Druids struggle to evade Christian persecution in A.M. Linden’s The Quarry, Book Four in the Druid Chronicles, a fast-paced adventure through medieval Brittania.
Although dwindling in number and hunted by Christians who fear their pagan rituals, Druids still roam the land. Linden explores these oppressed people and their belief system, one that approaches life and conflict with reason and attempts to find a peaceful resolution—a novel idea during this historical time.
The High Priestess Feywn’s health is failing. Our hero, Druid priest Caelym, does everything in his power to save her so she can pass on her vital role in their religion.
The necessary ritual takes time and specific ingredients. As he hunts for those sacred herbs, he is captured by the local sheriff whose second in command, the fanatic Christian Matthew, only wants Caelym’s death.
Cyri, the young Druid woman who would become the next High Priestess, goes in search of Caelym but finds only his bag, weapon, and clothes. Fearing him kidnapped, Cyri journeys to save him in a hunt or be hunted Dark Age. Each step puts Cyri’s and Caelym’s survival into question.
Linden peoples this story with characters from across her series whose roles stand clear and meaningful—including the villains.
Stefan, the Saxon warrior recently appointed sheriff of the Shire of Codswallow, weighs two problems against one another. His wife’s uncle wants to marry her—over Stefan’s dead body. And Stefan has just run into a wanted Druid who might prove useful.
The different POVs create unpredictable and entertaining twists, as Stefen captures Caelym on his way to an inn where he hopes to receive a hearty lunch and a roll in the hay with Cyri, who he believes to be a barmaid. Little does Stefan know Cyri’s connection to Caelym’s mistress Feywn.
Stefan first wants Caelym simply for his value as a hostage, but recognizes his talent as a gifted musician and storyteller, and refuses to give in to Matthew’s murderous desire. When an attempt is made on Stefan’s life, his understanding of his place in the world is shaken to its core, and only Caelym can give him the perspective and advice he needs—both to save himself and plot revenge.
For lovers of historical fiction, Celtic and Druidic literature, and classic fantasy like Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, the story of Stefan, Caelym, and Cyri in The Quarry will cast an enrapturing spell, making them fall in love with Linden’s characters, both heroic and villainous, and appreciate these ancient pagan ways.
Linden’s masterful storytelling in The Quarry stands wonderfully on its own and as continuation of the Druid Chronicles, leaving new readers excited to finish the whole series.
Uplifting and heartwarming work is a vanishingly rare thing these days, and we love having an Awards Division that can inspire readers and writers alike. The Hearten Awards seeks true stories about adventures, life events, unique experiences, travel, personal journeys, global enlightenment, and more.
Join us in celebrating the Hall of Fame for Grand Prize Winners of the Hearten Awards!
Elk Love: A Montana Memoir
By Lynne Spriggs O’Connor
Our review for the newest Hearten Grand Prize Winner is still upcoming. In the meantime, here is what some GoodReads readers have to say:
“This is a must-read for everyone who loves nature and farm life. The author adequately describes her feelings, and I felt like I was right there, hearing, seeing, and feeling everything she was talking about. A memoir not to forget.” -Ineke
“If you’re looking for an action-packed thriller, this is not it, but if you seek a slow, mind-soothing antidote to the craziness of the world, try this memoir. It’s simply beautiful in every way, the language, the setting, the message, and yes, the love. The author, then single and in her early forties, comes to Great Falls, Montana to build a museum exhibit. She meets Harrison, a widowed cattle rancher who is often rude and closed off. They slowly bond over a shared love of the land and all the beings that live there. If you have ever marveled at the colors and patterns on the feathers of a wild bird or felt blessed to see a herd of wild elk, this book is for you. If you have no experience with nature, it will reveal a new world, even if you’re reading it on your Kindle in a crowded city coffee shop. Give your brain a spa day and read this book.” -Sue
“OMG! I was so taken with this book that I had trouble putting it down. I didn’t look at it as a memoir, but I love story. The way Lynne describes life in Montana, I felt I was walking beside her. I really hope you keep writing, although it seems life is pretty busy on the ranch. I have never thought much about visiting Montana, but after reading your story, I would love to see it for myself, but only if I could experience the gift through nature and not guided tours. Thank you so much for sharing your fears and joys with me!” -Jeanie
Debut author Nove Meyers breathes life into the big tent of human aspirations and desperations, from his birth into a raucous circus atmosphere to his diligent study for Catholic priesthood.
Running Away from the Circus is a vibrant chronicle that opens with a vignette of his grandmother, clad in sequins and flying on a trapeze. She spun like a top to enthusiastic applause under the circus tent, until the fateful day when she included her young child in the act, dropping her thirty feet to the sawdust-covered floor below. But this did not prevent Nove Meyers from being born and having a story to tell.
The boyhood described was as wild as the circus acts. He was encouraged to smoke cigarettes like his father and watched in astonishment as his mother burned up paper money, possibly to protect his uncle, a counterfeiter. Yet despite his unusual upbringing as one of the family’s third generation of circus owners, Meyers was taken regularly to Catholic church services. There, he discovered God, an entity as mysterious as the traveling circus and carnie crowds he was raised among.
INNER TREK – a reluctant pilgrim to the Himalayas By Mohan Ranga Rao
A disinclined traveler journeys into the heartland of the revered Mount Kalash Parikarma in Tibet. Inner Trek by Mohan Ranga Rao follows a voyage that culminates in self-discovery and spiritual enlightenment.
