More Interesting Times: "Dragon's Ark" Wins Another

Well folks, your correspondent has done gone and done it again: Dragon’s Ark has scooped up another award, this time First Prize in Horror Fiction from the National Indie Excellence Book Awards for 2012 (NIEA).

I don’t know too much about the NIEA at this point, aside from it’s not been around as long as the Independent Publishers Award (“IPPY”) and doesn’t seem to be quite as well known; not surprising as we’re still in the early days of the new independent publishing. (Another clue to NIEA’s newness: They took a month from when they publicly announced the award to inform all the winners, including me.) I gather there won’t be an awards party or anything, not that I’d be able to go as things stand right now

I am delighted, happy, grateful, and excited though my feelings have been muted by a mysterious month-long illness that has been sapping my energy, will, and bottom line. (Worry not though; the mystery seems to have been solved and the malaise is loosening its claws).

This is the second award Dragon’s Ark has won this year, out of the five contests I’ve entered so far. There are two more contests to hear from and one more to enter.

Even with two awards on the shelf, I hesitate to predict any further victories. Another tempering factor is that sales of Dragon’s Ark have risen only slightly since the IPPY awards in May. This award will help further, but beyond that . . . well, my prophetic skills have never been good. I often think that I’m the only writer in the world whose Pulitzer Prize would lead to plummeting sales, like a Joseph Heller joke.

Most of the other NIEA book categories listed both a winner and finalists. In the horror category though, though there were no finalists or runner-up to Dragon’s Ark. On this peak, Dracula does stand truly alone. As he would wish.

Thanks from my heart to the NIEA and all of you for your support!

Copyright 2012 by Thomas Burchfield

Thomas Burchfield is the author of the contemporary Dracula novel Dragon's Ark, winner of both the IPPY and the NIEA awards for horror in 2012. He’s also author of the original screenplays Whackers and The Uglies (e-book editions only). Published by Ambler House Publishing, all are available at Amazon in various editions. You can also find his work at Barnes and Noble,  Powell's Books, Scribed and at the Red Room bookstore. He also “friends” on Facebook, tweets on Twitter, and reads at Goodreads. You can also join his e-mail list via tbdeluxe [at] sbcglobal [dot] net. He lives in Northern California with his wife, Elizabeth.