A GOLD MEDAL FOR "VARIATIONS ON THE THEME OF CHESS"

Last Saturday was the Florida Authors and Publishers Association awards banquet. Although I was registered for the banquet, I decided that the uncertainty surrounding the pathway of Hurricane Debby dictated that I not go. So I stayed home to batten down the hatches for Debby. As it turned out, I could have gone and gotten back before the hurricane hit, but I am satisfied that I did the right thing by staying home.

As it turned out, we got flooded. I feared that the water was going to come into the house, but it stopped at the western side of our house. It probably took out the air conditioner's air handler, but the inside of the house stayed dry. We were without power for about 15-20 hours, and our septic tank is still submerged, but with the help of our friends and our son, John, we got through it OK. 

I was naturally curious about how I did in the contest, but information on the web was scanty. Today, however, they sent me my Gold Medal. Being colorblind, I thought it was Bronze until I compared it to previous Bronze and Gold Medals. When I received notification that I was a winner, I predicted that I would get a Bronze, and I was just a little off.

Now, with that Gold Medal and a $10 bill, I can get a small cup of coffee at Starbucks. It ain't like a Gold Medal from Paris, but I take a good measure of pride in the accomplishment. When I submitted the book, I was sure I wasn't going to win anything.

If you are among that small minority of people who like Chess and Chess Variants, you'll like "Variations." I'm now working on a book that should have a somewhat broader appeal, but it will never make the New York Times best seller list. Advice for aspiring authors: Don't quit your day job.

After I finish my current project, I am planning on writing a popular account of the trial of Jesus. About ten years ago I did a heavily footnoted "scholarly" treatment of the trial, and my son John told me that the five people who would read the book would enjoy it. He was right. This next book, however, won't have any pretensions for being a scholarly work. Maybe more people will read it.

MIDDLE EASTERN CHESS PIECES

 

SIX CAPSULES: THE GILDED AGE MURDER OF HELEN POTTS

This evening I received a gold medal from the Florida Authors and Publishers Association for my book Six Capsules: The Gilded Age Murder of Helen Potts.

I also recently received notification that Six Capsules is a finalist in the Royal Palm Literary Award Competition which is held by the Florida Writers Association. The winners will be announced in October.

FLORIDA AUTHORS AND PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION AWARDS BANQUET

Last night my wife, Lane, and I attended the Florida Authors and Publishers Association annual awards banquet in Disneyworld. It was held at the conclusion of their annual convention, which we were unable to attend due to the fact that we had conflicting commitments. We had rented a condo on the beach in St. Augustine and invited the kids and grandkids to come stay with us. Most of them were able to spend at least a little time with us, and the week was quite enjoyable despite the fact that Lane and I caught colds. With all the hacking and coughing, I managed to give my cold to our daughter Laura before she flew back to her home in Columbus. After everyone left, we had one day of just lying around the condo recuperating, and then the next morning we got up and drove back to Lake City, unloaded our beach stuff, loaded up our awards banquet stuff, and hit the road going to Orlando. Anyone familiar with the geography of Florida knows that we did not take the direct route from St. Augustine to Disneyworld and added about four hours travel time to our trip.

We got to the hotel just in the nick of time to shower, dress, and find the convention center. There were only thirty minutes left of the pre-banquet happy hour, which was just as well. I saw one person I knew, and she did not remember me. It wasn’t long, though, before we had met and talked to a number of interesting people. The less said about the meal the better. I found myself wishing that they had gotten the meal catered by Sonny’s Barbecue rather than Gaston’s Gourmet Confections (the name has been changed to protect the innocent). The dessert, however, was excellent. But I have never in my life seen smaller slices of cheesecake. I took two slices and found myself wishing I’d taken a third, but I was trying not to act like a backwoods ruffian.

My book, Prairie Defender: The Murder Trials of Abraham Lincoln, was entered in three categories and it medaled in all three. First, Prairie Defender won a Gold Medal in the category of Biography. I was extremely proud that I didn’t trip over anyone going to the rostrum to receive the award. I did grin like a mule eating briars for the picture, though.

Second, the book won a Silver Medal in the category Adult Nonfiction. Lane had warned me about my silly grin on the first go-around, and I tried to smile normally. Didn’t have much luck, though.

The third category was Politics/Current Events. I was kind of hoping for a Bronze Medal in that category so I could have one of each type. No such luck. The book won another Gold Medal. This time I think I managed a better smile.

We met a lot of interesting people who have led interesting lives, and they all seemed to be quite accomplished in their day jobs. Next year we plan to schedule our beach vacation around the FAPA convention.

It just occurred to me that Lane wasn't in any of the pictures. There are two reasons for this omission. Reason 1: She was behind the camera. Reason 2: We were both so doped up on cold medicine we weren't thinking straight. As evidence of Reason 2, when we left the hotel this morning we drove off and left my CPAP machine in our room. I didn't notice the omission until we had completed our four hour drive and were unpacking the car. Luckily, the hotel called, and they're mailing the machine to us. I'll only have to do without it for a few days.