Mohan Ranga Rao, a retired Indian businessman, finds himself between a rock and a hard place when a ruthless Bangalore mob boss threatens him to sell his land at a throwaway price. The situation escalates when he discovers that his trusted lawyer has joined forces with the enemy. He can only turn to his wife for solace.
With nothing for him to do about his land, Rao vows to trek around Mount Kailash, a holy Tibetan Mountain. This travel memoir traces his and his wife’s journey to the deified Himalayas, the land of Lord Shiva. Rao shares intimate details of his experience, including the spiritual transformation that he went through during his challenging high-altitude trek.
DAWGS: A True Story of Lost Animals and the Kids Who Rescued Them by Diane Trull & Meredith Wargo
We love our dogs. We love our cats. But what do we do when people no longer want them, use them for cruel purposes, or release them into the streets with no thought for what will happen to them? Diane Trull’s memoir with Meredith Wargo, DAWGS, shines a light on these questions.
Trull begins the story as a fourth-grade teacher in Dalhart, Texas. One of her young students asks about an article in a local paper showing photos of adorable dogs at a shelter who were up for adoption, wondering what happened to those who weren’t adopted.
Instead of dodging the question, and with great trepidation, she answered it with the truth: those who weren’t adopted would be put to sleep. Her tiny students were understandably shocked. Then one of them said, “I don’t want any of those dogs to die. Isn’t there something we can do to save them?”
Award-winning author, motivational speaker, and podcast host Judy Gaman befriends a fun-loving and feisty centenarian in her CIBA Grand Prize-winning novel, Love, Life, and Lucille.
The list of titles and accolades Judy Gaman has accrued begin to pale when she encounters Lucille Fleming for the very first time. The whole reason for the meet-up with the centenarian was specifically to get her opinions on “aging gracefully,” the featured topic of a new book Judy planned to write. What was scheduled as an hour-long interview turned into an absolutely delightful, near three-hour visit. Lucille turned the tables and began asking questions about Judy’s life with compelling earnestness—something Judy rarely experienced. She was unprepared yet exhilarated.
Judy couldn’t stop thinking about this “dressed to the nines” woman with an ear-to-ear smile and a sturdy, affectionate hug. Her contact with this larger-than-life woman was so infectious, Judy made up an excuse—so that she could see her again. During that second meeting, the two became fast friends as they set Fridays aside as their day to get together. Before their next planned meeting, Judy learned that Lucille had gone into cardiac arrest. She was dead for three minutes before she came back full of vim and vigor as if nothing had happened. Five months later, Lucille was more than ready for TV interviews. With that, Judy made plans to write a second book about Lucille and their relationship.
One of seven of the Non-Fiction Divisions for the Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBAs) is the Journey Awards. This division deals with some of the most difficult experiences people are challenged with. The Journey Book Awards was the first non-fiction division of the CIBAs. As we received a considerable number of submissions that were uplifting and inspiring as well as those that focused on overcoming adversities, we decided to offer two divisions of narrative non-fiction. To be able to recognize these fully, we split off the more heartwarming works into the Hearten Awards, while continuing to recognize and discover works that give accounts of immense challenges and personal stories of the power resiliency and overcoming adversity (some of which should come with trigger warnings) in the Journey Book Awards.
Chanticleer is looking to discover exceptional Non-Fiction dealing with Overcoming Adversity, Dysfunctional Families, Societal Issues of Race and Class, Personal Journeys, and Experiences relating to PTSD, Drug Addiction, Sexual Abuse, and Childhood Trauma. If you have a Non-Fiction Book with different themes, you can see our full list of Non-Fiction Awards here. Truth matters now, more than ever!
Check out these exceptional reads and experiences from previous Journey Grand Prize Winners
Unfollow Me
By Kathryn Caraway
When you’re a target of stalking, “Each day is a fight to stay alive. Even while sleeping, you must be ready.” So reveals Kathryn Caraway inUnfollow Me,a spine-tingling true crime novel tracing a life shattered by severe stalking.
Although the author uses the pseudonym “Kathryn Caraway” throughout this novel to protect her identity, her harrowing tales of being the target of a stalker and fighting for her rights to freedom and safety are a testament to the real danger she was exposed to. Caraway’s experience creates a compelling story of one woman’s brave quest for justice against her torturer.
Kathryn emotionally, mentally, and physically falls apart at the hands of a violent, ubiquitous presence. Despite the severity of the crimes committed against her, Kathryn’s concerns are routinely dismissed as irrational and hysterical by law enforcement officials, lawyers, and even long-time friends.
Before a malicious intruder targets her, Kathryn is a beloved mother, a wonderful friend, and a confident employee. But after she is introduced to Todd, he begins to slowly strip her life from her control.
To see more from this author, including her upcoming fictional sequel to Unfollow Me, visit her website!
Barbed By Julie Morrison
Julie Morrison saddles up to take us for a ride through the harsh dry mountains of northern Arizona and beyond in her memoir, Barbed.
Readers visit the ranch where Julie’s parents try to keep the family legacy alive. Julie reveals a cowboy’s world where she meets walls instead of doors but never gives up.
Barbed opens with Morrison living in the rainy Seattle area with her husband. But the lure of a cowboy’s life on the range – working cattle and riding horseback – beckons them both. Julie needs salvation like this for her marriage, now distant and cold.
