News and Updates
When Death Draws Near wins the Carol Award for best mystery/suspense/thriller!
When Death Draws Near
won best suspense/mystery at the Idaho Author Awards! 
When Death Draws Near a finalist for the Review's Choice Awards!
When Death Draws Near on the Inspys short list finalist
ACFW (American Christian Fiction Writers) has chosen Carrie to present at the annual conference in September!
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June, 2016, The Bones Will Speak wins the Inspy award for best mystery/suspense! Also finals in the Christy Awards the Christian Retailing Best and selected as one of the fifteen best books of 2015 by Family Fiction |
September 19, 2015
A Cry from the Dust
wins the Carol Award from ACFW as the best Suspense/thriller/mystery book!!!!
Rick and I flew to Dallas to attend the conference. How thrilling to also win the Carol.
A Cry from the Dust
wins the Carol Award from ACFW as the best Suspense/thriller/mystery book!!!!
Rick and I flew to Dallas to attend the conference. How thrilling to also win the Carol.
August 30, 2015 Received a new, two-book contract from HarperCollins Christian! Gwen Marcey series moves on.
July 2, 2015 The new cover for "When Death Draws Near" arrived for approval. I need to get it into a jpg.
June 29, 2015. OHMIGOSH!! A third time! A Cry From the Dust finaled in a third competition! The Carol Awards, offered by ACFW!! Whoopwhoop!!
May 21, 2015. Amanda Bostic and the titling team at Thomas Nelson came up with a name for the next book. When Death Draws Near. More adventures of Gwen Marcey, this time with an Eastern Kentucky, Pentecostal snake handling church. The odd blue building you see was part of our research--the Signs Following church we attended in Jolo, W. V.
May 12, 2015. A new cover for A Cry From the Dust? The fine folks at Thomas Nelson are trying out a new cover--one that looks more like book #2. I love it. How about you?
May 4. 2015. OHMIGOSH AGAIN! "A Cry From the Dust" has finaled in the Selah Awards as well!
April 21, 2015. OHMIGOSH!! My wish came true! I just discovered "A Cry From the Dust" was one of three suspense novels to final in the Christy Awards. Whoopwhoop!!
February 17, 2015, Today I'll be mailing out A Cry From the Dust to the last competition I've entered it in. It would be nice to final in something, but more than that, new people (as in bookloving people) will be reading it.
January 6, 2015, Presentation for a Spokane Book Club, discussing "A Cry from the Dust."
December 24, 2014, My awesome editor, Natalie Hanemann, submitted my edited manuscript for The Bones Will Speak" to Thomas Nelson. Done!
November 18, 2014, just finished the bibliography and posted on this web page for "The Bones Will Speak." Lotta books!
November 13, 2014, My awesome editor, Natalie Hanemann, sent the manuscript for ''The Bones Will Speak, back for round 1 line editing.
October 2014 New cover arrived for "The Bones Will Speak." See the book page. I love it.
September, 2014. Interviews, interviews, interviews! Allen Media kept me busy with numerous radio interviews all over the country, including five in one day. Just ask me about Jack the Ripper now!
September 5, 2014, The Bones Will Speak back for editing. Amanda and Natalie completed the first round of editing (the macro edit) and returned it for more work.
August 14, 2014 The titling committee at Thomas Nelson have come up with a name for Lone Wolf: The Bones Will Speak. Yeah!
August 12, 2014 Book released!!
August 10, 2014 Book release in just 2 days!
How exciting! Copies of my books arrived last week and quickly were shipped out to family and folks who made this possible.
August 1, 2014 My next novel turned into Thomas Nelson/HarperCollins.
Now comes the hard part: waiting to see how my editors like it. The new book, working title of "Lone Wolf," picks up the story of Gwen Marcey about six months after "A Cry From the Dust," ends. Now Gwen is facing the Phineas Priesthood, part of the Christian Identity movement, as well as a serial killer who likes young women that look like Gwen's daughter.
June 23, 2014 New review from Publishers Weekly
"Parks, in her debut novel, has clearly done her research and never disappoints when it comes to crisp dialogue, characterization, or surprising twists and turns. Contemporary Mormon fundamentalism, a clever alternative theory about the martyrdom of Mormon founder Joseph Smith, and a determined search for the truth are blended artfully in this fast-paced, exciting novel. (Aug.)
June 17, 2014: New review from RT Book Reviews.
“Parks’ fast-paced and suspenseful debut novel is an entertaining addition to the inspirational genre. Her writing is polished, and the research behind the novel brings credibility to the story. An excellent book that is sure to put Carrie Stuart Parks on readers’ radar.” – 4 stars, RT Book Reviews
May: A Cry from the Dust has been selected for the Premier Picks Librarian Mailing for Ingram. To be included, the title must be selected and approved by them. The mailing goes out to over 200 librarians.
