Category: Whitney Academy

Congratulations 2012 Whitney Award Winners!

I know this has been posted elsewhere today—I’ve seen it all over Facebook. But I wanted to congratulate the winners on a job well done! And also to offer my personal thank you to all those behind-the-scenes people who make the Whitney Awards and Gala possible.

Also, my candy dress was a hit with my table mates! (But it’s a good thing I wore a  jumpsuit under it. They were hungry!)
 
 

Everneath

EVERNEATH
By Brodi Ashton
Best Young Adult Speculative Novel

 
 

AfterHello

AFTER HELLO
By Lisa Mangum
Best Young Adult General Novel

 
 

FalsePrince

THE FALSE PRINCE
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
Best Middle Grade Novel

 
 

RentCollector

THE RENT COLLECTOR
By Camron Wright
Best General Novel

 
 

MyLovingVigilKeeping

MY LOVING VIGIL KEEPING
By Carla Kelly
Best Historical Novel

 
 

Edenbrooke

EDENBROOKE
By Julianne Donaldson
Best Romance Novel

 
 

CodeWord

CODE WORD
By Traci Hunter Abramson
Best Mystery/Suspense Novel

 
 

HOllowCity

THE HOLLOW CITY
By Dan Wells
Best Speculative Novel

 
 

FalsePrince

THE FALSE PRINCE
By Jennifer A. Nielsen
Best Youth Novel of the Year

 
 

Edenbrooke

EDENBROOKE
By Julianne Donaldson
Best Novel by a New Author

 
 

RentCollector

THE RENT COLLECTOR
By Camron Wright
Best Novel of the Year

 
 

Littke_Lael

Lael Littke
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

 
 

Carol-Lynch-Williams-190

Carol Lynch Williams
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

 
 

What Do You Think of These Generally Historic Titles?

Okay, that was lame. I know. Sorry.

These are the last two Whitney Award finalists categories for this year.

General

Dancing on Broken Glass Paige The 13th Day of Christmas A Night on Moon Hill The Rent Collector
Ka Hancock* Annette Lyon Jason F. Wright Tanya Parker Mills Camron Wright

Historical

Espionage My Loving Vigil Keeping Spinster’s Folly The Five Books of Jesus Within the Dark Hills
A. L. Sowards* Carla Kelly Marsha Ward James Goldberg* Sian Ann Bessey

In the comments, tell us:

• How many of these 10 finalists have you read?

• Which ones did you really, really love?

• And if you had to pick just one from each category—like, if you were at the bookstore and you only had enough money to buy ONE book—which is your winner and WHY?

Remember, these comments enter you to win one of the books featured in sidebar!

Romantic Suspense?

Romance and Mystery/Suspense make a nice couple, don’t they? I mean, romance has always been a mystery to me. And a good suspense thriller is always better with a smidge of romance thrown in, right?

Okay, two more categories to chat about.

Romance

Lady Outlaw Of Grace and Chocolate Smart Move Twitterpated Edenbrooke
Stacy Henrie* Krista Lynne Jensen* Melanie Jacobson Melanie Jacobson Julianne Donaldson*

Mystery/Suspense

Banana Split Code Word Deadly Undertakings Line of Fire Tres Leches Cupcakes
Josi S. Kilpack Traci Hunter Abramson Gregg Luke Rachel Ann Nunes Josi S. Kilpack

 

In the comments, tell us:

• How many of these 10 finalists have you read?

• Which ones did you really, really love?

• And if you had to pick just one from each category—like, if you were at the bookstore and you only had enough money to buy ONE book—which is your winner and WHY?

Remember, these comments enter you to win one of the books featured in sidebar!

Whitney Finalists—I’m Speculating…

Did you think I was going to guess the winners? Nope. This is a review of the finalists for a  Whitney Award in the Speculative categories.

Speculative

City of the Saints Flight From Blithmore Earthbound The Hollow City The Penitent
D. J. Butler Jacob Gowans Theresa Sneed Dan Wells C. David Belt

Youth Adult—Speculative

Demons Destined Endlessly Everneath Feedback
Heather Frost Aprilynne Pike Kiersten White Brodi Ashton* Robison Wells

Like yesterday, I want your comments!

In the comments, tell us:

• How many of these 10 finalists have you read?

• Which ones did you really, really love?

• And if you had to pick just one from each category—like, if you were at the bookstore and you only had enough money to buy ONE book—which is your winner and WHY?

Remember, these comments enter you to win one of the books featured in sidebar!

Storymakers and Whitney Awards—Oh My!

This weekend is probably my favorite weekend of the entire year! It’s the LDStoryMakers Conference and the Whitney Awards banquet!!!!!!!!

