Attitudes at Altitude July

So much has happened since the May newsletter and within the virtual walls of the Hall. The judges had completed their reads, individual evaluations, and met in June all together to discuss and decide. Of course, the Board’s approval of the new class of Aspiring Author Scholarships … and what a class they are!

Not only was the submission response for our biennial Aspiring Author Scholarships huge this year, but the quality of submissions was outstanding—so impressive that the Board voted to add a new category plus increase the number of finalist possibilities.

Meet our promising new authors:

Winners:

Molly Heines, Tiffany Neislanik, Emma Needell, Sam Rosewilde, Mallory Decker

Runner Up:

Stacey Naughton, Erin Jones, Jim Roome

Finalist:

Farrah Yeganeh, Terry Schultz, Emily Richardson, Lucas Cunningham, Susan Loriho, Zachary Walker

Definitely plan on coming to the Aspiring Authors Awards Luncheon slated for Friday, September 11, 2026, at the Inverness Denver in Englewood to honor ALL the designees. You will find the hotel, a former country club, easy to get to, with plenty of parking—including valet.

https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/denirhh-the-inverness-denver-a-hilton-golf-and-spa-resort/

The summer featured authors are Rebecca Yarros and Sandra Dallas. Rebecca was inducted into the Hall in 2025 and is the leading novelist in the contemporary romance, and romantasy genres. She writes highly addictive, "melodramatic rollercoasters"— page turners for her super fans. Sandra Dallas was inducted in 2021 and writes adult novels, middle-grade school, and nonfiction books. Her fiction is primarily historical, often with a western theme. She’s been dubbed “a quintessential American voice.”

We are now in search of an Executive Director for the Hall—I’m at my 10-year mark, and it is time for me to turn what I do over to another as the Hall continues to grow.

My best to all of you …

Sandra Dallas, New York Times best-selling author SANDRA DALLAS, the author of 18 adult novels, five middle-grade novels, and 10 nonfiction books, was dubbed “a quintessential American voice” by Jane Smiley, in Vogue Magazine. Sandra’s novels with their themes of loyalty, friendship, and human dignity have been translated into a dozen foreign languages and have been optioned for films.

A journalism graduate of the University of Denver, Sandra began her writing career as a reporter with Business Week. A staff member for twenty-five years (and the magazine’s first female bureau chief,) she covered the Rocky Mountain region, writing about everything from penny-stock scandals to hard-rock mining, western energy development to contemporary polygamy. Many of her experiences have been incorporated into her novels.

While a reporter, she began writing the first of her nonfiction books. They include The Quilt That Walked to Golden, recipient of the Independent Publishers Assn. Benjamin Franklin Award and Sacred Paint, a biography of artist Ned Jacob.
Turning to fiction in 1990, Sandra has published 18 novels, including Westering Women, and four young adult books, the latest Someplace to Call Home. Sandra is a six-time recipient of the Women Writing the West Willa Award for New Mercies, The Bride’s House, True Sisters, A Quilt for Christmas, Hardscrabble and Someplace to Call Home.

She is a three-time winner of the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum’s Wrangler Award for Sacred Paint, The Quilt Walk and Hardscrabble and has won the Western Writers of America Spur Award four times, for The Chili Queen, Tallgrass, The Last Midwife, and Someplace to Call Home. The audio version of Tallgrass won two Audio Publishers Assn. Audie Awards. Prayers for Sale was given the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award for Historical Fiction. She is the recipient of the 2014 Eleanor Gheres Award from the Denver Public Library and the 2014 Frank Waters Award from the Pikes Peak Library District. Her latest books a The Hired Man in 2026.

Sandra lives in Denver and Georgetown, Colorado, with her husband, Bob. She is the mother of two daughters, Dana, a lawyer in New Orleans, and Povy, a photographer in Golden, Colorado.

