Mom’s Choice Awards – THE LEGEND OF THE GREAT HORSE trilogy

Mom’s Choice Awards: The Great Horse wins Gold

The opening book of The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy, Eclipsed by Shadow, won Gold in the 2010 Mom’s Choice Awards for best family-friendly Young Adult Fiction.

The Mom’s Choice Awards® evaluates products and services created for children, families and educators. The program is globally recognized for establishing the benchmark of excellence in family-friendly media, products and services.

The Legend of the Great Horse tells a story of real history without romanticizing violence, and it is a special honor for the title to be chosen and included with other titles meeting the Mom’s Choice criteria … “to help families grow emotionally, physically and spiritually…”

The explosion of self-published books has made curation increasingly important. The Mom’s Choice Awards are an example of new formulations in publishing, and a way for readers, parents and educators to find good books!

New England Independent Booksellers Conference

The author, John Allen Royce, will be in attendance at the annual New England Independent Booksellers Conference (NEIBA) being held this weekend at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence, RI … the 1st industry event to introduce The Golden Spark ~ Book II of The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy…

Ebook of “Eclipsed by Shadow” to benefit New England Equine Rescues (NEER)

A free ebook edition of “Eclipsed by Shadow” is being offered in return for donations to New England Equine Rescues (NEER).

UPDATE 4/21/14: The free ebook offer has closed … thank you for your interest!

A free ebook edition of Eclipsed by Shadow | The Legend of the Great Horse ~ Book I of III is being offered in return for donations to New England Equine Rescues (NEER).

Eclipsed by Shadow won the national Eric Hoffer Award for YA Fiction, and Gold in the Mom’s Choice for best YA Fantasy. The book begins a trilogy adventure about a teenaged rider, Meagan, who discovers a horse that takes her back in history.

“NEER actively rescues horses from a variety of situations, including owner surrenders, abuse and neglect situations, and horses at risk for slaughter. NEER provides sanctuary and rehabilitation in foster homes with the intention of adoption into new families as appropriate. “

The BookExpo America (BEA) Experience

There aren’t many venues in which authors are the main attraction, and participating as the winner of the 2010 Mom’s Choice Award for YA Fantasy (for “Eclipsed by Shadow”) gave me a place to be and experienced veterans to learn from.

The recent BookExpo America (BEA) convention in New York City was the year’s largest book and publishing convention. This was my first time attending the frantic blur of 1500 exhibits and 30,000 people, and I have a few impressions to share.

First, the BEA was a networking dream/nightmare, a drinking-from-a-firehose experience of shaking hands and fumbling out “pitches” while exchanging business cards with smiling strangers. It took me several days to recover from the shock of being serially nice and cheerful, and will take me several weeks to follow up with everyone I met. I never thought being a writer would be such a social calling. I’m learning.

Second, it was fun! There aren’t many venues in which authors are the main attraction, and participating as the winner of the 2010 Mom’s Choice Award for YA Fantasy (for “Eclipsed by Shadow”) gave me a place to be and experienced veterans to learn from.

Third, and what surprised me most, was that the BEA was a readers’ event. The excitement coming from the public crowding the author signings and book giveaways gave the event an almost rock-concert atmosphere. It was not the usual thing for the book events I’ve been to, and a sign that perhaps the reports of the decline of reading might not be, if not greatly exaggerated, at least illumined with hope for the future.

That is what we’re after, isn’t it?

I’m very much in the hope business myself, though I lose sight of it. The BEA gave me a valuable reminder that reading is still a love – and alive! – for so many.