I am so honored by the unanimous response to my novel-in-progress, Time of Death, at the 2012 Orange County Christian Writers Conference this weekend. The manuscript excerpt I submitted won three awards, including First Prize in the Fiction Writing Contest sponsored by The Editorial Department, Second Prize in the WestBow Press Writing Contest, and Third Prize in the Beverly Bush Smith Aspiring Writer Award competition.
I have been working on this project during the last four years while pursuing the dual MA in English and MFA in Creative Writing degree at Chapman University. While the book will serve as my final thesis for the MFA, publication has always been my primary goal. This fiction narrative tells the story of Fawn Evans from her youth through womanhood and the sometimes subtle but often overt spiritual battle for her soul. During the years that follow a horrific car accident of which Fawn is the only survivor, it becomes clear that she was spared for a reason, and it is up to her to realize her intrinsic value and God’s plan for her life.
The title, Time of Death, represents the moments of both physical death and spiritual death. My desire for this debut novel is that it will resonate with young and mature adult readers who are adrift or distracted and help them recognize their own unique purpose and destiny.
This was my first non-academic writing conference, and I’m encouraged by and utterly grateful for the new literary connections made, the endorsement of my work, and, of course, the publication and editorial prizes. I’m more motivated than ever to finish writing the story. As always, I will chronicle my progress periodically on Archetype and look forward to that momentous post proclaiming its completion.
For now, the journey continues…
Good news! Congrats Michelle!
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Thank you, Chris!
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Congratulation Michelle!
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Thanks, Natalie!
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Congrats on your 3 awards! Isn’t it affirming to know that your story stood out to three separate sets of judges? So exciting.
“I…look forward to that momentous post proclaiming its completion.” What a perfect way of saying it. I look forward to reading it…
(Love the image you selected here, too)
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Thank you so much for the comment, Natalie, and for subscribing. Yes…having the manuscript excerpt resonate with three individual judging committees for three different awards was really encouraging. I’m certainly motivated to keep at it and finish as soon as possible. Congratulations again on your awards, too!
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