Friday, March 14, 2008

Rapture - 2008 EPPIE Winner for Best Fantasy/Paranormal Romance


I won! I won! I’m still trembling with joy over my first book’s major win. Rapture, which was my baby for three years, just won for Best EPPIE Fantasy/Paranormal Romance. According to the EPIC website - The EPPIE Awards have been given annually since the first EPIC conference to recognize outstanding achievement in e-publishing. The categories are judged by members of EPIC, all published authors. After the first round of judging, the works of the finalists are sent to another panel of judges, and winners in all eighteen categories are selected. I want to say a huge thank you to the organizers of this award contest, to the many authors out there who donated their time to read and judge all the books in each category and to my fans who continue to tell me they love Rapture.

So what has winning the award meant to me? It’s helped to reaffirm that I’m on the right track. I thoroughly enjoy writing paranormal and I love soul-defining romance. I love creating new worlds, hard-edged characters that we want to love even though we know they are beyond human. And it’s spurred me on complete book two in my Titan series, which will feature Darius (Seth’s twin brother) and he’s not a happy Titan. This book is more than half-way written (and was so last year) but I started another series, The Ungodlies – in between, so had to put it on hold. I can’t have too many characters talking in my head or I would go insane. Yes, my characters do talk to me and usually by the time I’m ready to open my laptop their voice is dying to be released on the computer.

Winning an EPPIE I’m also hoping will provide me with some leverage in my search for a new agent. I fired mine over a year ago and having since recovered from that ordeal I am once again putting myself on the block. This time though I’m going to do my homework.

Thank you once again to the EPIC organizers and readers who love Rapture. I know I loved writing and re-writing it and my fingers are crossed that when the sequel comes out it will be even better.