The Soon To Be Famous Blog

We're excited to announce the opening of our 2024 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project contest. This year marks our sixth annual competition.

Do you have a manuscript ready to take to the next level? We're looking for the best unpublished works of adult fiction. We will accept complete manuscripts of adult fiction in book length (50,000 to 100,000 words) from Illinois authors only. Our winner receives these valuable prizes:

• Professional line editor who will work with you to polish your novel.
• Professionally designed cover.
• Self-publishing guidance from past STBF winners and committee members.
• Finished book automatically entered as semi-finalist status in the next Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project contest.

  Here is how our contest works:

• Contest opens January 2, 2024 and closes on March 1, 2024.
• Participating authors must live in Illinois, and the manuscript being submitted must be unpublished and in an adult fiction genre.
• Submissions must meet certain other criteria in order to be eligible. Before submitting, please verify that your manuscript includes:

• A Title Page with the following:
  • Title (Working)
  • Author Name
  • Word count number (entries must be no fewer than 50,000 and no more than 100,000 words)
  • A Synopsis on the title page (50 words or less)
  • An Author Bio also on the title page (100 words or less)
• The Manuscript itself must be formatted as a single Word Doc or PDF
  • 12 pt (Arial, Calibri, Times New Roman)
  • 1.5 line spacing
  • Multiple files not accepted.

Note: failure to meet criteria may result in disqualification for the entry.

UPDATE: 030124 -- The 2024 Manuscript Contest is in its initial judging phase and is no longer accepting submissions.

After our recent finalist announcement for the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project contest, our three authors had this to say:

“When I saw the email from the Soon to Be Famous Project telling me I was a finalist, at first I wondered if it was a scam! Then I realized that I do know these folks at the STBF project, and I actually was a finalist,” commented Michael Pickard who was chosen for his detective mystery novel Creative Deductions.

Michelle Cox, author of A Spying Eye responded, "I'm absolutely floored and delighted!  Truly honored to be a finalist!" 

Angelique Burrell, author of A Mark in the Road was also “sincerely honored” to be chosen as a finalist.

These finalists in the statewide Illinois writing competition were chosen to advance in the competition by a team of volunteer librarian judges. We'll announce the winner later in January 2024.

Of the many book competitions in existence, the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project is unique because it was created and is run exclusively by librarians and other library staff. No other group is more in tune with what appeals to readers than librarians, and no other group is more trusted to make good recommendations. Past winners have enjoyed increased book sales, opportunities to appear at author events at public libraries, and the opportunity to include their books in a select collection of ebooks available to the public through their libraries.

Our Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project judges have completed their review of this year's contest submissions of indie-published books by Illinois authors. They've narrowed down their choices to these top three entries listed below (in alphabetical order by author’s last name).

A Mark in the Road by Angelique Burrell – Naperville Public Library

A Spying Eye by Michelle Cox – Grayslake Area Public Library

Creative Deductions by Michael Pickard – Highland Park Public Library

Congratulations to these finalists who go on to compete in the final round where one will emerge as 2023's winner. Watch this blog for the winner announcement in early 2024.

The Indie Author Project is thrilled to announce that Pascuala Herrera, author of Not Always a Valley of Tears, is the 2022 winner of the fourth annual Indie Author of the Year award. She previously was named winner of the state-wide de la Página a la Fama award from the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project recognizing excellence in self or indie-published Spanish language literature.

