ACFW Book Of The Year Winners!

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The ACFW Book Of The Year Winners and finalists were announced at the banquet at the conference last Saturday night!

2008 Book of the Year Winners

Debut Author

1.Sushi for One? (Camy Tang) – Zondervan, Sue Brower – Editor
2.Bayou Justice (Robin Miller writing as Robin Caroll)
3.In Between (Jenny B. Jones)

Contemporary Novella

1.Finally Home (Deborah Raney) – Barbour Publishing, Susan Downs – Editor
2.Moonlight & Mistletoe (Carrie Turansky)
3.Remaking of Moe McKenna (Gloria Clover)

Historical Novella

1.Love Notes in Love Letters Anthology (Mary Davis) – Barbour Publishing, Rebecca Germany – Editor
2.Beyond the Memories (DiAnn Mills)
3.The Spinster & The Tycoon (Vickie McDonough)

Lits

1.Splitting Harriet (Tamara Leigh) – Multnomah Books, Julee Schwarzburg – Editor
2.Sushi for One? (Camy Tang)
3.One Little Secret (Allison Bottke) & The Book of Jane (Anne Dayton & May Vanderbilt)

Long Contemporary

1.Within This Circle (Deborah Raney) – Steeple Hill Books, Krista Stroever – Editor
2.Like Always (Robert Elmer)
3.Autumn Blue (Karen Harter)

Long Historical

1. Veil of Fire (Marlo Schalesky) RiverOak, editors Jeff Dunn/Jon Woodhams
Where Willows Grow (Kim Vogel Sawyer) Bethany House, editor Charlene Patterson
2. Fancy Pants (Cathy Marie Hake) & Then Came Hope (Louise Gouge)
3. Courting Trouble (Deeanne Gist)

Mystery

1.Your Chariot Awaits (Lorena McCourtney) – Thomas Nelson, Amanda Bostic – Editor
2.Death of a Garage Sale Newbie (Sharon Dunn)
3.Sticks And Stones (Susan Meissner)

Short Contemporary

1.The Heart of Grace (Linda Goodnight) – Steeple Hill Love Inspired, Allison Lyons – Editor
2.Heart of the Family (Margaret Daley)
3.Wedded Bliss (Kathleen Y’Barbo)

Short Contemporary Suspense

1.Caught Redhanded (Gayle Roper) – Steeple Hill Love Inspired Suspense, Krista Stroever – Editor
2.Pursuit of Justice (Pamela Tracy)
3.Nowhere to Hide (Debby Giusti) & Her Christmas Protector (Terri Reed)

Short Historical

1. Canteen Dreams (Cara Putman) & Golden Days (Mary Connealy)
–Barbour/Heartsong Presents, JoAnne Simmons – Editor
– Barbour/Heartsong Presents, JoAnne Simmons – Editor
2.A Wealth Beyond Riches (Vickie McDonough)
3.A Time to Keep (Kelly Eileen Hake)

Speculative

1.The Restorer’s Son (Sharon Hinck) – NavPress, Reagan Reed – Editor
2.Demon: A Memoir (Tosca Lee)
3.DragonFire (Donita Paul)

Suspense

1.Black Ice (Linda Hall) – WaterBrook Press, Traci DePree – Editor
2.Coral Moon (Brandilyn Collins)
3.Abomination (Colleen Coble)

Women’s Fiction

1.Remember to Forget (Deborah Raney) – Howard Books/Simon & Schuster, Philis Boultinghouse – Editor
2.Watercolored Pearls (Stacy Hawkins Adams)
3.A Promise To Remember (Kathryn Cushman)

Young Adult

1.In Between (Jenny B. Jones) — NavPress, Jamie Chavez – Editor
2.Sara Jane: Liberty’s Torch (Eleanor Clark)
3.Saving Sailor (Renee Riva)

ACFW Conference Pics!

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I know I was supposed to blog about the conference, but, time got away from me and I was too tired! I did manage to drag my camera out on Saturday to take some pics! So…enjoy! 🙂 Me, signing books at the Mall of America booksigning!


The Mall Of America! Wow, this place is HUGE!! An amusement park is inside the mall!
During the signing, there was a running movie of all the writers participating in the signing, as well as their books, featured on a large screen! Don’t we look great?
James Scott Bell signing his tune!
Author and editor Karen Ball, James Scott Bell, and Brandilyn Collins answering questions during one of the many panels featured during the Mall Of America signing!
Angela Hunt, Karen Ball, James Scott Bell and Brandilyn Collins.
Me, signing John’s Quest!
Author Sharon Ewell Foster is in the middle and Janice Thompson is on the right. Can’t recall who’s on the left! You’re welcome to fill in the blank if you’d like!



Wow! Me, on the big screen! 🙂
Camy Tang, Trish Perry, and Rene Gutteridge!
Amusement park in the Mall Of America! Doesn’t it look fun?


ACFW Awards ceremony Saturday night! I’ll be sure to post the winners on another blog entry!

Me, dressed up for dinner!

Too Tired To Blog

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I’ve literally been on the go, and running around since I got here yesterday! I went to bed late last night and was up early this morning.

I went to the Mall of America for a Barbour Publisher event! That place is huge! There’s an amusement park right in the building!

So far, I’m having a great time! I’ll post some of my thoughts about the conference within the next day or so.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Book Blogger Appreciation Week!

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I’d like to remind everyone to continue to pray for the victims of Hurricane Ike.

