Two Talented Gather Writers Break Through!

Last night, Gather announced that Simon & Schuster offered not one but TWO book contracts to finalists in the Gather First Chapters Writing Competition.

Terry Shaw’s novel, The Way Life Should Be, was selected as the grand prize winner. He was rewarded with a $5,000 prize from Gather, a $5,000 advance from Simon & Schuster, and a book contract.

Geoffrey Edwards was also given an advance and a book contract for his novel Fire Bell in the Night.

More than just cash and a book contract, Terry and Geoffrey will receive a promotional push by Borders, one of the world’s leading book retailers. The promotional assistance they receive is above and beyond what most first-novelists can expect.

The contest was a tremendous success. Nearly 2,800 novels were entered. The biggest cut came when the top twenty were announced. The subsequent cuts were smaller, but no less significant.

I'm honored to have been a part of the contest and to have been read alongside these fine entries as a fellow semi-finalist.

Look for Terry and Geoffrey’s novels in Borders book stores and at Gather later this year.

And sincere congratulations to both of them -- and to everyone who participated and helped to make the contest a positive, worthwhile, and successful contest for everyone involved.