Chanticleer Book Reviews

Tag: Chanticleer Authors Conference

The GLOBAL THRILLERS Book Awards for High Stakes Suspense Novels – the Long List for the 2019 CIBAs
The GLOBAL THRILLERS Book Awards recognize emerging talent and outstanding works in the genre of High Stakes Suspense Thrillers. The Global Thriller Book Awards is a genre division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring suspense, thrilling stories that put the balance of world power or that will end the world as we know it—High Stakes Suspense. We include with Global Thrillers the Lab Lit genre. Lab Lit is when Fiction Meets Real Science and Research or stories that are based on real science and research up to a certain “what if” point and then fiction takes over.

These works have advanced from the infamous CIBA slush pile to the Long List for the 2019 Global Thrillers:
- David Tenenbaum – The Lost Tide
- Jacob Witten – Immune
- David Tenenbaum and Dara Greentree – Vision
- Joanne Jaytanie – Salvaging Truth, Hunters & Seekers, Book 1
- A. Gene Robinson, Jr. – A Crude Attack
- William M. Hayes – Save Him
- Timothy S. Johnston – The Savage Deeps
- Avanti Centrae – VanOps: The Moses Map
- Alan W. Thompson – Creation Abomination
- Jeremiah Seyrak – The Faceless Advisor
- Sterling Emmal – Candidates, Cartel, and Chaos
- Randall Krzak – Carnage in Singapore
- Nicole Mabry – Past This Point
- Steffanie Strathdee and Thomas Patterson – The Perfect Predator: A Scientist’s Race to Save Her Husband from a Deadly Superbug — moved to non-fiction divisions as per KB
- Steven Sheiner – Shot Down
- Courtney Leigh Pahlke – Life Force Preserve
- Jett Ward – Execute Order
- Thomas Galvin – The Auction
Good luck to all as your works compete in the next rounds.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 Long List (aka the Slush Pile Survivors). We incorporate the Long List when the judges request an additional round of judging to accommodate the number and/or quality of entries received. These works will compete for the 2019 Global Thriller Book Awards Semi-Finalist positions

The coveted First Place Category Winners of the 2019 GLOBAL THRILLER Book Awards will be selected from the Semi-Finalists in the final rounds of judging. The First Place Category Winners will be announced at the Chanticleer Awards Banquet and Ceremony, which is hosted by the Chanticleer Authors Conference.

The First Place Category winners will automatically be entered into the GLOBAL THRILLER GRAND PRIZE AWARD competition. The 16 CBR Grand Prize Genre Winners will compete for the CBR Overall Grand Prize for Best Book and its $1,000 purse. First Place Category and Grand Prize Awards will be announced and recognized at the Chanticleer Awards Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020, Bellingham, Washington. Hosted by the Chanticleer Authors Conference.

We are now accepting entries into the 2020 CIBAs. https://www.chantireviews.com/contests/
December 30, 2019
The Little Peeps Book Awards for Early Readers and Picture Books – the SHORTLIST for the 2019 CIBAs
The Little Peeps Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in Early Readers and Children’s Picture Books. The Little Peeps Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring stories of all shapes and sizes written to an audience for Early Readers. Storybooks, Beginning Chapter Books, Picture Books, Activity Books & Educational Books that appeal to children to compete in the Little Peeps Awards that discover today’s best children’s books.

These works have advanced to the 2019 Little Peeps Book Awards Shortlist!
- Sylva Fae and Katie Weaver – Elfabet
- Lauren Mosback – In Grandpaw’s Pawprints
- Lauren Mosback – My Sister’s Super Skills
- Cheree Finley – W-B-C Team
- Dawn Marie Thompson – Double Trouble
- Dawn Marie Thompson – Barnyard Bully
- M. Lisa Rinaca – Nate and The Nanticoke Clipper
- Trevor Young & Eleanor Long – Galdo’s Gift: The Boovie
- Norma Lewis – Let All Things Now Living
- Norma Lewis – Totem Pole
- Norma Lewis – The Canter Beary Tales
- Kizzie Jones – A Tall Tale About Dachshunds in Costumes: How MORE Dogs Came to Be
- Robert Wright Jr – Mummy in the Museum
- Marianne Andresen Magin – The Legend of Santa’s Sleighbells
- George Yuhasz – Imagine That: The Magic of the Mysterious Lights
- Angie McPherson – My Mom Is Sick and It’s Okay
- Stephanie Dreyer – Not A Purse
- Justine Avery – What Wonders Do You See… When You Dream?
- Lucy Patterson Murray – Dream Island
- Ellie Smith – Tex the Explorer: Journey Around the Earth
- Shana Hollowell – When the Squirrel Sings
- Mary Troxclair Adamson – Yo, Ho! Armadilleaux!
- Gregory Pohl – The Impossible
- Linda Bledsoe – Pigs Can’t Skate
- Oleg Kush – 1 & 0, Lion & Mouse, Aries the Sheep and Other Fairy-Tales
- Kasey J. Claytor – Pinky, And The Magical Secret He Kept Inside
- Edyta McQueen – Girly Girl Adventure: Rescue on the Ski Hill
- Ann Riley Cooper – Catch and Release
- Juliette Douglas – We are Awesome Possums
- M.J. Evans – Percy-The Racehorse Who Didn’t Like to Run
- J. Steven Young – Gus and the Winter Sprite
- Johnny Ray Moore – Anthill for Sale
- Melodie Tegay – Hannah’s Two Homes: life in a “blended” family; a 5-year-old’s perspective
- Keri T Collins – You Can Call Me Katelyn
These entries have now advanced to the 2019 Little Peeps Shortlist from the Long List.

