Nonprofit literary organization Georgia Writers has announced the winners and finalists for the Georgia Author of the Year Awards.
The 62nd edition of these awards was highly competitive, with 111 nominees in 14 categories, according to the announcement.
On the Georgia Writers’ website, you can read the judges’ citations and learn more about the winning authors and their books.
BIOGRAPHY
Winner: I am a Georgia Girl: The Life of Lucille Selig Frank by Ann Hite
Finalist: Deceptive Speed: Eddie Lee Ivery’s Run Through Tech, Titletown, and Temptation by Jerry Gentry
CHILDREN’S BOOK
Winner: When Alexander Graced the Table by Denene Millner and Alexander Smalls, illustrated by Frank Morrison
Finalist: Kaya Morgan’s Crowning Achievement by Jill Tew
DETECTIVE/MYSTERY
Winner: Revenge by Danielle Singleton
Finalist: The Dawson Pond Murders: A John Wesley O’Toole Novel by William Rawlings
FIRST NOVEL
Winner: Ibis by Justin Haynes
Finalist: Hot Desk by Laura Dickerman
HISTORY
Winner: Somewhere Toward Freedom: Sherman’s March and the Story of America’s Largest Emancipation by Bennett Parten
Finalist: A History of Sautee Nacoochee by Tommy Hart Jones
Horror
Winner: The October Film Haunt by Michael Wehunt
Finalist: Dark Sisters by Kristi DeMeester
INSPIRATIONAL
Winner: Lessons in Hope: A New Era for Maasai Women in Tanzania by Juliet Cutler
Finalist: The Five Secrets of Luck: A Tale of the Long-Lost Keys to an Extraordinary Life by Skip Johnson
LITERARY FICTION
Winner: Will There Ever Be Another You by Patricia Lockwood
Finalist: The Goddess Complex by Sanjena Sathian
MEMOIR
Winner: Momma May be Mad by Kerry Neville
Finalist: The Making of a Doctor: The Hidden Realities of Medicine by Michelle Izmaylov
POETRY COLLECTION
Winner: All Things In Common by Rupert Fike
Finalist: Chance of Lightning by Kristin Robertson
ROMANCE
Winner: Once Upon a Time in Dollywood by Ashley Jordan
Finalist: I Think They Love You by Julian Winters
SCIENCE FICTION/FANTASY
Winner: North by Ann Michelle Harris
Finalist: The Gryphon King by Sara Omer
SPECIALTY BOOK
Winner: 35 Natural Wonders of Georgia to See before You Die by Ann Litrel & Charles Seabrook
Finalist: Georgia’s Historical Recipes: Seeking Our State’s Oldest Written Foodways and the Stories behind Them by Valerie J. Frey
YOUNG ADULT
Winner: Needy Little Things by Channelle Desamours
Finalist: Dear Manny by Nic Stone
