AWARDS and PRIZES
Explore award levels, prizes, and sponsored awards for the current award cycle.
How the Awards Work
All eligible submissions are automatically considered for awards. There is no separate application process.
- Category winners are selected first
- Grand Prize winners are selected from category winners
- Sponsored awards are selected independently based on specific criteria
Grand Prize Cash Awards
Cash Grand Prizes are awarded in both the Fiction and Non-Fiction programs.
GOLD – $1,000
SILVER- $350
BRONZE – $150
Cash Grand Prizes start at the above-listed minimum amounts per award cycle, per program and may increase based on entry volume and sponsor participation.
Grand Prize winners are selected from first-place (Gold) category winners within each program.
Final cash award amounts will be confirmed and announced prior to winner notification. All eligible entrants will be notified of finalized prize amounts before public announcements are made.
General Awards
AWARD LEVELS
GOLD AWARD – First Place
SILVER AWARD – Second Place
BRONZE AWARD – Third Place
FINALIST – Honorable Mention
General awards are presented in each individual Fiction and Non-Fiction category.
First (Gold), second (Silver), and third (Bronze) place winners are awarded in each category, with additional titles recognized as Finalists based on scoring results.
Category winners receive a digital award certificate and official awards seal and are permanently listed on the Reader Views Winners page.
The number of finalists varies by category and depends on the total number of entries and how closely titles score during judging.
Sponsored Awards
In addition to General and Grand Prize awards, select Sponsored awards may be presented each award cycle. Sponsored awards are supported by partner organizations and are judged separately based on defined criteria.
Sponsored awards and availability may vary by award cycle and may highlight specific genres, themes, or reader communities.
2025 Sponsored Awards – Children’s Categories
The Barefoot Librarian Book Award
AWARD: A complimentary professional 15-minute phone consultation with the Barefoot Librarian for tips on how to sell your book to librarians and educators. The book will be announced as the winner of the THE BAREFOOT LIBRARIAN BOOK AWARD in the Barefoot Librarian’s social media platforms and website.
CRITERIA: Winner selected from the finalists in the early readers category. Picture books should be geared toward 6-8 year-old readers.
The Book By Book Award for Best Children/Teen/Young Adult Book of the Year
AWARD: 30-60 Second book teaser video creation and 1-year video advertisement in First Chapter Plus.
CRITERIA: Winner will be chosen from the first-place winners in the Children’s, Teen and Young Adult categories.
The Book By Book Award for Best Children’s Picture Book
AWARD: 30-60 Second book teaser video creation and 1-year video advertisement in First Chapter Plus.
CRITERIA: Winner will be selected from the winners of the children’s picture book categories.
The First Chapter Plus Rising Star Award
AWARD: One year ad in First Chapter Plus, an eMagazine sent to librarians, book store owners and potential readers/bloggers/reviewers.
CRITERIA: Author or illustrator must be age 18 or under at the time the book was written/illustrated.
The Reader Views Award for Best Children’s Book of the Year
AWARD: One year ad in First Chapter Plus, an eMagazine sent to librarians, book store owners and potential readers/bloggers/reviewers.
CRITERIA: Winner will be chosen from the first-place winners in the Children’s categories.
The Reader Views Award for Best Children’s Book of the Year
AWARD: One year ad in First Chapter Plus, an eMagazine sent to librarians, bookstore owners and potential readers/bloggers/reviewers.
CRITERIA: Winner will be chosen from the first-place winners in the Teen and Young Adult categories.
The Ben St. James Author & Illustrator Award
AWARD: A press release distributed to 399 media outlets across the USA announcing the winner, with background on the author and the Reader Views award program. The winner will also receive a custom award seal graphic. Prize valued at $400.
CRITERIA: Winner selected from authors who both wrote and illustrated their own picture book. Early reader chapter books and graphic novels where the author also served as illustrator may also be considered.
2025 Sponsored Awards – General Categories
The Dabble Award for Breakout Fiction Voice
AWARD: 1 year of Dabble Premium for free. This includes access to our premium writing tool, as well as all our learning materials, like courses, workshops, and templates that help authors hone their craft and their marketing skills.
CRITERIA: Recognizes a debut fiction title whose narrative voice is bold, distinctive, and impossible to ignore. Winner selected from top-scoring non-explicit fiction titles.
The Dabble Award for Best Story Craft
AWARD: 1 year of Dabble Premium for free. This includes access to our premium writing tool, as well as all our learning materials, like courses, workshops, and templates that help authors hone their craft and their marketing skills.
CRITERIA: Recognizes a fiction title that demonstrates exceptional skill across all elements of the writer’s craft — voice, structure, character, and style. Winner selected from top-scoring non-explicit fiction titles.