April : The reviews are arriving and oh, it’s getting so exciting:
In "A Cry from the Dust," the novel's courageous protagonist--a forensic artist recovering from cancer--finds herself facing "blood atonement when she investigates the death of a young woman. This superbly researched mystery, based on actual events, shows what can happen when lack of education is combined with religious fanaticism.
-Betty Webb, author of “Desert Wives,” and “Desert Wind.”
Parks' real life career as a forensic artist lends remarkable authenticity to her enthralling novel A Cry From the Dust. Her work is a fresh new voice in suspense, and I became an instant fan. Highly recommended!
-Colleen Coble, author of Seagrass Pier and the Rock Harbor novels
"Things I loved about A Cry from the Dust: the fascinating and painstakingly researched historical tapestry into which the story is woven, the frantic but intensely believable arc of events that makes you hold on extra tight, the compelling and flawed heroine who has absolutely no idea she's the heroine. Part CSI, part Lie to Me, and all relentlessly original, A Cry From the Dust blends rich characters, little-known history, and a dose of conspiracy into a very modern storytelling style. Can't wait to tear into Gwen Marcey's next adventure."
-Zachary Bartels, author of Playing Saint and 42 Months Dry
February 2, 2014: The typeset final version of the manuscript arrived for corrections. You'd think by now all the bug would be out of it, but nooooo, there's still a few goofs. Fixed them, and now it's out of my hands. Yeah!
December 21, 2013: Round two of edits arrived. Only one more to go before the manuscript passes from my hands to those of the publisher. What a year! Last December I didn't have an agent nor completed manuscript. The Lord is good!
November 19, 2013. Amanda Bostic of Thomas Nelson just informed me that the sales rep for Barnes and Noble want to submit my novel for the Discover New Writers program. Whoo hoo! Read about it on my blog.
November 15, 2013 A Cry From the Dust is now on Amazon. Check it out with the handy button above.
November 6, 2013. Natalie, one of my editors, sent me the editing schedule. Gonna have to hunker down in the next two months and work on the book. I'm still making progress on book #2.
October 17, 2013. I just read the forward and endorsements written by my mentor, Frank Peretti. I cried. He was so very sweet!
September 30, 2013. I just got the first sneak peek at the proposed cover for A Cry Form the Dust. Whooooooohoooo! It's looking great. I had a couple of suggestions so will wait to see what they come up with.
August 29, 2013: A Cry from the Dust is back and I'm working on the editing. Amanda Bostic and Natalie have done a stellar job of working on it. I want to share some comments from my editor:
"I’ve told you already how much Natalie and I both love A Cry from the Dust, but let me say it again: This is a great novel! Especially considering it’s your debut novel, you are truly to be commended.
A Cry from the Dust can easily be described as smart,
unpredictable, and highly entertaining. Your talent is most evident in the complexity of the plot and in maintaining high suspense." Ah, shucks!
August 23, 2013: A Cry From the Dust arrives in a couple of days for the first editing run through! Amanda Bostic and Natalie Hanemann have completed the "macro edit" and will be sending the manuscript to me for review.
July, 20013: The title brainstorming committee at Thomas Nelson came up with a new name for my book: A Cry From the Dust. I like it! It's a quote from the Book of Mormon:
“…because of the blood of them who have been slain; for they cry from the dust for vengeance upon it, and also upon those who built it up.”
June 20th, 2013: Television and film rights? The first nibble came from a production company about purchasing the television and film rights to my book. Sweet!
May 18, 2013: Dave and Andrea Kramer of Stampede Lake Photography sent us the first of the possible photos for the book. They are brilliant--great at photoshopping out the double chin, dogs hair, and wrinkles!
June 11, 2013: Agent Terry Burns announces that I am number one on his top producing writers based on advances and royalties.
March 19, 2013: After an auction, the manuscript is sold to Thomas Nelson on a three book deal. The biggest yiiiiiippppppeee yet.
February 25, 2013: Spoke to senior editor Amanda Bostic for an hour about my book.
February 22, 2013: Amanda Bostic of Thomas Nelson requested a phone conference to talk about my book.
February 7, 2013: Another request from a publisher for the full manuscript.
February 4, 2013: Proposals emailed to nine publishers. One replied they were no longer doing fiction, and Thomas Nelson was interested. That came within 27 minutes of sendion out the proposal. Another Yiiiiipppppe!
January 24, 2013: Completed manuscript sent to Terry.
January 21, 2013: Flew to California to work with Frank Peretti (mentor) on the ending of the book.
December 31, 2012: Terry offered me representation. Yiiiippppeee!
December 29, 2013: Terry requested the full manuscript.
December 28, 2012: I emailed a query to literary agent Terry Burns to see if he would consider my novel. Terry asked for a proposal the same day.
“Parks’ fast-paced and suspenseful debut novel is an entertaining addition to the inspirational genre. Her writing is polished, and the research behind the novel brings credibility to the story. An excellent book that is sure to put Carrie Stuart Parks on readers’ radar.” – 4 stars, RT Book Reviews
May: A Cry from the Dust has been selected for the Premier Picks Librarian Mailing for Ingram. To be included, the title must be selected and approved by them. The mailing goes out to over 200 librarians.
