Author Gerald Everett Jones Garners Six Book Awards in 2020

The first two novels in Gerald Everett Jones's Preacher Evan Wycliff mystery series have just been awarded Winner and Distinguished Favorite respectively in the annual New York City Big Book Awards. The first-place winner, Preacher Finds a Corpse, had already won two awards last spring – Independent Press Awards Distinguished Favorite and Eric Hoffer Awards Finalist. The second book in the series, Preacher Fakes a Miracle, received NYC Big Book Awards Distinguished Favorite. All of these awards are in the Mystery category - making a total of four prizes this year for the author's mystery series.

Also earlier this year, Jones won two other awards - Eric Hoffer Awards Finalist in Business for his textbook How to Lie with Charts and Independent Press Awards Distinguished Favorite in Literary Fiction for his reflective novel Clifford's Spiral.

The annual NYC Big Book Awards are judged by experts from different aspects of the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, book cover designers and professional copywriters. Selected award-winners and distinguished favorites are based on overall excellence. This year, the competition once again achieved worldwide participation. Entries remained strong during the worldwide pandemic. Book submissions streamed in from six continents and over 100 cities. Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America all participated. Across the globe, book entries poured in from places such as Budapest, Capetown, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai, New York City, Port of Spain, Vancouver and Victoria, to name a few. Winners were recognized globally from Australia, Canada, England, India, Singapore, Uganda and the United States of America, among others.

The breadth of publishers ranged from Amazon to Wiley, from Black Rose Writing to She Writes Press. Award-winning authors are from widely diverse backgrounds, and this global reach enriches the program.

Jones says he's overwhelmed by receiving six awards in just a few months. He explains, "Being recognized by the New York City Big Book Awards is particularly gratifying for several reasons. I publish under my small-press imprint, LaPuerta Books and Media, and this competition was open not only to self-published authors but also to the entire industry. Many of the traditional prestigious awards are closed to self-publishers. As well, the judges were obviously impressed by the Preacher Evan Wycliff sequel because they gave it a Distinguished Favorite prize. So they threw everything they had at the first two books in the series!"

Marvin J. Wolf, author of the Rabbi Ben mysteries, including A Scribe Dies in Brooklyn, describes Jones's novels this way, "This is literature masquerading as a mystery. Carefully yet powerfully, Gerald Jones creates a small, stunning world in a tiny midwestern town, infusing each character with not just life but wit, charm and occasionally menace. This is the kind of writing one expects from John Irving or Jane Smiley."

Jones is hard at work on the third novel, Preacher Raises the Dead, which will pose questions about euthanasia and near-death experiences.

"We are pleased to highlight these books, recognize their excellence, and share their achievements," says awards sponsor Gabrielle Olczak. The awards program "foments a strong interest in these authors and publishing houses, and we expect our winners and favorites to receive a heightened level of attention." Olczak adds that "excellent books can be found globally, and we are happy to help bring them to a larger audience."

For more information, please visit: www.nycbigbookaward.com. To view the list of winners, visit https://www.nycbigbookaward.com/2020winners; Distinguished Favorites are listed here: https://www.nycbigbookaward.com/2020distinguishedfavorites.

Gerald Everett Jones is the author of ten novels and hosts the GetPublished! Radio Show.

(Author photo by Gabriella Muttone, Hollywood)