Congratulations to Our Readers Favorite Award-Winning Self-Publishing Authors!

It’s that time of the year again — the 2020 Readers Favorite Award Winners have been announced. Below is a list of winners whose books are published with Outskirts Press:

CATEGORY: FICTION – MYSTERY – GENERAL


And Come Day’s End — Bronze

CATEGORY: CHILDREN – ANIMALS


Here Comes Ingo — Silver

CATEGORY: CHRISTIAN – DEVOTION/STUDY


Esoteric Christianity Made Simple — Honorable Mention

CATEGORY: NON-FICTION – MOTIVATIONAL


Conquering Life’s Course — Honorable Mention

Again, congratulations to all of our winners! If you want to purchase any of these titles, you can save between 10%-50% by ordering directly from the Outskirts Press Bookstore.

Are you ready to publish your own award-winning book? Let’s get started…

 

Outskirts Press Self-Publishing Authors Impress EVVY Awards Judges—Here Are the 2019 Finalists

Outskirts Press self-publishing authors continually impress the judges at the annual CIPA EVVY Awards and this year is no different. In fact, our authors garnered 23 spots as finalists for the 2019 awards and we couldn’t be prouder!

Now in its 25th year, the EVVY Awards, sponsored by the Colorado Independent Publishers Association (CIPA) and the CIPA Education and Literacy Foundation (ELF), recognize the works of independent authors in dozens of book categories.

First-, second- and third-place winners will be revealed and recognized at an awards banquet on Saturday, Aug. 17, in Denver, Colorado. Outskirts Press would love to see as many of these amazing authors at the ceremony as possible. If you can’t make it, no worries: Outskirts Press executives will be on hand to accept the awards on behalf of authors not able to appear in person.

At last, here are the Outskirts Press books that have been selected as finalists in the 2019 EVVY Awards:

And Come Day’s End by Gabriel F.W. Koch
Dance Because You Can by Amy Jordan
Dropping My Lines by Dan O’Neil
Eyes On Track: Ages 4-Adult by Kristy Remick
Forger of Empire by Jeanne Blanchet
Healing the Wounds of War by Amnon Ben-Yehuda
Journeys of Discovery by Lawrence J. Marcus
LUNAR 3097: Bk 1 The AI Chronicles by Gary Timbrell
Mr. Chance Collins by Daniel E. Brown
Out of the Storm: A Legacy by Anthony B. Cochran
Seeking Glory by Patricia Hamilton Shook
Something Happened Today: A Collection of the Unexpected by Paul E. Kotz
Tales of Invasions and Empires: Our Place in Time (c. 1100-1400)
by Kent Augustson
The Darker Side of Hope by David G. Fambrough
The Gang by M.J. Biersbach
The Mind of a Deviant Woman by Paula Paul
The Town of Alpaca by Patricia Ann Schoch
Through the Green: Golf Shots, Spots and Stories, Inspirations and Aspirations
by Joseph Bronson
To Paint A Murder: A Veronica Howard Vintage Mystery by E.J. Gandolfo
Why Should Anyone Follow You? Supervision through Aphorism
by Peter Smergut
You Cannot Imprison an Eagle’s Dream by Alba Era
The Paymaster by Adeed Dawisha
The Red Shore by Andrew Ceroni

Congratulations to all our EVVY Award finalists! We are so proud of your impressive achievements in this awards cycle.

Have you published a book this year, or are you getting ready to? Let Outskirts Press show you how to produce an award-worthy work! Follow the link below to learn more about our book publishing and marketing services.

 

Thank you to all our authors for a fantastic 2018

It’s the season of thanks, so we would like to take a moment to acknowledge a handful of our authors with a heartfelt thank you for all they accomplished in 2018. We publish over a thousand books every year and have hundreds upon hundreds of successful authors worthy of commendation. But that would make this article hundreds of pages long, so if we’re not able to mention you personally, please know our thanks and appreciation extend to you, as well. Keep up the great work in 2019!

January

In January, the spotlight was on Katherine S. Egan, author of Genetics Isn’t Everything. She went on to win a first place EVVY Award in August, which she was able to accept in person at the banquet in Denver, Colorado. She subsequently became one of three finalists in the 2018 Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year Awards. Thank you, Katherine!

February

In February, Jackie Fischer won first place (and a new laptop computer) in our annual “Show Us Your Love” video contest, which celebrates both Valentine’s Day and self-publishing. Not only is she the author of The Lost Branch but, as she demonstrates in her video, she’s quite adept at rhyme, as well! Thank you, Jackie, for the fantastic video and the fantastic book!

March

Olympic Gold Medalist Mary Wineberg hit our Top 10 Bestsellers List in March with her inspiring and triumphant autobiography, Unwavering Perseverance. Even more impressive, she earned a Gold Medal in the 2008 Olympic Games in the 4×400 relay after overcoming obstacle after obstacle. “Always strive for your dreams,” she encourages. Thank you for the words of motivation, Mary! You’re a true inspiration!

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April

The Annual Benjamin Franklin Awards are notoriously competitive, so it was no small feat when Dr. Jeanne Blanchet won a Silver Medal Award for Historical Fiction in April with her novel Man at the Cross Road. Proving herself to be anything but a one-trick pony, she quickly followed that up with an EVVY Award for her following book, Cursed. Thank you, Jeanne, for making the trip to Denver to accept your award in person and meeting some of our executive team.

May

We acknowledged the writing career of one of our most prolific authors in May when Jerry Snodgrass stepped into our monthly spotlight. Jerry has published 10 books with Outskirts Press (so far!) and was born in Butler, Missouri, in 1938. He was raised and went to school in Indianola, Iowa. He entered the military after graduating from high school in 1957 and fulfilled his dreams of serving in the military and traveling to exotic locations. He married Elizabeth Fleming in the 1960s and they had two children. The family traveled extensively during his military career before settling down in Killeen, Texas, in 2002. Thank you, Jerry, for your service and your books of valor.

June

Kevin I.J.A. Barnett Sr. went on a whirlwind virtual book tour in June for his debut book, a provocative and autobiographical examination of the United States Foster Care and Adoption System. As the author of Living My Shadows, Kevin is a retired, noncommissioned officer in the United States Army. He has served in Germany, Afghanistan and in many stateside tours during his career. He is married to Sharon F. Pelham and does motivational speaking when time permits. Thank you, Kevin, for your service and for having the courage to share such significant moments of your life for the assistance of others.

July

In July, prolific novelist Gabriel F.W. Koch learned that he was once again a finalist in the Colorado Independent Publishers Association EVVY Awards. He walked away with a Second Place EVVY Award a couple years ago for his science fiction novel Paradox Effect (not to mention an Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year nomination). This year he picked up an EVVY Merit Award for Emma and the Dragon Tooth Sword. He has published four books thus far with Outskirts Press, including his latest: And Come Day’s End. Thank you, Gabriel, for all your wonderful, award-winning books.

August

Speaking of science fiction, C.R. Norris discovered that she won First Place in the Science Fiction category, for her book Wasp on the Wind, when the EVVY Awards Banquet took place in Denver on August 25, 2018. Wasp on the Wind is Book 2 in her Wasp Chronicles Series. She subsequently was nominated to be one of three finalists in the highly coveted Best Book of the Year Awards. C.R. Norris is a perpetual student of science and mathematics. Born in Salina Kansas, her varied career has included experience as a musician, a blood banker, and an electrical engineer in the semiconductor industry. She currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she indulges her passions for green chile, playing music and writing.

September

And it all led up to this, when the 2018 Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year was announced. This year, the honor, the award and the $1,500 Grand Prize went to T.D. Arkenberg for his biographical take on the events leading up to, and following in the shadows of, September 11. Two Towers is his fourth book but his first memoir. Thank you, T.D., for letting us experience this tragic event from such an unfiltered perspective.

October

In October we recognized our 50 bestselling authors for 2018. It takes more than a marvelous literary work to achieve success as an author; it takes the gumption and drive to promote that work to readers! To you, we extend not only our congratulations but our thanks for allowing Outskirts Press to help you reach this successful milestone!

Kevin Muldowney Aage Nost
Will Kautz Rasha Pecoraro
Michael McNamara Tui Rose
Lisa A. Romano Mohamed Elgendy
Mary Casey Asif Anwar
Vil Mirzayanov Brian Petit
L. Veach Bill McClain
Mike Gillette Tom Bisio
Mirtha Castro Mary Allison
Matthew DiGeronimo Rebecca Janes
Amy Pierotti Halo Lewis
Jane McConnell Jane Ostrow
Jill Jackson Bernard Nebel
Don Petterson Alex Cuoco
Ed Robinson Adrienne Anderson
Scott Imhoff Diana Arcieri
Patrick O’Connor Tiffany Anderson
Joseph Adegboyega-Edun Kathryn M. Mora
Bernard Nebel Jeffrey Howe
Magdaline DeSousa Steve Kelley
Michael Goodroe Hal Perkins
Jokima Hiller Rodney DuBose
Lisa Cicero Amy Meadows
Heidi Herman Paul Kotz
Luis Roman Seth Spreiter

And the year isn’t over yet. November and December are the biggest months of the year for book sales, so keep those marketing efforts going! And “Thank You” to all our amazing authors for making 2018 another banner year for self-publishing.

