Tag: The BookFest

Chalk Up Another Book Award for The Last Magus and Corsair!

Leave a comment

It’s been a great month for my brand. I know I’m committing one of the seven deadly sins, maybe two, but it is such a chest thumper when you get recognized by your peers. Getting a good review is one thing, but having other authors and publishers say your writing is that good, it gives me reason to smile.

My latest novel, The Last Magus: Dragonfire and Steel, won a Gold Medal in The Bookfest Spring 2024 Awards for Fantasy – Magic, Myths, and Legends. I have entered my novels in The BookFest awards over the past few years, but this is my first gold medal. It really is an honor for an independent author like me. I know I keep saying that but it’s true.

This is why I keep writing, keep publishing, even though I’m still a no-name independent author. I know that sounds harsh, but for many of us, this is the road we’re on. I will continue to fight and work to tell my stories, and being recognized by peers helps motivate me even more.

The other award goes to my steampunk adventure Corsair and the Sky Pirates, a finalist in the 2024 Book Excellence Awards! The Book Excellence Awards program is an international book awards competition dedicated to helping authors and publishers increase their credibility, visibility and book sales. Being named a finalist in this year’s awards was another gear added to the unwavering engine behind my first steampunk adventure. This is an amazing ride and I hope it keeps going.

None of this would have been possible without the continued support of my family and my publisher, Ravven White and Curious Corvid Publishing.

As always, I hope you will take the opportunity to dive into my fantastic imagination and read my carefully woven stories of fantasy and steampunk adventures. Head over to Buy My Books if you want to read more or visit my Events page to meet me at an upcoming festival or convention, including 2nd Sundays Williamsburg on April 14 and the Gaithersburg Book Festival, May 18! I hope to see you there!

Mark Piggott is an award-winning independent author of several fantasy/steampunk novels and short stories. A 23-year U.S. Navy veteran, his stories will take you from the shores of eternal Avalon to a dystopian steampunk future and other fantastic worlds as he weaves through a myriad of flights of fancy in his tales.

The Forever Avalon fantasy book series—including Forever Avalon, The Dark Tides, and The Outlander War—are available online at Amazon and other booksellers. His fantasy steampunk novel, The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart, is available through Lulu and other booksellers.

Cross over The River of Souls in a fantasy novella, take flight in the steampunk historical fiction, Corsair and the Sky Pirates, and the saga continues in The Last Magus: Dragonfire and Steel from Curious Corvid Publishing. His first YA fantasy, Gwen Iver and Pendragon’s Puzzle, and The Prometheus Engine: Book Four of the Forever Avalon Series are coming soon from Curious Corvid. Stay tuned for new fantastic stories from the imagination of Mark Piggott.

Corsair and the Sky Pirates wins Two BookFest Book Awards for Spring 2023

1 Comment

The first awards for Corsair and the Sky Pirates have arrived! The BookFest Spring 2023 book awards recognized Corsair with two 2nd Place trophies—Fantasy – Gaslamp and Science Fiction – Steampunk. This is the first book awards for my steampunk historical fiction and its a great honor for me an Curious Corvid Publishing.

The BookFest Awards honors authors who create outstanding works of fiction and nonfiction. Books are judged in categories based on genre, theme, and aesthetics. Entries will be vetted by an initial team, then the final places will be determined by an elite team of experts in the literary and entertainment world.

Awards are assigned based on first, second, third and honorable mention, according to their score. This means that sometimes not every category has a first place, second and/or third place winner. If no books in that category rated appropriately, then no award was granted in that place. Likewise, several books sometimes tie for first place, second and third place. Much like getting a letter grade in school, sometimes there are more “A”s in the class because there are outstanding students who warrant that grade. Books are similar. Sometimes there are several outstanding books deserving of their place in The BookFest Awards.

“The goal in the judging process is to highlight books in niche or often unrecognized genres as well as books that sometimes can dominate top-level genres. At The BookFest, we feel it is important to give niche or often unrecognized genres a chance to shine, too.”

 Black Chateau Enterprise and Books That Make You bring you The BookFest

A brilliant inventor . . . A prolific writer . . . A chance meeting between Nikola Tesla and Jules Verne created a world you could never imagine. A world powered by steam generated not from coal or fuel but from a meteor fragment. Tesla discovered a comet named Uriel was raining pieces of these powerful meteorites across the globe whenever it passed near the Earth. That led to an Industrial Revolution years ahead of its time—a steampunk revolution—but even progress had a price. While the rich and powerful lived in luxury in this industrial new world, the everyday people groveled beneath the boot of their corporate masters.

