Wait? What?! Semi-finalist in 2015 Kindle Book Awards

Best way to enter a writing contest? Submit your book and then forget about it! Months ago I entered Are You Kidding Me? My Life with an Extremely Loud Family, Bathroom Calamities, and Crazy Relatives in the 2015 Kindle Book Awards contest.

Rules

First, according to the judges,”We will initially read the “Look Inside” sample (90% of your score) and Amazon book description (10% of score). We’re looking for books with a compelling book description, but more importantly, books that “grab us from the beginning” and make us want to read more. The screening process is an indication of your potential buyers experience with your book, as subjective as that is. Book covers will only be judged to settle a tie.”

Then I waited.

You’re a semi-finalist!

I was pleasantly surprised when I opened my email this week and read the following:

“The competition was brutal! As difficult as it was, we chose the top 20 in each of the 7 categories and those semi-finalists will move on to the next phase. We will read those 140 books in full and choose the category top 5 by Sept. 1st. And the 7 winners will be announced on Oct. 1st.”

Categories

Mystery/Thriller
Romance
Y/A
Sci-fi/Fantasy
Literary Fiction
Horror/Suspense
Non-Fiction

Non Fiction Semi-Finalist
The Girl Behind the Door – John Brooks
Split: A Child, A Priest, and the Catholic Church – Mary C. Dispenza
With Angel’s Wings – Stephanie A. Collins
Sihpromatum – Savannah Grace
It Takes a Fool – Sasha Dreams
Connecting Happiness and Success – Ray White
Kamikaze Kangaroos – Tony James Slater
21 Days in Maui – P. L. Como
Journey Into Light – Gayle Rose Martinez
Determined: The Story of Holocaust Survivor – A. Avraham Perlmutter Ph.D
Love and the Mystery of Betrayal – Sandra Lee Dennis
Trash: A True Story – Laurie Anne Hoover
On Hearing of My Mother’s Death Six Years After It Happened – Lori Schafer
Shot Down – Steve Snyder
Rupee Millionaires – Frank Kusy
Naked Truths About Getting Book Reviews – Gisela Hausmann
I Am Raymond Washington – Zach Fortier
Curbcheck Reload – Zach Fortier
Are You Kidding Me? – Stacey Gustafson
Nine Houses – Mary Eatmon

Now what?

Competition

I’m up against pretty stiff competition. Most of the books in the nonfiction category are memoirs and biography, rather than humor. Here’s a sample of my competition:

• Avraham Perlmutter, Holocaust survivor
• Mary Dispenza, rape victim of her parish priest
• Young woman’s courage to physically, emotionally, and spiritually heal after her leg is almost severed in a motorcycle accident
• American flyers who were in the air one moment, spiraling down in flames the next
• real events that happened to Zach Fortier during a thirty year career in Law Enforcement

If the judges appreciate humor, I have a chance. Otherwise, I’m going up in flames!

Prizes

Plus, did I mention that the seven category winners each receive $350 cash and $900 in promotions. For now, all I got was this damn badge!

Fingers crossed.

Looking for a summer read?
Are You Kidding Me?: My Life with an Extremely Loud Family, Bathroom Calamities, and Crazy Relatives is available on Amazon and eBooks. It’s filled with stories about crazy families, holiday chaos, school disasters and more. Hoping to make you laugh one story at a time. Get your copy now!! Click to purchase on Amazon.