I was fortunate to be able to attend the Royal Palm Literary Awards sponsored by Florida Writers Association on October 19. I’d not planned to attend since we were waiting on the birth of our first grandchild. But then he arrived early, and we found ourselves in Orlando just in time for the FWA conference. I bought tickets to attend. I was happy to see my friends from MWA Florida Chapter – Janet Little, Sharon Menear, Richard Conrath, Alan Pessin, Ann Meier and Victoria Landis.

First we ate dinner that had a chocolate typewriter for dessert. This treat had a blank piece of paper inserted in the form of white chocolate. We cheered each other on as the awards were announced.

I was thrilled to win the gold award for Writing the Cozy Mystery in the nonfiction – educational category. Many of my friends took home trophies as well. I wished I could have attended the entire conference, but the rest of the weekend was reserved for our kids. Such are the joys of parenthood, and now grandparenthood as well.

Are you thinking about entering a writing contest? See my article on Writing Contests for Published Authors for tips on choosing which competitions to enter.