One man brought hope to the people as he pursued Tesla’s dream. His exploits were legendary, his crew infamous, and his airship a vision of the future. Corsair and the Sky Pirates flew across the globe, carrying out deeds that spurred the imagination. The swashbuckling Corsair was as handsome as he was cool, calm, and calculating. His crew was a diverse assortment of renegades many authorities considered lowlifes and criminals. Still, they were all dedicated to Corsair’s mission, working with Tesla to end the corporate rule strangling the planet. They came from every corner of the globe . . . From the outback in Australia to the American Southwest and the rough streets of Harlem in New York City, across Europe, and to the Far East. The crew of the airship Galeru, so named for a mythical rainbow serpent, never faltered and never wavered.

You can pick up your copy of Corsair and the Sky Pirates at Amazon and other booksellers. You can get a signed copy at my upcoming book signing events, McKay New and Used Books in Manassas, VA, on Saturday, April 29, and Barnes and Noble Potomac Yards in Alexandria, VA, on Sunday, April 30. I hope to see you there!

Mark Piggott is an award-winning independent author of several fantasy/steampunk novels and short stories. A 23-year U.S. Navy veteran, his stories will take you from the shores of eternal Avalon to a dystopian steampunk future and other worlds.

The Forever Avalon fantasy book series—including Forever Avalon, The Dark Tides, and The Outlander War—is available online at Amazon and other booksellers. His fantasy steampunk novel, The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart, is available through Lulu and other booksellers.

Cross over The River of Souls in a fantasy novella and the steampunk historical fiction, Corsair and the Sky Pirates from Curious Corvid Publishing. The Last Magus: Dragonfire and Steel and The Prometheus Engine: Book Four of the Forever Avalon Series, are coming soon. Stay tuned for more new fantastic stories from the imagination of Mark Piggott.

The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart in Times Square

Leave a comment

Something amazing happened on January 20, 2023! My steampunk fantasy novel The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart appeared on the Nasdaq billboard in Times Square as one of the 2022 The BookFest award-winning independent books! I am humbled and thrilled to be up there with the other award winners!

The BookFest Awards honors authors who create outstanding works of fiction and nonfiction. Books are judged in categories based on genre, theme, and aesthetics.  Entries will be vetted by an initial team, then the final places will be determined by an elite team of experts in the literary and entertainment world.

To put this in perspective, at 9,300 square feet, this larger than life digital billboard located in the heart of the Times Square commands attention. I mean, to use a Donald Trump-ism, it’s HUGE!!!!

This is the third award for The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart and I am so humbled by the honor. My novel won 3rd place for Fantasy-Magic, Myths, and Legends with The BookFest, 2022 AMG Indie Book Awards Grand Prize for Fiction, and 1st place for Steampunk, 2021 Firebird Book Awards.

I’m not trying to make an Oscar-like speech, but I want to thank a few people for helping me earn this achievement. First, Anna-Lena Spies for designing a spectacular book cover. Second, my editor Ali Soleil, who did a great job refining my manuscript. And last, but definitely not least, my wife Georgiene who also read and edited my book but she has supported me throughout my writing journey. I wouldn’t have accomplished this if not for her.

Mark your calendar to pick up a SIGNED copy of The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart or any of my other books at my first events of 2023 . . . The Williamsburg Book Festival in Williamsburg, VA, on February 4 and the Tell-Tale Steampunk Convention in Baltimore, MD, on April 1-2. I hope you’ll joining me on this adventure into steampunk and fantasy!

Mark Piggott is an award-winning independent author of several fantasy/steampunk novels and short stories. A 23-year U.S. Navy veteran, his stories will take you from the shores of eternal Avalon to a dystopian steampunk future and other worlds.

The Forever Avalon fantasy book series—including Forever Avalon, The Dark Tides, and The Outlander War—is available online at Amazon and other booksellers. His fantasy steampunk novel, The Last Magus: A Clockwork Heart, is available through Lulu and other booksellers.

Cross over The River of Souls in my first fantasy novella from Curious Corvid Publishing and the steampunk historical fiction, Corsair and the Sky Pirates, coming in January 2023. The Last Magus: Dragonfire and Steel and The Prometheus Engine: Book Four of the Forever Avalon Series, are coming soon. Stay tuned for more new fantastic stories from the imagination of Mark Piggott.