Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award

Have you ever heard of it?  The Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award is "an annual award in the United States for a book that exemplifies literary excellence, widespread appeal, and a positive approach to life in young adult literature."  (Source: Wikipedia).  I had never heard of it myself, but I stumbled upon it, looked it up, and thought wow, THAT is the kind of award I would be proud to win.  So I looked it up and actually had to go to a lot of work to find contact information.  The hosting website wasn't working too well, but I was dying to know how to find out more about it.  Thanks to Google, I was able to find a contact from the award, who got back to me the next day.  She was so kind, and let me know that if I could get copies of my book to the committee members within five days, my book could be entered into the running.

Here are the submission guidelines:

Context and Criteria

Established in 2008 to honor the wishes of Amelia Elizabeth Walden, the award allows for the sum of $5,000 to be presented annually to the author of a book selected by the ALAN Amelia Elizabeth Walden Award (AEWA) Review Committee as “the title of the year most relevant to adolescents and having enjoyed a wide and appreciative teenage audience.” 

Per Walden’s request, the selected title must:

1)    be a work of fiction, ideally a novel (novels that are part of a series must be able to stand alone);

2)    be published within one year prior to the call for titles (in this case, 2011);

3)    be published in the United States but may have been published elsewhere prior; and

4)    possess a positive approach to life, widespread teen appeal, and literary merit (please see below for additional guidance):

A Positive Approach to Life

Submitted titles should:

§  treat teen readers as capable and thoughtful young people

§  offer hope and optimism, even when describing difficult circumstances

§  have a credible and appropriate resolution

§  portray characters involved in shaping their lives in a positive way, even as they struggle with the harsh realities of life

Widespread Teen Appeal

Submitted titles should:

§  be intended expressly for readers aged 12-18

§  have universal themes that transcend time and place

§  have themes that resonate with a wide variety of readers, regardless of race, culture, class, gender, and sexual orientation

§  provide readers a window to the world and/or reflect their own experiences

Literary Merit

Submitted titles should:

§  contain well-developed characters

§  employ well-constructed forms suitable to function 

§  include language and literary devices that enhance the narrative

§  suggest cogent and richly-realized themes

§  present an authentic voice

Do I have any chance at winning?  Or even at runner-up?  That depends on so much.   Primarily, it depends on whether or not the committee agrees that my book fulfills the "positive approach to life" requirement.  In my opinion, it does, but it's subtle.  Especially the part about difficult circumstances. Nothing terrible or unusual or terribly unusually bad happens to my protagonist, but she does face the sort of challenges that normal, everyday teenagers face.  

Even if I won "runner up" of this prize, I would be incredibly honored.  The criteria of the award is essentially an outline of what I want to write.  So, what kind of writer do I want to be?  I want to write books that would be eligible for this award.

ABNA Expert Reviewer #2

Here is my response to ABNA Expert Reviewer #2.   While he wasn't all negative, he was pretty insulting.  And I say "he" rather than "she" because I really get the feeling that a guy wrote this.  I don't know why.  The few males who have read my book loved it...

 

ABNA Expert Reviewer

What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?

Writing is good and solid. The attempt to portray the thinking and logic of an American teenage is quite good. Dialogue flows well and the idea of introducing Turkish culture through the book should be a good hook. 

Thank you.  I get the feeling that you might think that I'm not American... 

 

What aspect needs the most work?

The beginning sequence at the Izmir airport: The political agenda of the author comes through too easily. did Rachel really lack the intelligence or initiative to pick up a guidebook with pictures? Or to have the confidence in dressing comfortably as opposed to the over dressed, overly made up look of the women at the airport? And where are her parents? no sobbing goodbyes or missing her parents, or being confused by plane transfers for Rachel?
The conversation between her and hannah is good but stretches out a bit too long.
At 17 it seems curious that neither of the girls has a love interest.
Rachel seems a bit too average - not exceptional at schoolwork, not an ambitious girl who is planning for college, not interested in clothes, makeup or researching a place she will be spending a month in. The reader needs to throw their emotions and self into Rachel if she is their way of seeing Turkey. If she seems too ditzy or boring it will be hard to identify with her.

1.  My POLITICAL agenda!!???? I do have opinions about politics and political opinions.  In case you want to know, I started a PhD in political science.  However, in spite of advice to raise politically-charged issues in this book, I very intentionally did NOT do so because there are too many books and movies with political agendas.  So there.

2. Even if Rachel had bought a guidebook with pictures, she wouldn't have truly known what to expect.  

3.  And the confidence to dress comfortably? First of all, Rachel is 17.  She cares what she looks like and cares what people think of her. She wants to fit in.  How dare you insult her intelligence?  It is BECAUSE she is intelligent that she notices that her outfit doesn't seem appropriate for the situation.  Americans who live outside of the United States (as well as people who aren't Americans to begin with) can pick out American travelers in airports worldwide.  It's not because of their American accents.  It's because Americans tend to wear sweatpants or jeans, flip-flops or running shoes, and t-shirts.  And they also typically walk while eating and while holding disposable coffee cups.  Of course not all Americans wear this "uniform," but the ones who do stick out.  

4. Sobbing goodbyes?  Are 17-year-olds about to go on a foreign exchange program for a month all supposed to sob at the airport?  Sorry, I didn't know that.   

 

What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?

Interesting. The idea of introducing Turkey though the eyes of a naive but seemingly not too bright american teenager could be a good one if written well.
However, I think the sequence at the airport needs some work to make the girl not seem quite so ignorant of a culture she has seemingly researched online.

Hahahahahaha!!!! Interesting.  Such an ambivalent word. I find it a bit insulting that you say that Rachel's not too bright, given that you've only just met her.  She is not particularly ambitious and doesn't know what she wants out of life, but I imagine that is not unusual for a 17-year-old.  And do you really think you can learn everything you need to know about a culture by researching it online?  Then why bother traveling? 

ABNA Expert Reviewer #1

  My entry didn't make it into the quarter finals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Contest.  For this round, Amazon's "Expert Reviewers" read the first 3-5000 words of each novel and scored them based on four factors:

a) Overall Strength of Excerpt

b) Prose/Style

c) Plot/Hook

d) Originality of Idea

Each excerpt was given a score of one to five in each of these areas, and the 250 excerpts with the highest scores in each category made it into the quarter finals.  Fortunately, contestants in the second round were able to see the reviews of the expert reviewers.  After reading the reviews, I felt a lot better about not having made it into the quarter finals.  I feel as though part of it is the luck of the draw - whether or not reviewers like the kind of stuff you write.  In this post, I'll respond to the reviewer who liked my excerpt.  In my next post, I'll respond to the reviewer who wasn't very keen on it.  

ABNA Expert Reviewer

What is the strongest aspect of this excerpt?

I really enjoyed the lightness of this excerpt. No crazy science fiction characters to remember, no wild names, no underwater cities-just a well written coming of age story. It reminds me a bit of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." And Turkey! I don't know if I have ever read a book aimed at young women set in Turkey, so not only are we getting a fun read, but perhaps there is an educational aspect here as well. I really like books, especially for my teens, that teach us something without preaching, and what better way to do that than with a romance/adventure story like this one!

----->my response:  Thank you!  You totally get what I was trying to write.  I was trying to write a light, enjoyable story from which the reader can also learn something.  And the comparison to The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants?  I make the mental comparison myself, but didn't want to be presumptuous in comparing myself to such a famous series.   
 

What aspect needs the most work?

As of right now, I like it the way it is! The one issue I have sometimes with stories like this is that the adults are often written almost as after thoughts. The focus is the younger characters, it is a young adult novel after all, but I don't think that means the parents or other adults need to be one dimensional. Giving the adults believable personalities-quirks and all-only makes this MORE realistic. Just because teens live in their own world, or seem to anyways, doesn't mean the adults around them regress to one dimensional beings. Make sure the adults aren't simply there to create dissension or solve problems.

