The Florida Writers Association (FWA) has announced that Elle Thornton of Atlantic Beach won a Gold Royal Palm Literary Award (RPLA) at the organization’s annual conference in Altamonte Springs. Thornton won for her unpublished mystery "Touch the Dead." In addition, the book placed second for unpublished Book of the Year.
The award was announced at FWA’s recent four-day annual conference in Altamonte Springs. This annual competition, which received 513 qualified submissions, was RPLA’s eighteenth.
“This is the most competitive RPLA we’ve ever had,” said Chris Coward, RPLA chairperson.
In all, the competition covered 28 adult genres and five youth genres, with published and unpublished entries considered separately.
Additional information can be found at the FWA Web site, floridawriters.net, where the complete list of 2019 winners is posted.
June 14, 2026