The ShortListers’ works will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions for the 2019 Little Peeps Book Awards.

Semi-Finalists in attendance will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony.

The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists.

We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash. The CIBA Banquet and Ceremony is sponsored by the Chanticleer Authors Conference.

Which of these works will advance to the Semi-Finalists’ positions? The excitement continues to build for the 2019 CIBAs!

The 16 divisions of the 2019 CIBAs’ Grand Prize Winners and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with recognizing the Semi-Finalists will be announced at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting entries into the 2020 Little Peeps Book Awards.

As always, please contact us at Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions!
December 19, 2019
The LARAMIE Book Awards for American West Fiction – The Short List – 2019 CIBAs
The Laramie Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the Americana / Western, Pioneer, Civil War, Frontier, and First Nations Novels. The Laramie Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards.

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring cowboys, the wild west, pioneering, civil war, and early North American History, we will put them to the test and choose the best among them.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 Laramie Book Awards LONG LIST and have now progressed to the 2019 SHORTLIST. The ShortListers’ works will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2019 LARAMIE Book Awards for Western Fiction. Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.
- Bert Entwistle – Leftover Soldiers – Life on the Western Frontier
- E. Alan Fleischauer – Rescued
- Rhonda Frankhouser – Escape from Ruby’s Ranch
- Kit Sergeant – Underground: Traitors and Spies in Lincoln’s War
- J. R. Collins – Spirit of the Rabbit Place
- Gerald L. Guy – Chasing Gold
- John West – Marshallville
- Lynwood Kelly – The Gamble: Lost Treasures
- David Fitz-Gerald – Wanders Far-An Unlikely Hero’s Journey
- Hayley Stone – Make Me No Grave: A Weird West Novel
- Gerald L. Guy – Chasing the Past
- John Hansen – The Outfit
- Eileen Charbonneau – Seven Aprils
- Donna L.H. Smith – Meghan’s Choice
- Juliette Douglas – Bed of Conspiracy
- Nina Romano – The Girl Who Loved Cayo Bradley
- Donna L.H. Smith – Meghan’s Choice
- Mike H. Mizrahi – The Unnamed Girl (The Woodard Chronicles)
- Suanne Schafer – A Different Kind of Fire
Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2019 LARAMIE Book Awards for Western Fiction?

The 16 divisions of the 2019 CIBAs’ Grand Prize Winners and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with recognizing the Semi-Finalists will be announced at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2020 LARAMIE Book Awards for pre-1750s Western Fiction. The deadline for submissions is July 30, 2020. The 2020 winners will be announced in April 2021.

As always, please contact us at Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions!
November 24, 2019
The ROSSETTI Book Awards for YA FICTION SHORTLIST for the 2019 CIBAs
The Dante Rossetti Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in Young Adult Fiction. The Dante Rossetti Book Awards is a genre division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (#CIBAs).

Named in honor of the British poet & painter Dante Gabriel Rossetti who founded the Pre-Ralphaelite Brotherhood in 1848.

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring stories of all shapes and sizes written to an audience between the ages of about twelve to eighteen (imaginary or real). Science Fiction, Fantasy, Dystopian, Mystery, Paranormal, Historical, Romance, Literary, we will put them to the test to discover the best.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 Dante Rossetti Book Awards LONG LIST and now have progressed to the 2019 SHORTLIST.

