Whitney Awards: Behind the Scenes

The reading is done, and the ballots are in. I'm writing this the night before the finalists are announced, and by the time you're reading this, we should be within a couple of hours of knowing who the finalists are.

Being part of the awards has been a fascinating and rewarding experience, especially since I was able to part of the growth of the program from early on. Robison Wells, the founder of the awards, bounced the idea off me the day he came up with it (I consider myself lucky to have been in the right place at the right time). I landed on a name for the program that he liked. The second year of the awards I served on the committee, and I've been a judge for three years.

At the first gala, I felt overwhelmed with the potential for the program and where it was headed, and honored that I'd been part of something so amazing. (You can read more on that and my teary reaction HERE.)

Enough people ask about the Whitney Awards that I thought I'd explain a bit about how they work. This post will already be long enough without explaining my personal judging philosophy and process, so those things may have to wait for another post.

I will say, though, that I try hard to judge each book by the same criteria and to judge as objectively as possible, so that even if a particular novel isn't my personal taste, I can still acknowledge whether it is well-crafted and accomplishes what the author set out to do.

Michele Paige Holmes blogged about her job as a Romance judge this year in two posts, HERE and HERE. Read them. They're excellent and insightful . . . and good lessons on writing, too.

How the Whitney Awards Work

For the full list of rules and such, see the site's ABOUT page, but this post should give you the basics.

In essence, the Whitneys aim to recognize the best LDS fiction writers, regardless of genre or market. They're named after Orson F. Whitney, an early apostle who gave an inspiring talk about the arts and literature, saying that one day we'll have "Miltons and Shakespeares of our own." We're seeking to move toward greater and greater excellence, to one day fulfill that prophesy.

For a book to win a Whitney, it goes through three phases:

1) Reader Nomination

To be an official nominee, a book must be nominated by at least 5 people who do not have a financial interest in the book (such as the publisher, the author, etc.). Nominations are accepted throughout the year for books published during that calendar year, so the upcoming awards will honor books published in 2010. Nominations closed on December 31.

(Note: Keep in mind that you can already nominate 2011 titles. Nominations for the current year are open all the time.)

2) Genre Judging

The Whitneys include 7 genre categories: General, Historical, Romance, Mystery/Suspense, Speculative (Sci-Fi/Fantasy), YA General, and YA Speculative (a new category this year). Each genre category has 5 judges assigned to it by the Whitney president and committee. Judges are selected based on their qualifications, and while they are often writers in the field, sometimes they're editors or other industry professionals. Judges read every nominee in their category/categories.

The current Whitney president and committee are not eligible for awards (too bad, really, for current president Josi S. Kilpack, who has won a Whitney in the past but also has two books out this year that could have easily been finalists). Writers serving as judges are eligible for an award; they just can't judge a category in which they're eligible. For example, one year I judged General and Romance when I had a Historical novel eligible.

When they've read all the nominees assigned in their genre, the judges cast a complex ballot online that uses a point system to give each book the fairest rank possible. It's a Condorcet-style ballot, where every book is pitted against every other book in its category.

So instead of just ranking the books a judge liked ("this one is my favorite"), the ballot creates every possible pairing of titles and asks the judges, one pair at a time, to say which book of the two is most deserving of the award. Each vote for a book in any pairing creates a specific weight in that book's favor.

This is where we are right now. The judges' ballots were due yesterday at midnight, January 31. The points have been tallied (using some fancy computer formula that's beyond me).

Now 5 titles in each genre are finalists.

(The list should be up on the Whitney site by noon today.)

3) Academy Votes

Where do we go from here? Once the finalists are announced, the Whitney Academy members will get busy reading them. The Academy is made up of literally hundreds of industry professionals: writers, editors, reviewers, publishers, and so on. The Academy keeps growing. Just the LDStorymakers guild itself has doubled in membership since the inception of the awards four years ago.

Academy members will cast their ballots a week or two before the Whitney Gala, which takes place immediately following the annual LDStorymakers conference. In the past the Academy has had about 2 months to read finalists; this year, the conference and gala will be held a bit later, giving us almost 3 months. Yay!

Voting rules for Academy members are simple: Vote in as many, or as few, genre categories as you wish, provided you have read all of the finalists in any category you're voting in.

In other words, an Academy member could read just the Historical finalists and cast a ballot for only that award. Or a member could read finalists in two or three categories and vote in just those areas. They cannot vote in any category where they haven't read every finalist.

To cast a vote for the two overall awards (Best Novel by a New Author and Best Novel of the Year), the Academy member must read every book eligible for those awards. That means reading several titles to vote for Best Novel by a New Author and reading every single finalist to vote for Best Novel of the Year.

(That's a lot of books, but I did it last year. Barely, but I did it.)

The Whitney Gala

The genre and overall awards are announced at the Whitney Gala, as well as special awards that the committee decides on, given to people who have had big achievements in their work and/or been instrumental in serving LDS writers. Previous award-winners include Orson Scott Card, Gerald Lund, Kerry Blair, Dean Hughes, and Dave Wolverton, among others.

One rule change this year could be fun to see unfold: In the past, one book could win one award. If it won in its genre (say, Speculative) but and also won New Author and Best Novel, it would take just the highest award (Best Novel). The next highest-ranking book in New Author would take that award, and the same with the genre award. Spreading the love, acknowledging more books.

Now, a book can win any award it's eligible for. That means one book could take its genre award as well as Best Novel.

Or we could see a 3-award sweep with 1 book taking its genre award, New Author, and Best Novel. (Wouldn't that be wild?)

I make a point to read widely during the year, especially writers who I know are good at what they do and who have been previous finalists or winners. That way when the finalists are announced, there's a decent chance I've read at least a few of them and don't have 35 books to read in a short span.

Of course, I can't predict every finalist; there are always surprises: underdogs I've never heard of, self-published books that are gems, and so on. It's exciting to see the list each year. I really hope I've made some decent guesses.

After all, I must have read every finalist if I'm going to vote for Best Novel again.

And I plan to.

The Link! The Link!

As promised, I'm posting the link to the annual Funds for Writers essay contest, which I won. (Yippee!)

HERE IS THE LINK. CLICK HERE TO READ MY ESSAY!

I recommend subscribing to the Funds for Writers newsletter and blog. (You can do that from the link above as well.) Both are great resources for writers.

Now I have to decide how to spend the prize money. Hmm . . .

Housekeeping Miscellany

Today is not Word Nerd Wednesday. My sincere apologies.

Instead, a few housekeeping duties:

First, an announcement.

In a wild attempt to meet a major deadline, I'll be absent from blogland, Facebook, Twitter, and pretty much all of the Internet except for some minor e-mail checking here and there for the next couple of weeks.

I hope I survive.

Second, well, another announcement.

On Thursday (that would be tomorrow), September 24, I'll be speaking at The Book Academy, a new writing conference sponsored by Utah Valley University.

Check out their site for more information and how to register HERE. (I'm speaking during the 10:10 breakout workshops. The conference bookstore will have copies of There, Their, They're available for purchase).

Third, I've been horribly remiss in acknowledging two bloggy awards I received some time ago.

Time to rectify the matter.

The first was from Amber Lynae:

The second was from Chas Hathaway:

Aren't those rockin' awesome?! Thanks to both of you! I was sincerely touched by both awards.

The Superior Scribbler Award is to be passed on to bloggers I think are great writers, and the Lemonade Stand goes to bloggers I'm grateful for.

Even though I was majorly negligent in not passing them on when I was awarded them (I plead busyness, forgetfulness, and deadlines . . .), I'm going to cheat by passing them both on in one fell swoop to five bloggers: people I think are both great writers AND whom I'm grateful for.

Frankly, in blog world, those two requirements aren't too tough to find in the same people. I've found tons of great writers and friends I'm grateful for. In fact, there are WAY more than five who have enriched my life in both those ways.

I've given bloggy awards to many friends in the past. This time I'm purposely looking to award bloggers I've "met" relatively recently, ones I'm quite sure I have not awarded something to in the past and who have not received either of these awards (at least to my knowledge) yet:

SHER the Love! Sherrie is not only an incredibly talented musician (remember the music on my book trailer? If not, take a listen HERE), but she's also one of the most real bloggers I know. She just says it like it is. I love that about her. I've had the chance to meet her a few times, and she's just as real and awesome in person as she is on her blog. Check out her music website HERE.

Sarah M. Eden. One of my newer writer buds and easily one of the funniest people I know. I have to be careful not to be drinking anything when I open her e-mails or read her blog, because if I am, there's a good chance I'll be snorting and spewing whatever I'm drinking all over the monitor. Her "I Need Friends Friday" series is nothing short of brilliant and hilarious. Oh, and she's one talented novelist as well. (Plus a very deserving Whitney Award finalist last year. Her next book will be out with Covenant next year. Woot!)

Duck, Duck, Cow. She recently de-lurked on my blog, so I found hers, and then I won a bunch of wowzer-yummy gorgeous cupcakes. How can I not love this woman? Seriously, aside from her serious baking skillz (and obvious skill in picking winners!), she's darn funny, and I love her blog.

Pensievity. While she was living in Brazil, I was fascinated by her life there, which she blogged at The Misplaced Americans. Now she's back in the States with a new blog and a new look, but her writing is still fabulous and insightful. Plus drop-dead funny at times.

Mommy Snark. She's another relatively new bloggy friend but one I've come to really enjoy. Plus, she's an aspiring writer, so, ya know, the kind of person who kinda gets me. Be sure to check her out. (I've discovered her sister recently as well . . . I feel so cool.)

So there you have it. Ladies, consider yourself awarded twice over.

See you all on the flip side of my bloggy break!

I really hope it won't take me too long to reach this deadline. If it does, I'll go through some serious Internet withdrawals, and it won't be pretty. (Picture me shaking with DTs as I click on "mark all as read" on my Google Reader . . .)

Some People Like Me!

Two posts in the last two days have put smiles on my face. The most recent was from long-time friend Tristi Pinkston, whom I'm known for five or six years now. She's a riot, and I love being around her and even getting the occasional e-mails along the lines of, "Is this sentence using lay/lie right?" or "What about this comma?" 

When my grammar book, There, Their, They're: A No-Tears Guide to Grammar from the Word Nerd, Tristi was the very first person to order it from the site. Her copy arrived yesterday, and then she posted one of the coolest things ever. Go check it out. It brought me much joy, even if the first paragraph is entirely fictional.

One piece of very good news for people wanting to order online: 

My husband created a new e-store where you can get the book for about half the shipping costs as the "real" site. Instead of four or five dollars for shipping (on an eight-and-change dollar book, hello), it's only two bucks for shipping on our new site.

The site is called Lyfe Books. Since it uses PayPal, you can leave a note saying whether you want your copy autographed and/or what inscription you want in it.

The other cool post was yesterday, when I received a bloggy award from In Time Out at by the hair of my chinny chin chin:

Here's the purpose and instructions for the NENO'S Award:

*a dedication for those who love blogging and love to encourage friendships through blogging.

* to seek the reasons why we all love blogging.

* put the award in one post as soon as you receive it.

* don't forget to mention the person who gives you the award.

* answer the award's question by writing the reason why you love blogging.

* tag and distribute the award to as many people as you like.

* don't forget to notify the award receivers and put their links in your post.

Thanks so much! I'm honored!

So why do I love blogging? 

I have always loved writing, and this is a great outlet for that. While my first love is writing novels and always will be, there's something intimate and immediate about blogging that you can't get anywhere else.

But possibly the best part is the friendships I've made--what a totally unexpected but wonderful thing! Some of them I've never met in person, but I consider them dear friends anyway. Blogging is truly an amazing thing.

I'm passing the award to:

Is it Just Me? A blogger who never fails to make me laugh and lift my day. Her Friday Flair posts are one of my favorite parts of my weeks.

Alison Wonderland Few people keep it as real as she does. She's made me laugh and cry. She's awesome. 

Jordan McCollum A fellow word nerd. Need I say more?

Regarding Annie A great writer about motherhood, wifehood, and life in general. She's also a weekly newspaper columnist.

Summer's Nook A mom and a wife . . . and a survivor. She writes about some painful times with her health with such intense honesty that I can't help but stand in awe.

Happy Meets Crazy One of the first bloggers I met in real life, and she's downright awesome. She's got one funny personality, and she's very open about her struggles with things like depression . . . something I can relate to all too well.

Temporary? Insanity If you've read her blog for any length of time, you know why she's listed here. 'Nough said.

Novembrance One of my dearest bloggy friends. I doubt I'd be blogging as I am without her influence. (Her cookbook is now available! Go buy it!)

I could go on and on with a gigantic list, but I'll stop there. 

(Remember, you can order There, Their, They're with far less shipping at Lyfe Books! Thanks again for the mention, Tristi! You rock!)

2nd Annual Whitney Awards Gala

Right after the LDStorymakers Writers Conference ended, we had to hurry to get gussied up for the Whitney Gala in less than an hour. (Thanks yet again to Alison Palmer, who let me, Josi, and Heather crash her hotel room so we could dress!)

I got my hair cut two days before the conference (brilliant move on the timing, no?), and the stylist had a hey-day doing something to it that I didn't ask for, so I had to experiment with it for that night. It didn't really work, but hey, the night was fun anyway.

Here I am with my husband:

In case you're wondering, yes, that's the same blouse you saw in the bottom half of this post. (I'd worn it once, two years ago. Figured I might as well get some more use out of it!)

Here I am presenting the award for Best Historical Novel (won by H. B. Moore) with my beloved former editor, Angela Eschler:


Apparently, the best part of our presentation was the one unscripted part. Most of the presenters had silly puns and funny skits. Angela and I prepared a pretty straight-forward presentation. Since it was so different than everyone else's, I began with, "We aren't funny." That got an unexpected laugh.

Here's the entire 2008 Whitney Awards committee as well as the LDStorymakers Executive Committee (just realized I'm the only person on both committees). We were on stage honoring the service of Rob Wells, who has ended his tenure as Whitney president. It was a cool moment.


And finally, here is Rob saying thank you for the gift and tribute.


Two years in a row now, I've driven home from the Whitney Gala with tears in my eyes because I get to be part of something so great and history-making. It's truly been an honor.

Looking ahead: Since the Whitneys are reader-driven, be sure to nominate your favorite 2009 releases by LDS writers. Do so at the Whitney Awards website. Also visit the site to see this year's winners.

Chocolate! And a Cool New Site for Writers

First off, I've discovered an interesting phenomenon. My top three posts (based on hits and comments) have been about the following:

1) Politics
2) Twilight
3) Winning chocolate

Hmm. I should post more often on topics that people feel passionately about!

NOW . . . announcing the winner of the Word Nerd Wednesday contest:

Really truly, I used an online random number generator to pick the winner. I typed in the number of people who left their scores in the comments. The site picked #7. Then I counted down to find the winner.

I swear this isn't a matter of family loyalty, but it's still pretty darn cool that my sister-in-law at Lyon Pride won! (Yay, Tina!)

And for the sake of the sheer creativity of her comment, I'm going to award a second truffle bar to LisAway! (Lisa, e-mail me your address, k? I already have Tina's, so we're good there. :)

Finally, I have to point any aspiring writers to a cool new site where you can get critique feedback from other writers. It's called Review Fuse, and I found out about it through my brother-in-law, who's one of the brains behind the thing. (Check out the about us page. You'll see a Lyon there!)

Here's the idea behind Review Fuse:
You post your work. When you get reviews back, you get to comment on how helpful each one was. You also then review other writers' work and get reviewed on how helpful you've been. The result is that the site learns your skill level and learns to better connect you with people on your level. In addition, you decide whether to keep your work in the public catalog for anyone to view or to keep it private for just your reviewers to look at.

All around, the concept is way cool.

They've recently added the ability to create critique groups, so you and several friends (even ones geographically distant!) can create your own groups and run it on the site, or you can create a group from current site members.

They've even got a blog with advice on writing, where I (and some of my friends) might be guest blogging at some point. Stay tuned.

The site is still in beta. Members are coming on daily, so it's really growing. The best news? It's FREE.

I know there are tons of people out there who love to write but for whatever reason have a hard time finding readers and/or a critique group. This could be your answer. Check it out here.

Final note: During my bloggy break, I kept composing posts in my head as I fell asleep at night. Of course I wouldn't forget what they were about, right? Not after I thought through them so thoroughly. Never.

Yeah. Of course they're all gone now. I have no earthly idea what they were about. But trust me; they were brilliant.

Three Items of Importance

First, I'm not a huge Halloweener, but here's my effort at being festive for you:

This is the costume my youngest wore a couple of years ago and the one I'm most proud of making (even counting the elaborate lion I slaved over and spent way too much on when #1 was two).

That year, her brother was Obi Wan and one of her older sisters was Princess Lea. So Hubby thought it'd be awesome to carry on the Star Wars theme and make her Yoda. She was too young to have much say in the matter, so we went ahead with it, and she was the neighborhood hit.

(Props to #3, who refused to be a Star Wars lemming and insisted instead on being Cinderella.)

Second, Notice the link at the top right? It'll soon be replaced with a fancy schmancy button, which will be up for the entire month of November.

Starting tomorrow, November 1, go there often to bid on some rockin' awesome items, from jewelry to chocolate to Twilight shirts to autographed books to professional edits (including one by yours truly) to a massage.

(Wait. Forget I said that one. I want to bid on the massage.)

New items will be posted every week, and some of the coolest ones will be later in the month, so be sure to drop by often to get some of your Christmas shopping done early. All proceeds go to straight to the Whitney Awards to help fund the 2008 program.

And while we're talking Whitneys, be sure to visit the Whitney Awards site to nominate your favorite LDS-writers' books published in 2008. We need readers to tell us their favorites! Nominations will be taken through December 31, but don't put it off. Don't assume that your favorite 2008 release has already gotten enough nominations to be considered (each book needs five readers to nominate it).

