Jamestown, OH — On Thursday, September 4th, acclaimed feature writer and columnist Gery L. Deer was honored with the 2025 Appalachian Writers Conference Journalism Award, recognizing his exceptional three-part feature series, “Just My Type.” The articles, which spotlighted a family-run typewriter repair shop, were published in October 2024 across the Xenia Daily Gazette, Fairborn Daily Herald, Beavercreek News-Current, and online at TheJamestownComet.com. The series resonated widely, drawing thousands of views, and even generating new business for the shop.

The Appalachian Writers Conference (AWC) was established in 2023 by Dr. Melissa Newman, President and CEO of Martin Sisters Publishing. The conference supports writers through immersive and genre-inclusive programming, offering workshops on craft, contracts, publishing, and marketing, along with opportunities to pitch to agents. The AWC has quickly become a nationally respected event. The Journalism Award was one of several included in the annual “Appy Inkwell Awards” series as well as the “Dr. Pam Parry Lifetime Learning Award” which honors a valued friend and faculty member of the conference.

“This year, we introduced the journalism award category that we hope to continue,” said Newman, who is also a journalist and former professor of communication. “It recognizes recipients for their steadfast commitment to journalism that celebrates our shared humanity.”

Deer’s award-winning series captivated readers with its heartfelt portrayal of a young entrepreneurial family reviving a business many considered obsolete. “The piece was originally supposed to be a single feature article about an unusual local business,” Deer explained. “I wanted to highlight this young entrepreneurial family who chose an enterprise likely seen as arcane by others, and with a limited future—but I saw so much more. I wanted to share that. I’m incredibly honored that even more people will read it now and learn their story.” 

With a most unusual and diverse career background which includes stage performance and voiceover, Deer’s journey to this recognition is rooted in decades of storytelling. Growing up on his family’s small cattle farm, he learned the fundamentals of business early on. In college, he studied engineering and computer science but was drawn to writing and funded his education by working as a staff writer and editor for the campus newspaper. (Watch Gery Deer’s video interview about the award below.)

Deer spent several years in the engineering and technology sectors before he founded GLD Communications in 1998—an IT firm turned advertising and public relations media agency that has served clients nationwide and in the United Kingdom for more than 25 years.

Despite his technical career, Deer never stopped writing and has been published in hundreds of newspapers, magazines, and digital outlets. His long-running op-ed column, Deer In Headlines, has earned national editorial award nominations, and his copywriting and creative direction have garnered multiple advertising awards. In 2010, another feature series Deer wrote was even nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.

All three parts of Just My Type are now available as a single expanded article at www.thejamestowncomet.com, featuring exclusive photos and author notes. Gery Deer can be reached through his agency by visiting www.gldcommunications.com. Learn more about the AWC online at www.appalachianwritersconference.com.