Amazon Announces New English Language Literary Prize – The Kindle UK Storyteller Award
Winning author to receive £20,000 cash prize and be recognised at central London award ceremony this summer
Amazon UK has announced The Kindle Storyteller Award, a new literary prize recognising newly published work in the English language across any genre. The prize is open to all authors who publish their book through Kindle Direct Publishing on Amazon.co.uk between 20th February and 19th May 2017.
Readers will play a significant role in the competition with the award shortlist compiled based on a number of factors that measure customer interest in the titles, followed by an esteemed panel of judges – made up of both Amazon experts and literary authorities – selecting the Kindle Storyteller 2017 winner. The prize will be announced at a central London ceremony in July, with the winning author being rewarded with a cash prize of £20,000 and a marketing campaign to support the book on Amazon.co.uk, as well as the opportunity to have their book translated for international sales.
“Great books deserve to be celebrated and that’s what we want to do with the Kindle Storyteller competition,” said Alessio Santarelli, EU Kindle Content Director, Amazon. “We hope to encourage aspiring authors and those who have already been published, to get writing and make their new stories available to readers across the world. Publishing a book has never been easier, and the Kindle Storyteller Award will reward the author whose story resonates most with both readers and literary experts.”
Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is a fast, free and easy way for authors to keep control and publish their books in print and digital to a global audience, and receive up to 70 per cent royalties on their work. On any given day, up to 25 per cent of the Top 100 books on the UK Kindle store are published through KDP.
Best-selling author Rachel Abbott, who has sold more books in the UK through KDP than any author said: “I expect the calibre of work for the first ever Kindle Storyteller Award in the English language to be impressive, whether it’s from an established author or an aspiring writer who is encouraged by this prize to publish their first book. Kindle helped me achieve my dream writing career and I believe so many people have a bestselling novel in them just waiting to be written.”
Claire Allfree, the Metro’s Literary Editor added; “What is genuinely exciting about this literary prize is the fact that the winning title could be anything from a biography, to a psychological thriller, to an historical fiction novel. What matters is the quality of the writing and its ability to connect with thousands of readers around the world. I look forward to reading the shortlist.”
The Kindle Storyteller prize is open to submissions of new English Language books from all authors and genres, and entries must be submitted using Kindle Direct Publishing. Titles must be previously unpublished and a minimum of 5,000 words with no upper word limit. All books entered into the Prize will be available on Kindle and Fire devices as well as the Kindle reading app for iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets. Print copies will also available to buy on the Amazon.co.uk store.
Kindle Storyteller opens for entries on 20th of February and titles must be entered into the KDP Select programme for the entry period in order to be considered. For more information, authors can visit www.amazon.co.uk/storyteller
Read about some of the authors who have seen success with KDP