On the belief that life isn’t just the random cards one is dealt, A Path to Excellence by Tony Jeton Selimi offers a blueprint—the octagon of excellence—to succeed personally, professionally, and spiritually.
Transcending the pitfalls and spontaneous stumbling blocks along the path of life can open the door to self-actualization and progression. As someone who experienced bullying, sexual abuse, early disability, and homelessness, Selimi sets on to become a beacon of light to the hopeless and marginalized.
Within each soul lies a bud of genius waiting to blossom. This book focuses on purpose, vision, and persistence to clear the way to that fullest potential. Affirming challenges as immutable truths of life, Selimi employs Buddhist teaching and personal anecdotes to encourage a head-on confrontation with one’s struggles and promotes a feeling of gratitude. As a blend of philosophical wisdom and practical experience, the initial chapters help readers acknowledge their current life situation, perceiving challenges as epochs of potential.
The intricate symmetry of the octagon, with roots in historical and cultural contexts, becomes a clear visual framework for this book’s instruction.
Just as the eight corners of the octagon meld to form a combined whole, eight core principles serve as a guiding route to holistic growth. Further sections present true-to-life examples of figures like Elon Musk and Oprah Winfrey, framing them as examples of clear vision and self-belief.
A Path to Excellence ushers one out of the most comfortable route to one scattered with stones and glass, insisting that setbacks are truly catalysts for growth.
Selimi highlights the importance of embracing change, believing in one’s self, and savoring every small success with a mind that persists no matter what.
The theme of karma is a core to this book, exploring its role in one’s mindset and passage of life.
As it emphasizes the concept that every action engenders energy that returns to us sometime in life, the theme touches upon the idea of generating positive karma. This section doesn’t back down from proving the relevance and practicability of karma in modern life through a harmonized connection between karmic cycles and psychological insights.
A Path to Excellence is a rich fabric embroidered with personal anecdotes, philosophical references, scientific insights, and reflective exercises for readers. It caters to every soul that seeks self-improvement and a holistic take on achieving success. But most of all, it is for those believing in the idea of persistence and courage.
The Cygnus Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Science Fiction, Steampunk, Alternative History, and Speculative Fiction. The Cygnus Awards is a genre division of Chanticleer International Book Awards and Novel Competitions (The CIBAs).
Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring space, time travel, life on other planets, parallel universes, alternate reality, and all the science, technology, major social or environmental changes of the future that author imaginations can dream up for the CYGNUS Book Awards division. Hard Science Fiction, Soft Science Fiction, Apocalyptic Fiction, Cyberpunk, Time Travel, Genetic Modification, Aliens, Super Humans, Interplanetary Travel, Climate-Fiction, and Settlers on the Galactic Frontier, Dystopian, our judges from across North America and the U.K. will put them to the test and choose the best among them.
These titles have moved forward in the first look rounds from all 2024 CYGNUS Science Fiction entries to the 2024 Cygnus Book Awards LONG LIST. These entries are now in competition for the 2024 Cygnus Short List. The Short Listers will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. FINALISTS will be chosen from the Semi-Finalists and recognized at the Chanticleer Authors Conference, CAC25.
We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 5th, 2025 in beautiful Bellingham, WA at the Four Points by Sheraton sponsored by the 2025Chanticleer Authors Conference.
These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2024 Cygnus Book Awards novel competition for Science Fiction!
Join us in cheering on the following authors and their works!
Timothy S. Johnston – A Blanket of Steel
Daniel Lawrence Abrams – Immortality Bytes: Digital Minds Don’t Get Hungry
Janet Post – Vee: Shooting Star
Chris Rasmussen – Upstream
Joseph Anderson – Eden 2b
Neil V. Young – Children of the Stars
David T. Isaak – Tomorrowville
Rod Galindo – Distress Call
D. L. Wilburn Jr. – The God Protocol: Judgment
Jeremy Clift – Born in Space: Unlocking Destiny
C.P. Schaefer – Western Lights
Derek Wachter – The Dark Side of the Moon
Mark Sabbas – The Monarchs
Sean M. Tirman – Hounds of Gaia (The Marrower Saga, Book One)
Don Stuart – Darwin’s Dilemma
Sheri T. Joseph – Edge of the Known World
Alexandru Czimbor – Sentience Hazard
Peter Dingus – Deep Time
Jaime Castle – Purgatory
Alexander Boldizar – The Man Who Saw Seconds
Zach Fortier – Volk’s Bane
I.D. Marie – The Tyrant’s Daughter
Jayson Adams – Ares
Laurie Stevens – The Return
Marc Corwin – The Lasso Unravels: When All Hell Breaks Loose
A. R. Black – No Man’s Land
Nina Munteanu – Thalweg
Jude Berman – The Die
John Be Lane – The Future Lies
Aaron Arsenault – The Climate Diaries: Book One: The Academy
Russell Klyford – Emergent Mars
Liz Cummings – Down the Rabbit Hole
Michael A. Richards – FounderLand
S.G. Blaise – Meddling Mages
PJ Caldas – The Girl from Wudang
Thomas Weaver – Artificial Wisdom
Ellen Ricciutti – One Time or Another
Shami Stovall – The Half-Life Empire
Lynn Yvonne Moon – Journey’s Travels – Mirrors
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.
