The Independent Literary Awards is at http://indielitawards.wordpress.com. The home page says, "Independent Literary Awards are given to books that have been recommended and voted on by independent literary bloggers. Nominations are open to independent literary bloggers only, and are then voted upon by a panel of bloggers who are proficient in the genre they represent. Each panel is led by a judge who oversees the integrity of the process." This is the second year for these awards. The About page says, "The Independent Literary Awards are book awards given by literary bloggers. Lit bloggers write about books and literary related items. They are the fastest growing form of publicity in the literary world, though most are still independently run and do not receive compensation for their reviews or recommendations."
Thanks to Twitter and their blogs, I "know" all of the Voting Members in my category, and I have Jen Forbus to thank for submitting my name. I hadn't known our Mystery Director, but this looks like it's going to be a terrific job, even if it is a great deal of work. From January to March next year, we'll be reading and discussing the nominated mysteries.
Here's the information about the Mystery Group.
Director
Tina (Reader for Life)
Tina is a lifelong book lover and has been blogging about books since 2008. In real life, she is an academic librarian in the Midwest. Unfortunately, being a librarian doesn’t mean she has all the time in the world to read. Tina blogs about all kinds of books, but has a particular soft spot for mysteries. You can read her book thoughts at Reader for Life or follow her on Twitter @iubookgirl.Here are the Voting Members for Mystery.
Voting Members
Elizabeth (Musings of an All Purpose Monkey)
Elizabeth is a lifelong avid reader who has channeled her love of reading, especially crime fiction, into her book review blog Musings of an All Purpose Monkey. In addition to on her website, Elizabeth’s reviews have also appeared in Spinetingler Magazine, The Savannah Morning News, The Florida Times-Union, St. Augustine Record, been quoted on numerous authors’ websites, and used as blurbs for two novels. When she’s not reading or reviewing books, she’s the Content Manager for the official website of musician Bruce Kulick (KISS, Grand Funk Railroad), a position she’s held for 14 years. Elizabeth is also a licensed attorney, but please don’t hold that against her. You can catch up with Elizabeth on Twitter (@APMonkey) or via email beth(at)elizabethawhite.com.Jen (Jen’s Book Thoughts)
Jen Forbus has spent the better part of her life not knowing what she wanted to be when she grew up. After graduating from Baldwin-Wallace College with degrees in English and sports medicine, she went right back to school to accumulate more debut and a certificate to teach high school English. Since then she’s taught, written specs for accounting software and tech manuals, and built software programs. These days she’s back in the education realm, coordinating adult professional development at the National Association of College Stores.Through her career changes, the one constant in Jen’s life was a love of reading and a well-earned knack for writing. When she was no longer talking about books in the classroom, she discovered blogging, and in 2007, Jen’s Book Thoughts was born. Her love of crime fiction was ignited by Linda Fairstein and Robert Crais, who hooked her on their respective series, and Jen quickly took her place among the pantheon of preeminent book bloggers. Ask any crime fiction author – from those just starting out to those inhabiting bestseller lists week after week – and each will tell you a fond and often funny story about Jen. Readers worldwide trust her reviews and look to her for their next reading recommendation. In addition to her blog, Jen shares her love of crime fiction with fellow fans on Twitter and Facebook, and is also a regular contributor to CRIMESPREE MAGAZINE.
Lesa (Lesa’s Book Critiques)
Lesa Holstine has been a public librarian for over thirty years. She is a contributing Book Reviewer for Library Journal, Mystery Readers Journal, The Strand Magazine, and various websites. She is the Winner of the 2009 and 2010 Spinetingler Awards for Best Reviewer. She was the First Fan Guest of Honor for Desert Sleuths Chapter of Sisters in Crime, Write Now! Conference. She wrote the chapter about mysteries for the forthcoming edition of Genreflecting: A Guide to Reading Interests in Genre Fiction. Lesa is passionate about books, and hosts authors at the library in a series called Authors @ The Teague. Her interests, and her book programs, emphasize crime fiction.Wendy (Musings of a Bookish Kitty)
While she is an eclectic reader who enjoys a wide variety of books, Wendy always finds herself drawn most often to the mystery genre, whether a cozy mystery, a suspenseful thriller or a hard boiled crime fiction novel. Perhaps it has to do with her love for solving puzzles, gaining insight into human behavior or seeing justice served (or not). Wendy began her blog, Musings of a Bookish Kitty, in July of 2006 as a way to journal her reading experiences. She especially likes sharing her love for reading with others.Reading and discussing mysteries with other mystery lovers. Great unpaid job, if you can get it!
