An Amazing Birthday Gift For My Novel

My novel Lost on the Prairie is a year old this week. It was one year ago that my book hit the shelves at McNally Robinson Booksellers and began a run that would have it on the bestseller list for thirteen weeks. I was over the moon and wondered if anything better could happen to a debut author. Well it could!

Image from MYRCA

Because yesterday Lost on the Prairie became a MYRCA nominee. I just couldn’t believe it when I saw my book on the list of nominees on the MYRCA site along with so many great Canadian children’s writers I admire and respect and have looked up to as role models.

For my blog readers who don’t know what MYRCA is the initials stand for Manitoba Young Readers Choice Award. The award is sponsored by all kinds of wonderful businesses and organizations that care about Manitoba kids reading literature written by Canadian authors.

Each year in spring a selection committee composed of librarians, teachers, teacher librarians, a professor of children’s literature and a bookseller look at all the Canadian novels written for young people in a given year and choose the list of nominees. During the following year school children across Manitoba read the books and then in spring students vote for their favourites.

Image from MYRCA

The thing about my nomination that makes me so happy is that it will encourage lots of children to read Lost on the Prairie or have it read to them. The book will be part of special MYRCA displays in libraries and schools and bookstores so more children are sure to notice it. Some schools even have MYRCA book clubs.

I would love to go into schools and talk to students about my book. I think being nominated for a MYRCA will help create new opportunities for me to do that.

Since I found out about my nomination yesterday I have to keep pinching myself to believe my little novel is actually keeping company with the work of the other nominees who are such well- respected and successful authors. Colleen Nelson, David Robertson, Charis Cotter, Valerie Sherrard, Angela Ahn, Rob Justus, Lorna Schultz Nicholson, Heather Fawcett and Leslie Gentile.

I just received the most AMAZING birthday gift for my book and I couldn’t be happier.

Other posts………

You can read all my blog posts about Lost on the Prairie here.

Top Ten Pieces of Writing Advice From David Robertson

The Undercover Book List

Grandparents and Grandkids