Herrera, a self-published author from Franklin Park, IL  was chosen from a stellar group of 18 authors who have each won regional Indie Author Contests held in 16 states as well as two Canadian provinces. The Indie Author of the Year is chosen by a team of industry experts on the basis of marketability, overall impact, personal brand, and potential for the author to break out. This year’s distinguished group of judges included:

• Carl Pritzkat, COO of Publishers Weekly
• Guy Gonzalez, Chief Content Officer for LibraryPass
• Leslye Penelope, award-winning author with St. Martin’s Press
• Kiera Parrot, Director of Darien Public Library, Norwalk, CT

Herrera’s inspirational memoir tells the story of a strong Latina woman overcoming  many obstacles to realize her dream. At the age of six, Pascuala who had many medical challenges including a disability that required her to use a wheelchair, immigrated from Mexico with her large family. Despite these difficulties, she completed her education including a Bachelors and Masters at DePaul University in Chicago. After graduating, she joined the faculty at Harper College where she worked with students with all types of disabilities. She continues to be very active in the movement for the rights of people with disabilities. 

After losing her mother in 2018, Pascuala’s daughter encouraged her to turn her childhood stories into a memoir to celebrate the life of her mother. The result is a memoir filled with honest painful stories, simple yet joyous triumphs, and humor that will lead all readers to embrace their own struggles and realize that life is Not Always a Valley of Tears. Pascuala published the book in English as well as Spanish to reach the Latino community.

She commented, "Being the winner of the Soon to be Famous Illinois Author Project opened so many doors for me as a new indie author! I am thrilled and so grateful to have been selected as the Indie Author of the Year! There is nothing more rewarding than to know that my memoir is being recognized for this distinction and that my written words are available in libraries so that readers around the country can access my story. Once again, I am reminded that life is Not Always a Valley of Tears."

Announcing the winner of our 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project contest:

Burn and Balm by Kate Guerrero

(Schaumburg Township District Library)

Kate Guerrero of Schaumburg took “a giant leap of faith” writing the manuscript for Burn and Balm, a razor-sharp tale of “gaslight, gatekeep, girlboss” culture set against a backdrop of diapers and breast pumps. It’s about the complexities of female friendship and the unique power women hold to both uplift and destroy one another.

“Writing this book (my first!) [has] been a huge learning experience involving lots of emotions. Winning the manuscript contest has been such a boost to my determination to become a published author, and such a vote of confidence that my novel is worth reading,” she commented.

Guerrero is the latest recipient of the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project Contest, now in its fifth year. Run entirely by library volunteers, the contest recognizes excellent quality unpublished adult fiction by Illinois authors. As winner, she will receive free line editing and cover design services as well as guidance from the Soon to Be Famous Team and former award winners.

Kate is a writer and artist currently seeking representation for her winning debut novel, Burn and Balm. Turning out excellent client copy by day and furiously scribbling fiction by night. Kate loves writing about topics related to motherhood, friendship, and growing into your dreams. She believes that trying something new is worth making a mess.

Kate's prizes include:

• Professional line editor
• Professionally designed cover
• Self-publishing guidance.
• Finished book entered as semi-finalist status in the next Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project contest.

About the Project

Since 2014, the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project has been demonstrating the power of libraries to create a market for authors and find more great reads for patrons. We recognize excellence in self-published and indie-published fiction in our book contest, and have been seeking out high quality unpublished adult fiction for our manuscript contest for five years.

Since its inception, STBF has been replicated in 14 states and two Canadian provinces. With help from sponsor BiblioLabs, a division of Lyrisis, winning books from all regions now compete for Indie Author of the Year. Learn more at indieauthorproject.com.

The Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author project is being coordinated in collaboration with the Illinois Library Association (ILA) and Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS) and is supported by the American Library Association Digital Content Working Group, the Public Library Association (PLA), and the Illinois Heartland Library System.

Our judges have completed their second review of the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project contest submissions. We're excited to announce these three finalists moving on to our final round (in alphabetical order by author’s last name). Watch this website for our winner announcement coming in the late Summer 2023.

• Burn and Balm by Kate Guerrero (Schaumburg Township District Library)
• Infinity Mirror by Brian Newcomb (Manhattan-Elwood Public Library District)
• The Camera Liked Her by Floyd Sullivan (Chicago Public Library, Jefferson Park Branch)

Congratulations to these Illinois authors. For details about our Manuscript Project click here.

