This coming Friday sees the award ceremony for this year’s East Midlands Book Award. One lucky writer will receive the coveted EMBA trophy:

As I am one of the trio of judges for this brilliant prize, I’ll be there. Judging the EMBA has been a great experience. Back in December I received a huge box of the submitted titles and spent the next few months reading play scripts, poetry, children’s books, non-fiction and novels of all shapes and sizes. Judging such a wide range of genres, styles and subject matter was at times tricky but the shortlist we came up with is a really exciting bunch of titles. I can’t wait to hear the authors read from their books before the winner is announced.

For those of you interested in coming along, here’s all the details:

Launching the Lowdham Book Festival with a special evening of readings and celebration, the East Midlands Book Award will award the region’s Best Book published in 2015. Selected by this year’s judges, novelist Alison McQueen, short story writer Dan Powell, and The Bookcase owner, Jane Streeter, the EMBA winner will be chosen from a shortlist including fiction, poetry, children’s writing and creative non-fiction.

The East Midlands Book Awards 2016 shortlist is:

A Killing Moon by Steven Dunne, Burning Books by Jess Green, The Princess and the Giant by Caryl Hart and Sarah Warburton, The Spice Box Letters by Eve Makis, The Boy in the Mirror by Tom Preston, Melissa by Jonathon Taylor.

The award ceremony is this coming Friday, 17th June, 
6pm at St Mary’s Church, Church Lane, Lowdham, Notts NG14 7BQ. Entry is free and there will be refreshments and book signings.

Click here to reserve a place.

I’m really looking forward to this celebration of writing from the East Midlands. See you there.