Realm Makers Award Speech - Best Debut Novel for “The Wickwire Watch”

As a super-introvert, I am obviously not in attendance, but I am highly honored to receive this award and truly privileged to stand in the company of my fellow nominees.

The road to publication for this book took 13 years to travel. Patience is a virtue I’ve always struggled with, but it was the very thing demanded of me almost every step of the way. I can’t tell you the number of times I thought of giving up, how much I second guessed myself, or how often I believed my work would never be good enough. But looking back now, I realize every part of that journey taught me a valuable lesson I could not have done without.

My deepest thanks must go first and foremost to God, who answered my every anxious prayer with the same two encouraging yet incredibly frustrating words: “Keep going.”

I’m also hugely grateful to my editor, Elizabeth Ward, my cover designer, Stuart Bache, my audiobook narrator, Wayne Farrell, and to everyone who has supported and encouraged me along the way. Chief among them is my great friend, Michael DeMasi, and my wonderful mom, Gloria, who continues to be my biggest cheerleader, even from Paradise.

My thanks to Realm Makers, to every reader who has taken a chance on my books, and every reviewer who has shared their honest opinion. I must also take a moment to thank my beloved cast of characters, who reached beyond their world to find me, and who changed my life for the better in every possible way.

And finally, to my fellow authors still grinding away one painful step at a time, “Keep going.”

Thank you.