For the past eight years, SparkPoint Studio’s hybrid publishing imprints—She Writes Press and SparkPress—have swept the indie book awards season, taking home more book award finalist and winner accolades than any other indie publisher. As of January 2023, both imprints are already on track to sweep the awards season once again for the eighth year in a row.

In summer 2020, She Writes Press and SparkPress collectively hit over 1,000 award and finalist titles! Now, She Writes Press and SparkPress titles have reached the landmark of over 2,000 award and finalist titles collectively with the 2023 indie awards seasons.

So far, highlights from 2023 include 285 awards:

      • 6 winners in the Firebird Book Awards:
        • 1 Overall Winner: A Letter in the Wall by Eileen Brill (Women’s Fiction)
        • 16 First Place winners: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (Coming of Age Memoir and LGBT Memoir); A Week of Warm Weather by Lee Bukowski (Literary Fiction and Women’s Fiction); On the Ledge by Amy Turner (Memoir, Mental Health, New Nonfiction, Nonfiction, and Trauma/Trauma Recovery); Stepping Stones by Marilea C. Rabasa (Addiction and Recovery and Women’s Issues); The Location Shoot by Patricia Leavy (Contemporary Novel, Pop Culture Fiction, Romance, and Summer Beach Read); The Map Colorist by Rebecca D’Harlingue (Historical Fiction and Literary Fiction); Solo Passage by Glenda Goodrich (Inspiration, Mind/Body/Spirit, Nature, and Self-Help/Motivational); A Letter in the Wall by Eileen Brill (Biographical Fiction and Women’s Fiction); Street Corner Dreams by Florence Reiss Kraut (Women’s Fiction)
        • 3 Second Place winner: Promenade of Desire by Isidra Mencos (Multicultural Fiction); On the Ledge by Amy Turner (Mind, Body, Spirit); Stepping Stones by Marilea C. Rabasa (Memoir)
        • 1 Third Place winner: Stepping Stones by Marilea C. Rabasa (Nonfiction); The Map Colorist by Rebecca D’Harlingue (Fiction)
      • 10 honorees in the Independent Press Awards:
        • 5 winners: A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Death & Dying); Finding Napoleon by Margaret Rodenberg (Historical Fiction, New Fiction); Hold by Amy S. Peele (Medical Mystery); Hardland by Ashley E. Sweeney (Western Fiction)
        • 6 distinguished favorites: Twentieth Century Boys by Andrea Clark Watson (Business: Entrepreneurship & Small Business); An Upside-Down Sky by Linda Dahl (General Fiction); Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Memoir); A Spying Eye by Michelle Cox (Mystery); Ice Out by Susan Speranza (Visionary Fiction); The Last Huntress by Lenore Borja (Young Adult Fiction)
      • 1 winner in the Axiom Business Book Awards: You Are Worthy by Kelley Holland (Bronze Medalist in Personal Finance / Retirement Planning / Investing)
      • 8 honorees in the Sarton Book Awards and Gilda Prize: 
        • Gilda Prize Winner: Yes, Again by Sallie H. Weissinger
        • 1 winner: Blurred Fates by Anastasia Zadeik (Contemporary Fiction)
        • 6 finalists: The Memory of All That by Mary MacCracken (Memoir); Mother Lode by Gretchen Staebler (Memoir); These Walls Between Us by Wendy Sanford (Memoir); You’ll Never Find Usby Jeanne Guy (Memoir); Attributions by Linda Moore (Contemporary Fiction); The Lives of Bessie Diamond by Jody Hadlock (Historical Fiction)
      • 6 finalists in the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards: The Lives of Diamond Bessie by Jody Hadlock (Fiction: General); The Last Huntress by Lenore Borja (Teen: Fiction (13-18 Years)); The Blue Butterfly by Leslie Johansen Nack (Fiction: Historical and Cover Design: Fiction); Attribution by Linda Moore (Fiction: General); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Religion); The T Room by Victoria Lilienthal (Cover Design: Fiction)