April : The reviews are arriving and oh, it’s getting so exciting:
In "A Cry from the Dust," the novel's courageous protagonist--a forensic artist recovering from cancer--finds herself facing "blood atonement when she investigates the death of a young woman. This superbly researched mystery, based on actual events, shows what can happen when lack of education is combined with religious fanaticism.
-Betty Webb, author of “Desert Wives,” and “Desert Wind.”
Parks' real life career as a forensic artist lends remarkable authenticity to her enthralling novel A Cry From the Dust. Her work is a fresh new voice in suspense, and I became an instant fan. Highly recommended!
-Colleen Coble, author of Seagrass Pier and the Rock Harbor novels
"Things I loved about A Cry from the Dust: the fascinating and painstakingly researched historical tapestry into which the story is woven, the frantic but intensely believable arc of events that makes you hold on extra tight, the compelling and flawed heroine who has absolutely no idea she's the heroine. Part CSI, part Lie to Me, and all relentlessly original, A Cry From the Dust blends rich characters, little-known history, and a dose of conspiracy into a very modern storytelling style. Can't wait to tear into Gwen Marcey's next adventure."
-Zachary Bartels, author of Playing Saint and 42 Months Dry
February 2, 2014: The typeset final version of the manuscript arrived for corrections. You'd think by now all the bug would be out of it, but nooooo, there's still a few goofs. Fixed them, and now it's out of my hands. Yeah!
December 21, 2013: Round two of edits arrived. Only one more to go before the manuscript passes from my hands to those of the publisher. What a year! Last December I didn't have an agent nor completed manuscript. The Lord is good!
November 19, 2013. Amanda Bostic of Thomas Nelson just informed me that the sales rep for Barnes and Noble want to submit my novel for the Discover New Writers program. Whoo hoo! Read about it on my blog.
November 15, 2013 A Cry From the Dust is now on Amazon. Check it out with the handy button above.
November 6, 2013. Natalie, one of my editors, sent me the editing schedule. Gonna have to hunker down in the next two months and work on the book. I'm still making progress on book #2.
October 17, 2013. I just read the forward and endorsements written by my mentor, Frank Peretti. I cried. He was so very sweet!
September 30, 2013. I just got the first sneak peek at the proposed cover for A Cry Form the Dust. Whooooooohoooo! It's looking great. I had a couple of suggestions so will wait to see what they come up with.
August 29, 2013: A Cry from the Dust is back and I'm working on the editing. Amanda Bostic and Natalie have done a stellar job of working on it. I want to share some comments from my editor:
"I’ve told you already how much Natalie and I both love A Cry from the Dust, but let me say it again: This is a great novel! Especially considering it’s your debut novel, you are truly to be commended.
A Cry from the Dust can easily be described as smart,
unpredictable, and highly entertaining. Your talent is most evident in the complexity of the plot and in maintaining high suspense." Ah, shucks!
August 23, 2013: A Cry From the Dust arrives in a couple of days for the first editing run through! Amanda Bostic and Natalie Hanemann have completed the "macro edit" and will be sending the manuscript to me for review.
July, 20013: The title brainstorming committee at Thomas Nelson came up with a new name for my book: A Cry From the Dust. I like it! It's a quote from the Book of Mormon:
“…because of the blood of them who have been slain; for they cry from the dust for vengeance upon it, and also upon those who built it up.”
June 20th, 2013: Television and film rights? The first nibble came from a production company about purchasing the television and film rights to my book. Sweet!
May 18, 2013: Dave and Andrea Kramer of Stampede Lake Photography sent us the first of the possible photos for the book. They are brilliant--great at photoshopping out the double chin, dogs hair, and wrinkles!
June 11, 2013: Agent Terry Burns announces that I am number one on his top producing writers based on advances and royalties.
March 19, 2013: After an auction, the manuscript is sold to Thomas Nelson on a three book deal. The biggest yiiiiiippppppeee yet.
February 25, 2013: Spoke to senior editor Amanda Bostic for an hour about my book.
February 22, 2013: Amanda Bostic of Thomas Nelson requested a phone conference to talk about my book.
February 7, 2013: Another request from a publisher for the full manuscript.
February 4, 2013: Proposals emailed to nine publishers. One replied they were no longer doing fiction, and Thomas Nelson was interested. That came within 27 minutes of sendion out the proposal. Another Yiiiiipppppe!
January 24, 2013: Completed manuscript sent to Terry.
January 21, 2013: Flew to California to work with Frank Peretti (mentor) on the ending of the book.
December 31, 2012: Terry offered me representation. Yiiiippppeee!
December 29, 2013: Terry requested the full manuscript.
December 28, 2012: I emailed a query to literary agent Terry Burns to see if he would consider my novel. Terry asked for a proposal the same day.