in the late 1960's. He was raised in a caring and loving home. As an adoptee, he has had a largely happy life, but always wondered about the unknown. That curiosity led to a search for his own birth mother

C.T. Clark is a high school teacher turned author who is following the advice he’s long given his students: “Dream, learn, grind, do.” Having already penned an award-winning Amazon Studios screenplay, The Phoenix Elite: Sacred Blood is a passion project ten years in the making and his debut novel. C

Angela is a music enthusiast, her playlist jumping from country to coffee house with 80s and 90s nostalgia sprinkled in between. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, listening to an audiobook, or binge-watching a series with her husband, Roman. Intrigued by the ocean, she loves the full moon and

Jon Tucker married the girl next door and began building their home - a traditional ketch - while they were still teenagers in New Zealand. Their subsequent live-aboard lifestyle interspersed teaching with voyaging for over three decades. With their five lively sons on Correspondence education, they

Miranda Levi is a multi-talented author with a passion for captivating storytelling and a knack for infusing humor into darker themes. Her writing is known for captivating readers with her evocative storytelling and lyrical prose and transporting readers into other worlds and perspectives. With a

GL Franklyn boasts a long history in communications dating back to the late 1960s. Born in Detroit Michigan, he now lives in Portland Oregon and has been an activist for LGBTQ+ communities, Public Access Television and homelessness advocacy for over 35 years. Now retired GL Franklyn wrote that book

Southern. Sassy. Tattooed. Beach bum.

Heather S. Lonczak holds a PhD in educational psychology and a master's degree in clinical psychology. She completed her MA practicum at Western Psychiatric Institute and was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the Department of Psychology at the University of Washington. She has extensive

Victor De Almeida, a Spanish-born author of Angolan descent has called the UK home since the age of seven. From the diverse tapestry of his heritage to the bustling streets of London, Victor's journey is a testament to his unwavering determination and creative spirit. Inspired by J.K. Rowling, he

J. Steven Butler is a Christian romance and general fantasy author that resides in Warner Robins, GA with his wife, son, and furry adoptee.

Lowell E. Baier’s intellectual curiosity during his 60-year career has taken him from a practicing attorney, to an entrepreneur, a tireless advocate for natural resources and wildlife conservation, and a legal and environmental historian and author. Baier received his B.A. in economics and political

C.J. Kichuk has enjoyed careers in radio, music composition and performance, software development, and management consulting. Living in Austin, Texas, when not working on writing stories he can often be found in his home studio writing and recording music. In his first novel, Bits, he delivers a

Daniel grew up working for his father riding in a Studebaker pick-up truck around the state, servicing refrigeration units in tourist courts and small country stores. Years later after leaving the touring concert world as chief sound engineer for an eclectic range of musical artists, he traveled

Sharon Bazant is a retired teacher living in the Fraser Valley near Vancouver, Canada. Geckos & Guns: The Pakistan Years is her second memoir. Sharon has donned a variety of personal and professional hats as a seasoned world traveller and long-term expatriate. Some of her greatest adventures

Born in New York, and raised in Toronto, Jill Culiner, writer, social critical artist, and photographer has spent most of her life in France, England, Germany, Hungary, Turkey, Holland, and North Africa. Her photographic exhibition about the First and Second World Wars, La Mémoire Effacée, toured

Lubna Samara, BSc, MBA, is a Leadership Coach and Healer, and founder of HigherWill, an award-winning leadership and coaching company. Drawing on over 25 years of experience, Lubna’s globally sought-after talks and courses make holistic wellbeing accessible to all in the workplace, helping

Author of "The Private Misadventures of Nell Nobody," and "On Wounds of Woe," Jennifer Newbold came to fiction writing from a historical perspective, with a belief that history can be immediate and relevant, and that fiction can be a means to making history accessible. But fiction can do so much

Nala Henkel-Aislinn has always loved reading. Her heart exploded when she got her first library card and found out she could take home more as many books as she could carry. Her first love was "Encyclopedia Brown," and now she writes funny, quirky mysteries for anyone who loves unconventional