Want your book to be the next big prize-winner? Find out more about marketing, promoting and submitting your book for awards and reviews.

 

Self-Publishing Author Spotlight: Gabriel F.W. Koch

At Outskirts Press, Inc., we take great pride in celebrating the work of our successful self-publishing authors, and we do so each week through our Self-Publishing Author Spotlight. This week we highlight self-publishing author Gabriel F.W. Koch, who has published three successful titles with Outskirts Press.

Learn more about Gabriel F.W. Koch and his published works through this week’s Self-Publishing Author Spotlight.

About the Author:

Gabriel FW Koch is the winner of the 2004 L. Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future award; the 2016 CIPA EVVY award for science fiction; a second-place winner of the 2016 Outskirts Press Best Book of the Year; and a 2017 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist.

Emma and the Dragon Tooth Sword

Emma must disarm an evil pirate’s spells by using his own Dragon Tooth Sword

I move as a prisoner caught, for behind me comes my shadow, and before me goes my thought. The sculpture showed three people. The central figure was a young woman. Using one hand, she guided the bent form of an elderly woman, her other arm wrapped around the shoulders of a young boy. At the base, a plaque read: Between Yesterday and To-morrow, Edith Howland, and then, the poem. Emma’s hands rested on the carved bare foot of the central figure. A chill raced from the soles of her feet to the back of her scalp. Joan dropped to her knees and asked, “What’d you find?” Emma pointed to the small sign and watched as Joan read the words. Of course, Joan did not know the significance of what she read. Emma, her voice muffled by a reverence brought on by the awe of discovery, said, “This is where the sword’s buried. I can feel it.” Emma Dug frantically with her fingers. She tore at the grass and roots, lifted handfuls of wet, dark soil. “I see you’ve located my sword, young lady.” Emma felt George’s hand on her shoulder as her finger grasped the edge of the sword’s hilt. She shook him off as the air wavered, shimmering the marble sculpture. Emma heard Joan cry out, “Oh my God!” The garden faded and shifted. She felt Joan’s arm go around her waist. “Let go of the sword, Emma!” Then she could no longer draw in a breath. The alien roar again vibrated the air and was closer this time. Emma, heart pounding harder than a minute ago, leaped to her feet when she heard what could only have been the beating of wings, large wings, incredibly large wings. No, huge, she thought. Huge wings. “The dragon’s arrived,” she calmly informed Joan, although she could feel her heart in her throat. Joan released Emma, and stood directly in front of her, hands planted on her hips. “Do you know how to get us home?” “No.” Emma shook her head. What did I get us into? How do I get us home? Are we stuck here forever? And where’s here? “Sorry, Joan. I don’t know how. I wish I did. Maybe the pirate will know.” “Who? What darn pirate are you talking about?” “Dragon Sanglant. He’s the pirate.”

Product details…
Paperback
Format: 6 x 9 Black & White Paperback, 200 pages
Publisher: Outskirts Press (Feb 13, 2017)
ISBN10: 1478782714
ISBN13: 9781478782711
Genre: JUVENILE FICTION / Science Fiction

Paradox Effect: Time Travel and Purified DNA Merge to Halt the Collapse of Human Existence
  • CIPA EVVY 2nd place science fiction winner
  • Next Generation Indie Book Awards finalist in science fiction

In 2554, the World is Coming to its End, unless an impossible mission through 600 years of time travel succeeds.

Maternal instinct knows no boundaries, including the nano-neural-net intravenously installed in Dannia Weston’s mind to repress her identity, allowing her to perform a mission 300 years before her time.

Transported to the year 1954, Dannia becomes a woman with a mid-twentieth century persona, college educated with an aptitude for mechanical invention. Due to her work during the war, she is employed by the U.S. government on a secret project. But what no one knows—including Dannia or those who sent her back to tinker with the mechanical past to reduce future pollution—is what might happen should she become emotionally involved in 1954.

