SELCO (Southeastern Libraries Cooperating) is pleased to join in the announcement of a new statewide literary contest designed to spotlight the top self-published young adult and adult fiction books in the state.
Winners in each category will receive:
•$1,000 each in adult and young adult categories. Prizes sponsored by the Minnesota Library Foundation and BiblioBoard.
•Honors at the Public Library Association Conference 2020 reception in Nashville.
•Opportunities to promote your book(s) in Minnesota public libraries.
•If available, print copies of your book will be purchased and made available for checkout through Minnesota’s public libraries.
•Inclusion in a full-page print spread in Library Journal.
•Winners and finalists will be promoted in Indie Minnesota, a digital collection of local authors available on BiblioBoard Library.
In 2016, 20% of the book market was composed of indie authors. That number is likely to increase rapidly. The creation of the Indie Author Project, combined with MN Writes MN Reads (a suite of resources for writers to use to self-publish their work) gives libraries a chance to encourage new work from this growing group. SELCO Executive Director Krista Ross said, “The contest will help give greater visibility to Minnesota writers and bring awareness of the MN Writes MN Reads platform to authors or those who may want to create self-published projects such as family histories or cookbooks.”
Winning authors will reach hundreds, if not thousands, of new readers via Minnesota’s libraries, and can also leverage being an award-winning author for additional marketing opportunities.
Each book that is submitted to the contest must be:
•Indie-published
•Written by a Minnesota resident
•In an adult fiction or young adult fiction genre
•Available in either PDF or ePUB format
Writers can enter the contest at indieauthorproject.librariesshare.com/Minnesota and can check out the free self-publishing resources at mnwritesmnreads.org.
Submissions open April 1, 2019, and close May 31, 2019. A panel of Minnesota librarians, educators, and booksellers will judge the submissions. Multiple submissions are welcome.
The contest is supported by the Minnesota Library Foundation, Library Journal, and SELF-e.