My debut YA novel, NO SAD SONGS, was released a little over a year ago and the journey has been loaded with surprises, excitement, and a whole lot of learning on the fly. My book gave me opportunities to collaborate with bestselling authors, be a guest on numerous literary podcasts, visit countless schools where the book was being taught in classrooms, and to appear as a panelist at various book festivals around the country. It has been an awesome ride, my friends.

But nothing feels better than having your work recognized as an award winner. Yesterday, the full results of the American Fiction Awards were released and NO SAD SONGS was on it. Not only was it on the list, it was the outright winner in the Coming-of-Age category, and for that I am extremely humbled and thankful. I’m thankful to the judges and the awards committee for selecting my book from all the others, but I’m even more thankful to all the readers and bloggers I’ve met along the way who have helped make NO SAD SONGS a successful title (and one that will hopefully continue being read long after I’m gone).

I hope you’ll pick up a copy of NO SAD SONGS (if you haven’t already done so). If you do, I’d love to hear your thoughts whether they come in the form of a review/rating on Amazon or Goodreads or if you simply reach out to me on this venue. Thanks for keeping the spirit of reading alive and well, y’all. Happy reading!