Congratulations to the 2019 Dante Rossetti Shortlisters!
- Navya Sarikonda – The Enchanters’ Child
- J.A. Roth – When The Bee Stings
- Veronica Myers – Winter’s Progeny
- Zachary Ryan – High School Queens
- Julieanne Lynch – Beneath the Lighthouse
- Jacinta Jade – Change of Darkness
- Kelly Watt – The India Diaries: Book One Tiger’s Rock
- J. Taylor Baker – The Cardorian Complex
- Glen Sobey – No Fences in Alaska
- Jan Von Schleh – But Not Forever
- Michelle Rene – Manufactured Witches
- Nancy Thorne – Victorian Town
- Ted Neill – Jamhuri, Njambi & Fighting Zombies
- A. Cort Sinnes – Quicksilver
- Leslea Wahl – Where You Lead
- C.R. Stewart – Britfield and the Lost Crown
- Susan Brown – Twelve
- J.T. Blossom – The Tunes of Lenore
- James M Roberts – The Crossroads of Logan Michaels
- Sandra L Rostirolla – Cecilia Futuris
- Kristina Bak – Nowever
- Zachry Wheeler – Max and the Multiverse
- V. A. Givens – Sealed with a Twist
- Tom Edwards – The Honourable Catherine
- Michael Bialys – The Chronicles of the Virago: Book I The Novus
- David Patneaude – Fast Backward
- John Middleton – Dillion & The Curse of Arminius
Good luck to all!

Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2019 Dante Rossetti Book Awards for Young Adult Fiction?

These entries are now in competition for 2019 Dante Rossetti Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting entries into the 2020 Dante Rossetti Book Awards for YA Fiction.
As always, please contact us at Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions!
November 7, 2019
The CLUE Book Awards for Suspense & Thriller Fiction – the Long List for the 2019 CIBAs
The CLUE Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the genre of Suspense and Thriller Fiction. The Clue Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The #CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is seeking the best books featuring suspense, thrilling adventure, detective work, private eye, police procedural, and crime-solving, we will put them to the test to discover the best! (For lighter-hearted Mystery and Classic Cozy Mysteries please check out our Mystery & Mayhem Awards).

These works have survived the infamous slush pile and have advanced to the 2019 CLUE Book Awards Long List. They will compete in the next rounds of judging for the CLUE 2019 Short List.

Good luck to all!
- J.J. Clarke – Dared to Return
- Richard Conrath – Blood Moon Rising
- RIP Converse – Maelstrom Part One
- Harold Benjamin – Phase III
- L. J. Martin – The Blue Pearl
- Nancy Adair – RABYA
- J.P. Kenna – Joel Emmanuel
- J.P. Kenna – Toward a Terrible Freedom
- Timothy S. Johnston – The Savage Deeps
- Tracey Pepper – Dead On Arrival
- Lonna Enox – Untold Agony
- Stephen F. Frost – The Alaskan Alibi
- Nanci Rathbun – Honor Kills
- Russell Heath – Rinn’s Crossing
- Bert Entwistle – Murder in the Dell
- John W Feist – Blind Trust
- Liese Sherwood-Fabre – The Adventure of the Murdered Midwife
- Marian Exall – A Splintered Step
- Joanne Jaytanie – Salvaging Truth, Hunters & Seekers, Book 1
- Ronald Lamont – Smoke and Mirrors
- Carl Roberts – The Trial of Connor Padget
- Nick Mancuso – Fever
- Edgar Swamp – Amber Hollow
- Steve Dimeo – The Magic Cape Caper
- Janet K. Shawgo – Legacy of Lies
- Maureen Joyce Connolly – Little Lovely Things
- T.K. Ambers – A Fox in the Fold
- Deborah Serani – The Ninth Session
- Ken Oder – The Judas Murders
- Melodie Hernandez – Forgotten Rage
- Chris Norbury – Straight River
- Jode Millman – The Midnight Call
- Barbara Brett – Secret Agenda
- Barb Warner Deane – And Then There Was You
- Ken Malovos – Sweet Justice
- Mary Adler – Shadowed by Death: An Oliver Wright WWII Mystery
- Matt Witten – The Necklace
- Matt Witten – Free For All
- V. & D. Povall – Jackal in the Mirror
- E. L. Diamond – The Wolf of God
- Carl Vonderau – Murderabilia
- M. J. Simms-Maddox – Mystery in Harare
- Courtney Leigh Pahlke – Life Force Preserve
- Michelle Cox – A Veil Removed
- Kevin G. Chapman – Righteous Assassin: A Mike Stoneman Thriller
- Kaylin McFarren – High Flying
- Wally Duff – bada-BOOM!
- Alexandrea Weis and Lucas Astor – Death by the River
- Joni M Fisher – West of Famous
- D. J. Adamson – Let Her Go
- Kirk Millson – Serpents of Old
- Lori A. Witt – Incel
- Thomas Galvin – The Auction
- Sonny Kruger – Killing Set In Motion
- D. J. Adamson – At the Edge of No Return
Which of these works will advance?