Our judges have completed their initial review of the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Manuscript Project contest submissions. We're thrilled to announce these semi-finalists who are moving on to our second round (in alphabetical order by author’s last name):

• Love in a Time of Monsters by Kathleen Alberts (Alsip-Merrionette Park Library District)
• The Librarians by Eric Diekhans (Evanston Public Library)
• Burn and Balm by Kate Guerrero (Schaumburg Township District Library)
• The Family You Choose by Christina Ho (Vernon Area Public Library District)
• The Descent by Donna Kathryn Kelly (Cary Area Public Library District)
• Infinity Mirror by Brian Newcomb (Manhattan-Elwood Public Library District)
• The Untimely Death of Erica Javitz by Barbara E. Schmidt (Lillie M. Evans Library District)
• The Lake House by Patti Sherry-Crews (Evanston Public Library)
• The Camera Liked Her by Floyd Sullivan (Chicago Public Library, Jefferson Park Branch)

Congratulations to these Illinois authors. For details about our Manuscript Project click here.

On Monday, April 24 at 4 pm, the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project (STBF) will recognize and honor the winner and two runners-up of its annual self/indie-published novel competition in a live media event hosted by the Niles-Maine Library District. Illinois State Senator Ram Villavalam of the 8th district will attend and present a special proclamation honoring the winner.

Alina Rubin, patron of the Niles-Maine Library District, who was recently named winner of the 2022 competition will accept the award (which includes a $2,000 prize) for her novel, A Girl with a Knife. Set in 19th century England, the novel tells the story of a young woman who manages to escape the very limited life choices available to her, and become a surgeon. Rubin is an IT professional and a mom, who, during the pandemic, used the time and energy saved on the commute to write this award-winning book. She has a B.S. and M.S. in Business and Information Technology from DePaul University, and lives near Chicago with her husband and daughter.

Finalist Rebecca Taniguchi’s career took her from English teacher to writer/editor for major corporations, but she always wanted to try her hand at a novel. Her family’s history inspired her to write Hiro’s War, a work of historical fiction that follows one man’s journey from his childhood spent in a Japanese internment camp in the U.S. during World War II through his life-long search for justice and peace. Taniguchi lives in St. Charles

Skokie Library patron Len Joy claims the titles of CPA, MBA, triathlete, and author of several books including American Past Time, the other finalist in the STBF competition. American Past Time follows the story of an American family as they navigate the challenges of the 1950s through the 1970s as issues of race simmer in the background.

Rubin, Joy, and Taniguchi are the newest members of a group of 27 self or indie-published fiction writers who have been recognized by the STBF Project. Now entering its tenth year, the Project is the brainchild of a group of library marketing professionals who challenged themselves to demonstrate the power of libraries to create a market for authors and find more great reads for their patrons. Entirely run by library professionals from across the state, STBF invites all Illinois authors of self- or indie-published adult fiction to submit their books to be evaluated by a panel of librarian judges.  In 2015, the Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project won the prestigious John Cotton Dana Award for excellence in library public relations by the American Library Association.

Find information about the live event by clicking this link.

Announcing the 2023 Soon to Be Famous Illinois Author Project contest. We're accepting submissions for this exciting, library-driven initiative that helps connect local indie authors with library readers from April 1, 2023 through June 1, 2023.

Thanks to our ongoing partnership with BiblioBoard, the 2023 winner of this contest will receive:

Congratulations to Alina Rubin with her book A Girl with a Knife for winning our 2022 Soon to be Famous Illinois Author contest! 

As the winner, Alina will get the following:

• Statewide recognition by Illinois libraries as the top indie-published fiction novel.
• $2000 cash prize
• Opportunities to promote her book(s) at Illinois public libraries
• Opportunity to compete with other IAP contest winners for the Indie Author of the Year award
• And more

We will be hosting an official awards ceremony on April 24, 2023 at 4:00 p.m. at Niles-Maine library. Click here for details.