PROMOTING OUR AUTHORS!
This post has been posted on the Chanticleer Facebook Page. We try to tag all authors listed here in the Facebook post. However, it is easier for us to tag authors when they have Liked and Followed us on Facebook.
Seating is Limited. The esteemed WRITER Magazine (founded in 1887) has repeatedly recognized the Chanticleer Authors Conference as one of the best conferences to attend and participate in for North America.
The Ozma Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Fantasy Fiction. The Overall Grand Prize Winner, Tim Facciola’s book, A Vengeful Realm will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Ozma 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!
Elwyn is remarkably unremarkable, and she prefers it that way. What more could a thief hope for than to pass through life unseen? Upon fleeing a violent life with her invisible friend-a clever and capricious creature who’s only grown more real with time-she is plunged into an adventure rife with otherworldly beings both beautiful and beastly.
As the Greyscale’ most cutthroat assassin, Brannon has a bone to pick with Elwyn-and several to break. Tasked with hunting down his errant colleague, he soon finds himself in a magic-steeped hamlet where he encounters creatures even more deadly than himself. To survive, he must rely on the very rival he’s been sent to capture.
Little Lydia has a chilling secret, and even she doesn’t know the whole of it. Her unusual appearance has earned her the nickname “monster,” and there may be some truth to the slight. When she caves to the whispers that have slithered through her mind for months, she loses everything she knows and must start anew in the company of criminals.
Bored by his charmed existence, prince Aedyn slips into the lives of these three misfits only to learn of schemes that place both the Mortal and Faerie Realms in peril. If he can help the others work together to thwart the plans of two feuding fiends, they might just manage to save multiple worlds…provided they don’t kill each other first.
Allen is a great world builder and provides complex characters with intricate plots. This story has a little bit of horror, a little fantasy, time travel and heartbreak. Everything had a smooth pace. Now we just need the third book in the series! — Chanticleer
This book is not yet released, but we are very excited to see it come out! It is the sequel to Seagrass Maggie, which also won a First Place Ribbon in the 2022 Ozma Award.
Kullen is the Emperor’s assassin. The sharp hand of justice. The Black Talon.
Gifted a soul-forged bond with his dragon, Umbris, Kullen is tasked with hunting any and all who oppose the Empire.
But when the secretive Crimson Fang murders two noblemen before his very eyes, Kullen must discover the truth of who they are and what they want. What he uncovers is a web of lies and deceit spiraling into the depths of Dimvein.
Natisse, a high-ranking member of the rebellion known as the Crimson Fang, has no greater goal than to rid Dimvein of power-hungry nobles. Haunted by her past, fire, flames, and the death of her parents, she sets out to destroy the dragons and those who wield them as unstoppable weapons of destruction.
Until she too finds herself buried beneath the weight of the revelations her investigations reveal…
A malignant being is hunting Shaun McClanahan and his daughter Molly. When it steals their gold, they are thrust into an epic adventure, hurtling back through time to ancient Rome.
To save themselves, Molly and her father must come to terms with a painful past, heal old wounds, and grapple with the most powerful leprechaun magic ever known to lore gatherers. But even with the help of a poetry-writing fox and a hyper-intelligent chicken, can they save the universe?
Jenesis is a monster. Her odd looks and small stature incite disdain but mask her power — power she must harness to overcome evil, or perish trying.In the year 535 AD, Jenesis, the elfish daughter of a human father and mystical mother, is abandoned under a fairy tree on the west coast of Ireland. Her odd looks earn her the label, monster.
Jenesis has a secret — she’s descended from the magical tribe of Danu. Her destiny to save monsters — children abandoned because of disabilities — leads her to the new world and a hidden chamber along the Wissahickon Creek. Jenesis must protect the chamber from wicked men who want to destroy it, the monsters, and her.
Throughout her interminable life, Jenesis calls on human skills and Danu power to battle evil reincarnated. Will she find a Danu to take her place? Will her journey ever end?This epic tale spans the years 535 AD to 1952, and spins from Ancient Ireland to indigenous America to Philadelphia’s Wissahickon Creek. History and myth, humanity and deity, mundane and magic are masterfully interwoven to create an authentic world populated by mystical and mortal characters. The Chamber is the first Wissahickon Monsters story. This genre-bending tale will appeal to fans of fantasy, historic fiction, and romance who love to enter a story and become part of it. Devlin’s characters seamlessly coexist in the upper world and underworld, all the while protecting the chamber’s secret.
A Song That Never Ends, the first volume of a two part series by Mark A. Gibson, opens a dramatic fictional saga of the Hamilton family from the late 1930s Depression era, to 1967 and the Vietnam conflict. Here against the backdrop of a South Carolina tobacco farm, we come to witness a family in turmoil.
