Awards
⭐️ Gold Recipient, Mom’s Choice Awards Honoring Excellence
⭐️ Silver Medal in Children’s Adventure, 2020 International Readers’ Favorite Awards
⭐️ Award-winning Finalist, Next Generation Book Awards
⭐️ 1st Place in both Children’s Adventure AND Grades 4th-6th, 2020 TopShelf Awards
⭐️ Grand Prize Winner, Colorado Author Project
⭐️ 1st Place, Gertrude Warner Middle Grade Fiction Award
Critical Reviews
BookLife Review by Publishers Weekly – The Eye of Ra
BookLife Review by Publishers Weekly – Sol Invictus
Reedsy Discovery – The Eye of Ra
Reedsy Discovery – Sol Invictus
Institute for Classics Education – Sol Invictus
Podcasts (chronologically, newest at top)
NPR’s Science Friday: Science Diction
The Literacy Advocate with Timmy Bauer
Action and Handling Violence in MG with Jason Henderson, Sam Subity, and Adam Perry on Castle Horror
Society Secrets MG with Jennifer Naughton at The Bookish Society
Guest Posts (chronologically, newest at top)
Why Action Adventure for Middle Grade?, at Log Cabin Library
Why Middle Grade? A Personal Answer, at WestVeil Publishing
An Interview with John and Sarah Tidewell, at Long and Short Reviews
Who or What Inspired you to Write Sol Invictus?, at All the Ups and Downs
Why Historical Fiction Intrigues Me, at Novels Alive
The Hardest Part About Writing, at Our Town Book Reviews
Cover Reveal for Sol Invictus (The Eye of Ra Book 2), at MG Book Village
Handling Conflict in Middle Grade Novels, at Unleashing Readers
Stuck in the Middle with Romans, at Kristyn Miller’s Blog <==predicting Sol Invictus
On Evolution of Reading, interview with Creator’s Roulette on Armed with a Book
** One of my personal favorites: Why MG Books (and the authors that write them!) are so Important, at MGBookVillage
Why do facts make fiction better? (aka “Why factual accuracy in fantastical stories makes them more immersive and intriguing.”) at Haley Cavanagh
Balancing life and writing, or How they are intertwined, at Long and Short Reviews
Why Middle Grade?, at Sybrina’s Book Blog
Interviews (chronologically, newest at top)
About the Author: Ben Gartner, at Maddie White’s Blog
Interview with Two Chicks on Books
Interview with Elaine P. Cantrell
Interview with Straight from the Library
Interview with Kate Foster, Agent and Author
Interview at Armed with a Book
Interview with Books in the Hall
Interview with Locks, Hooks, and Books
Interview with All the Ups and Downs
Interview with Kit N’ Kabookle
Interview with ACME Teen Books
Five Reasons You Should Read My Book, at Fabulous and Brunette
Interview with Our Town Book Reviews
Interview with Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews
