On London’s Regent Street, January 5. Image – iStockphoto: VV Shots
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
Nomination Deadlines: January 22
While the 2021 edition of London Book Fair has moved its dates from March to June 29 to July 1—as we reported in November—the submission deadline for this year’s round of the trade show’s International Excellence Awards arrives on Friday (January 22).
Winners of the 2020 round of awards were reported on March 11, meaning that many world publishing industry players haven’t necessarily had this program on their minds or calendars for a while and this week’s deadline for submissions may catch up with them.
For those who’d like to make nominations this week, then, here’s a quick look at the 2021 awards and their details.
London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award
- This award celebrates an individual’s career dedication to breaking down borders in the international book industry. Jurors look for leadership, documented accomplishments, impact, innovation and/or flair, and legacy.
- It’s open to any individual, in any area of the book business, whose work has contributed significantly to international publishing. Frequently, organizers note, this prize honors someone “in the later stages” of her or his career.
Audiobook Publisher Award
- A key criterion for jurors of this award is “innovation in audiobook publishing,” referring to publication that “has created significant impact, resulting in critical acclaim, high sales, and PR coverage, or have demonstrated a new business model or business innovation.
- It’s open to any audiobook company, or division of a global company, specialist company division, or organization, specialized in audiobook publishing. Note that in this case, the award looks for nominees “whose scope of achievement is predominantly outside the UK.”
Educational Learning Resources Award
- “New learning resources” are the interest here, ones that “enhance and broaden the learning and learners’ experience, whether in schools, home, play schemes, or clubs.”
- Eligibility is limited to a “company or organization operating outside the UK, whose scope of achievement is outside the UK, who produces learning resources.”
Literary Translation Initiative Award
- Nominees should be “organizations that have succeeded in raising the profile of literature in translation, promoting literary translators, and encouraging new translators and translated works.”
- Eligibility is limited to companies and organizations operating outside the UK, “or whose scope of achievement is outside the UK.”
Library of the Year Award
- Jurors look for “the library as an inspirational and democratic space for all; innovative partnerships and initiatives to attract new users and extend the range of services provided; stock promotion and the use of new technology to engage users in library collections; and examples of a library’s contribution to literacy and learning in its community.”
- Any public library operating outside the UK is eligible.
Bookstore of the Year
- Criteria here include customer service as well as staff knowledge, events, display, outreach, atmosphere, innovation, imagination, incorporation of digital, style and flare.
- Eligible stores include “independent or chain store branches whose primary business is outside the UK. “Nominees do not have to be English-language booksellers–though these are welcome too–and there is no stipulation regarding turnover. Business viability will be recognized and entries from more remote locations are encouraged. If you’re a chain applying, please ensure that you nominate one branch specifically.”
Rights Professional Award
In this case, an honoree is a person who has achieved demonstrable success in selling rights and licenses. Jurors look for “breadth of platforms, territories, languages, or media, and will welcome examples of the ability to extract maximum value from international markets.”
Eligible candidates may be based outside the UK and work in any aspect of rights or licensing, but they may be people based in the UK and “working only with non-English-speaking authors.”
Inclusivity in Publishing Award
Nominees for this award should have “demonstrated commitment to improving diversity across the publishing ecosystem. This includes diversity in content produced, marketing strategy, and activity to reach diverse audiences (including working with festivals, bookshops and libraries), and commitment to improvement of equality in the workforce (including disabilities, socio-economic, ethnicity, LGBT, cultural and racial equality).”
Any publishing company based in the UK is eligible.
The program’s winners’ announcement from 2020 is here.
In King’s Cross London, January 8. Image – iStockphoto: VV Shots
More from Publishing Perspectives on London Book Fair is here, more from us on book fairs is here, more on the UK market is here, and more from us on the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic is here.