TWO LOCAL WRITERS EARN COVETED GOLD AWARDS

Mount Dora is known for its creative community of award-winning visual artists and stellar musicians.  However, the area’s immense creativity also extends to a bevy of extraordinary writers.
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Last week two members of a long-established local writers group, Writers One Flight Up, won prestigious Royal Palm Literary Awards from The Florida Writers Association (FWA).   
 
Linda Kraus of Mount Dora won two trophies for Published Poems, the Gold Award for “Casual Sex” and the Bronze Award for “A Naked Emperor.”  Kraus, a retired Film Studies professor in Massachusetts, has won four previous Royal Palm Literary Awards.

Tavares resident William Opperman won the Gold Award for Unpublished Short Story for his entry, “New to This.”   Opperman is the long-time copy editor of Mount Dora Buzz.    

This year marked the 19th annual competition and  549 entries were submitted for judging and valuable feedback.   In all, the competition covered 28 adult genres and five youth genres, with published and unpublished entries considered separately.  The complete list of 2020 winners is available here.  

“I have six other pieces that didn’t even make the finals, but the feedback will help me make them better, perhaps for next year’s competition,” said Opperman, who is also a screenwriter and a former I.T. professional.  
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The Florida Writers Association is a nonprofit organization that supports the state’s established and emerging writers.  The organization currently has 1,800 members and membership is open to the public. ​

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