------>my response: I completely understand your concern.  As you said, it's hard to focus on all the characters, but I did actually attempt to make the parents more than one dimensional.  If you'd had the opportunity to read the whole book, your worries would have dissipated. 
 

What is your overall opinion of this excerpt?

I enjoyed it! Many young adult novels these days are all about vampires, werewolves, or mythological creatures, but this is just a well written story about a young girl seeking a new experience. Turkey isn't a country that we often think of-I don't think it has the allure of France or the adventure if Italy, but it sounds like a beautiful country, and a coming of age story set in a new locale would be a wonderfully light read for the summer. I truly enjoyed this excerpt.

-----> my response: Wow, thank you!  You understand what I was trying to write!  I think Turkey as a destination does have allure and adventure, but because it's such an unknown, these are just not the first things anyone in the US thinks about when they think of Turkey.  I hope you get the book and read the rest! I think you'll like it.   

Stunned - my pitch is apparently not terrible!

Remember this little contest I mentioned a month ago?  Well, the results are in today and... my name is on the list!  The good list.  The list of 1000 authors whose pitch was good enough to get them into phase two.  Frankly, I was shocked.  I have confidence that I have written a great book, but my confidence that the world of agents and publishers would also find it great was eroded in the query process.  A tiny bit of confidence has now been restored.  In case you're curious, here's the pitch (up to 300 words were allowed) that worked for me:

When she doesn’t get a place in a Mexican study abroad program, Rachel anticipates another summer working at a coffee shop - until an opportunity to spend a month with a family in Turkey drastically changes the course of her summer. This intercultural coming-of-age novel is full of exotic tastes, summer heat, promises, and love. In a summer village on the western coast of Turkey, you’ll meet Rachel, who doesn’t know what she wants; Aylin, who doesn’t know if she wants the one who wants her; and Leyla, who knows who she wants, but doesn’t know if she’ll get him. Love and romance are secret pleasures in the summer village, which only make them more exciting.  

Can coffee grounds tell your future? Will fate bring you to your soul mate thousands of miles from home? Would the evil eye dare stop two souls on their paths to each other? Travel with Rachel on her journey far from the comforts of home, to a place that will captivate her and leave her changed forever.

Secrets of a Summer Village is a novel in which modern, middle-class Turkish culture is seen through the eyes of an American teenager. In the 91,075 -word novel, Rachel learns that many aspects of Turkish culture are different than her own, but that family, friendship, and love are universal 

Maybe you noticed that there is no period at the end of paragraph three of the pitch.   Apparently, it wasn't enough to get me thrown out of the contest!

The next step involves a 3000-5000 word excerpt.  That may sound like a lot of words, but it's not when you consider that the book is just over 91000 words long.  About 5% of the book in my case.  And the catch is that it has to be the first three-to-five-thousand words, not your favorite excerpt.  That said, it makes perfect sense.  First, a potential reader reads your back cover, which would certainly not be longer than 300 words.  Then, they stand at the bookstore (or read online) the first few chapters before they decide whether or not they want to buy the book.  


I am pretty nervous about this stage, but thrilled I got into it.  Are the first 5000 words of my book enough to make a reader want more?  We'll find out around March 20th...

Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest

Tomorrow, I'm going to enter my novel into the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award Contest.  They are accepting 5000 entries per genre, which means that if I manage to enter (maybe 5000 people will manage to get their applications in before I do), I won't have much of a chance of winning. 

Each category has 2 grand prizes, and three first prizes.  There are a total of 500 second prizes, and 2000 third prizes for the entire contest.  I do not have high chances of getting any prize, and yet I'm going to enter anyway.  I have nothing to lose, everything to gain, and even if I make it past the first elimination round, I'll feel good.

In round one, they read the pitch (up to 300 words), and advance the top 1000 entries to the next round.  So I have about a one in five chance of making it to round two.  If I don't make it past the first round, I'll be a bit sad, I think, but I'm going to try anyway. Round I ends on February 21st.  Wish me luck :)