54th Annual Georgia Author of the Year Awards 2018 Winners, Finalists, and Honorable Mention

The 2018 Georgia Author of the Year Awards was held this past Saturday, June 16th, at the Kennesaw State University Continuing Education Center. There were 124 nominees in 13 categories.

Over 200 authors and literary enthusiasts attended the banquet and ceremony. We would like to congratulate the GAYA winners, finalists, and honorable mention for their outstanding literary achievements.

Please find below a list of the award recipients in order by category.

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: Sharan Strange

POSTHUMOUS LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: Thomas Lux

Category: CHILDREN’S BOOK

Winner: Vickie McEntire, Little Bird & Myrtle Turtle     

Finalist: Dan Carlton, Ollie and the Wise Old Owl

Category: DETECTIVE/MYSTERY 

Winner: Roger Johns, Dark River Rising 

Finalist: Maggie Toussaint, Dadgummit

Category: FIRST NOVEL

Winner: Peter McDade, The Weight of Sound 

Finalist: Christopher Swann, Shadow of the Lions 

Category: HISTORY/BIOGRAPHY

Winner: Dawn Peterson, Indians in the Family: Adoption and the Politics of Antebellum Expansion 

Finalist: Mehrsa Baradaran, The Color of Money: Black Banks and the Racial Wealth Gap 

Category: INSPIRATIONAL

Winner: Deborah Malone, Blooming in Broken Places

Finalist: Candace L. Long, The Ancient Path to Creativity and Innovation: Where Left and Right Brains Meet 

Category: LITERARY FICTION 

Winner: Man Martin, The Lemon Jell-O Syndrome 

Finalist: Anna Schachner, You and I and Someone Else 

Honorable Mention: Daren Wang, The Hidden Light of Northern Fires

Category: MEMOIR

Winner: Christopher Martin, This Gladdening Light: An Ecology of Fatherhood and Faith 

Finalist: Stephen Corey, Startled at the Big Sound: Essays Personal, Cultural, and Literary 

Category: POETRY CHAPBOOK

Winner: Jane Simpson, On the Porch, Under the Eave 

Finalist: K. B. Kincer, After the Transplant 

Category: POETRY FULL-LENGTH BOOK

Winner: Andrea Jurjević, Small Crimes 

Finalist: Danielle Hanson, Ambushing Water 

Category: ROMANCE

Winner: Sally Kilpatrick, Bless Her Heart

Finalist: Marilyn Baron, The Alibi 

Category: SHORT STORY COLLECTION

Winner: Michael Bishop, Other Arms Reach Out to Me: Georgia Stories 

Finalist: D. B. Martin, Terror Tales Vol. 1 

Category: SPECIALTY BOOK

Winner: Jason Thrasher, Athens Potluck 

Finalist: Jimmy Carter, The Craftsmanship of Jimmy Carter 

Category: YOUNG ADULT

Winner: Aaron Levy, Blood Don’t Lie

Finalist: McCall Hoyle, The Thing with Feathers