The Body Reader wins!

I’ve been at this writing thing for over thirty years. For the most part I’ve toiled in obscurity, keeping my head down while simply hoping my stories entertain people for a few hours. And yet…there’s always the dream that the next one will be THE book—the breakout everybody talks about.  I suspect that’s what keeps a lot of us going. The compelling hope for a hit and recognition. I’m here. This is my life’s work. Did it touch you in some way?  Am I still learning and still growing?  Is every book better than the last? These are the things I strive for.

When I got the news that The Body Reader was a finalist for Best Original Paperback, I was thrilled, but imposter syndrome soon kicked in and I told myself no chance in hell would I win.  But I was happy to make it that far, happy to be recognized. I know everybody says that, but in my case it was true! And I knew finalist was as far as this would go. But my publishing house talked me into traveling to  NYC for the International Thriller Writers Conference, and editors took me and my daughter to a broadway musical. THIS IS NOT NORMAL!  I’ve written for almost every publishing house in NYC, and THIS IS NOT NORMAL.

Photo by Anne Frasier, taken from Roosevelt Island

And then the banquet came along and the really weird stuff happened.

The Body Reader won Best Original Paperback.

I’m not kidding!

I want give a big and humble thanks to International Thriller Writers for the award and recognition, and a big thanks to Amazon Publishing for giving writers freedom and control over their own material. I’ve been with the Amazon imprint Thomas & Mercer for several years, and have worked with many wonderful people. Never once in all that time has anybody told me what to write or how to write it. That’s rare, and that’s empowering.