The excitement continues to build for the 2019 CIBAs!

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 CLUE Book Awards LONG LIST. These entries are now in competition for 2019 CLUE Shortlist. The ShortListers’ works will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

The 16 divisions of the 2019 CIBAs’ Grand Prize Winners and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with recognizing the Semi-Finalists will be announced at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

Register today for the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2019 CIBA ceremony and banquet that will be held in Bellingham, Wash. at the luxury waterfront Hotel Bellwether, April 17 – 19, 2020. Seating is limited. Reservations are required.

We are now accepting entries into the 2020 CLUE Book Awards for Suspense/Thriller Novels.
November 4, 2019
The Semi-Finalists Announcement for the M&M Book Awards for MYSTERIES – a division of the 2019 CIBAs
The M & M Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mystery & Mayhem fiction genre. The Mystery & Mayhem Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs).

Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring “mystery and mayhem,” amateur sleuthing, light suspense, travel mystery, classic mystery, British cozy, not-so-cozy, hobby sleuths, senior sleuths, or historical mystery, perhaps with a touch of romance or humor, we will put them to the test to discover the best! (For suspense, thriller, detective, crime fiction see our Clue Awards)

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 M&M Book Awards LONG LIST to the M&M Shortlist and have now advanced to the M&M Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be recognized at the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2019 CIBA banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

Congratulations to the 2019 Mystery & Mayhem Book Awards for Cozy and Not-So-Cozy Mysteries Semi-Finalists
- Susan Z. Ritz – A Dream to Die For
- Michelle Cox – A Veil Removed
- Lucy Carol – Hit That, Madison Cruz – Mystery 4
- Mollie Hunt – Cat Cafe
- MJ O’Neill – The Corpse Wore Stilettos
- JL Oakley – Hilo Bay Mystery Collection
- Kate Vale – Fateful Days
- Henry G. Brinton – City of Peace
- Kaylin McFarren – High Flying
- Janet K. Shawgo – Legacy of Lies
- Kari Bovee – Peccadillo at the Palace
- Kari Bovee – Girl with a Gun – An Annie Oakley Mystery
- M. J. Simms-Maddox – Mystery in Harare
- Carolyn Haley – Killer Heart
- Wally Duff – bada-BOOM!
- Arlene McFarlane – Murder, Curlers & Cruises
- Jean Rover – Ready or Not
- Mary Seifert – Titanic Cocktail
- M. K. Graff – Death at the Dakota: A Trudy Genova Manhattan Mystery
- Toni Kief – Mildred In Disguise With Diamonds
- Anna Castle – Moriarty Brings Down the House
- Vee Kumari – Dharma, A Rekha Rao Mystery
- Lori Roberts Herbst – An Instant Out of Time
- Alexandrea Weis with Lucas Astor – Blackwell
- Anna Castle – Moriarty Brings Down the House
- D. J. Adamson – Let Her Go
- Linda Hughes – Secrets of the Island
- Jane Willan – The Hour of Death
- Gerard Shirar – When the Rules Don’t Apply
- Susan Lynn Solomon – Writing is Murder
Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.

The M&M Grand Prize Winner and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with the previously announced Semi-Finalists will be recognized at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2020 Mystery & Mayhem Book Awards.
October 24, 2019
The INCITING INCIDENT: STORY, SETBACKS and SURPRISES for the PROTAGONIST – A Writer’s Toolbox Series from Jessica Morrell’s Editor’s Desk
Fiction features a problem that needs solving and only the protagonist can solve it.

In short stories, the problem is often introduced by the inciting incident–an event that triggers or launches what follows.

In longer fiction, the inciting incident might lead to the problem. This event will disrupt the status quo, demand response, and set actions in motion. It’s a threat that unbalances the story world and creates dilemmas that must be dealt with.

The Wizard of Oz – Inciting Incident

A simple plot structure is a protagonist struggling to solve an intolerable problem and re-establish order. Jessica Morrell

No matter when the problem begins (it’s always in Act One) the problem is weighty and vexing, perhaps insurmountable. If the problem is not immediately personal, it should become so that it will create a bond (connection) between the protagonist and antagonist. (A classic example is the connection between Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty).

Sherlock Holmes and Jim Moriarty

As you know, in real-life problems are sometimes unsolvable and don’t fit neatly into a satisfying narrative arc. Across the globe, there are ‘forever’ problems of climate change, financial inequities, immigrants who need homes, corporate greed, and fascism. No shallow fixes will work, though incremental changes can chip away at underlying issues.