Jacqueline (Jackie) Lambert is an award-winning travel writer, adventure traveller, and dogmother, who loves history and curious facts. BC (Before Canines) she rafted, rock-climbed, and backpacked around six of the seven continents. A passionate windsurfer and skier, she can fly a plane, has been

E.T. Gunnarsson translates imagination into words for a living. E.T. Gunnarsson's debut book, Forgive Us, received the accolades for Best Sci-Fi Book at the 2021 San Francisco Book Festival and Best Post-Apocalyptic Book at the 2021 Fiction Awards. Born and raised in the Rocky Mountains (9,000 feet

Christine Elmer Collins holds a rich 30-year background in nursing and healthcare management and has served with distinction in both the United States Air Force and United States Public Health Service, Commissioned Corps. Her career highlights include critical care nursing during the Afghanistan War

Susan D. Steiner began writing novels at the tender age of 69 after moving to Zurich, Switzerland from Denver, Colorado. The move–a romantic one–heralded a new way of life. Susan's murder mystery series, beginning with Murder by Manuscript and followed by Lethal Lockdown (with a third book now

Wheston Chancellor Grove holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College, VT. He also earned an MSW. He is the author of Who Has Known Heights, a bildungsroman (2017), and The Lost Art of Love (2023), available on Amazon. The Lost Art of Love is a 2024 Indie Book Awards Finalist. His short

I was born in India of Anglo-Indian/Eurasian parents, residing in old colonial railway colonies. We lived a charmed but borrowed European lifestyle, attending catholic convents, far from home and being taught by Belgian and Irish nuns. I escaped my early cloistered life through my parent's

I've been told I have grit. Actually that came from my editor after he read my memoir manuscript. I never thought of it that way. I just kept getting back up and trying again. That perhaps explains how I, being raised fatherless by a Hispanic mother in public housing projects, and being evicted 7 or

Simone Heng is a human connection specialist and former international broadcaster for Virgin Radio Dubai, HBO Asia, and CNBC, among others. She is an accredited certified speaking professional. With over 20 years of experience around the world as a communicator on-air, on stage, and one-on-one

Book is published under my pseudonym, Rose Carmichael. Rose Carmichael is a linguist, writer and journalist. Rose grew up in the countryside in Cambridgeshire, before moving to Dubai, Tehran and then eventually, London. After graduating from the University of Cambridge, where she studied Middle

A Welsh poet and author from the Rhondda Valleys, Philip M John graduated from the University of South Wales in 2014 before working and living across the border in Bristol. He has since returned to Wales and now resides in Monmouthshire. Philip has published four volumes of poetry – Home Truths

Steve Schafer is the author of The Border, a finalist for the Joan F. Kaywell “Books Save Lives” Award. Schafer enjoys exploring cultural hot topics. In the The Border, he addresses our conversation around immigration. In his new novel, eMortal, he examines the tricky questions and nebulous ethics

Mark Sabbas was raised in Katonah, New York, and has always felt drawn to the transcendent, receiving his degree in philosophy from Bucknell University with an interest in metaphysics. Mark writes about the intersection of science and spirituality on his website, nothingtodoubt.org. He also mentors

Marcia Armandi is the multi-award-winning author of The Ghosts of Lewis Manor and The Haunting of Blackwater with two additional novels under contract for publication in 2024. She was born and raised in Argentina. She is a soccer fanatic and loves listening to tango. Marcia studied International

Refe Tuma is the author of middle grade historical fantasy books Frances and the Monster and Frances and the Werewolves of the Black Forest, a finalist for the 2023 Bram Stoker Awards®. He’s also the co-creator of the best-selling and award-winning What the Dinosaurs Did picture book series

Michele Grant is a seasoned Executive Business Consultant with over 20 years of experience delivering successful results for Fortune 500 firms in diverse sectors. Her expertise in program leadership and value creation has benefited clients like Bertelsmann, Coach, AT&T Subsidiaries, VIACOM, CBS

