Brandon Sanderson – For mysteries within mysteries, for worlds that stretch what I’ve seen in fantasy, and for some of the best, most explosive endings I’ve ever read. And for making me cry in Rhythm of War.

Brandon Mull – For worlds full of whimsy, wonder, and fun. For pulling off spectacular endings in Beyonders and Five Kingdoms. For being the author I trust most when it comes to content.

Shannon Hale – For characters and relationships. For helping me to relate to and understand a variety of characters and for relationships that feel real.

J. K. Rowling – For an enchanting combination of mystery and wonder, and for books that consistently got better. For creating a world you’d want to live in, provided you’re a wizard, and characters you’d want to be friends with. Thank you for a seven-book masterpiece.

Brian Jacques – For riddles, for tactics, for final stands and brave heroes. For ridiculously long descriptions that made British food sound delicious and for giving profound meaning to nonsense words like Salamandastron and Eulalia.

Gerald Lund – For The Alliance and for Leverage Point, for showing how powerful moral dilemmas combined with suspense and clever plots can produce some of the best books I’ve ever read.

David Farland – For prose that draws the reader in and blending well-thought-out magic systems into a captivating world. For sharing your knowledge and inspiring so many.

Orson Scott Card – For showing that “tactical genius” can come in such a variety of forms. And for demonstrating that it’s possible to write a series where each new installment feels like both a natural continuation of the series and a satisfying conclusion to it – the Bean series.

Rick Riordan – For giving us an incredibly fun hybrid of mythology and pop culture while keeping the focus away from the most questionable aspects of Greek Mythology.

Eoin Colfer – For quirky fun and for showing little-kid me how interesting it can be to combine magic and high technology, even if I still like Half-Moon Investigations best.

C. S. Lewis – For beautiful metaphors and your demonstration that Christianity is logically defensible.

Eric James Stone – For showing me how much fun and variety you can get with a short story.

Howard Taylor – For making me fall in love with a sociopathic ball of poop.