      • 1 finalist in the Golden Crown Literary Awards: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (General Non-Fiction)
      • 3 winners in the Nautilus Book Awards:
        • 2 Gold Medal winners: Dear Dana by Amy Weinland Daughters (Memoir in Essays); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Multicultural & Indigenous)
        • 1 Silver Medal winner: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (Medical Memoirs)
      • 5 honorees in the Eric Hoffer Book Awards:
        • 2 winners: The Lives of Diamond Bessie by Jody Hadlock (Commercial Fiction); The Portraitist by Sussane Dunlap (E-Book Fiction)
        • 1 category finalist: A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor
        • 2 honorable mentions: Attribution by Linda Moore (General Fiction); Jane’s Jam by Jane Enright (Self-Help)
      • 18 honorees in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards:
        • 9 winners: Sidelined by Susan Salenger (Health/Wellness: Non-Fiction); Affliction by Laura Hall (LGBTQ+); Deep Waters by Beth Ann Mathews (Memoirs: Personal Struggle/Health Issues); Yes, Again by Sallie H. Weissinger (Memoirs: Personal Struggle/Health Issues); Beyond the Next Village by Mary Anne Mercer (Travel/Travel Guide); Carry Me by Frieda Hoffman (Women’s Issues: Non-Fiction); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Women’s Literature: Non-Fiction); Bright Lights, Prairie Dust by Karen Grassle (Women’s Literature: Non-Fiction); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (General Fiction/Novel: 70,000 to 100,000 words)
        • 11 finalists: Sidelined by Susan Salenger (Finalist in Women’s Issues: Non-Fiction); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Mind, Body, and Spirit); Hardland by Ashley E. Sweeney (Historical Fiction: Pre 1900s); Seeing Eye Girl by Beverly J. Armento (Autobiography/Biography); Because I Loved You by Donnaldson Brown (General Fiction/Novel: 70,000 to 100,000 words); The Forger of Marseille by Linda Joy Myers (Historical Fiction: 1900s); Waterbury Winter Linda Stewart Henley (Inspirational Fiction); Butterfly Awakens by Meg Nocero (Motivational); The River Remembers by Linda Ulleseit (Multicultural Fiction); Mother Lode by Gretchen Staebler (Relationships: Non-Fiction); A Hundred Days Till Tomorrow by L. S. Case (Inspirational Fiction)
      • 9 winners and 13 finalists in the Chanticleer International Book Awards
        • 2 Grand Prize Winners:
          • MYSTERY & MAYHEM Book Awards: A Spying Eye by Michelle Cox
          • MIND AND SPIRIT Book Awards: A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor
        • 7 Winners:
          • CLUE Book Awards: A Spying Eye by Michelle Cox
          • DANTE ROSSETTI Book Awards: The Last Huntress by Lenore Borja
          • GOETHE Book Awards: The Lives of Diamond Bessie by Jody Hadlock
          • HEARTEN Book Awards: Awaken to Your Calling by Randi Benator
          • JOURNEY Book Awards: Untethered by Laura Whitfield and A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor
          • SOMERSET Book Awards: Attribution by Linda Moore
      • 16 winners in the IPPY Awards:
        • 6 Gold Medalists: Magician and Fool by Susan Wands (Visionary/New Age Fiction); Attribution by Linda Moore (Europe – Best Regional Fiction); Mother Lode by Gretchen Staebler (Aging/Death & Dying); The Third Way by Aimee Hoben (Popular Fiction); What We Give, What We Take by Randi Truant (LGBTQ+ Fiction); The Blue Butterfly by Leslie Johansen Nack (Audiobook – Fiction)