Scroll down on LDS Publisher's sidebar to find an updated list of eligible books.

Third, a glorious moment of celebration: I turned in my manuscript today! And it wasn't even at midnight. (It happened on a national day of candy and chocolate . . . quite appropriate.)

This is the first contemporary book I've written in many years. It's quite a departure for me, but it's been a blast, and I loved writing it.

The characters are so real to me that yesterday as I was finalizing some research questions, I came this close to saying aloud, "Yeah, so when that happened to Marianne . . ."

I bit my tongue pretty quickly, but Blondie might have noticed my slip-up anyway. She's known me for nearly three decades, so even if she noticed, she probably wrote it off as another of my (many, many) quirks.

I'll keep you updated on the status of the book (if it gets officially accepted, release dates, yada yada).

In summary:
1) Yay Yoda! (Happy Halloween!)
2) Whitney Auction! Go, go, go! (Bid, bid, bid!)
3) Book turned in. (Time to celebrate!)

A Life of Almost

This week there's been a lot of talk on the LDStorymakers e-mail list about teachers, English ones in particular, who beat down students' morale—students who have gone on to fight back and become published.

Several writers shared similar stories, some so dreadful I wanted to hunt down those evil teachers.

Other writers had the flip of the equation: a teacher who believed in them whole-heartedly and encouraged their writing genius, which led them to believe in themselves and try to live up to their mentor's belief in them.

It seems that both sides (major discouragement and major encouragement) can light a fire under a student to do well.

My journey has been a bit different. I didn't really have either side of that coin.

First off (for which I'm grateful), I never had an English teacher tell me I was terrible or anything like that. I always managed to be in the advanced English classes, where students took the subject pretty seriously and the teacher expected higher quality work. So I never had to fight against terrible opposition to prove myself.

On the other hand, I never had a teacher gush and praise over me, either. In third grade, Mrs. Mixa read one of my stories and told me to keep writing, but I was in third grade. I'm glad she gave me some encouragement, but I don't recall it being along the lines of, "You're brilliant. This is what you are supposed to do."

Throughout the rest of my school career, I was a good student. A very good student. But did anyone ever pull me aside or write on top of a paper about how I should really be a writer? No. I did write an essay my sophomore year that Miss Drummond thought was kinda funny (about our Drivers Ed teacher, whom we called Squiggy behind his back, and his orange polyester pants), but that's about it.

The other high point was my senior year, when I took College Prep with Miss Drummond (again) instead of the Advanced Placement class. I knew the AP English teacher was a bit of a loon. Plus, he insisted his students read an insane number of classics in preparation for the test. I knew the test was based on writing well-crafted essays to literary questions. If you had half a dozen or so classics firmly under your belt, you could do well on the test. Knowing more books than another students didn't help if you couldn't write a coherent argument to go with them. Miss Drummond taught us to write good essays.

So I took CP with Miss Drummond instead of AP, firmly planning on challenging the AP English test anyway. Around January, she slipped to the back of the room next to me and another student, and told us she thought the two of us ought to consider challenging the AP English test. I hadn't told her my plans, and it felt good to have her confidence. (I got a 5, by the way. Yay me!)

But aside from Miss D liking that essay in 10th grade and her encouraging me to take the test in 12th, I never got a real sense that I was a great writer or ought to pursue it. I ached for that kind of validation. Other students got it, and I always came close. Sometimes very close . . . but usually in second place.

Literally.

I took second place in a city writing contest my junior year. I was the English sterling scholar alternate my senior year. (Losing to the gal who took first place in that essay contest. That's actually a fun story. Read it here.) For the school literary journal, none of my stories got in, but a small little poem did. I didn't care about the poem. It was the stories that, in my mind, counted.

The "almost good enough" label applied in other areas, as well. All through high school, I was almost good enough over and over again. Several awards, positions, roles, etc. passed me by because I was almost.

The same thing happened years later when I started submitting to publishers. My first LDS-themed novel was rejected with a very nice (and long) letter from a big company telling me why they had almost accepted it. I got a phone call from the same company emphasizing how almost I was. I'm still not sure if the call helped or just rubbed salt into the wound.

I got similar rejections for years, with editors saying, "This is really good. You're a great writer. We almost said yes. But we're saying no. Good luck."

For a good chunk of my life, I've felt like the brass ring has constantly been just out of reach. (Whitney finalist, anyone?)

In some ways, even with my sixth book preparing to come out*, it still feels like that way. I'm not sure why; maybe I'm wired to be dissatisfied. But there's always another level, another place where I'm coming in #2. Now, instead of breaking into the market, it's trying to be at the top of the market instead of almost there.

There was a time I thought I should be happy with where I am. As a teen when I'd moan and wail over failing, my parents tried to make me see that for Pete's sake, I hadn't failed, I was second place. I was still doing great. I didn't see it that way.

As an adult, I can now see what they were trying to say. And, yes, today I'm happy . . . to a point. I'm really enjoying the publishing ride. It's gratifying to see how far I've come. But am I completely content? No.

I don't think I should be, either. If I were content, I wouldn't continue striving to improve my game. I wouldn't have a new goal to shoot for. My work would probably start going downhill, like some authors I've read who have "made it." To me, that's a horrific thought.

The way I see it, not being completely satisfied is a good thing for me. Someone, somewhere, knows that being almost, while frustrating, is what drives me to continue, to improve, to reach—which is why I'll probably continue to fall there.

So I'll keep trying.


*The release date for Tower of Strength has been moved up from April to March. Yay!

This Is NOT a Review

I'm in the middle of an LDS novel that I think is really, really good.

I recently finished another one that I enjoyed a lot.

My daughter recently read a YA book by an LDS writer and is dying for me to read it too. I will soon.

And my husband and I have plans to read aloud a book by yet another LDS writer, whose books we've enjoyed in the past.

All four of these books are by talented people, and I wouldn't be at all surprised if all of them ended up as Whitney finalists for 2008.

But I'm not telling you the names of the books or who wrote them. There's a reason for that.

Now, as many people know, I'm hyper-opinionated. I won't just tell you if I liked or disliked something. Instead, I'm liable to go on a rant about the virtues (or lack thereof) of a particular work. I get passionate about these things. I debate. I foam at the mouth.

That kind of thing.

But this year . . . you won't be hearing any of it from me. At all. Or, at least about fiction written by Latter-day Saints. (Movies and fiction by other writers are all fair game. I may have to get loud and ranty about those just to compensate.)

See, I was thinking about posting review about the one I'm reading as soon as I finish it, but then I remembered: I can't.

The reason is that I have the privilege of serving on the Whitney Awards committee for 2008. I get to read a ton of novels by LDS writers this year and judge in two categories as well as help select the novels that will be up for Best Novel and Best Novel by a New Author.

That's the terrific part about being on the committee. (For those wondering, I'm willing and able to be part of the committee because my next novel, Tower of Strength, won't be released until 2009.)

Keeping my opinions to myself might just be torturous for someone with as big a mouth as I have. On the other hand, I will get to voice them with the other committee members. That's some consolation. (Poor souls have no idea what they're in for.)

I encourage readers to nominate books they think are deserving of a Whitney and to tell others to do the same. Broadcast the news far and wide! The program is there to recognize quality fiction produced by LDS writers and to help the entire cannon improve and grow. The only way to do that is to get the best books nominated, and that takes the readers.

Visit the Whitney site at the link above to submit a book for consideration. Don't assume your favorite is a shoo-in. You never know.

In the meantime, I'll be tying my tongue into a knot.

What a weekend!

That about sums it up. I’ll surely post more later (especially some photos), but for now, I had to just express some overall feelings from the experience.

The conference has come and gone. Jeff Savage (or J. Scott Savage, depending on which of his books you’re talking about) is officially crowned as the next conference chair—and is our first conference "king" instead of "queen."

The attendees were enthusiastic, the instructors fantastic, the food yummy, and everything else just great. Meeting editor Tim Travaglini and literary agent Jaime Chilton—and chatting around a table with them late into the evening—was definitely a highlight for me.

I’m so grateful to all the many, many people who helped us put the conference together. It took a small army of dedicated people to do it all. Thanks to all of you; you know who you are!

When the conference wrapped up Saturday, the hard part was over for me, but the Whitney Gala was still ahead. My husband, awesome man that he is, showed up with a dozen roses for me. (How cool is HE?!)

We got to sit at the same table with Whitney Award winners Josi Kilpack, Brandon Mull, and Jessica Day George. (The last two make me officially cool in my daughter’s book.)

I had the opportunity to announce the winner of the Best Romance/Women’s Fiction award alongside Lisa Mangum of Deseret Book. To my absolute delight, my good friend, Michele Paige Holmes took the award. I was supposed to remain neutral, but I’m sure the thrill I felt was plainly obvious in my voice and on my face when I read her name.

I can honestly say that winning an award myself wouldn’t have been any more joyful for me in that moment. I’ve been friends with Michele for many years, and I’ve seen the long, hard road she’s traveled to get where she is. I was so happy for her that I sat back down and promptly began crying.

Tears continued to be a large part of the night for me. Josi’s winning speech got me all choked up too, as did several others. While I’m sure part of my weepiness stemmed from a serious lack of sleep for three days, each and every tear that night was a happy one. Some people came up to me concerned that I was sad over not winning a Whitney myself. Truly, I didn’t expect to win, so I wasn’t disappointed when I didn’t. (I just hoped I’d lose to my other good friend, Heather Moore. And I did!)

But the tears were more than just happiness for good friends. Our table was dead center at the back of the room. As a result, I had a great view of the large crowd that had gathered for the awards. A lot of amazing people were inside those four walls. Some I’d go so far as to call legends.

As the evening wore on, I felt a surging sense of awe and privilege. That night represented the beginning of something very big. And I got to be a small part of it. I even got to be involved a tiny bit in its creation. I was sitting in the middle of a piece of history. The thought was overwhelming. I felt so honored to be in the company of those around me, to bear witness to the birth of something so much bigger than myself, something meaningful, something that I believe Orson F. Whitney himself smiled down upon.

After the 2007 conference, I drove home a bit sad because it was all over for a year.

This time, I drove away feeling uplifted, honored, and overcome. I cried for nearly half an hour as I drove, unable to believe that I . . . little ol' me . . . the gal who scribbled stories about mice in second grade . . . I was there. I am part of this amazing community that began as a simple e-mail support group and has morphed into a powerful force, where some of my dearest friends on the planet belong.

How did I get so lucky?

Like I said, I’ll post more about the conference and the Whitneys later. I’m still trying to finish the "re-entry" process with the family and (with any luck) catch up on some sleep.

And oh yeah—then I have a couple of deadlines to meet, because I get to write and publish books for readers of my faith.

Did I mention that man, I’m one lucky woman?!

(Oops. There go those tears again . . .)

It's HERE! And I'm Outta Here

Quick post today . . .

I'm doing the headless chicken dance today as I load up the minivan and get the family ready for when I leave this afternoon for the conference, which begins early tomorrow morning with Boot Camp.

As you can imagine, there's a lot to do while the kidlets are at school and before I drive off into the sunset. And when I do leave, I won't be back online until next week.

I'm guessing that a good chunk of my readers won't be checking up on me over the weekend, as they'll be at the conference with me.

However, a lot of Storymaker friends won't be there for one reason or another, and they were lamenting the fact. Some of the Whitney finalists are in that number. They asked, half kidding, half serious, if someone could please text message the results of the Whitney Gala as they happened on Saturday night.

Their wish was the Whitney Committee's command.

So here's the fun news:

Three authors who are attending the Gala (Matthew Buckley, Tristi Pinkston, and Jaime Theler) will be blogging live every step of the way.

If you won't be there, you can follow the awards ceremony online as it unfolds.

Check out the Whitney Awards blog during the Gala to see what's going on and who wins.

The dinner begins at 6:30 pm MDT, followed immediately by the awards ceremony. I imagine the bloggers will get started before that, however. Should be fun!

