Small Spec Book Awards

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Small Spec Book Awards Official Influencer

 I am pleased to announce that I am an official influencer for the Small Spec Book Awards! 

What are the Small Spec Book Awards (SSBA)?

The SSBA was co-founded by L. N. Holmes and Millie Abecassis. Their mission is to recognize and promote independent and small press authors writing exceptional speculative fiction.They wanted to create a free-to-enter award that was specific to small press and independent authors whose marketing often gets buried by the bigger publishers. This award will help draw attention to more of the awesome indie books out there.

This is the first year of the award and currently, the award focuses on the adult age category, novels/novellas, and works of fiction published in a single year, but they hope to expand on this in future years. There are many things that make this award cool, but a couple of them are that it is free to enter, and they are working to avoid being yet another popularity contest, as so many awards are. All the nominated books will be read and assessed by their readers following specific criteria.

The nomination window closed January 31, 2025 and will follow a similar timeline next year. The semi-finalists will be announced September 1 and the winners on December 1.

Who are the Co-Founders?

L. N. Holmes is a dark fiction author. Her micro-chapbook, Space, Collisions, is available from Ghost City Press. She has also published fiction, poetry, and creative non-fiction in various literary journals and magazines. She earned an MFA from Creighton University and currently works as a writing center consultant for Metropolitan Community College. Her upcoming release is called The Floating Castle. Holmes was inspired to create the SSBA by Mark Lawrence's SPFBO.

Millie Abecassis writes speculative fiction and was born and raised in France, though she currently lives in San Jose, California. Along with being co-founder of the SSBA, she is also the founder of #SmallPitch, a small press-centered pitch event, that launched in February 2024. She has several books on the way, including Daughters of the Blue Moon (read my review here).

Want to learn more about the founders and the SSBA? Read these two awesome interviews:

Kriti's Interview on Armed With a Book

Juané's Interview at On the (Book) Case


What does it mean to be an Official Influencer?

It means I will be helping to promote and support the SSBA. Along with this announcement post, I will be announcing when the semi-finalists are selected and when the winners are announced. I will also be reviewing every winning book right here. In the meantime, I'll also be reviewing/reading/discussing some of these books, so keep an eye out here for that.

Along with my own posts, I'll be liking and sharing those of the other influencers. I'm excited for this new role. I think this award is an excellent idea, and I'm happy to be a part of it.


What Books have been Nominated?

And now for the most important part - the books!

Here is the official list of nominees: 

  1. BEAR SEASON by Gemma Fairclough (Wild Hunt Books)
  2. THE ROOT OF HOPE by Ricardo Victoria (Shadow Dragon Press)
  3. THE JAGUAR MASK by Michael J. DeLuca (Stelliform Press)
  4. YOU WILL SPEAK FOR THE DEAD by R.A. Busby (Stelliform Press)
  5. MOON DUST IN MY HAIRNET by JR Creaden (Mythic Roads Press)
  6. FROM THE BELLY by Emmett Nahil (Tenebrous Press)
  7. A SPECTRE IS HAUNTING GREENTREE by Carson Winter (Tenebrous Press)
  8. TRVE CVLT by Michael Bettendorf (Tenebrous Press)
  9. TERROR AT TIERRA DE COBRE by Michael Merriam (Queen of Swords Press)
  10. SUNDOWN IN SAN OJUELA by M.M. Olivas (Lanternfish Press)
  11. THE EATER OF FLIES by Richard Gadz (Deixis Press)
  12. MAZI by Koji A. Dae (Ghost Orchid Press)
  13. GHOST APPARENT by Jelena Dunato (Ghost Orchid Press) -  Read my review of Ghost Apparent on Horror Tree
  14. THE EXTRAVAGANZA ETERNIA by Kristin Osani (Ghost Orchid Press)
  15. FAILURE TO COMPLY by Cavar (Featherproof Books)
  16. THE YEARS SHALL RUN LIKE RABBITS by Ben Berman Ghan (Wolsak and Wynn Publishers)
  17. THE BOOK LOVERS by Steve Aylett (Snowbooks)
  18. CHURCH OF SKATAN by Damian Casey (Mad Axe Media)
  19. PAGEANT by Wendy Dalrymple (Mad Axe Media)
  20. CURSED UNDER LONDON by Gabby Hutchinson Crouch (Farrago Books)
  21. HER GILDED VOICE by K.C. Aegis (Elsewhen Press)
  22. A TRUTH BEYOND FULL by Rosie Oliver (Elsewhen Press)
  23. WORLDS ALIGNED: WORLDS APART 2 by Terry Jackman (Elsewhen Press)
  24. A VOICE IN THE DARKNESS by Mark Iles (Elsewhen Press)
  25. KING STREET RUN by V.R. Ling (Elsewhen Press)
  26. THE HARLEQUIN: THE DRAPER’S REEL by J.A. Mortimore and Penelope Hill (Elsewhen Press)
  27. THE SCIENTIST, THE SPACEMAN, AND THE STARS BETWEEN THEM by A.L. Davidson (Timber Ghost Press)
  28. THE MYSTERY OF THE PALE KING by Sam Flynn (Timber Ghost Press)
  29. THE SEA OF CLOUDS by Sheila Jenné (Midnight Meadow Publishing)
  30. DESIGN OF DARKNESS by R.D. Pires (Midnight Meadow Publishing)
  31. THE PRINCESS AND THE THIEF by Mary Lynne Gibbs (Midnight Meadow Publishing)
  32. TREE GODS by R. Lee Fryar (Midnight Meadow Publishing)
  33. LIMINAL SPACE by Vicki-Ann Bush (Creative James Media)
  34. NINE LEVELS by Elana Gomel (Mirror World Publishing) - Read my review of Nine Levels on Horror Tree
  35. THE PHEEWORKER’S OATH by Adam Gaylord (Mirror World Publishing)
  36. MORE BUGS by Em Reed (Knight Errant Press)
  37. BENOTHINGED by Alvar Theo (Haunt Publishing)
  38. BETTER LIVING THROUGH ALCHEMY by Evan J. Peterson (Broken Eye Books)
  39. THE MOSQUITO FLEET by Andrew Penn Romine (Broken Eye Books)
  40. SPACE STATION X by A.Z. Rozkillis (Space Wizard Science Fantasy)
  41. EMPRESS OF DUST by Alex Kingsley (Space Wizard Science Fantasy)
  42. THE RIGEL REDEMPTION by Robin C. M. Duncan (Space Wizard Science Fantasy)
  43. TALIO’S CODEX by J. Alexander Cohen (Space Wizard Science Fantasy)
  44. THE WITCH AND THE OSTRICH by Jordan A. Werner (Space Wizard Science Fantasy)
  45. THE BRIGGAR STONE by James Parsons (Anuci Press)
  46. THROUGH THE BLUR by Yolanda Sfetsos (Anuci Press)
  47. STATIC by Stacey L. Pierson (Anuci Press)
  48. RESISTERS by Chris Campeau (Anuci Press)

 

 

Thanks for reading! 

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Comments

  1. L. N. Holmes10 February 2025 at 10:36

    So exciting! We can't wait to read your reviews and other content! :)

    ReplyDelete

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