2019 Indie Book Award Winners Announced

WASHINGTON, June 4, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Independent Book Publishing Professionals Group (IBPPG) has named the best indie books of 2019.

The books are winners of the 2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards, the world's largest not-for-profit book awards program for independent publishers and self-published authors. The winners and finalists will be honored June 21 at the Mayflower Hotel, coinciding with the American Library Association Annual Conference.

The awards are judged by leaders of the indie book publishing industry, including many with long careers at major publishing houses. Their love of a great read and experience in the publishing arena identify books deserving a wider audience.

2019 is the 12th year of the not-for-profit book awards program.

Catherine Goulet, Co-Chair of the Next Generation Indie Book Awards, proudly said, "Our program has become known as the Sundance of the book publishing world."

In an article at CNN.com titled If it's cool, creative, and different, it's indie, journalist Catherine Andrews wrote: "The term 'indie' traditionally refers to independent art – music, film, literature or anything that fits under the broad banner of culture – created outside of the mainstream and without corporate financing." That definition remains true for book publishing.

Independent book publishing companies are independent of the major conglomerates dominating the book publishing industry. Indies include small presses, larger independent publishers, university presses, e-book publishers, and self-published authors.

According to Goulet, "The indies must work harder to get their best books into the hands of readers."

"Authors and publishers who compete in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards are serious about promoting their books," added Goulet. "They aim to stand out from the crowd of millions of books in print."

According to an October 2018 report by Bowker, publisher of the Books in Print database, the number of self-published titles grew to 1,009,188 in 2017, an increase of 28% over the previous year, surpassing the million mark for the first time.

To help indie authors and publishers reach a wider audience, the top 70 books in the 2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards will be reviewed by New York literary agent Marilyn Allen of Allen O'Shea Literary Agency, or one of Ms. Allen's co-agents, for possible representation in areas such as: distribution, foreign rights, film rights, and other rights. Ms. Allen has worked with best-selling authors and served in senior positions with major publishers including Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, and Penguin Books.

The top prize-winning books in the 2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards are:

Top Non-Fiction Books

First Place Winner ($1,500 Prize)
The Telling Image: Shapes of Changing Times, by Lois Farfel Stark (Greenleaf Book Group Press)

Second Place Winner ($750 Prize)
The Stephen Decatur House: A History, by James Tertius de Kay, Michael Fazio, Osborne Phinizy Mackie, and Katherine Malone-France (The White House Historical Association)

Third Place Winner ($500 Prize)
Tales from an Uncertain World: What Other Assorted Disasters Can Teach Us About Climate Change, by L.S. Gardiner (University of Iowa Press)

Honorable Mention ($250 Prize)
Gather & Make: Plant-Based Projects for All Seasons, by Genevieve Layman (Azara Publishing)

Top Fiction Books

First Place Winner ($1,500 Prize)
Beloved Mother, by Laura Hunter (Bluewater Publications)

Second Place Winner ($750 Prize)
Two Skies Before Night, by Robert Gryn (Self-Published)

Third Place Winner ($500 Prize)
Torment: A Novella, by H.D. Hunter (The Southern District Publishing Company)

Other Winners

She Writes Press, part of SparkPoint Studio, will be honored as Publisher of the Year.

Top books were named as winners and finalists in over 70 publishing categories ranging from Action/Adventure to Young Author.

A complete list of 2019 winners and finalists is available at the Next Generation Indie Book Awards website at www.indiebookawards.com.

2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards

Entries are now being accepted for the 2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards. The awards are open to books released in 2018, 2019, or 2020 from independent authors and publishers worldwide. Visit www.indiebookawards.com for information.

MEDIA CONTACT: Shelley Anderson 403-873-1018

SOURCE Independent Book Publishing Professionals Group

Related Links

https://www.indiebookawards.com