Author and businessman Mark Berridge, through the lived experience of himself and others after traumatic injuries, gained a wide understanding of overcoming disaster, and how to rehabilitate not only one’s body but mind and spirit as well. In sharing his wisdom, A Fraction Stronger is a must-read for anyone facing physical, emotional, or mental barriers.
On March 10, 2019, Berridge, due to embark on a work-related flight from his Australian home to the US later that day, went on a bike ride with some buddies. He lost control of the bike over a piece of slippery road patch work, he wrecked falling into an open culvert, striking his head; conscious, but unable to move his feet and legs. The left side of his helmet was crushed, his spinal cord injured, and numerous bone broke. Hospitals would become his world as he dealt with spinal injuries and the long road to rehabilitation – relearning how to sit, stand, and walk.
Visit Mark’s website to learn more about where he’s speaking here!
Better off Bald By Andrea Wilson Woods
There exists a bond between sisters, and often that bond becomes a connection so strong that time cannot erase the love and the longing for the other. Andrea Wilson Woods defines such a bond in Better Off Bald: A Life in 147 Days.
Woods details the choreographed life she lives with her sister Adrienne, who has been diagnosed with cancer. Together they begin their dance, pirouetting around IV ports and long lists of medications. Sisters in life, love, and an all-out war against liver cancer.
Woods retells her story with compassion and a rational eye for detail while embracing all the deep emotions that ravage her as she records every one of the 147 days after the initial diagnosis.
The Parrot’s Perch — A Memoir of Torture and Corruption in Brazil By Karen Keilt
Karen Keilt led a life of privilege, a life that most of us only dream of, but she turns the dream upside down in her memoir The Parrot’s Perch: A Memoir of Torture and Corruption in Brazil, where she exposes the seamy underside of that life and the corrupt government under which she lived. Keilt takes us from her childhood filled with the horses she loved, to her marriage to a man she adored, to the fatal incident that destroyed the world she knew.
The memoir moves between New York and Sao Paulo as Keilt sets the stage for an incident that occurs shortly after her marriage. Keilt places no blame, but tells her story with an objective eye, while expressing the confusion she held of her experiences: the kidnapping, torture, rape, and interrogation by the police for “…forty-five days of hell. Three million, eight hundred and eighty-eight seconds.”
Karen Keilt presents a memoir that is tough and unapologetic. She sandwiches her story within an interview at the UN, which is smart because some of the events are so intense and violent, they call for a breathing space where readers can decompress.
Thank you for celebrating our Journey Hall of Fame Winners with us!
Remember to add your next reads to your StoryGraph or Goodreads account! Now that you’re set on your next five reads, what are you waiting for? The only way to join this amazing list of Journey Winners is to submit today!
Those who submit and advance will have the chance to win the Overall Grand Prize of the CIBAs and $1000!
Reenita M. Hora’s Vermilion Harvest weaves love and liberation into literary gold.
“Why do love and freedom have such a complicated relationship?” This haunting question pulses through every page of Vermilion Harvest, Hora’s breathtaking debut that creates, in one of history’s darkest moments, a luminous testament to the power of love in transcending boundaries.
A star-crossed romance sparks against the backdrop of empire.
Set in 1919 Amritsar, Vermilion Harvest introduces readers to Aruna Duggal, a nineteen-year-old Anglo-Indian schoolteacher caught between worlds—too brown for British acceptance, too white for Indian belonging. Born from violence, raised in the shadows between communities, Aruna navigates life’s margins until she meets Ayaz Peermohammed, a passionate Muslim law student from Lahore. Ayaz’s dreams of Indian independence ignite something revolutionary within Aruna’s heart.
Their love story blooms like a flower in defiance of winter—beautiful, tender, and heartbreakingly fragile. Hora captures the exquisite tension between personal desire and political reality as Aruna and Ayaz discover that in a country divided by religion, race, and colonial rule, love itself becomes an act of rebellion.
The masterful prose in Vermilion Harvest transforms historical tragedy into profound art
Hora’s literary craftsmanship elevates this novel far beyond typical historical romance. Her prose shimmers with intelligence and emotion, creating an intimate portrait of a young woman’s awakening consciousness against the violent fractures in her society. Through Aruna’s compelling voice, readers experience the complex interior landscape of someone perpetually displaced, seeking belonging in a world determined to categorize and divide.
Hora approaches the Jallianwala Bagh massacre with remarkable literary courage. She threads historical horror into a deeply personal narrative that honors both individual suffering and collective trauma. This nuanced exploration of identity, belonging, and resistance resonates powerfully in our contemporary moment.
The characters of Vermilion Harvest pull together in an urgent love story racing against a bloody turning point in history.
As political tensions escalate and Colonel Dyer’s military orders loom, Aruna faces an impossible choice between safety and love—the peripheral privilege of her Anglo-Indian status and the dangerous freedom Ayaz represents. The novel’s final act builds to a devastating emotional crescendo as love and liberation collide in the gardens of Jallianwala Bagh.
Vermilion Harvest succeeds brilliantly as both intimate love story and sweeping historical epic.
Hora has crafted a novel that makes the personal political and the historical immediate, creating characters so vivid and emotions so raw that readers will find themselves completely invested in Aruna and Ayaz’s fate.
For readers seeking high-caliber fiction with both gorgeous prose and compelling storytelling, Vermilion Harvest delivers an unforgettable reading experience. A new novel from an author of major literary talent, offering historical insight and timeless truths about love’s power to transform and transcend.