The calm and reserved Walter Hamilton and his rebellious, impulsive wife Maggie strive to build a life and raise a family. But the couple is tested by a series of misfortunes—miscarriages and stillbirths, and Walter’s enlistment during WWII leaving him with guilt-induced PTSD as he deals with the memory of fallen comrades.
At the center of this heartfelt story is James, the middle child, who at the tender age of eight is forced from his home due to a horrific accident and sent to live with a widower uncle.
James proves to be an extremely intelligent and talented youngster who longs for a connection to his family. In the meantime, he learns from his gracious uncle to deal with dire situations and unexpected circumstances in life, as well as the importance of having a charitable heart. Under the tutelage of this kind, caring, and nurturing man, the story begins to evolve into a coming-of-age tale.
Clearly a character driven work, author Gibson aptly weaves themes of love, loss, and resilience throughout.
Though James is unjustly relocated it ultimately proves a positive experience, spending time away from his own dysfunctional family including a depressed mother who drowns her sorrows in vitriol, a ne’er do well, self-centered brother, and a father wrapped up in his own laments. We see how the twists of life shape the character and emotions of these engaging individuals.
While the story prologue opens in 1967, the narrative quickly moves to the 1930s and subsequently keeps a steady pace as chapters move the action ahead in chronological order.
Gibson carefully places the story within its historical context by showcasing details of each passing era. Here readers will witness the struggles to provide and survive during an economic depression, and the feelings of family separation and a husband’s need to serve in WWII. Years later we see a son follow suit and get shipped off to fight an unfavorable conflict in the jungles of Vietnam. In another instance, when enthusiastic teens rebuild an old roadster, Gibson provides a solid history of stock car racing and its roots with the bragging rights of bootleggers.
Gibson keeps his audience invested up until the final moments when the closing page notes “To Be Continued…” It’s the perfect set-up for the second volume to continue with the Hamilton family saga. Whatever Gibson has in store for his readers is sure to be another well-crafted experience rich in both character and detail.
The Goethe Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Late Historical (Post 1750s) Fiction. The Grand Prize Winner, David Calloway’s book, If Someday Comes will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Goethe 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!
The Spoon is historical fiction based on the personal anecdotes of survivors of what we now know as the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. At the heart of The Spoon is the true story of two people incongruously brought together during the maelstrom of this historic event; a story that is embodied in one small heirloom and remembered and shared through the generations when the family gathers each year for Christmas.
From Chanticleer:
Lisa Voelker’s historical fiction novel, The Spoon, takes us back to the 1950s in Hungary during the daring student uprising, and attempted revolution,. The author weaves historical facts with fiction in the form of family lore that has been handed down for generations.
We follow scores of people whose lives intersected during this uprising of 1956. The revolution was, at its inception, a time of joyous upheaval, but in less than two weeks became one of devastating dissolution. People fled Hungary by the thousands, but not before giving the Soviet Union a taste of their discontent.
Voelker introduces Rebeka, a member of the Varga family with old ties to the bourgeoisie, who lived a life of privilege on a farm. She is contrasted by Peter, a member of the Turea family who attends Budapest Technical University, where students began demonstrating against the Hungarian Government that was under Soviet control.
Conor Dolan, a young Irishman, travels to Chicago in 1903 to visit his older brother; instead, he finds a mystery. His journey sparks a quest to peel away secrets and rediscover a dead sibling he idolized but never really knew as he strives to learn the true meaning of brotherhood.
His search reveals an Irish Republican plot to assassinate a visiting British royal. In the process, he is drawn into an alliance with two women: a mesmerizing Jewish widow and a struggling young Irishwoman. Each teaches Conor existential truths of life and love in her own way.
But the brother he finds may not be the brother he remembers. A Long Way from Clare is a story of Chicago’s early twentieth century immigrants and one man’s struggle with both bigotry and justice in an unforgiving city where no good deed goes unpunished.
From Chanticleer:
Twenty-four-year-old Conor Dolan had intended to surprise his older brother and catch up after years apart. However, what he finds when he arrives in Chicago will spark a harrowing mystery, in A Long Way from Clare by Robert W. Smith.
Kevin, a beat cop in twentieth-century Chicago’s worst neighborhood, was found six weeks before Conor’s visit, in what the police have dubbed a suicide. However, Conor has his doubts. Each time he asks people about Kevin, he is met with resistance and denial. When Conor speaks with Detective Flynn, the man assigned to Kevin’s case, his suspicions become certainties. Flynn’s bizarre behavior, the minimal effort on the police’s part to investigate, and the men following Conor at every turn convince him to stay in Chicago rather than return to his home in Springfield.
Conor’s determination to find answers to Kevin’s death lead him in a dangerous dance with darkness amidst the shadows of Chicago’s underworld.