        • 7 Silver Medalists: The Blue Butterfly by Leslie Johansen Nack (Historical Fiction); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Multicultural Non-Fiction: Adult); Carry Me by Frieda Hoffman (Women’s Issues); Life Dust by Pam Webber (South – Best Regional Fiction); Hardland by Ashley E. Sweeney (West-Mountain – Best Regional Fiction); Promenade of Desire by Isidra Mencos (Europe – Best Regional Non-Fiction); Buck’s Pantry by Khristin Wierman (Popular Fiction)
        • 4 Bronze Medalists: The River Remembers by Linda Ulleseit (Historical Fiction); Finding Grace by Maren Cooper (Great Lakes – Best Regional Fiction); Deep Waters by Beth Ann Matthews (West-Pacific – Best Regional Non-Fiction); Love in the Age of Dragons by Fatima R. Henson (Young Adult Fiction – Fantasy)
      • 1 winner in the Literary Titan Book Awards: The Golden Ticket by Irena Smith
      • 4 honorees in the Hawthorne Prize (presented by the American Writing Awards): The Color of Ice by Barbara Linn Probst (Prize Finalist); Josie and Vic by Debra Thomas (Prize Shortlist); Ice Out by Susan Speranza (Prize Shortlist); Those People Behind Us by Mary Camarillo (Prize Shortlist)
      • 17 honorees in the Foreword INDIES Book Awards:
        • 3 winners: Lost Souls of Leningrad by Suzanne Parry (Gold Winner in War & Military- Adult Fiction); Sidelined by Susan Salenger (Bronze Winner in Health – Adult Nonfiction); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (Gold Winner in Romance – Adult Fiction)
        • 14 finalists: The Portraitist by Susanne Dunlap (General – Adult Fiction); Waterbury Winter by Linda Stewart Henley (Humor – Adult Fiction); What We Give, What We Take by Randi Triant (LGBTQ+ – Adult Fiction); Lost Souls of Leningrad by Suzanne Parry (War & Military – Adult Fiction); Seeing Eye Girl by Beverly J. Armento (Autobiography & Memoir – Adult Nonfiction); Carry Me by Frieda Hoffman (Grief/Grieving – Adult Nonfiction); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Multicultural – Adult Nonfiction); Don’t Wear Shoes You Can’t Walk In by Michelle Douglass (Self-Help – Adult Nonfiction); Beyond the Next Village by Mary Anne Mercer (Travel – Adult Nonfiction); The Lives of Diamond Bessie by Jody Hadlock (Mystery – Adult Fiction); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (Romance – Adult Fiction); The Gray Bird of Baghdad by Stephen Phillip Monteiro (War & Military – Adult Nonfiction); Reign Returned by Katie Keridan (Young Adult Fiction)
      • 13 honorees in the National Indie Excellence Awards:
        • 5 winners: Mother Lode by Gretchen Staebler (Caregiving); Blurred Fates by Anastasia Zadeik Hipkins (Contemporary Fiction); Dear Dana by Amy Weinland Daughters (Social Media); Attribution by Linda Moore (Literary Fiction); The Color of Ice by Barbara Linn Probst (Women’s Fiction)
        • 11 finalists: Blurred Fates by Anastasia Zadeik Hipkins (Literary Fiction); Dear Dana by Amy Amy Weinland Daughters (Friendship; Inspiration); Attribution by Linda Moore (Contemporary Novel); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Cancer; Caregiving; Inspiration; Marriage); In the Aftermath by Jane Alessandrini Ward (Fiction General; Literary Fiction); Ice Out by Susan Speranza (Literary Fiction); You’ll Forget This Ever Happened by Laura L Balius Engel (Memoir); Promenade of Desire by Isidra Mencos (Multicultural Non-Fiction); First Date Stories by Jodi Klein (Relationships; Anthologies); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (Romance); Reign Returned by Katie Keridan (YA Fiction)