Only 1 week left to submit your books to these prestigious CIBA Divisions and embark on an extraordinary journey to success. With over $30,000 in prizes awarded annually, now is the time to make your mark!
The Clue Awards, The Global Thriller Awards, and the Mystery and Mayhem Awards are still open!
Congratulations to the Winners of the 2024 Clue Award for Suspense/Thrillers!
Pamela Beason –If Only
Jeff Nania –Musky Run
Sean Hagerty –Jones Point
Kathryn Caraway –Unfollow Me
Carl Vonderau –Saving Myles
Shanessa Gluhm –A River of Crows
Michael Pronko –Shitamachi Scam
And a huge round of applause for the 2024 Clue Grand Prize Winner:
Enemies Domestic by John DeDakis
Congratulations to the Winners of the 2024 Global Thriller Awards!
T.O. Paine –The Delusion
Charlie Robinson –Heavy Hysteria: A Novel of Corporate Intrigue Involving the Minerals of this Sacred Earth
Tony Ollivier –The Tokyo Diversion
Ralph R. “Rick” Steinke –Change of Mission: A Jake Fortina Series Novel
Ron Singerton –Ruptured
Sheri T. Joseph –Edge of the Known World
Carla Seyler –A Place Unmade
Randall Krzak –Frozen Conquest
And a huge round of applause for the 2024 Global Thriller Awards Grand Prize Winner:
A Blanket of Steel by Timothy S. Johnston
Congratulations to the 2024 Winners of the Mystery & Mayhem Awards!
Patrick E. Craig –The Boy In Blue Denim
Lori Roberts Herbst –Graven Images
Gail Noble-Sanderson –A Cup of Revenge – A Drew Davies Railway Mystery – Book 2
M. K. Graff –Death in the Orchard: A Trudy Genova Mystery
Miriam Verbeek –The Forest
Kari Bovee –The Pryce of Conceit
And a huge round of applause for the 2024 M&M Grand Prize Winner:
If Two Are Dead by Jeanne Matthews
At Chanticleer, we see your success as our success. The CIBAs provide dedicated promotion at every advancement tier, from our highly anticipated Long Lists to our prestigious Grand Prize Winners. We work tirelessly to maximize your digital footprint through our high-traffic website, social media campaigns, and newsletter features that energize both authors and readers.
We are always eager to support the Best Books through the CIBAs. Join the ranks of celebrated authors who have already taken this critical step in their publishing.
Your book deserves to be discovered, celebrated, and shared with the world. Don’t miss the chance to showcase your talent and gain valuable exposure at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (April, 2026) where Winners from all 28 Book Award Divisions will be announced and honored.
Readers are always searching for their next great thriller, and your story deserves to be heard. Submit now and leave a lasting impression.
The Hearten Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Uplifting and Inspiring Non-Fiction. The Grand Prize Winner, Lynne Spriggs O’Connor’s book, Elk Love will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Hearten contest page year ’round!
The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!
Also the 2024 Chanticleer Cover Design Grand Prize Winner for Non-Fiction!
A young teacher buys a one-way ticket to Shishmaref, Alaska. Within minutes of landing, she finds herself dealing with unexpected, rustic accommodations, and the culture shock of living in a remote Iñuit community. She relies on her courage, resilience, and wit while enduring freezing temperatures, power outages, loneliness, and first-year teacher anxieties and missteps, but eventually realizes that those challenges pale in comparison to the life lessons she learns about the heart of teaching—lessons from her students, their culture, and their community, on the vast, windy landscape at the edge of the Chukchi Sea.
From Chanticleer:
How does place shape who we are—and who we’ll become? In this memoir, Teaching in the Dark, Genét Simone puts that question to the test by recounting her first year as a teacher.
The initial year of teaching is never an easy feat, but for Simone it was especially challenging, and transformative. She spent it with Native students in the remote island village of Shishmaref, on the Arctic edge of Alaska—no small wonder the school year became an unforgettable one.
Today, Simone has decades of teaching experience to draw upon. Yet, in this memoir she rarely employs her present voice to reflect on the past. Instead, the narrator remains in the moment: a young and inexperienced Simone, who only knows that she feels destined to be a teacher. When she signs up for the Shishmaref teaching job, she doesn’t even realize that it’s on an island.
Equipped with snow boots and passion, she arrives on the island only to realize just how unprepared she is.
This is a true-life story of a crusader for peace amid the backdrop of war and personal loss. You will be captivated as you experience the poetry of life and discover an amazing intervention revealing the Afterlife.
Walk slowly lest you miss your turn in the forest.
DIAMOND: The Memoir of a Lost Daughter of Japan tells the tale of a small girl orphaned in a hostile foreign country, who must live by her wits and courage until fate decides to favor her many years later.
Told in the thrilling voice of an expert storyteller, this memoir reads like page-turner fiction yet is factual down to the letter. It is a compassionate look into human hearts under the worst of conditions, and at what a gentle soul will do to protect the people she loves.
Set in the Philippines near the end of the Second World War, DIAMOND rolls back the curtain on a time and place about which little has been written. It is history. It is drama. It is a story of personal triumph.
From Chanticleer:
In a world ravaged by conflict and loss, Etsuko Diamond Miyagi’s memoir,Diamond: The Memoir of a Lost Daughter of Japanis a shining testament to the beauty of love and the human spirit’s ability to overcome adversity.
