Congratulations to the top 11 finalists picked by the BookRix community in the Romance Writing Contest:

1. Rgabel, The Midnight Tryst, 32 votes

2. Felixthecat, The Book of Angelina, 30 votes

3. Violashake, Ethereal Solitude, 30 votes

4. Djreid, O’Hara’s Hat, 26 votes

5. Lazarus67, The Knight and The Queen, 24 votes

6. Writer723, The Christmas Thief, 23 votes

7. Sereni, The Queen Mystique , 18 votes

8. Koyelevergreen, Wings of Love, 17 votesz

9. Icecream, Amore Bello, 12 votes

10.Emmy41, Heaven and Hell, 10 votes

And the Wildcard Pick as nominated by BookRix member, Gooduklady, with nominations reviewed by BookRix staff was…

Chance Contacts by Gingermeggs

Good luck to the winners and thanks to all those who participated in the  BookRix Romance Writing Contest either by writing, reading and/or voting. Now, it’s up to the independent panel of Judges to decide!

In just a few days it will be the anniversary of Edgar Allan Poe’s birthday again. Born on January 19 back in 1809, perhaps one of the most referenced writers of all-time and still making an impact from the grave. His leadership into new written territory later proved to be influential even to writers born in the last few decades. And, in a world of constant change it seems, it’s nice to take a moment to reflect on this classic contributor who’s quotes pop up regularly. January also marks the anniversary of the 1845 publication of his famous poem “The Raven,” which was a quick and widespread success!

Poe was not only an American writer, poet, editor and literary critic, he was considered to be part of the American Romantic Movement, and is best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre. Poe was one of the very early American practitioners of the short story and is considered to be an inventor of the detective-fiction genre, according to the collection of data on the subject found on Wikipedia. He is also further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. Wow! Did you know that Poe was also an orphan? Pretty amazing that he was able to accomplish what he did back then. Thanks to the kind-hearted nature of John and Frances Allan during his younger years, Poe was able to work through challenges and come into his own.

To honor Edgar Allan Poe, literary legend and master of the macabre, I’m taking a look back at his renowned works that were later adapted into popular culture references in film, television and music (even the Beatles made reference to Poe!). I thought it might be a nice remembrance to start a dialog about where we’ve seen his influence in main stream media, and our thoughts and opinions on his classic works.

Can you think of other places “The Raven” has served as inspiration, or other works by Poe that have appeared? What other Edgar Allan Poe pieces do you like? Join the dialog about Poe in the BookRix Forum Thread, Edgar Allan Poe Remembered!

In case you’ve never read “The Raven,” here’s your chance! It’s available (along with several others by Poe) on BookRix as a download or readable online with ViewRix: