Barnes & Noble established the Discover Great New Writers program in 1990 to recognize great fiction and non-fiction debuts from authors at the start of their careers. A small group of Barnes & Noble bookseller volunteers convenes year-round to review submissions to the program and handpick titles for our promotion, currently featured at approximately 700 Barnes & Noble bookstores and 100 prominent Barnes & Noble College bookstores, as well as on www.bn.com.
Annually, we recognize two of our exceptional writers with the Discover Great New Writers Award (one each for Fiction and Non-Fiction). In addition to a $10,000 prize, we promote the winning titles extensively in our stores and online.
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| 2010 Discover Fiction Award winner: The Disappeared by Kim Echlin |
2010 Discover Non-Fiction Award winner: The Autobiography of an Execution by David R. Dow |
Previous recipients of the Discover Award include Monica Ali, Eric Blehm, Tracy Chevalier, Joshua Ferris, Ben Fountain, Chang-rae Lee, Elizabeth McCracken, David Sheff and Hampton Sides, among others.
Selection Process
Publishers recommend writers making a strong literary debut. Authors cannot submit their own work to the program; self-published writers and titles published via print-on-demand or available only as NOOK Books™ are also ineligible for submission.
An in-house volunteer reading committee, comprised of more than a dozen Barnes & Noble booksellers from the stores and the Home Office, reads and discusses the proposed titles, choosing a selection of new books per season for special promotion.
Once selected, participation in Discover Great New Writers™ includes:
- Face-out display in the Discover bay in each of our bookstores (length of display is usually 12 weeks)
- An individual shelf-talker with a teaser line placed under each face-out
- A 20% discount on Discover titles for the entire promotional season
- Promotion online at www.bn.com/discover and The Discover Blog, as well as via consumer e-mails and the @BNBuzz Twitter feed for the Discover Award finalists and Discover Seasonal selections
- Special consideration for Discover-selected writers for in-store events and book group discussions
Eligibility
Debuting authors and writers with fewer than three previously published books who have yet to receive a major literary award or whose net sales have yet to reach 10,000 copies are eligible. Exceptions are sometimes made for authors who have published more titles but have yet to break out to a larger audience. Submissions must be original publications, penned by one author.
Literary fiction, short story collections and literary non-fiction, such as travel essays, memoirs or other non-fiction with a strong narrative, qualifies. Books should be intended for an adult or a young adult audience.
Deceased authors and those previously featured in the Discover program are ineligible. Books submitted for a prior season and rejected will not be reconsidered.
Submissions must be made prior to book publication date.
2012-2013 Submission deadlines:
| Season |
Submission Deadline |
Fall 2012
Holiday 2012
Spring 2013
Summer 2013 |
April 5, 2012
June 28, 2012
September 20, 2012
December 13, 2012 |
Contact:
For further information on submissions, contact:
Miwa Messer
Director, Discover Great New Writers
Barnes & Noble, Inc.
122 Fifth Avenue
New York, NY 10011
E-mail: MMesser@bn.com
Phone: (212) 633-4067 |