      • 16 honorees in the International Book Awards:
        • 4 winners: The Byways by Mary Pascual (Fiction: Fantasy); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (Fiction: Romance); Magician and Fool by Susan Wands (Fiction: Visionary); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Health: Death & Dying);
        • 15 finalists: A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Multicultural: Nonfiction; Religion: Eastern; Spirituality: Inspirational); You’ll Forget This Ever Happened by Laura L. Engel (Autobiography/Memoir); Ninety-Fine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Best New Nonfiction); Out of Ireland by Marian O’Shea Wernicke (Fiction: Historical); Because I Loved You by Donnaldson Brown (Fiction: Literary); The Marriage Box by Corie Adjmi (Fiction: Literary; Fiction: Women’s Fiction); A Cleft in the World by Elizabeth Sumner Wafler (Fiction: Women’s Fiction); The Broken Hummingbird by Ann Marie Jackson (Fiction: Women’s Fiction); Promenade of Desire by Isidra Mencos (Multicultural: Nonfiction); Swimming for My Life by Kim Fairley (Sports); The Twenty by Marianne C. Bohr (Travel: Guides & Essays); The Byways by Mary Pascual (Fiction: Fantasy; Fiction: Young Adult); The Walled Garden by Robin Farrar Maass (Fiction: Women’s Fiction); Magician and Fool by Susan Wands (Fiction: Visionary); My Big Heart-Shaped Fail by Cindy Callaghan (Fiction: Young Adult); The Fun Master by Jeff Seitzer (Nonfiction: Creative; Parenting & Family)
      • 2 winners in the Literary Titan Book Awards: The Map Colorist by Rebecca D’Harlingue (Gold Winner); The Location Shoot by Patricia Leavy (Gold Winner)
      • 1 winner in the Purple Dragonfly Book Awards: My Big Heart-Shaped Fail by Cindy Callaghan (2nd Place Winner in Middle Grade Fiction)
      • 2 gold winners in the Nonfiction Book Awards: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill and Seeings Eye Girl by Beverly J. Armento
      • 1 winner in the Military Writers Society of America Awards: Life Dust by Pam Webber (Silver Medal in Historical Fiction)
      • 1 gold winner in the Florida Authors and Publishers Association President’s Book Awards: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Autobiography/Biography/Memoir)
      • 7 honorees in the Living Now Book Awards:
        • 1 Gold Medalist: A Smoke and a Song by Sherry Sidoti (Inspirational Memoir – Female)
          • 1 Gold Evergreen Medalist: Threads of Awakening by Leslie Rinchen-Wongmo (World Peace)
        • 2 Silver Medalists: Framing a Life by Roberta S. Kuriloff (Inspirational Memoir – Female); Not Weakness by Francesca Grossman (Sexuality/Femininity/Women’s Experience)
          • 1 Silver Evergreen Medalist: The Inward Outlook by Laura Basha, PhD (Spiritual Leadership)
        • 2 Bronze Medalists: Watching for Dragonflies by Suzanne Marriott (Relaxation/Mindfulness); Ride or Die by Jamie Bolander (Relationships/Marriage)
      • 3 finalists in the PNWA Nancy Pearl Book Awards: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall( Best Book: Memoir); Mother Lode by Gretchen Staebler (Best Book: Memoir); The Walled Garden by Robin Maass (Best Book: Literary Fiction)
      • 18 honorees in the Readers’ Favorite Book Awards:
        • 4 Gold Medalists: Tomboy by Shelley Blanton-Stroud (Fiction – Mystery – Historical); Butterfly Awakens by Meg Nocero (Non-Fiction – Inspirational); Dear Dana by Amy Weinland Daughters (Non-Fiction – Relationships); Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (Non-Fiction – LGBTQ)
        • 3 Silver Medalists: Blurred Fates by Anastasia Zadeik (Fiction – Drama); Shadows We Carry by Meryl Ain (Fiction – Historical – Event/Era); The River Remembers by Linda Ulleseit (Fiction – Historical – Event/Era);
