The Women’s Book Awards honor the best in women’s memoirs and contemporary and historical novels published by indie/university presses and author-publishers.
· The award program is named in honor of May Sarton, who is remembered for her outstanding contributions to women’s literature as a memoirist, novelist, and poet. Sarton memoirs, novels, and nonfiction books are distinguished by their depth of perception, their complex characterization and storylines, and the compelling ways they honor the lives of women.
· The Gilda Prize: “It’s Always Something” is named in honor of comedian Gilda Radner. Gilda memoirs are distinguished by their fresh voices, their honesty, and their authenticity. They make us laugh (even when we want to cry).
The first round of judging is performed by SCN members. Their selections are forwarded to second-round judges (professional librarians), who will be responsible for the final selection of the winning entry. Winners and finalists are announced on SCN’s websites and at its conferences.
Round One Judging
Each entry/book will be read and evaluated by two first-round jurors. The jurors then will record their evaluations online using these rubrics. The award coordinator will use these evaluations to identify the books that will continue to the second round of judging.
Story Circle members are invited to participate in this important project. Each first-round juror will read and evaluate six books (she can read more if she wishes), and submit her evaluations online. Her evaluations will help to determine whether a book is sent on to our second-round panel. If you would like to take part, please fill out the form below so we can learn a little more about you.
Anyone planning to submit a book in the current year’s competition should not apply to be a juror during that year.