The year is 1884. Rolla Alan Jones, an ambitious dreamer fresh out of an East Coast engineering school, is commissioned to design and build the first water system in Spokane Falls, Washington, a booming town of twenty-thousand. He is everyone’s golden boy for five years until the city burns down on August 4, 1889. The once-celebrated engineer is scapegoated for the catastrophe alleging his system yielded inadequate water pressure. Asked to resign, betrayed by his friends, shunned by the community, and abandoned by his pregnant wife and three-year-old son, Rolla must find the strength to reinvent himself or return to New York as an abject failure. Based on a true story, Water Fire Steam is a story of forgiveness and redemption for anyone who has ever had to claw their way back from an unwarranted accusation.
Lillian Lorraine was a naive 15-year-old chorine on Broadway when she attracted the notice of the notorious 41-year-old Florenz Ziegfeld. Accustomed to getting what he wanted, Ziegfeld took Lillian under his wing and into his arms, giving her coveted numbers in the Ziegfeld Follies and taking control of her career. But Lillian’s rebellious spirit chafed against him, refusing to play according to his rules, and nearly destroying her own career in the process. The Adored One follows her through rise and fall after rise and fall as she comes of age in a world where her youthful beauty was an asset-and a liability.
From Chanticleer:
Step into the glittering world of fame and betrayal in Susanne Dunlap’s The Adored One. At just four years old, Leleanne de Jacques, aka Lillian Lorraine, began her acting career. After fleeing an abusive husband in San Francisco, Mary Anne, Lillian’s mother, moves to Philadelphia, seeing her daughter’s talent as their potential meal ticket.
Soon after arriving in Philadelphia and changing her daughter’s name, Mary Anne relocates them both again to New York, where she puts Lillian in front of artists who see her potential for print ads. Lillian soon meets Fred McKay, her first talent agent, and she begins performing in Lee Shubert productions.
When Florenz Ziegfeld sees Lillian onstage, he knows he must have her, both in his productions and his bed. At only sixteen, Lillian signs with Broadway’s biggest producer. She begins to spiral soon after. Drinking and partying become a staple in Lillian’s life, and she is soon keeping more secrets than her young heart can handle. Florenz’s obsession, Mary Anne’s domineering, and Lillian’s own need for approval lead her down a dangerous and lonely path. Losing every friend she ever makes as well as a part of herself, Lillian wonders if the prize of fame is really worth the cost.
Samantha Lockwood, Day Sets, and Harriet Robinson come to Fort Snelling from very different backgrounds. It’s 1835 and the world is changing, fast, and they are all struggling to keep up. After she refuses another suitor he’s chosen for her, Samantha’s father banishes her to live in the territory with her brother. He, too, tries to take over her marriage plans—but she is determined to find her own husband, even when her choices go awry.
Day Sets demands that her white husband create a school to educate their daughter, supporting her father’s belief that his people must learn the ways of the white man in order to ensure the tribe’s future. Until events prove her father wrong. Harriet’s life in the territory is more like that of a free person than anywhere she’s lived. She even falls in love with Dred Scott and dreams of a life with him. But they are both enslaved, and she keeps being reminded of how little control she has over her own fate. As their cultures collide, each of these three women must find a way to direct her own future and leave a legacy for her children.
Based on a true story, Catherine’s Mercy brings to life Irish reformer and Sisters of Mercy founder Catherine McAuley.
In 1824, Catherine, a Catholic spinster of 44, unexpectantly inherits millions. However, she doesn’t use it to climb the social ladder or snare a husband; she uses it to fulfill a lifelong dream of building a refuge for the poor and sick of Dublin, Ireland. That an unmarried woman would dare propose such a thing is so scandalous, even her own brother calls it “Kitty’s Folly.” Society turns against her. The Church tries to take over. Catherine must defend her choices or lose not only her inheritance, but her reputation and life’s calling.
One of the first women who seeks Catherine’s help is Margaret, a maid in the house of Lord Montague, the loudest of Catherine’s detractors. Daring to protect herself from his advances and rebel against his maxim of total obedience, Margaret is forced to flee for her life. She desperately approaches Catherine for help, setting off a series of events that haunt Catherine all her days and prompt a rule that holds today, in the real-life Sisters of Mercy.
William Maz – The Bucharest Legacy: The Rise of the Oligarchs
The CIA is rocked to its core when a KGB defector divulges that there is a KGB mole inside the Agency. They learn that the mole’s handler is a KGB agent known as Boris. CIA analyst Bill Hefflin recognizes that name—Boris is the code name of Hefflin’s longtime KGB asset. If the defector is correct, Hefflin realizes Boris must be a triple agent, and his supposed mole has been passing false intel to Hefflin and the CIA. What’s more, this makes Hefflin the prime suspect as the KGB mole inside the Agency.
Hefflin is given a chance to prove his innocence by returning to his city of birth, Bucharest, Romania, to find Boris and track down the identity of the mole. It’s been three years since the bloody revolution, and what he finds is a cauldron of spies, crooked politicians, and a country controlled by the underground and the new oligarchs, all of whom want to find Boris. But Hefflin has a secret that no one else knows—Boris has been dead for over a year.
