Here you can find everything about the Florida Book Award from how the selection process works to how to apply for it.

Deadlines & Important Dates

Although entries must be received no later than 5:00 p.m. on Monday, January 4, 2010 (this is not a postmark deadline), applicants are encouraged to submit their books into competition any time during the calendar year, and as soon as possible after their books are officially published. Winners will be announced the first week in March.

Selection Process

Three-person juries drawn from the membership of co-sponsoring organizations, subject experts on faculties of Florida colleges and universities, and previous winners will choose up to five finalists for each category, including a first runner-up ("Silver Medal Award Winner") and a winner ("Gold Medal Award Winner"). Juries have the option to make no award. In all cases, jury decisions are final.

Definition of Categories

  1. General Fiction: This category includes short story collections and has a word count requirement of at least 40,000 words
  2. Young Adult Literature (for ages 12-19), including poetry, fiction, and nonfiction books (with or without illustrations)
  3. Children's Literature (through age 11), including poetry, fiction, and nonfiction books (with or without illustrations)
  4. Florida Nonfiction, including Florida history, biography, autobiography, or memoir (authors need not be current Florida residents; book's content must primarily focus on Florida)
  5. Poetry (including chapbooks over twenty pages; submissions must be by a single author)
  6. Popular Fiction (including mystery, fantasy, romance, horror, science fiction, westerns, and adventure)
  7. Spanish Language Book (including non-fiction, novels, young adult literature, children's literature, and poetry for all ages)

Except for category 7, all submissions must be in the English language

Entry Requirements

Books may be submitted into competition by authors, publishers, literary agents, or any member of the public. Individuals may submit a book into more than one competition, but they are required to submit an entry form, an entry fee, and the requisite number of review copies for each competition entered. Jury members listed for each category and members of the Florida Book Awards Advisory Committee will be unable to help anyone uncertain about which category (e.g., children's or young adult) best fits the book being nominated.

A completed entry form, an entry fee of $50.00 per title, and the submission of four copies of each book entered into competition, are required. Entrants are responsible for all shipping charges. Publishers submitting more than five titles will be required to pay a maximum entry fee of $250.00. Any titles over five submitted by publishers will not require additional entry fees. Entry fees are made necessary to offset the cost of the Florida Book Awards program, which receives no outside funding.

To be considered for a book award you need to complete the following tasks:

  1. Fill out and submit a completed entry form
  2. Provide an entry fee of $50.00 per title (make checks payable to: Friends of FSU Libraries)
  3. Four Copies of each title:
    • One copy of the book should be sent to:
      Florida Book Awards Competition
      116 Honors Way, Ste. 314
      Tallahassee FL 32306
    • The remaining three copies of each entry should be sent to jury members of each category named on the website. Jury members must receive their copies by 5:00 p.m., Monday, January 5, 2010. None of the four copies will be returned to the author or publisher. (Although the Florida Book Awards website will carry a list of all books received into competition, authors and publishers are nonetheless encouraged to mail their books "return receipt requested" to jurors and Florida State University.)
  4. Materials must be received by 5:00 p.m., January 5th, 2010.
  5. Except for the Florida Nonfiction Book Award, all work submitted must be written by a current full-time Florida resident. Where questions pertaining to eligibility arise, the Florida Book Awards Advisory Committee will make final determinations.
  6. Books submitted into competition must have an original publication date between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009, must be professionally published and must be assigned an ISBN.
  7. Books may be submitted by anyone (e.g., publisher, author, or literary agent) who pays the entry fee, fills out an entry form, and provides the number of copies requested.
  8. New editions of previously published work are not eligible unless significant changes have been made from the previous edition.
  9. Translations are not eligible for consideration. Translations of FBA medal winners in the Spanish Language Category will not be eligible.
  10. Although a book may be submitted into more than one category of competition if eligible (e.g., General Fiction and Popular Fiction; Children's Literature and Poetry), a separate fee and the requisite number of review copies will be required for each category submission.
  11. Except for the categories Children's Literature and relevant Young Adult Literature, all books submitted into competition will be judged solely for their writing and not for their design or illustration.
  12. Coauthored books are eligible if all authors are full-time Florida residents (Florida Nonfiction authors excepted).
  13. Books by members of the Florida Book Awards Advisory Committee or the members of any jury are precluded from consideration.

Questions? Comments? Concerns?

Please contact us!
Florida Book Awards Competition
116 Honors Way, Ste. 314
Tallahassee FL 32306
floridabookawards@gmail.com
Phone: 850-645-1680

To begin the application, please visit http://www.lib.fsu.edu/about/forms/bookawards