Also, I’m going to be interviewed TOMORROW on my friend, Lena Nelson Dooley’s blog. Feel free to leave a comment and I’ll also be giving away a copy of my novel, John’s Quest.

Also, this week is Book Blogger Appreciation Week. There are going to be giveaways all week on Amy’s blog! Pop on over to see if you’re interested in the prizes. I’ll be giving away another copy of my novel, John’s Quest.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

My First Sale Story – Part One

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I just want to remind everybody reading this post to keep all the victims of Hurricane Ike in your prayers. I was watching CNN yesterday since they were focusing on the storm.

With my leaving for the ACFW Conference in a few days, I thought I’d blog about how important it is to attend writers’ conferences, especially if you’re seeking publication.

When I first started writing back in the mid-nineties, I joined an organization called Romance Writers of America. They had a conference every year. Each year I would attend and meet with various editors, pitching my stories, hoping I could make a sale. When I initially started writing, the Christian fiction market was just starting to thrive. I found out more about the genre through the Faith Hope and Love Chapter of Romance Writers of America.

Once I joined this chapter, I discovered more about the inspirational market. My initial novels were secular stories, since I was not aware of an inspirational market at first. I sent a few of my chapters away to a paid editorial service and when I got my edits back the editor made the following comment about my writing: is this supposed to be an inspirational?

So I researched the genre, checked out some novels published by Multnomah from the library, and began to focus on the Christian market. I felt that this was the genre that I wanted to focus on since I loved reading the stories! I also joined the Heartsong Presents bookclub. I submitted to Barbour several times for their Heartsong Presents line. I met editor and Heartsong author Tracie Peterson at a Romance Writers of America conference. This contact proved to be crucial in establishing my first sale.

I’ll continue talking about it in a later post!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

My Love Of Books!

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I grew up in the seventies and eighties. During that time, I went through elementary, junior high (we called it middle school), and high school and college! Of all the wonderful memories that stick in my mind during this period of time, the one that really stands out is my reading a book. Books have always been a huge part of my life. I recall reading everything from Nancy Drew to Laura Ingalls Wilder. When I reached my high school years in the early eighties, I discovered romance novels and I read them voraciously. At the time, there was not a whole lot of Christian fiction out there, but I read whatever novels I could find.

Every two weeks, the bookmobile would pull into our neighborhood and the driver would honk the horn, signaling it was time to get more books to read. I guess my love of fiction was kind of a sign that I wanted to be a writer, although I didn’t realize it at the time!

Are there any books that impacted you as a youth/child? If so, what books were your favorites when you were a youngster?

When I was in college in the late eighties, my freshman English teacher said that he felt that I could write well, and he tried to get me to change my major from Finance to English.

Needless to say, I didn’t listen to him. But I wish I had.

I’ll continue to post about how I came to discover the joy of writing in future blog posts.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

The Greatest Find

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The Greatest Find by Paige Winship Dooly
H S #807
Publisher: Heartsong Presents
ISBN: 9781602600584
Binding: Mass Market
Pages: 176 pages
From Heartsong Presents website:
Tabitha will not quit. Tabitha Augustine and her famous archaeologist father are on the verge of their greatest find. As they compete to discover the first dinosaur fossil in Utah, Tabitha is determined to win. But sabotages and threats quickly
send many contestants packing-including her father. Refusing to quit, Tabitha keeps digging. Will her stubbornness cause her to dig her own grave? Hunter Pierce loves history and adventure. His maverick ways infuriate Tabitha, but he soon becomes a friend and safe haven amid mysterious attacks. After promising Dr. Augustine he would protect the man’s daughter, Hunter realizes something else needs protected-his own heart. As Tabitha and Hunter join forces, will they discover who is behind the attacks? And will Hunter’s faith provide the peace and security Tabitha craves, even though it defies all her scientific knowledge?
==
This book had a great, unusual setting: an archeological dig for dinosaur bones. I really enjoyed reading about the process of digging in the earth, looking for fossils. Tabitha was raised by her scientific, atheist father. She doesn’t know if she believes in God or not, and when she meets Hunter Pierce, he shares his faith with her.
Hunter fights his attraction to Tabitha because he knows there is no hope for them if Tab has not accepted Christ as her Savior.
While both Hunter and Tab dig for bones, Tab, as well as other diggers, find that their lives are threatened, and several diggers abandon the camp, including Tab’s father.
Hunter convinces Tabitha that they need to join forces in order to find the first dinosaur bone. However, when Tab is hurt, Hunter wants her to abandon the search. But Tab is stubborn, refusing to give up, in spite of the threats made against her life.
I’m sure readers will enjoy this lightly suspenseful and entertaining story.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

The Rest Of The Winners!

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Here are the rest of the winners for my August book giveaway:

Murder, Mayhem, and A Fine Man – Maurice M. Gray Jr.of Wilmington, DE
The Heartsong Presents Mysteries – Sarah Wollman of Mountain Lake, MN
Unlikely Hero – Carla Pullum of Palmdale, CA
Six Heartsong Presents titles – Amy Lin of Philadelphia, PA
Catching Katie – Lia Bobberson of Rochester, NY

Also, I’ve mailed the books out today, so the winners should be receiving them within the next week or so!

I’m toying with the idea of doing a series of posts about my journey to becoming a published author! I’d do the posts intermittently between my book reviews and book giveaways. Somebody was asking me about how I got started writing and why I wanted to become a published author in the first place. The question spurred this idea!

~Cecelia Dowdy~