The Dabble Award for Most Inventive Story World
AWARD: 1 year of Dabble Premium for free. This includes access to our premium writing tool, as well as all our learning materials, like courses, workshops, and templates that help authors hone their craft and their marketing skills.
CRITERIA: Recognizes a fiction title that brings an imaginative, richly detailed story world to life in a way that feels wholly original. Winner selected from top-scoring non-explicit fiction titles.
The Women In Publishing Summit Award for Best Female Debut Author
AWARD: A free one-year membership in WIP Society, designed to help authors grow their platform and build their business. In addition to regular training and networking, membership also includes a ticket to the virtual Women in Publishing Summit and three virtual Bootcamps.
CRITERIA: Winner selected from top-scoring female debut authors in all categories.
The AutoCrit Emerging Writer Award
AWARD: One-year Pro-Membership – “Empower writers with the knowledge, connections, and tools to improve their writing skills, polish their manuscripts, and succeed as authors!”
CRITERIA: Three winners will be chosen from the top-scoring debut authors (all categories considered).
The Conversations Award for Best Regional Book of the Year
CRITERIA: Winner will be chosen from the first-place winners in fiction and nonfiction, in the regional categories.
AWARD: One Winner from Fiction and one winner from Non-Fiction will receive an on-camera interview on Amazon Live with Cyrus Webb www.cyruswebbshow.live plus an interview on Conversations Live Radio, an advertisement in Conversations Magazine (circulation 17k yearly subscribers), and a listing in Conversations Book Club.
The Live Write Thrive Award for Storytelling Excellence
AWARD: Choose from one of the following courses to elevate your writing skills:
Crafting Powerful Settings, 8 Weeks to Writing a Commercially Successful Novel, Emotional Mastery for Fiction Writers, The 10 Key Scenes That Frame Up Your Novel, Your Cast of Characters, The 4 Foundational Pillars of Novel Structure
CRITERIA: Celebrates an author whose work embodies the spirit of passion, skill, and creativity in storytelling. This award recognizes individuals who, much like the ethos of the Live Write Thrive community, demonstrate excellence in narrative craft, contribute significantly to their genre, and inspire fellow writers through their dedication and innovative approaches to storytelling.
The Love Books Tours Compelling Characters Award
AWARD: Seven-day UK/US digital tour
CRITERIA: Winner selected from among the winning fiction titles with the most compelling characters.
The Tyler R. Tichelaar Award for Best Historical Fiction
AWARD: Value $100 cash prize and a book review, and press release written by Tyler R. Tichelaar. Press release distributed by Reader Views.
CRITERIA: First Place winner in the Historical Fiction category.
The Veneration Award for Best Debut Poetry Collection
AWARD: 50% off a complete editing package (including arrangement, stylistic, and copyediting services) on the winner’s next poetry collection.
CRITERIA: Winner selected from top-scoring debut poetry collections.
The Amy Lignor Memorial Award of Excellence
Treasured friend, author, editor, and reviewer Amy Lignor passed away unexpectedly in May 2022. As an award-winning, best-selling author, her love of the written word was beyond compare. Her steadfast belief was that every author needs an editor they can trust and made it her mission to help both bestselling authors and debut novelists succeed with ghostwriting, editing, and promotion. Reader Views proudly sponsors this award as a tribute to Amy’s amazing, selfless contributions to the writing community.
AWARD: Interview on Inside Scoop Live as well as feature in our First Chapter Plus magazine.
CRITERIA: The book must be of exemplary quality; highly polished and edited, and a first-rate entertaining story. Winner selected from the first place winners in all categories
The Book By Book Pub Award for Best Writing/Publishing Book
AWARD: Winner will receive a written author interview and a podcast interview on the Inside Scoop Live Podcast. Each interview will receive feature postings on ReaderViews.Com and InsideScoopLive.Com, along with features in our newsletter, and social media exposure.
CRITERIA: 1st Place book in the Writing/Publishing category
The Inside Scoop Live Award for Most Innovative Short Story Collection
AWARD: Interview on Inside Scoop Live as well as feature in our First Chapter Plus magazine.
CRITERIA: Book must showcase originality in theme or concept and push boundaries through inventive storytelling, structure, or style.
The Jack Eadon Memorial Award for Best Book in Contemporary Drama
Beloved Author Jack Eadon, a long-time friend of Reader Views and a sponsor of the Reader Views Literary Awards Program since its inception, passed away in 2019. First Chapter Plus is continuing this award in his name, in gratitude and as a tribute of his dedication to his craft, his infectious energy, and zeal for all things creative.
AWARD: Full page ad in the First Chapter Plus eMagazine plus an Author Interview and Feature in the same edition.
CRITERIA: The characters must be vividly portrayed as those individuals who can exist side-by-side with someone living in this world now, dealing with issues of today in a dramatic fashion. The setting must be excruciatingly real.