When are the Publishing Innovation Awards announced?

Judging for the Publishing Innovation Awards will occur in December of 2012, with the winners announced publicly as part of the opening ceremonies at Digital Book World Conference + Expo in New York in January, 2013.

The long list and short list of nominees will be released in late 2012, early 2013.

What do winners of the Publishing Innovation Awards receive?

All winners will receive a ticket to the full three day Digital Book World Conference + Expo ($1495 value), four tickets to the Publishing Innovation Awards gala in January, 2013 in New York City, and a physical trophy marking your achievements. In addition, past winners of the Publishing Innovation Awards receive wide coverage in both trade and mainstream press, including mentions in the Los Angeles Times, Publishers Weekly, Publishers Marketplace, Shelf Awareness, Digital Book World, and Library Journal.

What is the QED?

The QED stands for Quality, Excellence, Design and is awarded to ebook and enhanced ebook titles as part of the Publishing Innovation Awards. The QED is the “Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval™” of ebook design and formatting. Titles awarded the QED will have gone through a thorough, independent Quality Assurance (QA) program that ensures their content renders well no matter how a reader chooses to experience it.

It is important to note that the QED is awarded to a title, not a format. As such, titles will be judged in two formats (ePub and Mobi), in three eReader types, and on three screen sizes.

For more on the QED judging process, see this write-up.

What do winners of the QED receive?

Winners of the QED will receive a high quality copy of the QED seal for inclusion on their title’s cover, instructions on adding the distinction to metadata on major retailers, inclusion in a database of QED recipients on Digital Book World, and marketing support through partners of Publishing Innovation Awards.

When will winners of the QED be announced?

QED honorees will be notified on a rolling basis following the close of , as part of the judging of the Publishing Innovation Awards.

I have an enhanced ebook, but it is only available for purchase through an app. Do I submit it as an app or an enhanced ebook?

You should submit the title as an app.

What happens if I do not have copies of all the formats I need when I enter?

As part of your submission, you will be asked to create an account, which will be used to communicate winning notifications and submission issues. When you enter an ebook title for consideration in the Publishing Innovation Awards, you will have the ability to submit additional files after you have made your payment. For the purposes of QED consideration, if you possess an ePub file but not a Kindle file and your title is sold in the Kindle store, then one will be created using Amazon Kindle’s automated conversion process, KindleGen. If your book is not sold in the Kindle store (e.g. it is optimized only for ePub eReaders like Nook, Kobo, iBooks, or Sony), your title will not be converted. You will have the opportunity to indicate this during submission.

When you enter a book app for consideration, the cost of purchasing the app for judging purposes is included in your entrance fee.

Are there any geographic restrictions for the Publishing Innovation Awards?

There are no geographic restrictions for submitting. It should be noted however that the judges are predominantly English-speaking and any title submitted in a language outside of English should have its main features accessible regardless of language spoken.

Is there a fee associated with entry?

There is a flat fee of $199 to submit a title to a single category. For ebook and enhanced ebook categories, QED consideration is included in that fee. For book app categories, the cost of purchasing app downloads for judging purposes is included in the entrance fee.

If you would like to submit for only QED consideration, there is a fee of $125.

Can I submit a title that is not available to the public yet?

Yes. In the case of pre-pub material, the files submitted must be the final versions and the same as those provided to retailers and distribution partners.

What if my book is only available in one format or ebookstore?

If a title is optimized for one format, device, or ebookstore, you will have the ability to indicate that during the submission process.

What is your definition of an enhanced ebook versus an app?

For the purposes of judging the Publishing Innovation Awards and QED, an enhanced ebook may be defined as one that includes audio, video, javascript, fixed-layout, or other similar enhancements. Apps may be defined as those downloaded and exclusively available through an app marketplace, such as Apple’s iTunes.

Have another question that’s not covered here?

Send Amanda Malek an email at amanda (dot) malek (at) fwmedia (dot) com