Closer to home, you might be dealing with a job that drives you crazy, but you cannot leave; family members who refuse to reconcile; health or mental health issues that can only be coped with, not cured; or agonizing decisions about caring for elderly family members. In fact, studies have shown that depression can be linked to seemingly unsolvable problems.

This is why some people turn to fiction. Where love wins in the end, crimes are solved and justice is served, and friends or families reconcile. But in well-told tales, success never comes easy and it always exacts a toll. Often success comes from the protagonist tapping into inner resources he or she hadn’t accessed before.

Frodo and the Ring – LOTR

A FEW STORY TIPS and HANDY REMINDERS from Jessica Morrell
- As the story progresses the protagonist forms a plan. Now the plan can be shaky, untested, or desperate, but readers need a strategy at work.
- Force your character to solve smaller problems along the way to resolving the major story problem. A detective can dig up a much-needed witness or help a vulnerable street kid.
- Endow your protagonist with specific, interesting skills and personality attributes that won’t waver and make him or her suited to the task.
- Create a protagonist who is somehow lacking in something he or she needs for happiness or fulfillment.
- Burden him or her with emotional baggage and needs, personal demons or addictions, then toss in cast members and subplots that distract, undermine, or hinder.
- Understand how the problem makes the protagonist feel in each scene: hesitant, unaware, outgunned, overwhelmed, weak, unqualified, terrified.
- Setbacks and surprises should be baked into the plot.
Oh, and the protagonist should fail, fall on his face at least a few times along the way to the climax. Because your job as the master manipulator (aka author) is to blindside, torment, and thwart your characters. Again and again, so the outcome is in question and your readers are compelled to keep turning the pages.

Jessica Page Morrell

Keep writing, keep dreaming, have heart. – Jessica

Jessica Morrell is a top-tier developmental editor and a contributor to Chanticleer Reviews Media and to the Writer’s Digest magazine. She teaches Master Writing Craft Classes at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that is held annually along with teaching at Chanticleer writing workshops that are held throughout the year.

Chanticleer Editorial Services

Did you know that Chanticleer offers editorial services? We do and have been doing so since 2011.

Our professional editors are top-notch and are experts in the Chicago Manual of Style. They have and are working for the top publishing houses (TOR, Macmillan, Thomas Mercer, Penguin Random House, Simon Schuster, etc.).

If you would like more information, we invite you to email Kiffer or Sharon at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com or SAnderson@ChantiReviews.com for more information, testimonials, and fees.

We work with a small number of exclusive clients who want to collaborate with our team of top-editors on an on-going basis. Contact us today!

Chanticleer Editorial Services also offers writing craft sessions and masterclasses. Sign up to find out where, when, and how sessions being held.

A great way to get started is with our manuscript evaluation service. Here are some handy links about this tried and true service:

https://www.chantireviews.com/manuscript-reviews/

Writer’s Toolbox

Thank you for reading this Chanticleer Writer’s Toolbox article.
October 6, 2019
The LARAMIE Book Awards for American West Fiction – The Long List – 2019 CIBAs
The Laramie Book Awards recognize emerging new talent and outstanding works in the Americana / Western, Pioneer, Civil War, Frontier, and First Nations Novels. The Laramie Book Awards is a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards.

Chanticleer Book Reviews is looking for the best books featuring cowboys, the wild west, pioneering, civil war, and early North American History, we will put them to the test and choose the best among them.

These titles have moved forward in the judging rounds from SLUSH pile to the 2019 Laramie Book Awards LONG LIST. These entries are now in competition for 2019 Laramie Shortlist. The ShortListers’ works will compete for the Semi-Finalists positions. Semi-Finalists will be announced and recognized at the CAC20 banquet and ceremony. The First Place Category Winners, along with the CIBA Division Grand Prize winners, will be selected from the 16 CIBA divisions Semi-Finalists. We will announce the 1st Place Category winners and Grand Prize Division Winners at the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

