Which book awards do you enter? Do they matter?
Let’s start with the second question first. The answer: sometimes. Depending upon the tenacity of the author/publisher in getting the word out about the book and the award, you could be wasting your money. Awards can be used to market your book, but it doesn’t happen by itself. You will be the primary promoter. Always.
Some of the more established awards—USA Book News, Foreword, Ben Franklin, IPPY and the Center for the Book (put your state name in front on Center for the Book to find contact)—send out professional press releases. Some actively promote the winners on their websites and events. When Judith Briles won the Colorado Center for the Book in the non-fiction category, the Tattered Cover Bookstore attended with a display of all the winners and sold books—lots of them … and continued to promote them actively throughout the year. However, other awards just take your money and only notify you if you are a finalist or winner. Little else is done.
Note: USA Book News, Foreword, IPPY and the Center for the Book do not require membership to enter their competitions. That’s where Author U believes the line should be drawn—awards can be big money for the promoter. With that money, there should be some media promotion for the winners and there should be a specific website that cares all the winners names and their books.
Back to the first question. If you are active in a publishing or authoring organization, consider entering. But if you have to pay a fee to be a member and then another one to enter the competition, take a pass. Your marketing (and these are marketing) dollars are best spent elsewhere.
The Book Awards business is a revenue business . . . for the promoter. Before you put your moneys out, make sure you do your homework. Why are you entering? If you win, what will you do to promote your status? Does the group support its winners with media coverage? Last but not least, Google the group—are there any complaints, problems or accusations of scams? If so, find another group. Make your time, your book, and your dollars work for you.
Next week, a detailed list of Awards Author U supports will be included. Meanwhile, there’s one that you want to take advantage of now. USA Book News’ winners are getting both national attention and entries from the first tier publishers.
BONUS for Author U and The Book Shepherd followers: Author U has arranged for a special $10 discount on its normal $69 entry fee … so $59 to you. All you have to do is register with this link—it’s good until August 31st.
http://usabooknews.com/authoru.html
THE 2012 USA BEST BOOK AWARDS
FINAL CALL FOR ENTRIES—August 31st deadline!
Sponsored by USA Book News, based in Los Angeles, California … Now Celebrating Their 9th Year of Honoring Mainstream and Independent Titles!
- Enter One of the Largest Mainstream Award Competitions in the United States!
- Nine-Year History of Incredible Media & Sales Results for Winners & Finalists!
- Open to all 2010-2012 Published Books and E-books.
- Author U Special! $10 off entry fee (HURRY! BONUS Special Expires August 31th)
- Full-Color, 5-Month Listing for Every Entry on USABookNews.com!
Major Publicity and Marketing Campaign will announce results in November 2012.
Enter Today and Get Your Book the Attention It Deserves!
Register here and save $10: http://usabooknews.com/authoru.html
Judith Briles is the Author and Publishing Expert, The Book Shepherd (www.TheBookShepherd.com) and the Founder of Author U (niversity (www.AuthorU.org), a membership organization created for the author who wants to be seriously successful. She’s been writing about and conducting workshops on publishing since the 80s. Judith is the author of 30 books including Show Me About Book Publishing, co-written with John Kremer and Rick Frishman and a speaker at publishing conferences. Her next book, Author YOU: Creating and Developing the Author and Book Platforms will be available fall 2012. Catch her radio show, Your Guide to Book Publishing on Thursdays at 6 pm, EST. http://rockstarradionetwork.com/shows/yourguidetobookpublishing
Follow @AuthorU and @MyBookShepherd on Twitter and do a “Like” at AuthorU and TheBookShepherd on Facebook. Join the Author U LinkedIn group and add your voice. If you want to create a book that has no regrets, contact her at Judith@Briles.com.