Silver Falchion Award

My latest book, Treasure of the Diary, is a finalist in the Literary Fiction Category for the coveted Silver Falchion Award. The novel, #7 in the Mark Rollins Adventure Series, was also honored as the Independent Press Award’s 2023 pick for Distinguished Favorite in Literary Fiction.

The Silver Falchion Award honors the best books of the year that incorporate elements of mystery, thriller, and suspense across numerous genres. It is administered by Killer Nashville, which is considered the premier forum for mystery writers. The awards are presented at the annual Killer Nashville Writers’ Conference. The event marks the 18th year of the forum's international writers’ conference. The four-day event is scheduled to begin on August 17th in Nashville, Tennessee.

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Collins’s books are available from neighborhood bookstores and online sources. E-book editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks,  Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes,and directly from Audible.com.

Civil War Gold Unearthed!

Is there really lost Civil War Gold as depicted in my novel Treasure of the Diary—Gold Treasure just waiting for someone to stumble upon it or the clue to its hiding place? As Oscar Wilde noted, Literature always anticipates real life. Validating the legends of buried Civil War gold, a Kentucky farmer just unearthed a 150-year-old fortune dubbed the Great Kentucky Hoard. This unearthed bounty is a testament to the time-honored legends of the lost Civil War Gold. It is likely that whoever hid the gold left clues behind as is the case in the novel Treasure of the Diary.

The Great Kentucky Hoard is a historic treasury of seven hundred United States gold coins minted during the tumultuous years of 1862 and 1863. The treasure's denominations range from $1 to a staggering $20. To truly grasp the magnitude of this discovery, consider the value of each 1863 gold Liberty double eagle coin. Depending on its condition, a single coin is likely to sell anywhere from $100,000 to a jaw-dropping $400,000 at auction.

Kentucky, the heartland of several intense Civil War skirmishes between the Union Army and the Confederate cavalries led by Nathan Bedford Forrest and Kentuckian John Hunt Morgan, has always been shrouded in intriguing tales of buried treasures. The theory goes that this gold was buried as a safeguard against advancing enemies. With the discovery, the legends of lost Civil War gold, whispered rumors of riches concealed by those claimed by war or disease, suddenly seem much less mythical. The Great Kentucky Hoard underscores that truth can be as strange - and as captivating - as fiction.

And so it is with Treasure of the Diary—another unearthing of Civil War gold. The story is set in two contrasting timelines that connect the distant past and the present, tracing the quest for a cache of buried gold weighing an astounding half-ton. It weaves Civil War miseries and the lure of hidden gold into an intriguing and educational mystery that is available in print, digital and audio formats.

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Collins’s books are available from neighborhood bookstores and online sources. E-book editions are available on Amazon, Google Play, Apple iBooks,  Smashwords, and other online bookstores. Audio editions are available on Amazon, iTunes,and directly from Audible.com.

Press Release March 10, 2023

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: M. Thomas (Tom) Collins
Tom.collins@i65n.com

Author Tom Collins receives national recognition through the INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD®

Franklin, Tennessee—The INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD ® recognized Treasure of the Diary by Tom Collins as a Distinguished Favorite in the category of Literary Fiction making it the fourth national award received by Collins.

The competition is judged by experts from different aspects of the book industry, including publishers, writers, editors, book cover designers and professional copywriters. Selected IPA Distinguished Favorites are based on overall excellence.

The literary fiction novel, Treasure of the Diary, is the seventh book in author Tom Collins’s Mark Rollins Adventure series. The story weaves historical events and familiar places into an educational and entertaining adventure when three college students discover a 150-year-old diary. The old journal belonged to a Confederate prisoner of war. The reader relives events of the Civil War and the plight of prisoners as the students read through the diary—page by page searching for a secret, one that they hope will lead them to treasure—a half a ton of buried gold!

In 2023, the INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD had entries worldwide. Authors and publishers from countries such as Australia, Canada, Germany, India, Japan, Norway, Scotland, and South Africa, participated. Books submitted included writers based in cities such as Atlanta to Los Angeles; London to Nova Scotia; from Cape Town to Mumbai; from Albuquerque to New York City, as well as others. "We are proud to announce the distinguished favorites in our annual 2023 INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD. This year included an array of quality and diverse independent books," Olczak said. "Independent publishing is pushing on every corner of the earth with great content. We are thrilled to be highlighting key titles representing global independent publishing." said awards sponsor Gabrielle Olczak. For more information, please visit independentpressaward.com; and to see this year's list of IPA Distinguished Favorites, please visit 2023 DISTINGUISHED FAVORITES: https://www.independentpressaward.com/2023df.

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M. Thomas (Tom) Collins writes from his home in Franklin, Tennessee, where his characters come to life and frequent familiar places in the bucolic middle Tennessee landscape and the majestic mountains of Western North Carolina. A pioneer entrepreneur of the information technology industry, Collins is now retired from the commercial world and devotes his time to creating his Mark Rollins Adventures series and authoring stories about Asheville and Western North Carolina. The 2023 award is fourth national award received by the author’s novels.