Yes, they deserve all those exclamation points—and more!

Seriously. I’ve been going to Storymakers for years in my alter ego persona. I’ve missed a few—and that always makes me sad—but I’ve really loved watching it grow and change to become what it is today. I love the supportive atmosphere and the great fun. I always come home inspired to write more.

Click here to see a few photos of me at the conference in previous years.

And then there are the Whitney Awards! I simply can’t imagine the Oscars being more fun. (Unless, of course, I got a seat next to Robert Downey Jr.)

Click here for photos of me at the 2011 Whitney Awards Banquet.

I’ll be posting some pictures of this year’s outfit later this week.

But today, let’s talk about the finalists. Here are the finalists for two of the Whitney categories.

Young Adult—General

After Hello Finding June The Space Between Us The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back V is for Virgin
Lisa Mangum Shannen Crane Camp Jessica Martinez Sariah Wilson Kelly Oram

Middle Grade

Case File 13: Zombie Kid Epic Tales of a Misfit Hero Freakling Palace of Stone The False Prince
J. Scott Savage Matt Peterson* Lana Krumwiede* Shannon Hale Jennifer A. Nielsen

 

In the comments, tell us:

• How many of these 10 finalists have you read?

• Which ones did you really, really love?

• And if you had to pick just one from each category—like, if you were at the bookstore and you only had enough money to buy ONE book—which is your winner and WHY?

Remember, these comments enter you to win one of the books featured in sidebar!

Updated Nominate a Whitney Button

I have updated “Nominate a Whitney” buttons for your blogs and websites.

Basically, they’re the same as before, but I took the date off so they can be used year after year. They’re available in six colors and two sizes.

If you use the code in the boxes below the images, they will link directly to the nomination page on the Whitney Awards website.

 

You can get them here: http://www.ldspublisher.com/whitney-buttons/

2012 Whitney Finalists

General

 
Dancing on Broken Glass Paige The 13th Day of Christmas A Night on Moon Hill The Rent Collector
Ka Hancock* Annette Lyon Jason F. Wright Tanya Parker Mills Camron Wright

Historical

Espionage My Loving Vigil Keeping Spinster’s Folly The Five Books of Jesus Within the Dark Hills
A. L. Sowards* Carla Kelly Marsha Ward James Goldberg* Sian Ann Bessey

Romance

Lady Outlaw Of Grace and Chocolate Smart Move Twitterpated Edenbrooke
Stacy Henrie* Krista Lynne Jensen* Melanie Jacobson Melanie Jacobson Julianne Donaldson*

Mystery/Suspense

Banana Split Code Word Deadly Undertakings Line of Fire Tres Leches Cupcakes
Josi S. Kilpack Traci Hunter Abramson Gregg Luke Rachel Ann Nunes Josi S. Kilpack

Speculative

City of the Saints Flight From Blithmore Earthbound The Hollow City The Penitent
D. J. Butler Jacob Gowans Theresa Sneed Dan Wells C. David Belt

Youth Adult—Speculative

Demons Destined Endlessly Everneath Feedback
Heather Frost Aprilynne Pike Kiersten White Brodi Ashton* Robison Wells

Young Adult—General

After Hello Finding June The Space Between Us The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back V is for Virgin
Lisa Mangum Shannen Crane Camp Jessica Martinez Sariah Wilson Kelly Oram

Middle Grade

Case File 13: Zombie Kid Epic Tales of a Misfit Hero Freakling Palace of Stone The False Prince
J. Scott Savage Matt Peterson* Lana Krumwiede* Shannon Hale Jennifer A. Nielsen

2011 Whitney Award Winners!

Congratulations!!!

2011 Best General


Before I Say Goodbye
by Rachel Ann Nunes

2011 Best Historical


Letters in the Jade Dragon Box
by Gale Sears

2011 Best Romance


Borrowed Light
by Carla Kelly

2011 Best Mystery/Suspense


Rearview Mirror
by Stephanie Black

2011 Best Youth Fiction General


With a Name Like Love
by Tess Hilmo

2011 Best Youth Fiction Speculative


Variant
by Robison Wells

2011 Best Speculative Fiction


The Alloy of Law: A Mistborn Novel
by Brandon Sanderson

2011 Best Novel by A New Author


With a Name Like Love
by Tess Hilmo

2011 Novel of the Year


I Don’t Want To Kill You
by Dan Wells


What to Wear to the Whitney Gala???

I’m at the LDStorymaker’s Conference today and having a lot of fun spying on people incognito. But I have a troubling problem.

What do I wear to the Whitney Gala tomorrow night?