In The Brisling Code, a fast-paced first installment of her historical thriller series, Oakley weaves a brilliant portrayal of the perils met by the Norwegian Resistance during WWII.
Layered perspectives—from resistance workers, traitors, and even an SS Officer—create a rich world through which readers can understand the sacrifices that were made to free our world from the tyranny of Nazi Germany.
Immersed in volatile Nazi-occupied Bergen, Norway, fearless young intelligence agent Tore Haugland and his team of organizers work tirelessly to protect the essential work of the Norwegian resistance.
Haugland’s task is to uncover the plans for the expansion of the German Uboat base with inside help at a shipyard. Also charged in unveiling the meaning behind a mysterious message sent by his murdered predecessor, Haugland navigates the treacherous waters of Norway—a mere haunting of the beautiful city it once was before Nazi occupation. Readers can “almost taste the danger” as our hero moves from one treacherous predicament to the next. Haugland’s mission risks not only his own life, but the lives of every friend and connection he makes.
The Brisling Code is a multi-faceted novel, interspersing the harsh and secretive political climate of Nazi occupation with the deaf community’s resistance work in Norway and a 1919 Norwegian program called the Wienerbarnkomitten, in which Norwegian families took in and raised German children whose families were impacted by WWI.
These overlapping communities create a heart of tenderness and relational love at the center of the novel, despite the violence and treachery that constantly threatens to break through.
For example, seemingly cold-hearted SS officer Hans Becker—on the hunt to capture Haugland and responsible for torturing and murdering many resistance workers— experiences a deep tenderness for his Norwegian foster mother, admitting that “She is my mamma. Not of my blood, but my heart.” As a result, he is forced to reconsider the motives behind his actions and stand up for her well-being, risking both his position as an officer and his life.
The Brisling Code is filled with these small, deeply sensitivity moments that bring characters to life.
People show warmth in a freezing world with actions like a cup of hot coffee, an embrace, and a smile of welcome. Despite the constant threat of violent death, life goes on in Norway, creating a web of intricate characters whose lives are rich with hopes, fears, and longings. Similarly, characters often reveal their true selves under their heavily-curated exteriors through actions and allegiances. These complicated moments and relationships refuse cut-and-dry judgements, allowing readers to find humanity in unexpected places.
Undercurrents of political tension in The Brisling Code create a rich historical context that puts readers in the shoes of Norwegians in their occupied homeland.
With descriptions of everyday life, readers soon understand the paranoia and surveillance in Norway— the constant fear of separation and harm among families and friends.
An expertly researched and executed novel, The Brisling Code invites readers to see that unexpected tender moments can always be found, opening up the possibilities for resistance in the face of violence.
This year we celebrate the 125th anniversary of the birth of one of America’s most important authors, Ernest Hemingway.
Born on July 21, 1899 in Oak Park, Illinois, the influential American literary icon changed the style of novel writing by creating prose that was straightforward and concise, while not sacrificing the emotional impact and lyrical prose. Hemingway wrote about important and timely topics, such as war and the bloody sport of bullfighting, in an accessible way without losing the underlying meaning or sacrificing the emotional reaction he strove to activate in his readers. For this reason, he continues to be celebrated today. In honor of his 125th birthday, I’ll connect three of his most famous stories with the real-life events that influenced his writing.
A Farewell to Arms – Exploring the Heart of A Young Man in Love and War
After graduating high school, Hemingway became a reporter for the Kansas City Star in Missouri, and the following year he volunteered as an ambulance driver for the Red Cross in Italy duringWorld War I. He was wounded by mortar fire and spent months recuperating under the care of an English nurse, Agnes von Kurowsky, with whom he fell in love and had affair. She was an older woman who eventually broke Hemingway’s heart when she ended the relationship after he returned to the United States.
In A Farewell to Arms, Hemingway’s fictional character Lt. Frederic Henry falls in love with Catherine Barkley, and their relationship explores the emotional, physical, and spiritual connection Hemingway and van Kurowsky shared during the tumult of World War I.
A Moveable Feast – A Writer’s Life in 1920s Paris
Ernest Hemingway chronicled his early years as a strugglingjournalist and writer in Paris during the 1920s in A Moveable Feast. The work mentions Paris’s legendary bars, cafes, and hotels of the era, and gives insight into his relationships with other notable cultural figures of the “Lost Generation,” such as Sylvia Beach, Aleister Crowley, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ezra Pound, and Gertrude Stein.
One scene in the book offers a moment of reflection for every writer. His first wife, Hadley Richardson, mistakenly throws out the only copy of a book he’d been working on. It’s a heartbreaking scene, but one that adds to the poignancy of the story.
The Old Man and the Sea – The Death of the Writer’s Soul
After a period of frustrating writers block, Hemingway published what would become his last significant work in 1952. “The Old Man and the Sea,” a novella about an aging fisherman in pursuit of a marlin off the coast of Cuba explores how perseverance and dignity are the “weapons” used to battle through a person’s struggles in life and the theme acts as an allegory of the writer’s own struggles to preserve his art in the face of the fame and attention.