Etsuko enjoys a peaceful childhood on the Philippine island of Mindanao, where her father owns an abacá plantation. But they are not safe when guerilla forces destroy her village murdering everyone and leaving her as the sole survivor. This deeply personal narrative of grief chronicles Etsuko’s harrowing journey to find solace and joy after the death of her parents.
At first, passed from house to house, Etsuko is forced to work as a domestic servant until a kind family takes her in. However, her safety and survival is once again in danger when she’s forced to leave her adopted family and take a position at Chief Doming Apostol’s estate in Magpet. It is there Etsuko receives the name ‘Diamond.’
Diamond works for years in the Apostol household where not all is terrible. She forms a loving bond as the caretaker for the youngest of the children. When their father is imprisoned, the household falls apart, but Diamond stays.
An award-winning and best-selling memoir, An Impossible Life, tells the powerful true account of one woman’s descent into depressive and manic episodes and how she found lifesaving therapy and medication to overcome and triumph. When thirty-five-year-old Sonja Wasden is involuntarily admitted to a psychiatric hospital by her husband and father, she is sure it is a mistake. Wife of a CEO, mother of three, and living in a beautiful suburb, Sonja’s life appears ideal. How did she get here?
In this gripping and breathtaking narrative that makes the reader feel as though they are listening in on a private conversation, Sonja reveals her delusions and battles with mental illness, motherhood, and marriage. When all hope seems lost, this true story of perseverance is inspiring and unforgettable.
An Impossible Life is a lighthouse of hope for those facing an all-consuming mental illness, either for themselves or for someone they love.
HOLDING FAST: A Memoir of Sailing, Love, and Loss is the story of leaving everything behind to follow her husband’s lifelong dream of sailing away. Many people dream of escaping reality but few actually go.
Blond, blue-eyed, irreverent John bursts into Susan’s life in her twenties with a dream of sailing off. Susan dreams of settling down and doesn’t want to go. A three-year voyage with their young daughter profoundly changes their lives. A gripping adventure story and an inspirational memoir of finding our power in the unlikeliest of places.
The Unfakeable Code(R) Take Back Control, Lead Authentically and Live Freely on Your Terms.
Meticulously researched and written by Tony Jeton Selimi, The Unfakeable Code(R) explores the fierce scientific, psychological, leadership and business impact of wearing ‘masks’, feeling stuck, powerless, out of control, and being a people pleaser, disengaged and unproductive at home and work – a growing problem in a fast-paced world full of expectations, information overload, fake news and uncertainty, which will leave behind a cosmic trail of mental health issues, acute social confusion and a significant rise in unemployment.
Empowering readers to redefine themselves and overcome the adversity, anxiety and stagnancy likely blighting their lives, Selimi truly breaks new ground in a volume that gives you the clarity, the hope, and the code to own your power and continue to evolve into the authentic, unfakeable leader you were born to be. The Unfakeable Code(R) offers a fresh and robust five-step methodology for business, personal or professional transformation. It assists in upgrading your psychology and harmonising body-mind-heart intelligence so it can deal with any form of anxiety, conflict, and stress.
Throughout the book, Tony J. Selimi shares inspiring actual client stories who have used the five principles to successfully liberate themselves from the emotional baggage and distress by fully completing the five-step method. It’s also been a hit among critics, too, with one recently writing, “The worldview developed here transcends science, dogma, and belief, giving readers a new code to reconnect with their true, authentic individual and the Divine within that knows how to take back control, lead authentically and live freely on your terms.” Foreword written by Dr John Demartini, a World Renown Human Behavioural Specialist.
The Journey Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Overcoming Adversity in Narrative Non-Fiction and Memoirs. The Grand Prize Winner, Kathryn Caraway’s book, Unfollow Me will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Journey contest page year ’round!
The best part about being a Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winner is the love and attention you get all year ‘round!
Join us in celebrating the 2024 First Place Journey Winners!
Kirsten Throneberry – Guided: Lost Love, Hidden Realms and the Open Road
On the eve of her 40th birthday, Kirsten, a happily married mother of two, receives an unsolicited message foretelling the collapse of her life as she knows it. This startling news is delivered by the unseen guides who have been with her for over 14 years.
In the devastating aftermath of their prediction, these same guides return to offer Kirsten an unconventional path forward through her grief: a yearlong road trip around the country in an RV―something she has never owned, wanted, or even driven before.
Though anxious and uncertain, she decides to heed their advice to sell her home and head out into the unknown in 300 square feet of living space with her two young sons, two large dogs, and one aging flower-child mother.
On this wild and often harrowing journey, Kirsten discovers the true depths of her resilience and a way to finally reclaim her life.
From Chanticleer:
In her stunning memoir, Guided: Lost Love, Hidden Realms, and the Open Road, Kirsten Throneberry weaves together the highs and lows of a road trip packed with life wisdom, where she explores grief, spirituality, and rekindled hope.
Throneberry’s achingly vulnerable memoir splits its readers’ hearts and tenderly sews them back together.
In the aftermath of the devastating loss of her husband, Kirsten sells her home and takes her two small sons, two elderly pups, and eccentric mother on a year-long road trip around the United States in their new-to-them Bigfoot RV.
Encouraged by the same spirit guides whose earlier advice for her husband’s health left her broken and untrusting, Kirsten must learn to face the open road with an equally open heart and mind.