        • 2 Bronze Medalists: Life Dust by Pam Webber (Christian – Historical Fiction); Available As Is by Debbie Weiss (Non-Fiction – Grief/Hardship)
        • 4 Finalists: Community Klepto by Kelly I. Hitchcock (Fiction – Humor/Comedy); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Non-Fiction – Religion/Philosophy); The Byways by Mary Pascual (Young Adult – Fantasy – Urban); A Week of Warm Weather by Lee Bukowski (Finalist in Fiction – Literary)
        • 5 Honorable Mentions:’Til All These Things Be Done by Suzanne Moyers (Fiction – General); Hollyland by Patricia Leavy (Fiction – Women’s); Ivy Lodge by Linda Murphy Marshall (Non-Fiction – Memoir); The Twenty by Marianne C. Bohr (Non-Fiction – Women’s); Love in the Age of Dragons by Fatima R. Henson (Young Adult – Action)
      • 1 winner of the Donna Lynn Quille Award by Focus on Women Magazine: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill
      • 5 honorees in the Global Book Awards:
        • Gold Medalists: All the Silent Spaces by Christine Ristaino (Politics & Social Sciences); Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Traveler & Explorer Biographies)
        • Silve Medalist: Affliction by Laura Hall (LGBT)
        • Bronze Medalist: Hold by Amy S. Peele (Mystery – Detective)
        • Finalist: The Inward Outlook by Laura Basha, PhD (Personal Transformation)
      • 1 finalist in the Canadian Book Club Awards: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (Nonfiction/Memoir)
      • 10 honorees in the NYC Big Book Awards:
        • 3 winners: A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Inspiration and Multicultural Nonfiction); Hardland by Ashley E. Sweeney (Western Fiction)
        • 8 distinguished favorites: Twentieth Century Boys by Andrea Clark Watson (Business-Entrepreneurship & Small Business); In the Aftermath by Jane Ward (Literary Fiction); Winter’s Reckoning by Adele Holmes, MD (Literary Fiction); I Got It From Here by Francesca Miracola (Memoir); Ivy Lodge by Linda Murphy Marshall (Memoir); Transister by Kate Brookes (Memoir); Untethered by Laura Whitfield (New Nonfiction — First-time Published); A Hundred Days Till Tomorrow by L. S. Case (Women’s Fiction)
      • 3 honorable mentions in the 2023 Paris Book Festival: The Inward Outlook by Laura Basha, PhD (General Nonfiction); Untethered by Laura Whitfield (Memoir); Match by Amy S. Peele (General Fiction)
      • 13 honorees in the American Fiction Awards
        • 2 winners: The Marriage Box by Corey Adjmi (Coming of Age) and Hollyland by Patricia Leavy (Mystery/Suspense: Romantic Suspense)
        • 11 finalists: The Marriage Box by Corey Adjmi (Literary Fiction; Women’s Fiction); Hollyland by Patricia Leavy (Best New Fiction; Romance: General; Women’s Fiction); The Broken Hummingbird by Ann Marie Jackson (Best New Fiction; Women’s Fiction); Josie and Vic by Debra Thomas (Family Saga); Those People Behind Us by Mary Camarillo (General Fiction); The Map Colorist by Rebecca D’Harlingue (Historical Fiction); The Earthquake Child by Elayne Klasson (Literary Fiction)
      • 3 honorees in the BookFest Book Awards:
        • 1 First Place Winner: Underwater Daughter by Antonia Deignan (Nonfiction: Relationships – Family)
        • 3 Second Place Winners: Underwater Daughter by Antonia Deignan (Nonfiction: Memoirs – Personal and Nonfiction: Memoirs – Transformational); Untethered by Laura Whitfield (Nonfiction: Memoirs – Personal)
        • 1 Third Place Winner: Underwater Daughter by Antonia Deignan (Artistic & Technical: Audio Book – Overall Presentation)
