It鈥檚 been over a year since Comox Valley writer Shawn K. Carpenter participated in the Next Top Spiritual Author contest run by best-selling spiritual authors Robert Evans and James Twymann.
Of nearly 3,000 initial participants, Carpenter made the quarter-final round and was one of the last 250 people in the contest.
Though he didn鈥檛 make it to the final round, he certainly made it far enough to be noticed by publishers from different corners of the world.
An owner of a local martial arts school for the last nine years, Carpenter has always wanted to pursue his other primary passion: writing. But due to a plethora of reasons, becoming published was always put on the back burner. The contest, however, opened up new vistas for Carpenter.
鈥淲hen I was first invited to be a part of the contest, I was very excited,鈥� he says in a press release. "It has always been a dream of mine to become a published author 鈥� winning the competition would have been a great way to do so!鈥�
Since the contest, Carpenter says he has gone through an incredible personal journey of self-discovery.
A short time ago, he decided to close his school and to relocate his family. No sooner had that happened than he was given tremendous opportunities 鈥� one of which was being asked to be a part of a new compilation book featuring best-selling authors from the movie The Secret.
鈥淚 was thrilled,鈥� exclaims Carpenter. "The publisher found me through my Facebook page, and it turns out they had loved the work that I had done for the contest. Not only is this a great opportunity to become published, but what an extraordinary way to launch my writing career 鈥� alongside these incredible authors.鈥�
And so as one door closes for Carpenter, it seems that many more are opening.
"I have always felt that if you run toward your dreams, the universe will respond by having your dreams run towards you.鈥�
If you supported Carpenter in the contest, or would like to now, you can join his Facebook group, Shawn K. Carpenter 鈥� Author, where you can get information on pre-ordering your copy of the book, as well as the dates and times for the book launch and signing.
鈥� Shawn K. Carpenter
