Updated List of 2013 Great Expectations Winners

Historical Romance 

Final Round Judge: Mallory Braus, Carina Press

Fool's Gold by Caril Davis **

The Lost Chord by Suzanne Turner**

Secrets and Sapphires by Diana Walker

The Tin Man's Heart by Laura Huskins

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst

Erotic

Final Round Judge: Kelli Collins, Ellora's Cave

Onyx by CT Green**

Her Guardian by CT Green**

Three Weeks with a Sheik - Casea Major

Secret Sin by Lisa McKinney

The Horse List by Anna Moder

Inspirational

Final Round Judge: Becky Monds, Thomas Nelson

In the Light of Day by Kristy Cambron**

A Virtuous Ruby by Piper Huguley**

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst*

Knowing Hope by Stacy Monson

Love's Forgiving Heart by Katherine McDermott

Mainstream with Romantic Elements

Final Round Judge: Emilia Pisani, Simon and Schuster

Unforgettable by Carrie Christie

The Day The Merry Go Round Stopped by Orly Konig-Lopez

The Duel by Catherine Lawrence

Love Sick Love by Barbara Flores

Divide and Conquer by Carmen Fox

SIngle Title

Final Round Judge: Sue Grimshaw, Random House

Second Times the Charm by Vanessa M. Knight

In Too Deep by Tracey Alvrez

By Proxy by Kary Regnery

Audrey's Promise by Susan Sheehey

Gravity by Julie Dove

Specialized

Final Round Judge: Deborah Nemeth, Carina Press

Guardian by Tara Sheets** - Tie for 1st Place
The Sins of Madeline Montgomery by Wendy Gray** Tie for 1st Place

Her Guardian by  C.T. Green

Shift Happens by Jasmin McKenzie

Other Than by Mia Celeste

Jazz's Cubs by Nancy Corrigan

Young Adult

Final Round Judge: Erin Black, Scholastic 

The Abolitionist's Daughter  by Gigi Orlowski**

Awakening by Lori Freeland**

Dehtroned by Beth Burgoon

Charming Cassandra by Michele Griskey

Macha and the River Blue by Barbara Gabriel

Romantic Suspense

Final Round Judge: Libby Murphy, Entangled

Not Quite Legal by Christina Elle

Her Unreasonable Doubt by Anne-Marie Carroll

Shadows at Midnight by Kelli Carlson

Fighting Fear by Jo-Ann Carson

Starting Over by Brenda Roberts

Series Contemporary

Final Round Judge: Shana Smith, Harlequin

The Wedding Deception by Amanda Barber**

Second Time Around by Katalina M. James**

The Resort by Tami Lund

Buried Threads by Kaylin McFarren

One More Time by Catherine Cervantes

Congratulations to all of this years winners and thank you to everyone who participated!

Great Expectations 2014 will open in September! 

** indicates a request for a full

* indicates a request for a partial

Great Expectations 2013 Winners Announced!

Historical Romance 

Final Round Judge: Mallory Braus, Carina Press

Fool's Gold by Caril Davis **

The Lost Chord by Suzanne Turner**

Secrets and Sapphires by Diana Walker

The Tin Man's Heart by Laura Huskins

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst

Erotic

Final Round Judge: Kelli Collins, Ellora's Cave

Onyx by CT Green**

Her Guardian by CT Green**

Three Weeks with a Sheik - Casea Major

Secret Sin by Lisa McKinney

The Horse List by Anna Moder

Inspirational

Final Round Judge: Becky Monds, Thomas Nelson

In the Light of Day by Kristy Cambron**

A Virtuous Ruby by Piper Huguley**

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst*

Knowing Hope by Stacy Monson

Love's Forgiving Heart by Katherine McDermott

Mainstream with Romantic Elements

Final Round Judge: Emilia Pisani, Simon and Schuster

Unforgettable by Carrie Christie

The Day The Merry Go Round Stopped by Orly Konig-Lopez

The Duel by Catherine Lawrence

Love Sick Love by Barbara Flores

Divide and Conquer by Carmen Fox

SIngle Title

Final Round Judge: Sue Grimshaw, Random House

Second Times the Charm by Vanessa M. Knight

In Too Deep by Tracey Alvrez

By Proxy by Kary Regnery

Audrey's Promise by Susan Sheehey

Gravity by Julie Dove

Specialized

Final Round Judge: Deborah Nemeth, Carina Press

The Sins of Madeline Montgomery by Wendy Gray**

Her Guardian by  C.T. Green

Shift Happens by Jasmin McKenzie

Other Than by Mia Celeste

Jazz's Cubs by Nancy Corrigan

Young Adult

Final Round Judge: Erin Black, Scholastic 

The Abolitionist's Daughter  by Gigi Orlowski**

Awakening by Lori Freeland**

Dehtroned by Beth Burgoon

Charming Cassandra by Michele Griskey

Macha and the River Blue by Barbara Gabriel

Romantic Suspense

Final Round Judge: Libby Murphy, Entangled

Not Quite Legal by Christina Elle

Her Unreasonable Doubt by Anne-Marie Carroll

Shadows at Midnight by Kelli Carlson

Fighting Fear by Jo-Ann Carson

Starting Over by Brenda Roberts

Series Contemporary

Final Round Judge: Shana Smith, Harlequin

The Wedding Deception by Amanda Barber**

Second Time Around by Katalina M. James**

The Resort by Tami Lund

Buried Threads by Kaylin McFarren

One More Time by Catherine Cervantes

Congratulations to all of this years winners and thank you to everyone who participated!

Great Expectations 2014 will open in September! 

** indicates a request for a full

* indicates a request for a partial

Updates Updates Updates!