        • 1 Honorable Mention: Buck’s Pantry by Khristin Wierman (Fiction: Women’s – Thriller & Suspense)
      • 2 winners in the International Impact Book Awards: Hollyland by Patricia Leavy (Arts and Entertainment); The Location Shoot by Patricia Leavy (Romance)
      • 1 finalist in the Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year Awards: The Fun Master by Jeff Seitzer (Indie Nonfiction)
      • 23 honorees in the Best Book Awards:
        • 9 Winners: The Marriage Box by Corie Adjmi (Fiction: Literary and Fiction: Religious); The Ways of Water by Teresa H. Janssen (Fiction: Western); Affliction by Laura Hall (LGBTQ+ Nonfiction); Catch Me When I Fall by Donna Stoneham (Health: Death & Dying); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Multicultural: Nonfiction and Religion: Eastern); The Golden Ticket by Irena Smith (Nonfiction: Creative); Shadows We Carry by Meryl Ain (Fiction: Historical)
        • 26 Finalists: The Marriage Box by Corie Adjmi (Fiction: Women’s Fiction); Catch Me When I Fall by Donna Stoneham (Spirituality: Inspirational); A Sky of Infinite Blue by Kyomi O’Connor (Health: Death & Dying and Spirituality: Inspirational); The Golden Ticket by Irena Smith (Best New Nonfiction and Parenting & Family); Late Bloomer by Melissa Giberson (LGBTQ+ Nonfiction); The Worst Thing We’ve Ever Done by Carol Menaker (Nonfiction: Creative); The Earthquake Child by Elayne Klasson (Fiction: Literary and Fiction: Women’s Fiction); The Map Colorist by Rebecca D’Harlingue (Fiction: Literary); Winter’s Reckoning by Adele Holmes, MD (Fiction: Literary); Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Autobiography/Memoir); The Location Shoot by Patricia Leavy (Best Cover Design: Fiction, Fiction: General, and Fiction: Inspirational); Hollyland by Patricia Leavy (Fiction: Women’s Fiction); The River Remembers by Linda Ulleseit (Fiction: Historical and Fiction: Multicultural); Open for Interpretation by Alicia Blando (Health: Alternative Medicine); Underwater Daughter by Antonia Deignan (Nonfiction: Inspirational); Happy AF by Beth Romero (Self-Help: General); You Make Your Path By Walking by Suzanne Anderson (Self-Help: General); The Twenty by Marianne C. Bohr (Travel: Guides & Essays); Wanderlust by Karen Gershowitz (Travel: Guides & Essays); Ride or Die by Jamie Bolander (Self-Help: Relationships)
      • 2 winners in the Indie Author Project Regional Contest: The Alchemy of Noise by Lorraine Devon Wilke (California); Community Klepto by Kelly I. Hitchcock (Texas)
      • 1 winner in the Arizona Authors Association Literary Contest: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill
      • 2 winners in the Best Indie Book Awards: Making the Rounds by Patricia Grayhall (LGBTQ Memoir); The Butcher, the Embezzler, and the Fall Guy by Gretchen Cherington (Nonfiction: Family Biography)
      • 4 honorees in the American Writing Awards:
        • 1 Winner: Affliction by Laura Hall (Nonfiction: LGBTQ+)
        • 3 Finalists: Untethered by Laura Whitfield (Autobiography/Memoir); An Unexpected Ally by Sophia Kouidou-Giles (Fiction: Fantasy); Those People Behind Us by Mary Camarillo (Fiction: General)
      • 1 honorable mention in the Chicago Writers Association Book of the Year Awards: The Fun Master by Jeff Seitzer (Indie Nonfiction)
      • 1 finalist in IPNE Book Awards: The Infinite Now by Mindy Tarquini (Legacy Fiction)
      • 1 winner in the Indies Today Awards: Ninety-Nine Fire Hoops by Allison Hong Merrill (Best Religious)
      • 1 finalist in the North Street Book Prize: The Worst Thing We’ve Ever Done by Carol Menaker