Jennifer Gasner is seventeen when her dreams are shattered overnight.
Receiving a diagnosis of Friedreich’s ataxia, a rare genetic neuromuscular disease, means she must prepare herself for a life of loss. When she starts college, she can still walk on her own, but as her disease progresses, she spirals further into sadness, denial, and alienation. She turns to alcohol and a toxic relationship to distract her from what she refuses to accept—that her body, her self-esteem, and her hope for her future are failing.
When Jennifer develops a friendship with rock star Dave Matthews, her outlook changes. She begins to understand that using a wheelchair doesn’t mean her life is over. In fact, when she discovers disability culture, she realizes it’s not her body that needs to be fixed but her assumptions about being disabled.
In her captivating memoir, My Unexpected Life: Finding Balance Beyond My Diagnosis, Jennifer invites you into her world, where she must learn to view her changing body with compassion and choose gratitude over anger as she finds strength and acceptance in a whole new way of moving through life.
Also a 2024 Chanticleer Cover Design First Place Winner!
After living an average Aussie life playing sport, spending languid days on the beach, and falling in love with ocean swimming, Anne Gately received unwelcome news. She had Stage IV melanoma.
Yet Anne is one of the lucky ones. After a dire prognosis, she dug deep to face the clear and present prospect of death, head-on. In Sunburnt, her revealing memoir, Anne recounts the emotions and challenges of her life-saving immunotherapy treatment under the care of Professor Georgina Long to come through the other side.
Not only has Anne survived, she is issuing a clarion call for a change to the bronzed Aussie culture. In Sunburnt Anne combines a nostalgic view of a charmed Aussie childhood, a jolting review of Australia’s sun-worshipping norms, and enough scientific research to encourage us all to redefine our relationship with the sun.
Sonja Wasden and Rachel Siddoway – An Impossible Life: A True Story of Hope and Mental Illness
Also a 2024 Hearten First Place Winner!
An award-winning and best-selling memoir, An Impossible Life, tells the powerful true account of one woman’s descent into depressive and manic episodes and how she found lifesaving therapy and medication to overcome and triumph. When thirty-five-year-old Sonja Wasden is involuntarily admitted to a psychiatric hospital by her husband and father, she is sure it is a mistake. Wife of a CEO, mother of three, and living in a beautiful suburb, Sonja’s life appears ideal. How did she get here?
In this gripping and breathtaking narrative that makes the reader feel as though they are listening in on a private conversation, Sonja reveals her delusions and battles with mental illness, motherhood, and marriage. When all hope seems lost, this true story of perseverance is inspiring and unforgettable.
An Impossible Life is a lighthouse of hope for those facing an all-consuming mental illness, either for themselves or for someone they love.
Lindsey Henke is freshly married and a newly practicing psychotherapist when she finds out she is pregnant with her first child. Nine months later, on a cold Minnesota night in December 2012, after a perfect pregnancy, Lindsey goes into labor—only to be told upon arrival at the hospital that her baby has no heartbeat.
After the stillbirth of her daughter, Lindsey grapples with the unbearable agony of losing a child. Unprepared to cope with a sorrow this deep, she uses the only tools she has—her skills as a therapist—to plot her own path through grief. Over the next year and half, as Lindsey mourns the loss of one child while simultaneously trying to hold space for the joy of expecting another baby, she learns that grief can live side by side with joy.
When Skies Are Gray offers a poignant message to any mother who is grieving: Your pain is real. The sharp ache of the grief you feel will soften over time, though your love for the child you lost will always remain. And it’s okay to feel that love; it’s a mother’s love, and like lullabies, a mother’s love never dies.
By age four, Claudia Marseille had hardly uttered a word. When her parents finally had her hearing tested and learned she had a severe hearing loss, they chose to mainstream her, hoping this would offer her the most “normal” childhood possible. With the help of a primitive hearing aid, Claudia worked hard to learn to hear, lipread, and speak even as she tried to hide her disability in order to fit in. As a result, she was often misunderstood, lonely, and isolated—fitting into neither the hearing world nor the Deaf culture.
This memoir explores Claudia’s relationships with her German refugee parents—a disturbed, psychoanalyst father obsessed over various harebrained projects and moneymaking schemes and a Jewish mother who had survived the Holocaust in Munich—and with her own identity. Claudia shares how she emerged from loneliness and social isolation, explored her Jewish identity, struggled to find a career compatible with hearing loss, and eventually opened herself to a life of creativity and love.
But You Look So Normal is the inspiring story of a life affected but not defined by an invisible disability. It is a journey through family, loss, shame, identity, love, and healing as Claudia finally, joyfully, finds her place in the world.
Shami Stovall’s Time-Marked Warlock rewinds urban fantasy with fresh magic.
Adair Finch is the world’s most powerful warlock – and he’s done with it all. In Time-Marked Warlock, Shami Stovall crafts a brilliant urban fantasy that feels like Groundhogs Day meets Harry Dresden, delivering a take on magical investigation that will leave readers spellbound from the first page.
A reluctant mentor meets his match in a twelve-year-old witch.
After losing his brother in a case gone wrong, Finch has sworn off the paranormal world entirely. But when young Bree Blackstone pounds on his door in the middle of the night – her mother murdered, her father kidnapped – Finch wades back into the magical chaos he’d tried to escape. What starts as a favor for an old friend becomes a twisting mystery that threatens everything he thought he knew about his world.
