C.J. Heigelmann

C.J. Heigelmann is an emerging author of Contemporary, and Historical Fiction, and Psychological Thrillers, who has published three novels, An Uncommon Folk Rhapsody, Crooked Fences, and Can't Hide What's Inside.

C.J. learned to negotiate the changing fabric of class relations within the United States while experiencing different nuances of racial interconnection and social class ideologies from California to Connecticut, the Deep South, and during military service in the United States Air Force. CJ combines these unique experiences with his knowledge of the humanities, an empathetic heart, and a belief in world peace, to produce literature that focuses on the human condition in any genre he touches.

Ever evolving, but yet retaining his core signature of sharp-edged reality, his writing style brings a fresh and compelling perspective to every plot and storyline.

He is a member of the Authors Guild, the Historical Novel Society, and the South Carolina Writers Association.

AWARDS

Independent Press Award, Winner, Multicultural Fiction, 2021, An Uncommon Folk Rhapsody (Historical Fiction).

Wishing Shelf Book Award, Finalist, Adult Fiction, 2020, An Uncommon Folk Rhapsody (Historical Fiction).

New York City Big Book Award, Distinguished Favorite, Military Fiction, 2020, Crooked Fences (Contemporary Fiction).

Elizabeth Boatwright Coker Fellowship for Fiction, Finalist, 2021, The Other Side of the Hill (Short Story Fiction).

Bestselling Amazon Author: Contemporary Literary Fiction, Depression, Racism and Discrimination, African American Literary Fiction, Historical Thrillers, and Historical African Fiction.

"I express my characters in their pure flawed form because all of us are flawed. I don't shrink from using stereotypes whether positive or negative. Instead, I promote them and in the next breath completely shatter them. This exposes the error of subjugating individuals to intellectually lazy social labels, compelling the reader to confront the empirical nature of a character while lending insight into true understanding."

"Readers are not one-dimensional, and the stories they read shouldn't be either."

C.J. Heigelmann