These titles are in the running for the SHORT LIST of the 2019 LARAMIE Book Awards for Western Fiction. Good luck to all as your works move on to the next rounds of judging.
- Bert Entwistle – Leftover Soldiers – Life on the Western Frontier
- E. Alan Fleischauer – Rescued
- Rhonda Frankhouser – Escape from Ruby’s Ranch
- Kit Sergeant – Underground: Traitors and Spies in Lincoln’s War
- D.L. Andersen – Across Unstill Waters: The Stephenson House Chronicles Book 1
- J. R. Collins – Spirit of the Rabbit Place
- Gerald L. Guy – Chasing Gold
- Gerald L. Guy – Chasing the Past
- E. Alan Fleischauer – Rescued
- James Filomio Jr – My Wife’s Wishes
- John West – Marshallville
- Lynwood Kelly – The Gamble: Lost Treasures
- David Fitz-Gerald – Wanders Far-An Unlikely Hero’s Journey
- John Hansen – The Outfit
- Eileen Charbonneau – Seven Aprils
- Juliette Douglas – Bed of Conspiracy
- Nina Romano – The Girl Who Loved Cayo Bradley
- Michael T. Tusa Jr. – And Trouble Followed
- Mike H. Mizrahi – The Unnamed Girl (The Woodard Chronicles)
- Hayley Stone – Make Me No Grave: A Weird West Novel
- Donna L.H. Smith – Meghan’s Choice
- Suanne Schafer – A Different Kind of Fire
Which of these works will move forward in the judging rounds for the 2019 LARAMIE Book Awards for Western Fiction?

The 16 divisions of the 2019 CIBAs’ Grand Prize Winners and the Five First Place Category Position award winners along with recognizing the Semi-Finalists will be announced at the April 18th, 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards Annual Awards Gala, which takes place at the Chanticleer Authors Conference that will be held in Bellingham, Wash.

We are now accepting submissions into the 2020 LARAMIE Book Awards for pre-1750s Western Fiction. The deadline for submissions is July 30, 2020. The 2020 winners will be announced in April 2021.

As always, please contact us at Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions!
September 11, 2019
The Chanticleer International Book Awards Grand Prize and First Place Category Winners 2018 (CIBAs)
We are deeply honored to announce the 2018 Winners of the Chanticleer International Book Awards (The CIBAs). The winners were recognized at the annual Chanticleer Authors Conference and Awards Banquet Ceremony on Saturday, April 27, 2019, at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether, Bellingham, Wash.

We want to thank all of the authors and publishers who participated in the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Awards (the CIBAs). Each year, we find the quality of the entries and the competitiveness of the division competitions increasing exponentially. We added a new level to the judging rounds in 2018—the SemiFinalists. The CIBA judges wanted to add Semi-Finalists as a way to recognize and validate the entries that were not selected for the very few First Place Award positions within each genre division.

PublishDrive, a global distribution platform, and Hindenburg Systems, audiobooks and podcasts software, awarded more than $30,000 (cash value) in additional prizes to the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Award winners. Thank you!

A Recap of the CIBA Selection Process
- There are 16 divisions of the CIBAs: 14 fiction genre divisions and 2 non-fiction divisions.
- First Place Category award winners were selected for each one of the 16 divisions from an overall field of titles that progressed to the Semi-Finalists positions from the Shortlists, the Long List, and the infamous beginning slush pile rounds.
- One Grand Prize award winner was selected from the First Place Category Award Winners for each of the 16 CIBA divisions.
- One Overall Grand Prize award winner was selected from the 16 divisions of Grand Prize Award Winners
All CIBA Semi-Finalists in attendance at the CIBA awards ceremony were recognized with their respective division at the CIBA awards ceremony along with receiving a Semi-Finalist ribbon and digital badge and a significant discount to attend the Chanticleer Authors Conference.

Additional Prize from the DONALD MAASS LITERARY AGENCY

An additional prize was awarded to the 2018 CIBA Grand Prize Award Winners by the Donald Maass Literary Agency (that represents more than 150 novelists and sell more 100 novels each year to leading publishers in the U.S. and overseas). Donald Maass has offered “a high priority submission” process opportunity to the 2018 Grand Prize CIBA winners and a “priority submission” process opportunity to the 2018 CIBA 1st Place Category winning titles for consideration by his agency.

An email will go out to all 2018 CIBA grand prize award winners prior to June 10, 2019 with instructions, links, and more information about the awards packages. We appreciate your patience. As stated in the Semi-Finalist notification email, “One does not need to be present at the CIBA ceremony and banquet to win. But it sure is a lot more fun!”

And now to present the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Awards Grand winning titles and their authors who were announced on April 27, 2019, at the CIBA ceremony and banquet.

You read testimonials from the 2019 Chanticleer Authors Conference and the CIBAs Banquet and Ceremony at  https://www.chantireviews.com/chanticleer-conference/conference-testimonials/

The CYGNUS Book Awards for Science Fiction Grand Prize Winner

The Korpes File by J.I Rogers took home the 2018 CYGNUS Book Awards for Science Fiction Grand Prize Ribbon.

