You Win Some, You Lose Some!

In a classic case of the tried and true platitude, Good, Clean, Murder did win the Phoenix Rattler Mystery/Suspense category, but did not win a contract from Write Integrity Press. My warmest congratulations to those who did win! You can see the list of winners, and congratulate them here: http://writeintegrity.blogspot.com/

I may sound like a broken record at this point: but I haven't been this nervous since I was waiting to give birth!

Sometime between Monday January 21st and Tuesday January 22nd (when this post goes live) Tracy Ruckman of Write Integrity Press is going to announce the winners of the Books of Hope contest. Write Integrity is on the East Coast, therefore, as I write this it is 2:15 pm on Monday, at the Write Integrity offices, which makes me think the announcement could be ANY MINUTE.

I might not be one of the winners. I really might not. For the first round of the contest, we sent in the beginning of the book, I think two chapters was the maximum. I made the finals, which meant I had to finish the book and send it in.

I mentioned last week that this book was in two contests. The Phoenix Rattler contest was also judged on basically the first chapter. Thing is, I won my category in the at contest! Good, Clean, Murder was the mystery/suspense category winner, and the judges notes I received for it were far better than I had hoped. Lots of 9s and 10s, to be truly honest. (I'm still dizzy thinking about the judges who graded my work.)

But this second round of the Write Integrity contest judges the whole book. Does the plot hold together? Is the supporting cast strong? Do the characters act in a realist manner? Are the stakes high enough?

I will know the answers to all of that soon enough, but until then, I remain your friend, Traci-the-nervous-wreck-Hilton.

BTW: If winners are announced before this blog goes live I will add an addendum to the end of it. If they are announced after this is published, I will let you know the results in the comments.

In the meantime, check out Write Integrity Press's 2013 Books of Joy contest. Do you have  a book in you? Does joy play any part in your story? If so, 2013 could be your year!

Traci Tyne Hilton is an award winning playwright from Portland, Oregon, the author of the Mitzy Neuhaus Mystery Series, and one of the authors in the The Tangle Saga series of science fiction novellas.
Traci earned a degree in History from Portland State University and still lives in the rainiest part of the Pacific Northwest with her husband the mandolin playing funeral director, their two daughters, and their dog, Dr. Watson.
More of Traci's work can be found at http://www.tracihilton.com