It’s so hard to know. You simply can’t be caught underdressed. That is unforgivable. But on the other hand, you really don’t want to show everyone else up. Then they’ll just hate you.

I have to make my final decision soon, and I’ve narrowed it down to three. Tell me what you think.

Option #1: Pink with Fur Stole

I like this one, but not the headpiece. Instead, I’d wear this hat:

A dear friend modeling my hat

The downside to this outfit is that fur might be a little too warm for the evening.

 

 

Option #2: Black Dot Dress

 I’m lukewarm on this dress, but I absolutely adore the shoe I’d wear with it:

Awesome shoe to wear with Black Dot dress

 

 

Option #3: Pink, Aqua, Blue Dress

This is my favorite of all the dresses. Of course, I’d wear a modest pink net shawl with it so my shoulders wouldn’t show.

Pink shoe for option #3

And this is the shoe that goes with it. I like it, but not as much as the shoe that goes with Option #2.

So what do you think? Vote in the comments.

LDSP at Last Year’s Whitney Awards

Following the LDStorymakers Conference, there will be the annual Whitney Awards presentation. This is a red-carpet event and everyone dresses up in their finest.

Here are a few photos of me from last year’s Whitney Awards Gala.

Annette Lyon, winner for Best General Fiction, and Me

 

Me with that slightly popular sci-fi/fantasy writer, Brandon Sanderson. He won for Best Speculative Fiction, and tied for Best Novel of the Year.

 

Me, Jeff Savage (awesome Middle Grade Fantasy writer), and Stephanie Black, winner for Best Mystery/Suspense

 

Julie Wright, winner for Best Romance, and Me

 

Me and Stephanie Black, winner for Best Mystery Suspense (we took another photo because Jeff was blocking my award...)

 

Marion Jenson, Robison Wells, Erin, and Me—having a group hug

 

The women from LDSWBR—Mindy Holt, Me, Sheila Staley, and Shandra Cottam

 

(All photos stolen with permission from Stephanie Black at www.stephanieblackink.blogspot.com)

 

2011 Finalists Announced!

We interrupt our 2011 Book Cover Contest
for a very important message…

2011 Whitney Award Finalists

Click HERE to download a PDF of the finalists for your personal use or to give to your local library.
Click HERE to purchase tickets to the 2011 Whitney Awards Gala on May 5th at the Provo Marriott.

General


Before I Say Goodbye
Gifted
 The Evolution of Thomas Hall The Walk: Miles To Go
 The Wedding Letters
Rachel Ann Nunes Karey White Kieth Merrill Richard Paul Evans Jason F. Wright

Historical



Daughter of Helaman
 Fires of Jerusalem
 Isabelle Webb: The Pharaoh’s Daughter Letters in the Jade Dragon Box Miss Delacourt Has Her Day
Misty Moncur* Marilyn Brown N.C. Allen Gale Sears Heidi Ashworth

Romance




Borrowed Light
 Captive Heart
 Count Down to Love Not My Type
 The List
Carla Kelly Michele Paige Holmes Julie N. Ford Melanie Jacobson Melanie Jacobson*

Mystery




Acceptable Loss
 Bloodborne If I Should Die
 Rearview Mirror
 Smokescreen
Anne Perry Gregg Luke Jennie Hansen Stephanie Black Traci Hunter Abramson

Speculative




A Night of Blacker Darkness
 I Don’t Want to Kill You
 No Angel
 The Alloy of Law: A Mistborn Novel
 The Lost Gate
Dan Wells Dan Wells Theresa Sneed* Brandon Sanderson Orson Scott Card

Youth Fiction—Speculative




My Unfair Godmother
 Shifting Slayers Tuesdays at the Castle
 Variant
Janette Rallison Bethany Wiggins C.J. Hill Jessica Day George Robison Wells

Youth Fiction—General



Girls Don’t Fly
 Miles From Ordinary
 Pride & Popularity
 Sean Griswold’s Head
 With a Name Like Love
Kristen Chandler Carol Lynch Williams Jenni James Lindsey Leavitt Tess Hilmo*

Fun Whitney Reading Counter

Someone from the Authors Incognito list e-mailed me and suggested using a fun little word count meter to show our Whitney Finalist reading progress.

13 / 35
(37.14%)

I’ve posted mine in the sidebar.

To get one for yourself, go to http://svenja.atspace.com/wordmeter.html

You’ll want to bookmark that site because you do have to go back there to generate code each time you update your count, but it’s pretty easy to do.

Thanks for the tip!

Update: I do not know why the image in this post is freaking out. The one in my sidebar looks perfect!