North Street Book Prize
11th year. Your self-published or hybrid-published book can win up to $10,000 plus expert marketing services.
It looks like you're viewing this page with a mobile device. If you need help entering our contest, please email info@winningwriters.com.
Please submit during
February 15-July 1, 2025
Submit self-published or hybrid-published books in one of these categories:
- Mainstream/Literary Fiction
- Genre Fiction (e.g. romance, mystery, thriller, young adult, science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, etc.)
- Creative Nonfiction & Memoir (This category includes books that tell a true story with the kind of narrative arc and literary techniques one would find in a novel or a short story collection. This can include memoirs, personal essay collections, or narrative nonfiction. Biographies and journalistic works might be eligible if they read like a novel and are written for a general audience. Not sure if you're eligible? Please email us.)
- Poetry
- Children's Picture Book
- Middle Grade
- Graphic Novel & Memoir
- Art Book (definition)
- Not currently accepted: books by deceased authors, anthologies with 3+ authors, history, self-help, how-to, business instruction, reference, cookbooks, education, travel guides, political tracts, philosophy, inspirational guides, religious instruction, screenplays, translations of the work of other people, or books for an academic audience. We are open to narratives with political or spiritual themes, but not books whose main goal is to stake out a position and persuade readers to adopt it.
PRIZES
- ONE GRAND PRIZE WINNER WILL RECEIVE $10,000, a marketing analysis and one-hour phone consultation with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, a $500 credit at BookBaby, a $1,000 credit at Atmosphere Press towards publication of a future book plus two blurbs from published authors as part of the AP Blurb Matchmaking program, three months of Plus service (a $207 value) and a $250 account credit from Book Award Pro, a book cover consultation from Laura Duffy Design (a $1,100 value, can be assigned to a future book), and 3 free ads in the Winning Writers newsletter (a $525 value)
- THE TOP WINNER IN EACH CATEGORY WILL RECEIVE $1,000, a marketing analysis and one-hour phone consultation with Carolyn Howard-Johnson, a $500 credit at BookBaby, a $1,000 credit at Atmosphere Press towards publication of a future book, three months of Plus service from Book Award Pro (a $207 value), design for a custom merchandise item based on the winner's book cover from Laura Duffy Design, and one free ad in the Winning Writers newsletter (a $175 value); the winning children's picture book author will also receive a phone consultation from April Cox at Self-Publishing Made Simple (a $289 value) and access to Authorpreneur Summit sessions (an $89 value)
- ONE HONORABLE MENTION IN EACH CATEGORY WILL RECEIVE $500 and three months of Plus service from Book Award Pro (a $207 value); the honorable mention children's picture book author will also receive a phone consultation from April Cox at Self-Publishing Made Simple (a $289 value) and access to Authorpreneur Summit sessions (an $89 value)
- One finalist in each category will receive a free, full-length private critique from Winning Writers (value: $90-$240)
- We will publish online excerpts from all entries that win a prize, along with critiques from the judges
ENTRY FEE
- $85 per book
CRITIQUE OPTION
- If you submit online through Submittable, you will have the option of requesting a full private critique of your book at a discounted rate. (If you order a critique and go on to reach finalist rank or higher in this contest, we'll refund what you paid for your critique.)
ALL CONTESTANTS RECEIVE
- All entrants who submit online via Submittable will receive a brief commentary from one of the judges (5-10 sentences)
- The Great First Impression Book Proposal: Everything You Need to Know About Selling Your Book to an Agent or Publisher in Thirty Minutes or Less by Carolyn Howard-Johnson (PDF)
- Free guides to successful publishing from BookBaby
- The Famed Atmosphere Press Book Promotional Guide (PDF)
- Three months' free subscription to Book Award Pro (Essentials tier), so you can find more great contests for your book
- A free mini-course, "An Introduction to Self-Publishing", at Self-Publishing Made Simple
- A free guide to the book cover design process by professional designer Laura Duffy, with examples of successful book covers (PDF)
When you submit to the North Street Book Prize, you are not committing to any ongoing subscription charges. We do not transmit your payment information to our co-sponsors. If you choose to take advantage of certain free trials after submitting your contest entry, you may give your payment information to one of our co-sponsors at that point, but it's your choice.
Length limit: 200,000 words maximum. Submit an ebook or a printed book. You may submit a collection of short stories or essays as a single entry. No restriction on age of author. No restriction on year of publication. All self-publishing and hybrid publishing platforms are eligible. All countries eligible except Syria, Iran, North Korea, Crimea, Russia, and Belarus (due to US government restrictions).
Read about the winners of our ninth contest. The results of our tenth contest will be announced on February 15, 2025. The results of our eleventh contest will be announced on February 15, 2026.
First time entering? We prepared this brief video to guide you. See also our FAQ and short entry checklist, then click the Submit button below.
The North Street Book Prize is recommended by the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi), a designation for "contests which are organized for the benefit of the author rather than the profit of the organizer."
This contest is currently closed. Our 2025 contest will open on February 15, 2025.
When our contest is open, please click the Submittable button below for full details.
Supplemental contest information (copyright, privacy, special assistance, etc.)
PAST WINNERS SAY...