View the 2018 CYGNUS 1st Place Category Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/04/29/cygnus-book-awards-for-science-fiction-novels-the-grand-prize-winner-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction

From Liberty to Magnolia: In Search of the American Dream by Janice S. Ellis took home the 2018 JOURNEY Book Awards for Narrative Non-Fiction Grand Prize Ribbon!

View the 2018 JOURNEY First Place Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/04/30/journey-book-awards-for-narrative-non-fiction-the-grand-prize-winner-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The M & M Book Awards for Mystery and Mayhem

A PROMISE GIVEN by Michelle Cox took home the M&M Book Awards for Mystery & Mayhem Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 M&M First Place Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/01/the-mm-book-awards-for-mystery-and-mayhem-grand-prize-division-winner-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The GERTRUDE WARNER Book Awards for Middle-Grade Readers

A manuscript titled The PORTALS of PERIL by Jules Luther took home the Gertrude Warner Book Awards for Middle-Grade Readers

View the 2018 Gertrude Warner First Place Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/04/the-gertrude-warner-book-awards-for-middle-grade-readers-grand-prize-and-first-place-catergory-winners-2018-cibas/

The DANTE ROSSETTI Book Awards for Young Adult Fiction

WHISPERS by Lynn Yvonne Moon took home the Dante Rossetti Book Awards for Young Adult Fiction

View the 2018 Dante Rossetti First Place Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/05/the-dante-rossetti-book-awards-for-young-adult-fiction-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The CHAUCER Book Awards for pre-1750s Historic Fiction

The SERPENT and The EAGLE  by Edward Rickford took home the CHAUCER Book Awards Grand Prize Blue Ribbon

View the 2018 Chaucer First Place Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/05/the-chaucer-book-awards-for-pre-1750s-historical-fiction-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The GOETHE Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Post-1750s Historical Fiction

The Lost Years of Billy Battles by Ronald E. Yates took home the Goethe Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 Goethe First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/07/the-goethe-book-awards-for-post-1750s-for-historical-fiction-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The LARAMIE Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Western Fiction

Blood Moon: A Captive’s Tale by Ruth Hull Chatlien took home the Laramie Grand Prize Ribbon.

View the 2018 Laramie First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/06/the-laramie-book-awards-for-western-fiction-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The CHATELAINE Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Romantic Fiction

The House at Ladywell by Nicola Slade took home the 2018 Chatelaine Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 CHATELAINE First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/07/the-chatelaine-book-awards-for-romantic-fiction-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-2018-cibas/

The LITTLE PEEPS Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Early Readers

The Tooth Collector Fairies: Home from Decay Valley by Denise Ditto took home the Little Peeps Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 LITTLE PEEPS First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/08/the-little-peeps-book-awards-for-early-readers-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The Clue Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Mystery Suspense & Thriller Novels

California Son by Timothy Burgess  took home the Clue Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 CLUE First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/08/the-clue-book-awards-for-mystery-suspense-thriller-novels-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The OZMA Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Fantasy Fiction Novels

Dragon Speaker by Elana A. Mugdan took home the OZMA Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 OZMA First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/09/the-ozma-book-awards-for-fantasy-fiction-novels-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The PARANORMAL Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Supernatural & Paranormal Novels

The Madwoman of Preacher’s Cove, a manuscript by Joy Ross Davis took home the Paranormal Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 PARANORMAL First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/09/the-paranormal-book-awards-for-supernatural-paranormal-novels-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The Global Thriller Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Lab Lit & High Stakes Thriller Novels

The Moving Blade by Michael Pronko
took home the Global Thrillers Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 Global Thriller First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/09/the-global-thriller-book-awards-for-lab-lit-high-stakes-thriller-novels-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The SOMERSET Book Awards for Contemporary, Literary, Satire Novels

Hard Cider – a novel by Barbara A. Stark-Nemon
took home the Somerset Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 SOMERSET First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/10/the-somerset-book-awards-for-contemporary-literary-satire-novels-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

The Instruction & Insight Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Non-Fiction, Non-Narrative

Explore Europe on Foot by Cassandra Overby took home the Instruction & Insight Grand Prize Ribbon

View the 2018 I & I First Place Category Award Winners at https://www.chantireviews.com/2019/05/10/the-instruction-insight-book-awards-for-non-fiction-non-narrative-grand-prize-and-first-place-category-winners-cibas-2018/

CONGRATULATIONS to Ronald E. YATES for The LOST YEARS of BILLY BATTLES (Book 3 of the Finding Billy Battles Trilogy) taking home the CHANTICLEER OVERALL Grand Prize for BEST BOOK in the 2018 CIBAS

“…the reader experiences that all too rare sense of complete transport to another world, one fully realized in these pages because the storytelling is so skillful and thoroughly captivating.”