Stovall excels at creating an unlikely partnership, one crackling with energy and humor. Bree isn’t your typical helpless child in need of rescue – she’s a young witch with questions, opinions, and magical abilities that complement Finch’s considerable power. Their banter and growing mentor-student relationship provides both emotional depth and genuine laughs throughout the investigation.
Time magic creates a game-changing twist on fantastical investigation.
The real genius of Time-Marked Warlock lies in Finch’s unique ability to rewind time and witness events as they actually happened. When someone tries to kill both Finch and Bree, his ability to see the attack unfold adds layers of complexity that keep readers guessing right alongside the characters.
Stovall uses this temporal element not as a gimmick but as a sophisticated plot device that deepens the mystery while raising the stakes. Each revelation through time manipulation reveals another clue towards conspiracy, transforming what appears to be a straightforward murder case into something even more sinister and far-reaching.
A standout series launch that reinvents urban fantasy tropes.
Time-Marked Warlock succeeds because of the originality it infuses into familiar urban fantasy elements – powerful warlocks, magical investigations, supernatural threats. The world-building feels both lived-in and vivacious, populated with complex characters whose flaws make them more compelling than perfect heroes ever could be.
Stovall’s writing sparkles with wit and energy, moving at breakneck pace while never sacrificing character development. Finch’s journey from bitter retirement to reluctant heroism feels earned, while the emotional resonance of Bree’s evolution from terrified child to capable young witch elevates the entire narrative.
As the opening volume of The Chronos Chronicles trilogy, Time-Marked Warlock establishes a magical world readers will want to revisit again and again. Fans of Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files and Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles will find their new favorite series in Stovall’s perfect combination of urban fantasy adventure and time-bending mystery.
Few sights are more thrilling than seeing your book lined up on an independent bookstore shelf—your name on the spine, your story ready to find its perfect reader.
Getting there takes more than luck. It requires strategy, relationship-building, and understanding how bookstores actually operate.
After speaking with event coordinators, consignment managers, buyers, and successful authors, we’ve gathered the most practical advice for getting your book into independent bookstores. The good news? There are three distinct pathways to explore, and each offers unique opportunities for building lasting relationships with booksellers.
The Three Pathways to Bookstore Success
Understanding your options helps you choose the right approach for your situation and goals:
Events – Host readings, signings, or launch parties Consignment – Place books directly with individual stores Wholesale Orders – Get picked up through distributors like Ingram
Each pathway requires different preparation, but all share one crucial element: treating booksellers with genuine respect and professionalism.
The Golden Rule of Bookstore Relationships
Before diving into strategies, remember this fundamental truth: day-to-day booksellers are often the people who will hand-sell your book to customers. Making a positive impression isn’t just good manners—it directly impacts your sales potential. Consciously or unconsciously, people are less inclined to recommend books by authors who’ve treated them poorly.
The publishing world is surprisingly small, and bookstore networks are even smaller. Always maintain your professionalism, even during challenging interactions. Your reputation travels faster than you might expect.
Pathway #1: Starting with Events
Our own David Beaumier at an author event
Most authors connect with bookstores through events first. This approach builds relationships while giving you immediate face-to-face time with both booksellers and potential readers.
Research Before You Reach Out
Visit the bookstore’s website and thoroughly explore their events section. Understanding their process, requirements, and calendar helps you ask informed questions rather than basic ones that signal you haven’t done your homework.
Respect Their Time and Schedule
Bookstore staff often wear multiple hats, so timing matters enormously. If an events coordinator prefers meeting in person, work within their schedule. Showing up unannounced or at inconvenient times can create resentment rather than opportunity.
Take Ownership of Your Promotion
Think of bookstore events like editorial reviews or book awards—the venue provides some promotion, but their audience is broader than yours. Not everyone who follows their social media will be interested in your specific book.
Your promotional responsibilities include:
Using any media kit templates the bookstore provides
Reaching out to local publications and media
Connecting with regional bookseller associations (like the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association)
Leveraging your own social media and newsletter
The most successful events happen when you leverage multiple forms of promotion simultaneously.
Pathway #2: Consignment Programs
Rather than jumping straight to wholesale orders, research whether bookstores offer consignment programs. In consignment arrangements, you act as your own distributor—delivering books directly and managing inventory.
The Consignment Advantage
Better profit margins: You can receive as much as 70% of sales revenue
Direct relationships: Regular contact builds stronger connections with staff
Flexibility: Easier to adjust inventory based on what’s actually selling
Smart Consignment Management
Ruth Amanda, the 2024 CIBA Little Peeps Grand Prize Winner, offers brilliant practical advice: keep a master list of every consignment location with contact names and phone numbers. Once quarterly, make your rounds in one efficient sweep, calling ahead to check inventory levels.
Pro tip: When visiting to restock, give advance notice of your arrival time. This courtesy allows bookstore staff to plan their day and potentially spend time discussing how your book is performing or ways to improve its placement.
Pathway #3: Getting Picked Up by Buyers
The ultimate goal for many authors is having bookstores order directly through distributors like Ingram. This creates ongoing sales without requiring you to manage individual store relationships.
Understanding “At Terms”
Bookstores look for books available “at terms,” which means:
Returnable: You accept returns of unsold inventory
Regular discount: Typically 45% off retail price for bookstores
The Returns Reality
Don’t return the toys!