"Winning a North Street Book Prize was a thrill. A year earlier I had a fun launch for Aunty Jane Knits Up A Storm. I followed the launch with a promotional campaign but was beginning to lose steam...read more
— Steve Wolfson, 2023 North Street winner for Children's Picture Book
"The receipt of the North Street Book Prize for Literary Fiction has been an uplifting and mind-altering experience for me. The call from contest administrator Adam Cohen came at a low point,...read more
— Delores Lowe Friedman, 2021 North Street winner for Mainstream/Literary Fiction
"My consultation with Carolyn Howard-Johnson was filled with great conversation, valuable advice, and left me with two pages of notes, inspired and motivated! I'd read her book...read more
—Ryan Poirier, 2021 North Street winner for Graphic Novel & Memoir
"As a recent winner, I am highly impressed about how supportive they have been: offering a detailed review of my work, a free ad, a marketing consult, and a credit for BookBaby—all of this in addition to a significant cash prize. All of this for an indie, self-published book of poetry: a category not served by many other venues...read more
—W.R. Rodriguez, 2018 North Street winner for Poetry
Media
This contest accepts both print books and ebooks. If you submit an ebook, we may request a print copy if your book advances past our initial screening. If this is burdensome or expensive, we'll work with you to minimize your expense and effort. We won't let cost stand between you and an award.
Your Own Work
Books co-written with a ghostwriter or a developmental writer are not eligible. This means we won't accept "as-told-to" memoirs, where the narrator tells their life story to a different person who puts it into writing. For the purpose of this contest, a ghostwriter or developmental writer is anyone hired to write, rewrite, or create the structure of a book (or significant portions thereof) for which the contest entrant takes credit as the author. Such books are ineligible, whether or not the assisting writer is credited in the acknowledgments. To be eligible, the assisting writer would have to be credited in all materials as the co-author and they would share in any prize awarded by Winning Writers.
Books written with the aid of a text-generating AI such as ChatGPT are not eligible. AI-generated illustrations for picture books are discouraged; if used, they must be credited as such, for Winning Writers to evaluate eligibility on a case-by-case basis.
It is acceptable—and a good idea—to engage a developmental editor to advise you on matters such as pacing, story structure, plot, and character development, as well as a copyeditor and/or proofreader to catch typos and grammatical errors. Jane Friedman provides a list of professionals who can help you. (These assistants should always be credited in your afterword.) However, we expect that the actual writing, and any revision in response to these editorial suggestions, is entirely done by the author whose name is on the cover. Please email info@winningwriters.com if you're not sure if your entry is eligible.
Categories
Select one category only for your book. The judges reserve the right to reassign an entry from one category to another as they deem appropriate.
Young Adult Books
In general, please submit YA books as Genre Fiction. If this doesn't seem appropriate, please email info@winningwriters.com for guidance.
Publication Status
Please only submit books that have been published and are currently available to the public for sale (or for free). Please do not submit unpublished manuscripts.
Self-Publishing and Hybrid Publishing Platforms
Books published on any self-publishing or hybrid publishing platform are eligible for this contest. You do not have to publish with BookBaby or engage with any other co-sponsor of this contest.
Feedback on Entries
Everyone who enters online will receive a brief commentary from one of the judges (5-10 sentences). We will publish longer public critiques of the books that win cash prizes and provide private critiques to the finalists. At the time you submit online, you will have the option to purchase a full private critique at a discounted rate.
Hybrid Publishers
In addition to self-published books, we are accepting books from hybrid publishers (see definition). Hybrid-published books are eligible if the author paid half the costs of publication or more. If your eligibility is not clear, please email info@winningwriters.com for guidance.
Reissued as Self-Published or Hybrid-Published Book
If your book was originally published by a traditional publisher, then you took back your rights and reissued it as a self-published or hybrid-published book, your book is eligible for the North Street Book Prize.
No Scholarly Works
This contest is not appropriate for scholarly works (i.e. academic, peer-reviewed, or refereed work). These would impose a substantial fact-checking burden on our staff. We rely on authors to affirm the accuracy of their works.
Most Countries Eligible; English Language
Due to US government restrictions, we regret we are unable to accept entries from Syria, Iran, North Korea, Crimea, Russia, and Belarus. All other countries are eligible. The works you submit should be in English.
Not Anonymous
This contest is not judged anonymously. Friends, relatives, and close students of the judges and Winning Writers staff should not enter.
No Age Restriction
Writers of all ages may enter.
Privacy
We may share your contact information with the contest co-sponsors. We will not rent your information to third parties.
Copyright
If your entry wins any cash prize, you agree to give Winning Writers a nonexclusive license to publish an excerpt from your work online. We will work with you to select an appropriate excerpt (typically 1,000-6,000 words, or 4-10 pages from poetry and image-oriented books). You retain all other rights. You are free, for example, to publish your work in print or online elsewhere, and to enter it into other contests, whether or not you win a prize in this contest.
Refunds
Generally, entry fees are not refundable. However, if you believe you have an exceptional circumstance, please contact us within one year of your entry.
Assistance
If you have questions, please email them to info@winningwriters.com.
Submitting to the North Street Book Prize by mail
Please make your US$85 entry fee payable to Winning Writers and mail with your entry to:
Winning Writers
Attn: North Street Book Prize
351 Pleasant Street Suite B PMB 222
Northampton, MA 01060-3998
USA
Include your full name, mailing address, phone number, and email address with your entry. Please also indicate the category for your entry. Only one copy of your book is needed. We accept checks and money orders drawn on US financial institutions and the US Postal Service. US currency (cash) is acceptable. You may also send your fee via PayPal to adam@winningwriters.com. Please postmark your entry by July 1.
Please note that feedback will only be provided for entries submitted via Submittable, and not those entries submitted by mail.
If you would like us to return your book at the conclusion of the contest, please request this at the time of your entry and enclose an extra $10 for postage and handling.