Hemingway struggled to produce a major literary work for more than a decade before the “The Old Man and the Sea” debuted, and despite some critics proclaiming it didn’t hold up next to his earlier works, the book was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1953 and won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1954.
We will always remember Hemingway
Oftentimes, Ernest Hemingway’s life is told as a series of amazing adventures, mental and physical suffering, lost loves, and a sad and unfortunate ending. Many would say his life was tragic, but that life provided a deep well of stories that propelled Hemingway to produce some of the most important literature in the American cannon. With the skill of a surgeon, Hemingway relied on lessons gained as a reporter to deliver emotionally impactful storytelling in a clear and concise way that many writers continue to turn to for inspiration and learning.
Happy 125th birthday, Ernest Hemingway!
Interested in exploring the times Hemingway experienced through the storytelling of today’s authors? We encourage you to dig into stories written by Chanticleer’s authors who bring to life the early days of the Twentieth Century with the following books.
Passage Home to Meuse By Gail Noble-Sanderson First Prize Winner in the Chatelaine CIBA Division
It’s 1923 and character Marie Durant Chagall is now 27 years old as she tells about her life-altering events inThe Passage Home to Meuse,thanks to author Gayle Noble-Sanderson. This is the second historical novel in the Meuse Trilogy. The world around Marie is still reeling from the devastation of World War I. She and the other characters in the book are learning how to continue living, and perhaps more importantly, wishing to find joy once again in life.
Marie is at home in France, seeking peace within, as well as for those around her. She looks for ways to help others who are in need, and her nursing skills come in handy to help this farming community. Nearby she’s found a sense of belonging with the Sisters at the Chapel, and her friendships continue with Henri and others.
A War in Too Many Worlds By Elizabeth Crowens
Grand Prize Winner in the Cygnus CIBA Division
Musician-turned-time-traveler John Patrick Scott adds spy and saboteur to his resume while undercover in Germany in the final months of World War I, in A War in Too Many Worlds, the third installment of Elizabeth Crowen’s thrilling sci-fi series, The Time Traveler Professor.
Meanwhile, Scott’s once and future collaborator in psychic experiments, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, is back in Britain sharing real time-travel adventures with the inventor of the fictional time machine, H.G. Wells.
A Week at Surfside Beach By Pierce Koslosky Jr.
Grand Prize Winner in the Shorts CIBA Division
Vacationers from all walks of life converge on Portofino II-317C, South Carolina, a quaint blue beach house, in Pierce Koslosky Jr.’s short story collection, A Week at Surfside Beach.
From May 30th-December 26th each group of people comes to stay one week at a time, to forget their cares of the big city, to work, to celebrate, or to simply get away. Surfside Beach has much to show them, including temperamental weather.
The small town itself offers a charming supermarket where fishing supplies, whoopie pies, and local southern favorites can be found. The Christmas vacationers, the final of the thirteen beach house renters, struggle to find a tree in time; a real tree simply wouldn’t allow enough space for the family to sleep, and the fake tree would cost too much. But they find arts and crafts supplies in town, to fashion a paper Christmas tree during a day of rainy weather.
In The Sower of Black Field, Katherine Koch’s historical fiction novel, Father Viktor Koch— a 67-year-old Catholic priest— presides over a monastery in a small German village, as the Nazi regime sweeps through the country.
The time is April, 1941. Fr. Viktor’s order, the U.S.-based Passionists, built the monastery eight years prior, providing employment for most of the villagers and remaining a symbol of their faith.
Fr. Viktor has lived in Europe for over 20 years, but balances his love of Germany, its land, its mysticism, with his American roots. He will need all his personal and religious resources over the next four years as the Nazis take hold in the village and, later, the Americans come to “de-Nazify” the town and hold its people responsible for the horrors of the Holocaust.
Thank you for joining us in celebrating America’s literary icon, Ernest Hemingway!
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The Ozma and Goethe Awards both close at the end of July! Don’t let your History become a Fantasy!
The Ozma Award for Fantasy Fiction and The Goethe Award for Post-1750 Historical Fiction close submissions on JULY 31st.
You can’t win if you don’t submit!
Submit to the CIBAs Today!
Only 10 days left to submit your books to the prestigious CIBAs 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 Ozma Awards for Fantasy and The Goethe Awards for Late Historical Fiction are still open until JULY 31st!
Congratulations to the Winners of the 2023 Ozma Awards!
Lilla Glass – The Unseen
Charles Allen – The Order of the Red God
Jaime Castle & Andy Peloquin – Black Talon
Jonathan Uffelman – Book of Leprechauns: The Lore Gatherers
PJ Devlin – The Chamber
And a huge round of applause to this years Overall Grand Prize, and Division Grand Prize for OZMA
A Vengeful Realm by Tim Facciola!
Congratulations to the Winners of the 2023 Goethe Awards!
