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Shelf Unbound and Bowker have a new book competition for self-publishers.

Shelf Unbound book review magazine announces the Shelf Unbound Writing Competition for Best Independently Published Book, sponsored by Bowker. Any independently published book in any genre is eligible for entry. Entry fee is $40 per book. The winning entry will be selected by the editors of Shelf Unbound magazine.

“Independently Published” books include self-published books and e-books (such as those published through CreateSpace, Lulu.com, iUniverse, etc.) and/or books and e-books published through small presses releasing less than five titles per year. Books entered in last year’s competition are eligible for re-submission in this year’s competition. There is no limit to the number of books an individual can enter; each book is a separate entry. The competition is open to authors worldwide; books must be in English. Any length book is eligible. This year the competition will also introduce the Pete Delohery Award for Best Sports Book, open to fiction and non-fiction sports-related books, in honor of Pete Delohery, author of the novel Lamb to the Slaughter….

The top five books, as determined by the editors of Shelf Unbound, will receive editorial coverage in the December/January 2015 issue of Shelf Unbound. The author of the book named as the Best Independently Published book will receive editorial coverage as well as a year’s worth of full-page ads in Shelf Unbound (rate card value $6,000). More than 100 books deemed by the editors as “notable” entries in the competition will also be featured in the December/January 2015 issue of Shelf Unbound.

Official rules are here (PDF).

Click here for past issues of Shelf Unbound on Issuu.


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