Following which, I'll be collapsing from an exhausting but (I'm sure) wonderful weekend.

See you on the other side!

The Countdown

It's ten days away for most of those involved, but it's essentially nine days away for me.

NINE.

ACK!

I'm referring to the 5th Annual LDStorymakers Writers Conference coming up next week, which Heather Moore and I are co-chairing.

Can I just say that I am eternally grateful that
a) I'm not in this alone and
b) that my partner is so capable and
c) that her strengths lie in all my weak areas?

As some readers may remember, we were "crowned" at last year's conference, so this conference has been twelve months in the making. The last couple have been the most intense, of course, and now it's almost here.

We're dotting i's and crossing t's right now, trying to make sure that there are no lingering ends left untied. (It's amazing just how many ends there are to check . . .)

Between now and then, I have a lot to do, for both the conference as well as for my personal life. For starters, I have to get everything ready for Easter before I drive off to the hotel, because by the time I get back, there will be NO time whatsoever for any of that.

The family is heading up to visit grandma while I'm gone, so I should probably help get little people semi-packed before I leave.

Several of the kids have activities that Mom needs to help prepare for, coordinate, or drive to.

And then there are the ponchos I'm trying to finish knitting for my girls so they can all match on Easter Sunday. (Key word: trying.)

In the middle of all this madness, I did something really stupid: I asked my editor about the status of my latest submission.

If you know anything about the writer's ego, you'll know what a really dumb move that was for a writer who is already under stress. The only possible good outcome would have been a response like, "It's Pulitzer-worthy! We loved it!" Then I'd smile and go my merry way, with a little boost to keep going through the next nine days.

I'm sure you can already see where this is going.

Instead of a declaration that I'm the next big thing, we're discussing revisions and notes.

Really, that's no huge surprise. With Spires of Stone I did two rewrites, went over oodles of notes with my editor (and granted, wanted to bang my head against the monitor numerous times), but ultimately came out the other end not only alive but with a much better book that was accepted for publication and is now up for a Whitney Award.

So why am I such a basket case? That would be because writers seesaw between egomania and self-despair all the time, and are capable of flipping between the two in a matter of seconds. My past publishing experiences with five previous novels notwithstanding, I still feel like the rookie just waiting for that next rejection letter telling me my baby is ugly and that I stink.

I should take a nice, hot bath tonight to help me calm down a bit. That is, if I could sit still long enough without checking e-mail for conference stuff, or going over my workshop presentation notes, or working on the table centerpieces, or sending the latest updates about the waiting list and lunch choices to committee members, or . . .

You get the idea.

Basically, I look like Chicken Little on serious doses of caffeine.

To cope, I bought two of the silver bags of Guittard milk chocolate chips. You know, the jumbo ones? Yeah. That should last me, oh, a day or so.

For those readers who are coming to the conference, I can't wait to see you. Once the big day is here, it'll be downright awesome, and I'm sure I'll be having a ball. I've been in touch with a lot of you, and I can't wait to put faces to names.

In all seriousness, the conference has been a huge shot in the arm for me every time. Last year I drove home a bit wistfully, knowing I wouldn't be able to experience it again for another year. Sure, there would be other conferences, but none are the same as this one. If you've come, you know what I mean.

See you in ten days.

The Lyon's Roar

Cheesy title, but I couldn't resist; it just fit.

Tristi was kind enough to bestow the following award on me:



I am now supposed to give three pieces of writing advice and then pass the award on to some great writers.

I could throw out all kinds of advice (I'm opinionated and nerdy that way), but really, the things that most good writers do can be boiled down to three main things:

1) Write. A lot.
Obvious, yet I can't count how many people have come to me saying they "want" to write but never have gotten their behind in the chair and their hands to the keyboard. Want to write? DO IT. A lot. A good pianist can make a concerto sound effortless, but you can bet your booties that getting to that level took a lot of mundane practicing, including boring scales. Writing is the same way. To make it flow and sound natural takes work. A lot of it.

2) Read. A lot.
I don't know of a single good writer who isn't also an avid reader. On the flip side, I do know some sad writers who declare they don't have time to read. I love how Luisa put it once: that fiction is like a language, and to learn to "speak" it, you have to be fluent. The only way to do that is immerse yourself in it regularly.

3) Be where other writers are.
That means going to conferences, belonging to writing groups, joining a critique group, and networking. This is where you go from wannabe writer to real writer.

And for the award bestowal:

Rob Wells over at the Frog Blog. One of the funniest writers around. Love his stuff. Oh, and he's a closet romance writer. Don't let him pretend otherwise.

Josi who has a real power in her words (I don't recommend trying to read one of her books while on the treadmill. Crying or laughing while exercising just don't mix, people.)

Heather, my conference co-chair and a member of my critique group, who is so good at pin-pointing flaws and finding fixes.

Michele, yet another Whitney finalist (all three of these ladies are), and also a member of my critique group. I hope to have rough drafts this good when I grow up.

Reading Frenzy

As you may know, the Whitney Awards will be announced March 22nd after the 5th Annual LDStorymakers Writers Conference.

As you may also know, the Whitney finalists were announced January 15. While the books were nominated by readers, the academy that votes on the finalists is comprised of slew of industry professionals, including publishers, editors, book reviewers, independent book store owners, and the members of the LDS writing guild, LDStorymakers. (Among others. I'm probably missing some. Regardless, there are a lot of members of the Academy.)

During the months leading up to the announcement of the finalists, I heard some people worrying aloud that the voting would end up being a popularity contest, that people would vote without having read the books and therefore without knowing which really were the better books and hence the most deserving of the awards.

Over the last few weeks, I've seen something that has brushed away any fears I have about that, at least if the LDStorymakers are any indication. They've blown me out of the water with how eager they all are to be informed voters.

For nearly a month now, the e-mail list we're on has consisted of almost daily posts about finding, borrowing, and trading finalists' books. I'll often see messages saying, "I have finished the following titles. If anyone needs to borrow them, let me know," or "I just finished so-and-so's copy of ***. Who's up next for it? I'll bring it to you."

