First Novel
- Judge: John Williams
- Winner: Riggs, Jack - When the Finch Rises
- Berry, Steve - The Amber Room
- Best, Steven M. - When Philosophers Were Kings
- Carter, Jimmy - The Hornet's Nest
- Clear, Irvon E. - The Game: Part 1
- duPont, M. Kay - Loving Mr. Lincoln
- Graham, Mitchell - The Fifth Ring
- Hyde, Nancy M. - The Hollow
- Khoury, Hannah - So Pretty an African
- Lazenby, H.F. - A Death in Heaven
- McNaughton, June - Alligator Creek
- Riggs, Jack - When the Finch Rises
- Robbins, Carolyn - Caribbean Green
- Stewart, Fran - Orange as Marmalade
- Sun, Adam - The Mountain Man
- Uhler, Margaret B. Anderson - The Floridians
Read more about this topic: Georgia Author Of The Year Awards 2004