The Selfies Book Awards UK 2021
Back for the third year, the hugely popular UK Selfies book awards - powered by BookBrunch - is adding for 2021 a third category, adult memoirs/autobiography, to the existing categories of adult fiction and children's books.
Sponsored by IngramSpark and supported by the London Book Fair and Nielsen Book, the awards recognise authors self-publishing their own works - one of the fastest growing parts of the book market. Submissions are now open, and the closing date is Friday 1 January 2021.
Shortlists will be announced at the end of February, and the Selfies Awards for 2021 in all three categories will be announced in the spring.
The inaugural, 2019 Selfies Award was presented to Jane Davis for her adult novel Smash All the Windows. In 2020, the winner of the adult category was Clare Flynn with her historical love story The Pearl of Penang, and Jemma Hatt took home the children's prize for her middle-grade escapade The Adventurers and the Cursed Castle.
"These awards have uncovered some tremendous self-published titles', said Jo Henry of BookBrunch, "and we're delighted to be back for a third year to reward great fiction and children's books, and with a new category for people to enter."
The cash prize for each category is £750 plus a profile in BookBrunch and the option of a special publishing deal provided by sponsors IngramSpark. All shortlisted authors will receive free membership of the Author HQ club at the London Book Fair 2021. Comprising a theatre and networking area, Author HQ provides a forum for discussions on approaches to publishing and includes networking events and "how-to" panels.
What the judges are looking for:
- A fantastic story that entertains and delights the reader
- A well-produced book
- An enticing cover and blurb that successfully address the target audience
- An effective and creative marketing and publicity strategy that has the potential for great sales
All titles submitted need to have been published in English in the UK between January and December 2020. Entries will be accepted only from authors based in the UK who are predominantly or exclusively self-published - ie, where the author acts as the publisher/creative director.
In order to register, authors should go to www.bookbrunch.co.uk, click on the subscribe button and select the 6 month subscription box, using the code SELFIES2021-ADULTFICTION if submitting a title in the adult category, SELFIES2021-CHILDRENS if submitting a title in the children's category, and SELFIES2021-ADULTMEMOIR if submitting a title for the memoir/autobiography category. The fee of £25 per title will include a six-month subscription to BookBrunch (normal price £60).
The sister Selfies book awards in the US will open for submissions on 1 January 2021.
For more information please see www.theselfies.co.uk
