Shoreline Arts Alliance

Picture Book (text):

Winner:  Halloween House by Nicole Panteleakos, Plainfield
Finalists:  A Princess Needs A Parade by Betsy Devany, Ledyard
                       Pond Monster by Jacquelin C. Devlin, North Haven
                       Little Brother by Jessica Loupos, Gales Ferry

                         
Illustrated Picture Book:

Winner: Aqua Marine by Lynn Stephens Massey, Norwalk
Finalists: Aubrey and the Circus by Amanda Boyd-Yin, Stamford
                     The Amazing Imaginary Adventures of Skippy & Lou by Magge Gagliardi, Berlin
                     Abecedarium Insectarium by Lynne Stephens Massey, Norwalk
                     Dear Friend by Marcela Staudenmaier, New Haven

Illustrator’s Portfolio

Winner:    Marcela Staudenmaier, New Haven
Finalist:   Anneliese Juergensen, Cheshire

Illustration by Marcela Staudenmaier

Middle Grade Novel

Winner: The House and the Hurricane by Nick Appleby, Hamden
Honorable Mention: Indiana Bamboo by Meira Rosenberg, Stamford
Finalist:  Paisley Flynn and the Magic Hat Society by Kimberly Ciecko, Madison   
                     Ibbie-Rae Paves the Way by Betsy Devany, Ledyard
                     The Weed Whackers, Open for Business by Barbara Gold, Stamford
                      Sarah the Bold by Eileen Lettick, Wallingford
                      In the Bag by Edna Wells, Northfield
                     Listening in the Snow by Jeanne Zulick, Ellington

Young Adult/Teen Novel



Winner: Greetings from the Miracle by Bette Anne Rieth, Shelton
Honorable Mention: Hostages, A Novel of the Conquest, 1066 by Meg Eilidh Greene, Milford
Finalist: Center Stage by Leslie Cahill, Milford
                   Finding Beauty by Betsy Devany, Ledyard

This annual competition presented by the Shoreline Arts Alliance encourages and nurtures the creation of exceptional quality books for children. Writers and illustrators submitting work to this contest must be CT residents and unpublished in the category of children's literature. Self-published writers and illustrators are not eligible to submit. An award of $250 is presented to the winners in each of five categories, as judged by publishing industry experts and at their discretion, including: Picture Book (text only), Illustrated Picture Book,Children's Book Illustrator's Portfolio, Middle Grade Novel and Young Adult/Teen Novel.

All submissions to the New Voices in Children's Literature competition must adhere to Entry form requirements and are evaluated pursuant to children's book publishing standards and guidelines in a two-tier process. Nationally recognized literary agents make an initial selection of submission finalists in each award category after which acclaimed editors determine awards.

New Voices in Children's Literature: Tassy Walden Awards are judged on the basis of literary and/or artistic merit and quality. Awards are not for didactic intent or for popularity. In evaluating submissions, judges consider excellence achieved among the following areas:

For Writers: Establishment of the theme; plot development; character development; depiction of setting; suitability of material for a child audience; overall presentation, including clarity, accuracy and organization of material

For Illustrators: Artistic technique; ability to convey story, theme, characters, plot, information, setting and mood through pictures; suitability of style of illustration for a child audience.

The Shoreline Arts Alliance wishes to thank the following locations for providing us with workshop space: New Haven Free Public Library, Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts, and Fairfield University Book Store. We also wish to thank the workshop facilitators: Alice E. Bauer, Doe Boyle, Debbie Freeman, Anne Kubitsky, Amanda Marrone and Nina Nelson.

The following winners or finalists have self-published their award-winning submissions: Laura Foltz Felice and Cheryl Kling.