The 2254 science team programmed the nano-net to prevent the possibility of pregnancy, but each person reacts to strong emotional stimuli differently, and using birth control not available in 1954 is out of the question.

When Dannia falls in love with Peter Hersh and becomes pregnant, her hormones erode a small section of the nano-chained network that stabilizes her new identity, triggering a mild memory rebirth…and threatening her mission and the fate of the world.

Product details…
Paperback
Format: 6 x 9 Black & White Paperback, 282 pages
Publisher: Outskirts Press (Sep 28, 2015)
ISBN10: 1478756225
ISBN13: 9781478756224
Genre: FICTION / Science Fiction / Action & Adventure

Beholden: A Marlowe Black Mystery
Rare gold coins, a beautiful woman, and a walk with death

Marlowe Black, a WWII combat veteran, walks the streets of New York with a PI license to serve justice, a .45 automatic and his fists to enforce it, and a steely determination to solve a case…regardless of the consequences. When a stranger’s body mysteriously lands in his office after a long Fourth of July weekend, Black is determined to learn why, regardless of what New York City cops say or do. As bullets fly, he hunts the killer through a maze of government agents, missing Russian gold coins, Nazi SS fugitives, dangerous greed, and women worth fighting for and knowing intimately. But to succeed, Black must right an old mistake, make a heart-wrenching discovery, and wrestle with a decision to adhere to personal principles of honor that will force him to look beyond love and death. Beholden paints a grim picture of American city life, corruption, and death. And with a morally insecure protagonist and an irresistible love interest, this hard-boiled detective novel promises to be darkly satisfying.

Product details…
Paperback
Format: 6 x 9 Black & White Paperback, 200 pages
Publisher: Outskirts Press (Sep 18, 2017)
ISBN10: 1478792191
ISBN13: 9781478792192
Genre: FICTION / Mystery & Detective / Hard-Boiled

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Amazon Featured Book-of-the-Week

Here’s this week’s Featured Book-of-the-Week available now on Amazon.com!


Paradox Effect

by Gabriel F.W. Koch

(5 Stars – 1 Customer Review)

Price: $26.95

Gabriel F.W. Koch’s “Paradox Effect.” The world is coming to its end and Dannia, who has a nano-neural-net intravenously installed in her mind to repress her identity, is performing a mission 300 years in the past. While transported back in time, Dannia falls in love with Peter and becomes pregnant, which erodes a small section of the nano-chained network threatening her mission and the fate of the world.

Please note that product prices and availability are subject to change. Prices and availability were accurate at the time of this posting; however, they may differ from those you see when you visit Amazon.com.© Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. All rights reserved. Amazon, Amazon.com, the Amazon.com logo, and 1-Click are registered trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates. Amazon.com, 410 Terry Avenue N., Seattle, WA 98109-5210.
 

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Author Poll: Writer Gabriel F.W. Koch wants your help with his cover

Gabriel F.W. Koch is self-publishing a book with Outskirts Press. And he wants your help deciding his book cover.

Book Summary

The year is 2554 and the world is coming to an end unless an impossible mission-through 600 years of time travel-succeeds.

Maternal instinct knows no boundaries, including the nano-neural-net intravenously installed in Dannia Weston’s mind to repress her identity, allowing her to perform a mission 300 years before her time.

Transported to the year 1954, Dannia becomes a woman with a mid-twentieth century persona, college educated with an aptitude for mechanical invention. Due to her work during the war, she is employed by the U.S. government on a secret project. But what no one knows-including Dannia or those who sent her back to tinker with the mechanical past to reduce future pollution-is what might happen should she become emotionally involved in 1954. The 2254 science team programmed the nano-net to prevent the possibility of pregnancy, but each person reacts to strong emotional stimuli differently, and using birth control not available in 1954 is out of the question. When Dannia falls in love with Peter Hersh and becomes pregnant, her hormones erode a small section of the nano-chained network that stabilizes her new identity, triggering a mild memory rebirth…and threatening her mission and the fate of the world.

About the Author

Gabriel F.W. Koch is the 2004 winner of the L. Ron Hubbard Writers of the Future Award, as well as an award-winning photographer.

Please take a look at two possible covers below and then vote on the choice you recommend for Gabriel.

Click on the thumbnail below to enlarge Cover Option A

CP_VACover A

Click on the thumbnail below to enlarge Cover Option B

CP_VBCover B