The results are in for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and it looks like my dreams of standing with the hummingbirds in Seattle will have to wait a while. Three men have taken out the honours with interesting looking titles. The winner is decided by readers, so read their excerpts and cast your vote. I’m thrilled to have made it to the semifinals and on the strength of the feedback I received, will be fishing for a North American agent and a publisher there, as well as in Australia too of course.
In other news, the QWC/ Hachette Programme is once again open for submissions. I won a spot in their 2008 Bribie Island manuscript development retreat and had a wonderful time, and learnt a lot. It’s really worth a go. Favel Parrett, Past the Shallows, Phillipa Fioretti Book of Love and Fragments of Dreams, and Chris Currie, The Ottoman Motel, were all in my group and have gone on to publishing successes. Who knows? The next one could be you! The rest of us are still out there trying, and we’re getting closer all the time.
Edwina Shaw 
Hi Edwina. I had the pleasure of reading about you in the current Brisbane News and was interested to hear of your private language school in Cambodia (amongst many other things). I am a volunteer for an organisation called Room to Read and we have a fundraising dinner to build a library for Cambodian children organised on Thurs 28 June in West End. We would be delighted for you or any interested people to attend – I can’t download the official invitation but a link to the event is on the website:
http://www.roomtoread.org/brisbane
I’m also looking forward to reading Thrill Seekers.
Warm regards
Megan Collier
Thanks so much Megan. I sounds like a wonderful organisation. Unfortunately I’ll be in Sydney on the 28th.I’m launching Thrill Seekers at Better Read than Dead in Newtown the following Tuesday. Wishing you all the very best of luck with raising heaps of money for these kids.
Best wishes, Edwina