The photo below is of Ronald E. Yates with his GOETHE Grand Prize Ribbon and his Chanticleer Overall Best Book Ribbon

“Reading a Book is Like Life: You Live it One Page at a Time.” (Ron Yates) Ron is a former foreign correspondent and Professor Emeritus of Journalism, Dean of the College of Media and is an award-winning historical novelist. Read more about this Pulitzer nominated journalist and Chanticleerian by clicking on this link.

Twelve of the Sixteen Grand Prize Division Winners were present to receive their ribbons on stage at the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Awards Ceremony.

We will post more photographs and information. Do check back and subscribe to the Chanticleer Reviews e-news letter.

We have exciting news for the Chanticleer Community on the horizon so do stay tuned!

You know you want a coveted Chanticleer Reviews Blue Ribbon!

Submit your works (manuscripts or novels published after or on January 1, 2017, are accepted) to the prestigious Chanticleer International Book Awards today! Entries are being accepted into the 2019 CIBAs in all 16 divisions.

Be sure to register early for the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference that will take place on April 16, 17, 18, & 19, 2020 with the 2019 CIBA banquet and ceremony scheduled to take place on Saturday, April 18th, 2020 at the luxurious Hotel Bellwether in Bellingham, Wash.

An email will go out to all 2018 CIBA award winners prior to June 10, 2019, with instructions, links, and more information about the awards packages. We appreciate your patience. As stated in the Semi-Finalist notification email, “One does not need to be present at the CIBA ceremony and banquet to win. But it sure is a lot more fun!”

As always, please contact us at Chanticleer@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions!

We have begun planning for the 2020 Chanticleer Authors Conference (April 16, 17, & 18, 2020) and the 2019 CIBA Banquet and Ceremony that will take place on April 17, 2020, at the Hotel Bellwether, Bellingham, Wash.
May 12, 2019
The GOETHE Book Awards for Post-1750s for Historical Fiction – Grand Prize and First Place Category Winners – 2018 CIBAs
We are excited and honored to officially announce the Grand Prize Winner and the First Place Category Winners for the 2018 GOETHE Book Awards at the annual Chanticleer Authors Conference and the 2018 Chanticleer International Book Awards ceremony. This year’s ceremony and banquet were held on Saturday, April 27th, 2019 at the Hotel Bellwether by beautiful Bellingham Bay, Wash.

We want to thank all of those who entered and participated in the 2018 Goethe Book Awards for post-1750s Historical Fiction, a division of the Chanticleer International Book Awards.

Peter Greene, the author of Paladin’s War, the Grand Prize Winner of the 2017 Book Awards for Goethe Historical Fiction (CIBAs), announced the 2018 Goethe Award Winners at the Chanticleer International Book Awards Banquet and Ceremony.

PublishDrive and Hindenburg Systems awarded additional prizes to the 2018 Goethe Book Award winners. Thank you!

Congratulations to the 2018 GOETHE Book Awards for post-1750s Historical Fiction First in Category Winners
- The Muse of Fire by Carol M. Cram
- Mist-chi-mas: A Novel of Captivity by J.L. Oakley
- The River by Starlight by Ellen Notbohm
- Anna’s Home by Rosalind Spitzer
- None of Us the Same by Jeffrey K. Walker
- Behind the Scarlet Letter by Patricia Suprenant
- The Pear Tree by K. M. Sandrick
And now for the 2018 GOETHE Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Post-1750s Historical Fiction

The Lost Years of Billy Battles by Ronald E. Yates took home the Goethe Grand Prize Ribbon

An email will go out to all First Place Category Winners and Grand Prize Winners with more information, the timing of awarded reviews, links to digital badges, and more before May 31st, 2019 (approximately four weeks after the awards ceremony). Please look for it in your email inbox.

When we receive the digital photographs from the Official CAC19 professional photographer, Dwayne Rogge of Photo Treehouse, we will post the photographs of GOETHE award winners on this page.

Click here for the link to the GOETHE Semi-Finalists.

This post will be updated with photos and more information. Please do visit it again!

The deadline for submissions into the 2019 GOETHE Book Awards is June 30, 2019 Midnight (PST).

Our next Chanticleer International Book Awards Ceremony will be held on Saturday, April 18th, 2020, for the 2019 CIBA winners.

Enter your book or manuscript in a contest today!

As always, please contact me directly at KBrown@ChantiReviews.com with any questions, concerns, or suggestions.
May 7, 2019