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• INDEPENDENT 24 PR ES 20 S D AR AW
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WHO CAN ENTER?
Print and audiobooks can be submitted by: • Independent publishers • University presses • Hybrid publishers • Association presses • Self-published authors If you are a big five publishing house, you must submit your books to our fall competition, NYCBigBookAward.com, which has a separate committee and entry fee. Outside of the big five publishing houses, any publisher or author may submit to both competitions, IndependentPressAward.com (every spring); and NYCBigBookAward.com (every fall). See webpages for complete details.
WHEN CAN I ENTER the Independent Press Award? We are on a rolling submission, approximately every two and a half months, with two hard deadlines: (1) March 2024 to August 30, 2024; (2) September 1, 2024 to December 30, 2024 All entries must be postmarked no later than December 30, 2024. This final deadline will not be extended. What if I miss the deadline? Enter our fall program NYCBigBookAward.com as we take books until August 30th. ENTRY FEE $125 per title/per category, plus $75 for any additional category
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS Decide which books (copyright date within the past three years is recommended but not required) to enter into this year’s competition. 2 Calculate the total entry fee. Choose which categories, https://www.independentpressaward.com/categories, to enter each book into. You may enter a book into as many categories as you’d like. The fee for the first category is $125. Any additional book categories for that same book is $75 per category. • SINGLE BOOK, MULTIPLE CATEGORIES: One who enters “Book One” in Children’s Educational and Book Cover Design Childrens category, the entry fee is $125 + $75 = $200. 1
Educational and Book Cover Design Childrens category, the entry fee is $125 + $75 = $200, and “Book Two” in Mystery and New Fiction (first-time published), the entry fee is $125 + $75 = $200, so $200 + 200 = $400 in total book entry fees. 3 Download a form from this page, OR submit the entry form online on this page, https://www.independentpressaward.com/online-entry-form-1 Complete form 4 Duplicate each Entry Label if you are entering multiple categories. For print books, a copy of the completed Entry Label must be placed inside the front cover of every book submitted. Up to four physical copies for entry into four or more categories. Audiobooks, a single copy of the completed Entry Label must be submitted along with either an Audible gift code or Authors’ Direct code. IF SUBMITTING ONLINE and sending a book directly from Amazon.com or other retailer/printer, NO PAPERWORK IS REQUIRED to accompany the book(s). 5 Pay via PayPal button on the website or mail a check, along with your books and printed entry form, and ship to:
INDEPENDENT PRESS AWARD 63 Clinton Road Glen Ridge, NJ 07028 USA www.IndependentPressAward.com
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PUBLISHER’S LETTER Welcome readers! What an amazing list of awardwinning books this season. As in years past, the 2024 Independent Press Award saw participation from authors and publishers across the globe, including those residing in Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Cyprus, Germany, India, Kenya, Japan, Nigeria, Norway, Portugal, Scotland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, and The Netherlands. Quite impressive! The breadth of book topics is even more impressive. Did you know what a Keenager is? Have you ever heard of E nâtamukw miyeyimuwin? What about Perestroika? Take a deep dive into this list, you’ll find a treasure trove of knowledge, promising hours of enjoyment. To better get to know the people behind the books, I asked the authors to submit their stories. In the coming pages, you’ll get to know these incredible authors better. From rejection letters (one had over 300!) to writing ‘by accident’, you will find that our award-winning authors each found a different way to the realization of their book. I hope it inspires you as much as it has inspired me. Publishing for me is a mix of creativity and business. BookCAMP 2024 on June 23 - 25, 2024 is a three-day event to cover marketing, publicity, booksellers & library markets, writer circles, literary agents, and even how to make your book available to the big box stores such as Target and Costco. Please visit https://www.independentpressaward. com/ipabookcamp for more details and to reserve your seat. I look forward to your joining us. Until next time, keep on reading!
Ted Olczak Publisher
To submit your book, visit our websites: Fall 2024: https://www.nycbigbookaward.com/ (More consumer focused; different judging; allows for all authors and publishers to participate; announced in the fall of every year) or Spring 2025:
https://www.independentpressaward.com/
To advertise, please contact Ted@GabbyBookAwards.com or Ted@PrintedWordReviews.com, or visit our website, https://www.independentpressaward.com/advertise www.IndependentPressAward.com
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 Call for entries for the Independent Press Award 3 IPA BookCAMP 2024 4 Publisher’s Letter 6 & 7 Tong Ge, author of The House Filler 6 - 26 Independent Press Award 2024 Winners & Distinguished Favorites Listings & Ads 8 Tracee Dunblazier, author of Your Crystal Allies: The 12 Best Gems and Minerals for Giving Love, Receiving Comfort, and Connecting with the Cosmos; and Transformative Grief: An Ancient Ritual of Healing for Modern Times 9 João Cerqueira, author of Perestroika: Eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth 11 Ray Schoenke, author of Fat Girl Sings: Discovering, Embracing, and Leveraging Racial Identity on the Football Field, in Business, and in Life 13 Caytlyn Brooke, author of Among the Hunted 15 Eugina Jordan, author of UNLIMITED: The Seventeen Proven Laws for Success in a Workplace Not Designed for You 17 Donna Hayes, author of These Broken Roads: Scammed and Vindicated: One Woman’s Story 19 Richard C. Brusca, author of The Time Travelers 19 Muhammad Obaidur Rahim, author of Khuda Buksh: The Pioneer of Life Insurance in Bangladesh 21 Hadley Vega, author of JUNKYARD BOYS 21 Bruce Miller, author of Beware the Ides of March: A Novel Based on Psychic Readings 23 Shane Svorec, author of Broken Little Believer: Finding Purpose in All the Pretty Painful Pieces 23 Deborah Tant, author of The Life of Riley Book Series 25 Heather Leigh Strom, author of K9 Spirit Guides: the Healing Power of Man’s Best Friend
No portion of this magazine may be reproduced without express permission from the publisher. The magazine Independent Press Award and NYC Big Book Award Present is published eight times per year and has been issued the following ISSNs by the U.S. ISSN Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.: Format: Online Format: ISSN 2836-9157; and the Print Format: ISSN 2836-9149. Any questions or comments, please contact the Publisher Ted Olczak at Ted@GabbyBookAwards.com or Ted@PrintedWordReviews. com. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by an information storage and retrieval system - except by a reviewer who provides us credit may quote brief passages in a review to be printed in a magazine or newspaper without permission in writing from the publisher. To submit your book for review, send to: Printed Word Reviews, 63 Clinton Rd, Glen Ridge, NJ 07028. Allow 8 - 12 weeks. Unpaid reviews are not guaranteed. More details available on our website at https:// printedwordreviews.com/ The magazine Independent Press Award and NYC Big Book Award Present is published eight times per year and has been issued the following ISSNs by the U.S. ISSN Center, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.: Format: Online Format: ISSN 2836-9157; and the Print Format: ISSN 2836-9149. Any questions or comments, please contact the Publisher Ted Olczak at Ted@GabbyBookAwards.com or Ted@PrintedWordReviews.com. www.IndependentPressAward.com
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