Meg Kramer is an expert at writing in odd places. She penned her debut novel, Amoura Awakened, in the lobbies of her daughter’s many after-school activities and appointments and in her car outside her local bookshop. Meg spent ten years working as an elementary educator, inspiring kids to explore

Leslie Kain writes “Psychological Fiction With Heart”, about flawed people whose greatest barriers to happiness lie within them. Leslie was always writing something as a kid — fantasies, poems, secret plans, culminating in running away cross-country at fifteen, never looking back. Her careers in

Biography Kase Johnstun lives and writes in Ogden, Utah. Johnstun is the Manager for the Utah Center for the Book and Utah’s Representative to the Library of Congress. He is the author of the acclaimed novel, LET THE WILD GRASSES GROW (Torrey House Press, 2021), a reimaging of his Mexican American

Hi! I wrote THE DARKNESS after a confrontation with the serial rapist who raped me. I showed up at the county jail where he was being held after my case ended in a mistrial. After continued frustrations of waiting for the legal system to bring justice, I went to the jail, where he was held (parole

MARY BEHAN was formerly a professor of neuroscience. Now retired she devotes her time to writing fiction, memoir and short stories. Her first book, Abbey Girls, is a memoir she wrote with her sister about their childhood in Ireland. Her first novel, A Measured Thread, set in Wisconsin and Ireland

Jay McKenzie is the author of Mim and Wiggy’s Grand Adventure (Serenade Publishing, 2023). Her work has appeared at or is forthcoming in adda, Unleash, Bath Flash Fiction Anthology, Flash Fiction Magazine, The Ulu Review, Reverie and other publications. Winner of the Exeter Story Prize and numerous

Lindsey is an award-winning author from Southwest Missouri, where she lives with her husband and daughter in the beautiful Ozarks. Although she enjoys writing for all ages, Lindsey believes children's books contain a special kind of magic. She has published two picture books, Blossom's Wish and STOP

By day, Chloe is a Physician Associate in a busy GP Practice in London. By evening, Chloe can be found crafting thoughts and weaving stories. 'Good Practice: Confessions of a physician associate student' is Chloe's debut self published memoir.

Born in England, breaking into serious novel writing wasn’t something I began in earnest until taking early retirement after selling my business. Two decades of writing non-fiction, graphic design, magazine publication and organic skincare manufacturing, finally led me to my dream job. Writing

This immersive, multi-genre writer does not shy away from diversity of thought but rather embraces the creative challenge it sets forth. Included in Murphy's portfolio is her multi-genre work of fiction, 'Speaking Of'; a novel – 'The Emerald Diaries-Secrets of an Irish Clan'; Sweet Peas and Bees -

Thomas Henry Pope gives the landscapes in his novels as much agency to influence events as he does to his characters. His narrative style draws on his passions of journalism, theater, songwriting and teaching. And his world travels provide grist for his characters and stories. His debut novel

Jeremy Bending spent his life as a hospital doctor and consultant physician. During that time he continued to write fiction and short stories, some of which were brought together in his book 'A Listening Doctor', published by Quartet Books London in 2018. After hanging up his stethoscope, he

Lizann Lightfoot is an experienced writer, editor, and speaker for the military community. After two decades with her Marine—which included seven deployments, six PCS moves, five children, and three years overseas—she specializes in sharing resources and encouragement with families through the many

This immersive, multi-genre writer does not shy away from diversity of thought but rather embraces the creative challenge it sets forth. Included in Murphy's portfolio is her multi-genre work of fiction, 'Speaking Of'; a novel – 'The Emerald Diaries-Secrets of an Irish Clan'; Sweet Peas and Bees -

When Ellis isn’t moonlighting as a coffee aficionada, you might find her adventuring through Transylvania, doing photoshoots in Old Town Bucharest, or otherwise trying to talk her husband into moving to Eastern Europe. She’s a lover of history with a penchant for World War II and the Cold War, and

Annette Kane was a painter for many years, with representation in London, Amsterdam and New York. A book about her work, Being Bold in Watercolour, was released in 2006. She has also worked as a signwriter, screen printer, teacher, Humanist celebrant and Citizens Advice adviser. She now writes