Returns can feel scary because it means you pay shipping both ways, and money you thought you’d earned gets clawed back. For paperbacks, you can opt for “destroy returns” where bookstores remove the cover and recycle the rest rather than shipping books back.
However, non-returnable books face significant disadvantages. With bookstores operating on thin margins and limited shelf space, they’re less likely to risk inventory space on non-returnable titles when proven authors offer returnable options.
The Magic of “REG” Status
When you set your wholesale discount at 45%, a special code appears on Ingram’s ordering system: “REG” (regular discount). This green flag signals to bookstore buyers that your book meets industry standards for wholesale ordering.
Most bookstores will work with discounts as low as 35%, but that 45% threshold creates preferential treatment in ordering systems.
Getting on Ingram
Ingram dominates English-language book distribution worldwide. For independent authors, they’re the primary distributor that bookstores trust and use regularly. The good news? Getting your books into their system is straightforward through services like IngramSpark.
The most successful authors understand that bookstore relationships often extend beyond business transactions. Ruth Amanda’s experience illustrates this perfectly: a gift shop owner whose grandson loves Ruth’s writing became a champion who helped her get into five additional gift shops, plus museums that now carry her books.
When someone champions your book:
Express genuine gratitude
Keep them updated on new releases
Offer them first copies or special editions
Remember that these relationships can open unexpected doors
Champions can emerge from the most unlikely places—gift shop owners, bookstore customers, even other authors. Stay open to possibilities and nurture relationships that feel authentic.
Professional Presentation Materials
When approaching bookstores, treat your materials like a gift that shows respect for their time and consideration.
Essential Media Kit Components
Your book (obviously)
Professional sell sheet with key details and selling points
Promotional materials like bookmarks, pins, or branded items
Personal touch like tissue paper, color coordination, or small treats
The presentation signals that you take your work and their consideration seriously.
In-Store Promotional Opportunities
Once you’ve established a relationship, ask about additional promotional support:
Shelf talkers highlighting your book
Bookmarks for customers
Window display opportunities
Cross-promotion with related events
A shelf talker for Chanticleer Author Susan Faw’s Award Winning book, Seer of Souls
Don’t assume these opportunities exist, but don’t hesitate to ask. The worst they can say is no, and many bookstores appreciate authors who think proactively about sales support.
Timing Your Approach
Best timing for initial contact: When you have a finished cover and confirmed publication date
Follow-up protocol: Reach out twice over two weeks, then call to ask about preferred contact timing if you haven’t heard back
Relationship maintenance: Quarterly check-ins for consignment, annual updates for wholesale accounts
Setting Realistic Expectations
Courting bookstores requires persistence, patience, and thick skin. Not every store will be interested, and that’s normal rather than personal rejection. Focus on building genuine relationships with stores that align with your book’s audience and your values as an author.
Success often builds slowly. One store can lead to referrals, one event creates ongoing relationships, one champion opens multiple doors you never expected.
Your Next Steps
Getting a self-published book into bookstores is essentially a job in itself. But independent authors have already proven they possess the essential qualities: persistence, patience, and unwavering belief that their book deserves shelf space.
Start with research, approach with professionalism, and remember that every successful author-bookstore relationship began with that first respectful conversation.
Professional Support for Bookstore-Ready Books
When approaching bookstores, presentation quality matters enormously. Booksellers can immediately spot the difference between professionally prepared books and amateur efforts.
Chanticleer Editorial Book Reviewsprovide the professional third-party validation that bookstores respect. Our comprehensive reviews serve as powerful marketing material while offering robust SEO optimization that maintains long-term value. When bookstore buyers see professional review credentials, it signals serious authorship.
Chanticleer International Book Awards (CIBAs) recognition creates the “award-winning author” credentials that help books stand out in competitive markets. Our 28 divisions across fiction and non-fiction categories provide multiple opportunities for recognition that bookstores and customers value.
Both services generate the professional credibility that serious bookstore relationships require—exactly the kind of validation that transforms good books into shelf-worthy titles.
Discover how professional recognition enhances your bookstore prospects
Only 10 days left to submit your books to these prestigious CIBA Divisions and embark on an extraordinary journey to success. With over $30,000 in prizes awarded annually, now is the time to make your mark!
The Series Awards, The SEA Shorts Awards, and the Collections and Anthologies Awards are still open!
Congratulations to the Winners of the 2024 Series Award for Fiction and Non-Fiction!
And a huge round of applause for the 2024 Series Grand Prize Winner:
The CIBAs offer more than just recognition — they provide a ladder to success with a range of achievement tiers and expert long tail marketing strategies. From the highly anticipated Long List to the prestigious Overall Grand Prize Winner, the CIBA lists energize both authors and readers, maximizing your digital footprint and expanding your fan base.
We are always eager to support the Best Books through the CIBAs. Join the ranks of celebrated authors who have already taken this critical step in their publishing.
Your book deserves to be discovered, celebrated, and shared with the world. Enter to showcase your talent and gain valuable exposure at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (April 2026) where Winners from all 28 Book Award Divisions will be announced and honored.
In a world hungry for good books, your story deserves to be heard. Submit now and leave a lasting impression.
Reenita M. Hora’s Vermilion Harvest weaves love and liberation into literary gold.
Shami Stovall’s Time-Marked Warlock rewinds urban fantasy with fresh magic.
