Lucky Me

Last Tuesday I received the very excellent news that I won this year’s Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Regional Author Award. Given the number of wonderful Indiana writers that I know personally and through their books, I feel very, very honored to have been chosen. And I’m certainly in good company, with John Green as the National Winner and Dan Wakefield receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award—two writers I really admire. The Emerging Writer Award will be announced on the evening of the awards dinner on Saturday, September 29. Christopher Coake, Sherri Wood Emmons and Douglas Light are the nominees, and I’m looking forward to reading their work before that night. Meanwhile, as the Executive Director of the Writers’ Center of Indiana, I’ll be working with the Indianapolis Marion County Public Library, a co-sponsor of the awards, to organize the daytime part of the celebration—a series of programs geared to provide aspiring authors with a wealth of practical advice and information about publishing and marketing their books. The Indy Authors Fair will also take place the same day, at which established and emerging writers will have the opportunity to sell their books, meet other writers, and chat with their fans. Watch the IMCPL and Writers’ Center of Indiana websites in the coming weeks for specific details about the events of September 29. How lucky we are the Glick family cares about literature enough to have established this annual award to honor national, regional and emerging Indiana authors that comes with a generous cash award. How lucky I feel to have received it. How lucky we all are, always, for the Indianapolis Marion County Public Library, its dedicated staff, and its extraordinary programs that support and nourish reading and writing in our city.