William Maz – Bucharest Legacy: The Rise of the Oligarchs
And a huge round of applause to this years 2023 Goethe Grand Prize Winner- If Someday Comes by David Calloway
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. Don’t miss the chance to showcase your talent and gain valuable exposure at the Chanticleer Authors Conference (April 3-6, 2025) where Winners from all 25 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.
In YIMBY! Yes In My Back Yard!, Sheryl Recinos presents a simple yet powerful story that speaks to the heart of human kindness and the need to help our fellow man.
Most people are familiar with the term NIMBY, the acronym for “Not In My Back Yard”, referencing opposition to the construction of something perceived as undesirable in one’s neighborhood. But this passionate and heart-warming children’s book offers a positive transformation to the word.
Alongside quality illustrations by Amanda Ravensdale, this story explores the concept that people everywhere, both young and old, need our help.
Whether a homeless man in the park accepting food or a warm coat in winter, an elder woman getting help from a teen to climb the stairs, or an adult and child being welcomed by a family offering shelter, each scene emphasizes that “everyone needs a place to live sleep and stay safe.”
In another instance we see a father and his children admire their work after they transform a small structure into a freshly painted safe haven for someone. To show just how far reaching the homeless problem is, one image depicts a Native American looking out over the vast western landscape dotted with mountain ranges and roaming bovine.
Ravensdale’s illustrations are brightly colored, with fine detail and texture.
From the close perspective of a doe-eyed girl sipping a warming drink, to the mixed gathering of community members, all pictures reflect the story’s core sentiment.
In this engaging work, Recinos also includes suggestions for helping those who need housing in our own communities.
Consider food and clothing drives, sack lunch programs, and letters to legislators voicing concerns about the homeless. Further interaction includes questions posed to the reader about additional help they might offer. Several organizations are listed to further the cause of ending homelessness, including havens for both the young and old, as well as programs for homeless veterans.
The final page depicts colorful drawings and bios of the author and illustrator.
Recinos’s own experience with homelessness as a teenager is clearly reflected in her choice of subject matter. Ravensdale was born into a multicultural family and was influenced by an artist father. Growing up in countries around the world gave her a vast exposure to a variety of people.
With the Supreme Court’s recent debate regarding ticketing the homeless, YIMBY couldn’t come at a more pressing time. Though written for children, the book’s message offers a thought-provoking and compelling experience to be shared by young and old alike.
Fantasy isn’t just elves and magic. There is so many possibilities for a Fantasy Tale and we love that!
Let’s Dive into the Categories!
Magic, Heroes and Villains is classic High Fantasy like Lord of The Rings.
Coming of age is Fantasy typically looks at someone coming into their own, like Egwene al’Vere in The Wheel of Time, but it can also be aimed at a younger audience. For YA Fantasy see Dante Rossetti and for Middle Grade Fantasy check out the Gertrude Warner Awards!
Steampunk and Dieselpunk are a type of Alternative history and Counterculture, Steampunk being Victorian era sci-fi or fantasy, or both, with an emphasis on steam powered or gaslight technology and historical fashions.
Dieselpunk is a similar category but more like an industrial Art Deco, Film Noir aspects with aesthetics of the World Wars and Early Cold War. The video game series Bioshock, or Bladerunner could be seen as examples of Dieselpunk . There are quite a few different types of ‘punk’. Cyberpunk is one of the more well known, using 1980s futuristic aesthetics.
Historical Fantasy is similar to the previous, but with less of the Science Fiction elements. History with magic instead of History with weird tech.
Modern and Urban Fantasy is exactly what it sounds like. Jim Butcher’s The Dresden Files is a good example. Fantasy, but realistic. Magical Realism stands on its own, and can be found as a Category in the Somerset Awards!
Last, but not least is Myths and Legends and Fairy Tales. Classic Fantasy elements, Fairies, King Arthur, folktale type stories.
Fantasy can even have many crossovers with Science Fiction! The cast of Star Trek: Next Generation shows just the same thing.
Looking for your next Fantasy Read? Check out some of these incredible books we’ve reviewed!
THE CLAIMING: Fractured Kingdoms Book 1 By J.A. Nielsen
The illegitimate son of a human king accidentally binds himself to a Fae princess in J.A. Nielsen’s YA adventure, The Claiming. As war bears down on the kingdom of Telridge, can the two of them break the spell in time?
Lord Ferrous, ruler of Telridge, smells conflict coming for his people. Even so, he denies a mysterious request from the king of the Winter Fae, and sets his sons to prepare their land for war. His eldest, Prince Dirk, gathers his knights and begins to evacuate the common people to the protection of Telridge castle. His younger son Spense, born out of wedlock to the castle’s head cook, uses his finicky magic to Claim a bridge over a powerful river. If he succeeds, the passing will be barred to their enemies. But he fails to realize that the powerful living force he encounters isn’t the bridge at all.