Featured Books:

Rebecca Yarros, became a published author in 2014 at age 33, with her novel, Full Measures, for which she was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Awards Debut. Since then, she completed 23 other novels—that makes over two/year! Her latest writing endeavor involves a new fantasy series, the Empyrean, which is scheduled to be turned into a TV series on Amazon Prime at a later date. Yarros completed the third in that series of five books in 2025.

She is a #1 New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal  bestselling author.

Rebecca’s list of other awards is lengthy: recipient of the British Book Award for Book of the Year, the Alex Award from the American Library Association, the Australian Book Industry Awards International Book of the Year, the Goodreads Choice Awards Romantasy, and the Dragon Awards Fantasy. In 2024, TikTok awarded Fourth Wing as its BookTok Book of the Year. Goodreads honored the Onyx Storm as the Favorite Romantasy and Audiobook in 2025.

A graduate of Troy University in Troy, Alabama, she studied European history and English. Rebecca loves military heroes and has been blissfully married to hers for over twenty years.

As the mother of six, when she’s not writing, you can find her at the hockey rink or sneaking in some guitar time. She and her family live in Colorado Springs with their stubborn English bulldogs, two feisty chinchillas, and two cats who rule them all.

Having fostered and then adopted their youngest child, Rebecca is passionate about helping children in the foster system through her nonprofit, One October, which she co-founded with her husband in 2019. To learn more about their mission to better the lives of kids in foster care, please visit www.OneOctober.org.

To catch up on Rebecca’s latest releases and upcoming novels, visit www.RebeccaYarros.com.

Featured Books:

Mara Purl, is the renowned author of the national and international best-selling, Milford-Haven Novels, which have won over 90 book awards. Her hit radio drama, Milford-Haven, U.S.A., reached 4.5 million BBC listeners and became the basis for her books. Mara is an American Book Fest Author Award Laureate and is a Library of Congress influencer in recorded work. She wrote for the Associated Press, Rolling Stone, and the Financial Times of London. As an actress, Mara is well known for leading stage roles as well as her regular appearances in the daytime television series, Days of Our Lives.

Believing passionately in the value of authorship and literacy, Mara created S.T.A.R. (Student Theatre and Radio) and taught students for 15 years in California, Colorado, Alaska, and Japan. With Judith Briles, she leads the Aspiring Authors Scholarship Mentoring/ Education Program. Mara serves as a consultant for authors in her role as CEO of Haven Books, LLC and is the Vice President of the Halls’ Board.

Visit www.MaraPurl.com and www.HavenBooks.us.

Attitudes at Altitude promises to our readers …

We celebrate the outstanding authors inducted into the Colorado Authors’ Hall of Fame since 2019. They are the first in the United States to honor only published authors and look at the impact and breadth of their work.

The next Authors Hall of Fame Induction will occur in September 2027. Date and location to be determined. Nominations for the public will open in August of 2026 and close in March of 2027.

Each month, past Inductees are featured with their background and latest books.
Past Inductees will offer their sage advice on “how they do it”–whatever “it” is.
You will be the first to hear about Hall Events that are planned. Meet a favorite author ... or a new one—one that has delivered mega hours of reading enjoyment ... one that has made an impact on society or their field.

Support the Hall

The Colorado Authors' Hall of Fame celebrates the accomplishments of living and passed authors who have been connected to Colorado—their words, wisdom, accomplishments and the life-changing impact their works create. The result: their legacy lives on.

The Hall is an all-volunteer-run 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that honors and celebrates authors connected with Colorado by birth; by residence; by temporary residency for writing encouragement and support; by writing about elements within Colorado; or by placing storylines in or about Colorado.

Authors’ words have immense power and impact to change others’ lives. They solve problems, bring awareness to a topic, and provide hours of pleasurable reading. It’s the power of their words.

Your financial assistance through donations and participation at events supports the bi-annual Induction Gala in odd-numbered years; the Aspiring Author Scholarships; and the general operation to bring these events to the public.

Support the Hall for this year going forward.