People have driven half an hour or more out of their way to drop off and pick up books for one another. Other titles have been mailed across the country from one author to another, and there are lists of who gets which book next.

It's a reading frenzy!

Almost as impressive as all the reading is the fact that no one is discussing what they thought of the books beyond vague references like, "I'm finding a lot of great books," or "I'm not sure who I'll vote for in such-and-such category." It's as if everyone has a silent but mutual agreement not to publicly influence one another's votes.

I've been impressed and inspired at the cooperation, the excitement, and the passion they all have for the Whitney program. It's gotten me more motivated to read as many of the finalists as I can possibly squeeze in until my ballot is due.

I've got a stack of five books right now waiting for me to get to them. As soon as I get my word count in for the day, you know where I'm headed.

Celebrating the Whitney Way

I fully meant to write about the book club I attended recently, posting a question or two that they posed and giving answers to them.

But then something fun happened, so I'm bumping those posts to next week.

On Tuesday, January 15, the finalists for the first annual Whitney Awards were announced.

And I'm one of them!

(Visit the complete list all the finalists here. Scroll all the way to the bottom to find the Historical novel finalists . . . and Spires of Stone!)

For a full explanation on the Whitneys, visit the official website. But a nutshell version is that they're aimed at recognizing excellence in fiction written by LDS authors who strive to improve their work. The award can go to any writers who are LDS, regardless of what market they write for.

It's is named after Apostle Orson F. Whitney who had the vision of the Latter-day Saints some day creating literature that would "reach the heavens," that some day we'd have Miltons and Shakespeares of our own. (Not that we've reached that point, but it's a target to strive for.)

There are five genre categories, plus awards for best novel by a new author and novel of the year.

The great news is that I made the cut to the finals in my genre. The bad news is that three of the four books I'm up against in my category are also up for Novel of the Year. That is mighty intimidating company to keep! (But hey, I'll consider it a compliment!)

More good news: H. B. (Heather) Moore and Michele Paige Holmes nabbed two nominations each. (Congrats again, ladies!) Our little critique group did pretty well for itself!

The Whitney Awards Gala will be immediately following the 5th Annual LDStorymakers writing conference on March 22. The public can come, but tickets are going fast, so if you want to be there, buy yours soon. (The Whitney site has a link for ticket purchases.)

Next week I'll get back on track (really, I will!), but for now, chocolate is in order.

And since my parents are visiting from Finland right now (another HUGE cause for celebration!), I actually have some of my favorite chocolate bar in the world hiding in my night stand.

A huge thanks to all to those who read Spires of Stone and thought it worth nominating. I appreciate it more than you know!

Conference Time!

Yes, Christmas is just around the corner, but there's something else in the air as well.

Registration for the 5th Annual LDStorymakers Conference, March 21 & 22, is now available here. The conference is always such a shot in the arm for me. It's one of my favorite times of year. (Christmas in the spring!) We've simplified the registration process so you can pay online.

This year is shaping up to be our best conference ever. Among the highlights:

• One of our keynote speakers is Timothy Travaglini, Senior Editor at G.P. Putnam's Sons (a division of Penguin Group, USA). For those of you who know Janette Rallison, he is her editor (known by her blog readers as the "bow-tied" one).
• The return of Boot Camp, the hugely popular hands-on critique workshop prior to the regular conference each day.
• A Publishers' panel, with representatives from all the major LDS publishing houses.
• Pitch sessions with both Covenant and Deseret Book
• Manuscript reviews with Tim Tavaglini
• Choice of some 20 break-out workshops taught by established authors (including yours truly) on a wide range of topics and covering all skill levels.
• A writing contest
• Entertainment by comedian David Nibley (best known from his role in The Best Two Years and one of the funniest guys around)
• Several keynote speakers you won't want to miss
• and more

Part of that "more" is what immediately follows the conference: The first-ever Whitney Awards Gala.

Speaking of which, if you haven't nominated what you feel are the best books by LDS authors from 2007, do it soon! You have about a week and a half before the deadline (December 31). Don't assume that a particular book is shoo-in. (I've made sure to nominate some favorites; I'm not leaving it up to chance.) Nominate from WA website link above.

Another note: The facilities for the conference demand that we cap the number of attendees, so if you plan to come, sign up soon to reserve your spot. Likewise, the pitch sessions by Deseret Book and Covenant and the manuscript reviews by Mr. Travaglini are filling up fast, even though registration has been open for only a couple of days. If you want to snag one of those, hop to it!

Heather and I (and our terrific committee!) have been doing behind-the-scenes work for next spring, and it's exciting to see the pieces gradually coming together.

See you in March!

VIP Winner

Short post--as you can imagine, it's a busy day, being Chocolate Show week!

But I had to congratulate Kimberly, whose story was selected as the VIP pass winner.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Her confession had me laughing out loud:

My husband bought a bag of lindt chocolates to have around as an occasional treat. I snarfed them all while he was at work one day (my three year old made me do it! I swear!), and promptly panicked. I loaded the kids in the car, drove to the grocery store, and bought another bag. I then wrapped the offending wrappers up in several grocery bags and pushed the bundle to the bottom of the garbage can. He never suspected a thing. And his sympathy over me feeling ill that night? Just a little bit torturous.

Since Kimberly's not in Utah, she's decided to pass the tickets to a good friend of hers who can use them.

I definitely plan on using more stories in future issues of The Weekly Chocolate Fix. (Want to subscribe? It's free. Click here.)

So Karlene and Amber will each get four show tickets, good for the expo on both Friday & Saturday.

Ladies, just let me know if you want those to be for THIS WEEKEND or for the 2008 show.

Now I'm off . . .

Hope to see some of you at the show!

Big Whitney News

We have a new development on the Whitney Awards front: Winners will receive cash prizes in addition to the actual award and all the acclaim that goes with it.

The award is becoming an exciting new entity in the market, and I am thrilled to have a seat on the sidelines to watch it happen.

One major purpose of the Whitney Awards program is to raise the quality of the literature we publish. That can only happen if the best of the best are on the ballot, and that can only happen if readers nominate books so they'll have a shot at being a finalist.

Once again I'm encouraging readers to nominate their favorite books published by LDS authors during 2007. Nominating is easy at the Whitney Awards website.

The following was announced just two days ago by the Whitney Committee:


PROVO, UT-OCTOBER 23, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WHITNEY AWARDS COMMITTEE ANNOUNCES LARGE CASH AWARDS

The Whitney Awards Committee announced today that they will be offering seven large cash awards to be presented at the upcoming Whitney Awards banquet in March 2008. These cash prizes are due to the generosity of the Whitney Awards' marquis sponsor, ExclusivelyLDS.com.

Founded earlier this year, the Whitney Awards program is a non-profit organization dedicated to rewarding excellence among LDS authors. With the new sponsorship of ExclusivelyLDS.com, winning authors will receive up to $1000 along with their trophy.

The Whitneys offer a total of seven awards. The five genre awards (Best Romance/Women's Fiction, Best Mystery/Suspense, Best YA/Children's, Best Speculative Fiction, Best Historical) will each be accompanied by a $500 cash prize. The two overall winners, Best Novel by a New Author and Best Novel of the Year, will each receive $1000.

"We're very excited about the sponsorship with ExclusivelyLDS.com," Robison Wells, president of the Whitney Awards Committee, explains. "There is enormous talent among LDS authors, and every year seems to produce better and better novels. This is an exciting time to be part of the LDS fiction industry. Our hope is that these awards will raise awareness about the high quality fiction available from LDS authors, and to draw in new readers."

Over a hundred years ago, Latter-day Saint Apostle Orson F. Whitney declared "We shall yet have Miltons and Shakespeares of our own. . . . In God's name and by His help we will build up a literature whose tops will touch the heaven, though its foundation may now be low on the earth."

Anyone can nominate a novel published during the previous calendar year in any of seven categories, and a final academy of industry professionals will vote on the final ballot. Nominations are being taken for books published in 2007 by LDS authors at the Whitney Awards website: http://www.whitneyawards.com/

###

CONTACT:
Robison Wells
Whitney Awards President
robisonwells@msn.com
http://www.whitneyawards.com/
(801) 691-9115

Whitney Awards Committee
13 West Center
Oak City, UT 84649

Skinny Deb

I'm so darn proud of my sister-in-law that I have to brag on her behalf. She's too humble to do it for herself, so here we go:

Several months ago, Deb and I were chatting when she told me that she had entered a state-wide weight-loss contest sponsored by Kmart.

"Neat," I thought. "Good for her."

And I didn't think much of it again, but lo and behold, over the next several weeks, Deb started shrinking. I'd hear about her latest nutrition strategies and exercise routines. She'd even give me tips and pass along Slim Fast products that she got for free as a participant. (She preferred the non-chocolate flavors . . . something I'll never understand, as much as I love the woman.)

Suddenly she announced that she had won the contest for the entire state of Utah. For being the winner, she received a small cash prize and, if memory serves, a piece of exercise equipement.

After congatulating her and being horribly impressed, I didn't think about the contest again, because it was over now. But wasn't it great that she won? Of course, the state winners went on to the national level, but really, what were the chances of anyone going that far?

Then a few weeks later, I got a phone call from a very, very excited Deb, saying that she had just received word that she had won the contest for the ENTIRE country.

Yes, folks, skinny Deb is the grand prize winner of the 2007 Kmart New Day Your Way weight-loss contest!

Not only did she lose over 40 lbs (and she's dropped at least 8 more since the contest ended!) but she received $10,000, lots of fun clothes (many of which are now too BIG for her), a bunch of exercise equipment, and TWO trips to New York City. The first trip was last summer, during which time she and the runners-up got makeovers and were part of photo shoots to show off their new bodies.

I found out last night that she and the runners-up are finally posted on the New Day Your Way website, including a totally cool video that shows clips from all of the women. In it they talk about the contest and their journey. It also includes bits and pieces of their sight seeing and photo shoots. You'll see Deb sitting in Central Park as she talks about her experience.

Hop on over to the website here and check it out. Deb is the gorgeous redhead.

To see the video, click on the picture at the lower left that says, "Watch the New York Photo Shoot."

Yes, people, I am related to this wonder woman. (Okay, fine. By marriage. But I'll take it.)

Congratulations, Deb! You deserve this!

Made My Day

I'm probably not supposed to know this, but I found out, and so I'm excited and all that.

I'm officially in the running for a Whitney Award this year.

That doesn't even mean I'm officially on the ballot, but to me it's something to celebrate nonetheless. What it does mean is that at least five people liked Spires of Stone enough to nominate it for the award, so the book is officially on the list for consideration by the Whitney committee. I'm assuming I've been nominated under the Historical Fiction category. (And I'm up against stiff competition. I'm sure my good friend--and excellent writer--H. B. Moore will be nominated too, among several other authors.)

The folks on the committee get to read every single book that gets at least five nominations, and they decide on the finalists that go onto the ballot. Then the Academy, comprised of industry professionals (editors, bookstore owners, etc.) get to vote.

It's nice to imagine getting a Whitney at the big gala (held this coming March 22nd, immediately following the 5th Annual LDStorymakers Writers Conference). But regardless of whether I get one, it's exciting to realize that there were several readers out there already, only a month or whatever out from its release, who thought it worthy of the honor.

YES!

To put the cherry on top, I got an email from a reader just the other day:

You really should put a warning on the front of this book that is bright and can't be missed. It should say "Warning!!! Do NOT Start after 8pm." You see I started it last night at 8 pm and could not put it down! Therefore I was up until 4:30 a.m. Warn me next time!!! My mother and I really enjoyed Spires of Stone. We usually enjoy your books but you out did yourself.

Ya know, I'm half tempted to make a cross stitch of that one and hang it on the wall.

So Sara, I'll be shooting you off a personal e-mail soon, but if you happen to stumble on this here, THANK YOU for making my day!

In the meantime, if you've read a great book by an LDS author (written for the LDS or the national market) that was published in 2007, be sure to visit the Whitney Awards website to nominate it. I have a couple in mind that I'll be nominating for sure.