Dewy, crown princess of the Summer Fae, is Claimed instead of the bridge. Her aunt, Lady Radiant, must exile her from their lands. While Dewy’s careless spirit chafed under Radiant’s authority, she grieves for her lost home.
A CIRCLE Of STARS: Four Crowns Series Book 1 By Erin Lark Maples
If you’re looking for a beach read with supernatural intrigue, A Circle of Stars by Erin Lark Maples will draw you in from page one. Ember “EJ” James, a newly-arrived stranger in the strange land of Prescott, AZ, immediately begins navigating unfamiliar territory, both physically and metaphysically.
Forty-something EJ doesn’t know it yet, but when she agreed to take over her deceased uncle Hollis’s shop in Prescott, she stumbled into a world of magical realism. The plant shop, as it turns out, is more than just that—it hides secret access to other realms, which supernatural beings will go to great lengths to access. Much like the plants in the shop, this tale is dark, tangled, and intriguing beyond belief.
Anyone else may have felt helpless. But EJ remains upbeat, charmingly self-deprecating, and resourceful to the end. There’s a great joy in seeing how she works through her new surroundings, unfazed by (almost) everything they throw her way.
SUMMER THUNDER: Magic at Myers Beach Book 1 By Alan B. Gibson
Lily struggles to keep her business, her son, and her home. But in Summer Thunder, first book of the Magic at Myers Beach series by Alan B. Gibson, Lily’s luck begins to turn as she connects with the enigmatic beach king Theos.
With the help of her friend and fellow business owner Greta “the Witch,” Lily tries to revitalize her fairy-themed decoration and figurine store. Her divorce from her abusive ex-husband Kelly is pending, and she must present a calm and reliable home to ensure full custody of her son Jamie. But when her kindly landlord, Ms. Coffey, passes away, she’s confronted with two options: lose her prime business location and upstairs apartment, or somehow make enough money to buy the building herself.
Enter Theos, a kitesurfing champion with adoring fans. He shows true appreciation for Lily’s fairy figurines, bringing her many more sales. But more importantly, Theos becomes deeply interested in Lily herself. Their romance begins on rocky footing, as Theos has a strange air about him and seems to vanish whenever a storm comes into town. But when he begins modelling for a new fairy figurine – aptly named Theos, the King – the two are drawn inevitably closer.
MISTRESS Of LEGEND: Guinevere’s Tale Book 3 By Nicole Evelina
In Mistress of Legend, the enticing finale of Nicole Evelina’s Guinevere’s Tale trilogy, matters are life-and-death by the second sentence, pulling readers deep into Guinevere’s fate in this retelling of Arthurian legend.
We come upon heroine Guinevere in the midst of an ill-fated romance with Lancelot. It’s far from her first troubled entanglement, but the stakes rise as she’s severely injured and faces even more threats, pursued by possible enemies. The novel’s beginning is woven with backstory, which adds suspense to the drama unfolding in Guinevere’s present. This summarizing might be slow for readers familiar with the series, but makes the story accessible for those who haven’t picked up the first two books.
Many more characters appear, waving the web of intrigue Guinevere finds herself caught in.
Evelina builds this setting through well-researched cultural details, like the holidays and rites of Guinevere’s pagan world, and the symbolism and ideology of the Christianity that threatens to blot her world out.
Plus, check out our 2023 Overall Grand Prize Winner, A Vengeful Realm by Tim Facciola!
A roaring start with a queen planning her husband’s execution while full of regret for what must be done. Magic is forbidden, knights and gladiators are doing their best to make their way through a complex political world, and the prince is just trying to keep his family safe. Excellent for anyone who loves Brandon Sanderson!
Thank you to everyone who submitted to the 2023 Ozma Awards! We can’t believe that the whole adventure starts again when the Ozma Awards close on July 31st, 2024.
This is the journey from beginning to end for the CIBAs Levels of Achievement is so worthwhile! Every list you make means more promotion for you and your work as each list is posted right here on our website, on our social media, and also out in our newsletter! Your book deserves to be discovered.
On the belief that life isn’t just the random cards one is dealt, A Path to Excellence by Tony Jeton Selimi offers a blueprint—the octagon of excellence—to succeed personally, professionally, and spiritually.
The Ozma Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Fantasy Fiction. The Overall Grand Prize Winner, Tim Facciola’s book, A Vengeful Realm will be promoted for years to come in our 
A Song That Never Ends, the first volume of a two part series by Mark A. Gibson, opens a dramatic fictional saga of the Hamilton family from the late 1930s Depression era, to 1967 and the Vietnam conflict. Here against the backdrop of a South Carolina tobacco farm, we come to witness a family in turmoil.
The Goethe Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Late Historical (Post 1750s) Fiction. The Grand Prize Winner, David Calloway’s book, If Someday Comes will be promoted for years to come in our annual Hall of Fame article, as well as be featured on the Goethe contest page year ’round!
In The Brisling Code, a fast-paced first installment of her historical thriller series, Oakley weaves a brilliant portrayal of the perils met by the Norwegian Resistance during WWII. 