All non-finalists will be receiving their judging sheets over the next week. I apologize for the delay, and I could go into details on why but please just accept my humble apologies at the delay.

Finalists, the results from the final round judges should be in by March 15. Expect notification the following week! 

2013 Finalists Announced

North Texas RWA is proud to announce the finalists of the 2013 Great Expectations Contest.

~~ Please forward ~~

North Texas RWA congratulates the following finalists of the 2013 Great Expectations contest. We wish everyone the best of luck in the final round. 

Historical Romance

The Tin Man's Heart by Laura Huskins

The Lost Chord by Suzanne Turner

Secrets and Sapphires by Diana Walker

Fool's Gold by Caril Davis

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst

Erotic

Onyx by CT Green

Three Weeks with a Sheik - Casea Major

Secret Sin by Lisa McKinney

Her Guardian by CT Green

The Horse List by Anna Moder

Inspirational

Knowing Hope by Stacy Monson

A Virtuous Ruby by Piper Huguley

Edward Rochester: The Master of Thornfield by Nancy Hurst

In the Light of Day by Kristy Cambron

Love's Forgiving Heart by Katherine McDermott

Mainstream with Romantic Elements

The Day The Merry Go Round Stopped by Orly Konig-Lopez

The Duel by Catherine Lawrence

Divide and Conquer by Carmen Fox

Unforgettable by Carrie Christie

Love Sick Love by Barbara Flores

SIngle Title

In Too Deep by Tracey Alvrez

Second Times the Charm by Vanessa M. Knight

By Proxy by Kary Regnery

Gravity by Julie Dove

Audrey's Promise by Susan Sheehey

Specialized

The Sins of Madeline Montgomery by Wendy Gray

Guardian by  C.T. Green

Shift Happens by Jasmin McKenzie

Other Than by Mia Celeste

Jazz's Cubs by Nancy Corrigan

Young Adult

Awakening by Lori Freeland

Dehtroned by Beth Burgoon

Macha and the River Blue by Barbara Gabriel

The Abolitionist's Daughter  by Gigi Orlowski

Charming Cassandra by Michele Griskey

Romantic Suspense

Her Unreasonable Doubt by Anne-Marie Carroll

Not Quite Legal by Christina Elle

Fighting Fear by Jo-Ann Carson

Starting Over by Brenda Roberts

Shadows at Midnight by Kelli Carlson

Series Contemporary

The Wedding Deception by Amanda Barber

Buried Threads by Kaylin McFarren

Second Time Around by Katalina M. James

One More Time by Catherine Cervantes

The Resort by Tami Lund

*Finalists entries have been sent to the final round judges.
**All entrants who did not final will receive their judging packets over the next month.

Great Expectations is now Closed to New Entries

We could use a few more judges in Single Title, YA and Specialized!

Good luck to all our entrants!

Great Expectations Deadline Extended to January 1st at Midnight

Heads up folks! I have extended the deadline for Great Expectations to midnight tomorrow due to low entries in the Erotic category! I am really looking for more Erotic Romance entries, so review the rules and get those 25 pages in. Because I extended for that category, we are open to all other entries as well. I will shut down entry forms and paypal links tomorrow at midnight CST (that's 1 a.m. for you East Coasters) and January 2nd for our Australian friends.

This is a fantastic opportunity to get your entries in front of our judges! Don't delay!

Why Enter Great Expectations?

It's November 5, one day before the U.S. elections, day 5 of NaNoWriMo 2012, one week after Hurricane Sandy, forty-nine shopping days until Christmas and yes, it's a Monday. In other words, there's a lot going on in the world.  But take a few minutes to assess why entering a writing competition like Great Expectations can be a great thing for you, your writing, and your career.

Great Expectations encourages inspiration, learning, improvement, discipline, experience, and publishing.  

Inspiration

A writing competition with different categories can encourage you to polish that story you've always wanted to write. Great Expectations offers you a chance to enter the first twenty-five pages of your manuscript in the following romance categories:

• ·         Contemporary Series
• ·         Erotic Romance
• ·         Historical
• ·         Inspirational Contemporary
• ·         Mainstream with Romantic Elements
• ·         Romantic Suspense
• ·         Single Title
• ·         Specialized (Futuristic/Fantasy/Time Travel/Paranormal)
• ·         Young Adult

Learning

Every entry will be evaluated by at least five first round judges and scored. Feedback is often provided by those judges. Finalists will then be reviewed by professional editors from a variety of publishing houses. Previous entrants to Great Expectations have found the feedback invaluable to improving their manuscripts.

Improvement

Writers who apply what they learn from the feedback have the chance to polish their manuscripts for future competitions and submissions. Imagine the chance to know what in your first twenty-five pages really resonated with the judges and where they had questions. Too often, writers don't have access to this kind of information. You have a chance to improve the quality of your writing, your submissions, and your story just by entering.

Discipline

Like all competitions, Great Expectations has some hard and fast deadlines. From early bird entries to the very last day you can enter. To take advantage of the other benefits, you have to meet those deadlines. Discipline helps writers become more focused not only on their story, but also their method.

Experience

Experience is the best teacher. Whether you are a first time pre-published author, a veteran of writing competitions, or an author looking to experience a new genre, Great Expectations can help you achieve experience in that area with valuable feedback, contacts, and learning.

Publishing

Many finalists in the Great Expectations contest (and even some who didn't final) used the experience, the learning, and the feedback to turn their entries into polished full submissions and publication. Final judges may request full manuscripts during the judging process as well, so just by entering you have the chance to make it to the short-list of authors an editor wants to see more from.

The only question you should have left is, why aren't you entering Great Expectations?

Enter today.