The choice to open the contest in March wasn't deliberate but, when we considered the timing with Small Press Month, we thought it worked. A small independent bookseller and a small independent publisher joining together to celebrate independent publishing by searching for new voices in fiction — not bad, huh?

Derek Stafford

Related Quotes

We felt we were in good position at halftime. We wanted to continue to break the press and get to the boards. But the second and third shots were killing us.

— Derek Vincent

That's been the biggest one, just since he's a Cardinal pitcher and he's a local guy and actually in the show. He's just a class-act guy. Watching him throw bullpens has been cool, not just for me, since I'm a Cardinal fan, but for the kids.

— Derek Stafford

ActuallyBiggestCardinal

He comes out every day. He comes out just like we do. He's just trying to get better.

— Derek Stafford

Just for the guys to see what it takes to move on, and also that he's a regular guy. It's not like he has any glow around him, he's a regular guy like they are, and he came from the same city.

— Derek Stafford

We've been having pro guys come out left and right. It's been awesome. Since November, we've had at least one or two of them every day.

— Derek Stafford