Lynn will receive $100 and a beautiful certificate. 
She’ll also have the considerable mojo of the GH99er sisterhood pulling for her when the Golden Heart® finalists are announced at RWANational.org on or about March 25, 2011. 
(Note: This is entirely mojo of the good wishes and prayers sort –
we have no pull in the GH contest!!)

Congratulations, Lynn!  

With Lynn’s permission, here is the winning essay:

This year’s essay topic was:  What is the best/most impactful lesson you have learned from another writer and how do you plan to pay it forward?

 I was one of those. The ones who declare, “I want to write a book.” I had a thriller, a middle grade time travel, a mystery, and a romance started. Each story would grab me and I’d be on fire until chapter five. Then I’d lose steam. In a few months, I’d start a new story convinced that the problem was the genre, not me.

I hung out at blogs, bought writing books, and told everyone that someday I was going to be published.

One day, I won a contest from one of the blogs. The author lived in my area and we agreed to meet for lunch so she could hand deliver my prize. When she asked what I was working on, I unloaded all the ideas for my stories. Her eyes glazed over. When I finished, she asked me what story I was passionate about. I didn’t have a clue what she was talking about so I chose the romance. We made a pact to meet in a month and report progress on our projects.

The next month, I wrote a chapter. We agreed to meet the next month. Again, she made strides, I wrote two chapters. Her secret? She sat down to write every day. No excuses. I made a commitment to write thirty minutes a day. If I couldn’t commit thirty minutes a day, I didn’t want to write a book. I wanted to talk about it.

After two years, I’ve finished four full manuscripts, seven short stories, and a novella. Five of the shorts have been published.

Paying it forward means mentoring a new writer. I want to cheer when a new writer starts a manuscript, support at the sagging middle, and spread breadcrumbs leading them to the end.

Nancy makes the 3rd of 9 recipients of the JGGFA to make the leap to publication, joining NYT and USA Today best seller Pamela Palmer and Jeanne Adams. 

Pamela’s latest book, Rapture Untamed (released July, 2010, from Avon), is the fourth installment in the Feral Warriors series (dark paranormal romance). 

Jeanne’s latest book is Deadly Little Secrets (released September, 2010, from Kensington).  Deadly Little Secrets is Jeanne’s third romantic suspense novel.

The GH99ers couldn’t be prouder of these writers!

Happy New Year!

Nancy will receive $100 and a beautiful certificate. 
She’ll also have the considerable mojo of the GH99er sisterhood pulling for her when the Golden Heart® finalists are announced at RWANational.org on or about March 25, 2010. 
(Note: This is entirely mojo of the good wishes and prayers sort –
we have no pull in the GH contest!!)

Congratulations, Nancy!