Kate’s Crucible has been selected as a finalist for the J. Donald & Bertha Coffin Memorial Book Award for Fiction!

The Kansas Authors Club announces the finalists for the 2026 Kansas Authors Club Book Awards. Each year the organization recognizes published books in the categories of fiction, nonfiction, Kansas history, poetry, children’s books, and book design. Finalists within each category are selected by a panel of readers made up of club members, community members, and book professionals. The finalists from each category are then judged for the award decisions. Kate’s Crucible was selected as one of the five finalists. The winner will be announced in October.

The first chapter of the book won 3rd place in 2023 for a chapter of an unpublished book. The opening chapters of the book were significantly changed in the editing process leading to publication. The published book was submitted for the Coffin Memorial BooK Award for Fiction.