The "IPPY" Awards, launched in 1996, are designed to bring increased recognition to the deserving but often unsung titles published by independent authors and publishers. Established as the first awards program open exclusively to independents, over 3,000 "IPPYs" have been awarded to authors and publishers around the world.
Independent publishers are extremely diverse, in both style and geography. Last year’s IPPY competition attracted 3,741 entries in the national categories, 1,072 regional entries and 390 e-book entries. So, 5,203 total entries and 372 total medals were presented. The medalists represented 44 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia, seven Canadian provinces, and ten countries overseas.
Where do the most IPPY winners live? For 2013, the most medal-winning books came from California, with a whopping 49 winners! New York is next with 27 winners, and then a very even distribution between Texas, Massachusetts and Colorado with 12 each; Michigan has 11 winners; Minnesota, North Carolina and Washington have 10 each; Illinois, Arizona, and Ontario each garnered 9 winners.
“Independent publishers are growing in number, and the quality of their work is increasing,” said awards director Jim Barnes. “One element driving the high rate of excellence is participation from university presses. This year, 29 medalists came from university presses and 9 came from museums. Their elevated level of writing, editing, design and production raises the bar and inspires us all.”
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2013 Independent Publisher Book Awards Medalist and Press Page
Thanks to all of this year's IPPY Award winners, and a special thanks to those who attended the award ceremony on a hot, humid day in New York. Many of you traveled great distances, and we appreciate your time and effort to be there. About one-third of our medalists were on hand, and I was impressed to see how much support you gave each other. The cheers and congratulations were enthusiastic and honest -- I am so grateful to be a part of this generous community of independent publishers.
A special thanks to our performers: Rock music legend Dick Wagner gave us a touching rendition of the song he wrote with Alice Cooper, Only Women Bleed, and a heartfelt story about his writing and publishing journey for the similarly named Not Only Women Bleed. Our medal-winning poets each performed an amazing poem from their books: L. Lamar Wilson from Sacreligion and Marty McConnell from Wine from a Shotgun.
Not only did London-based photographer Henry Dallal accept the Most Outstanding Design award for his amazing book, Desert Pageantry, about the Royal Cavalry of Oman, but he brought along General Abdulrazzak Alshahwarzi, the leader of the cavalrymen and their 1,400 horses.
Here’s the link to the entire folder of event photos:
https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0BypkxzCLu_1-NUgzXzBvSnY4b0U&usp=sharing
Note: I took some nice shots of Manhattan while flying in on Monday, so I included those. Otherwise, all photography is by Andrew Lipovsky. Our spokesmodels’ names are Rachel Rhodes Devey and Trey Gerrald. Emcee is yours truly, Jim Barnes, Awards Director.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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IPPY Award Winners Announced for 2013 – “Independent Spirit Abounds”
(May 8, 2013 – Traverse City, MI) "Hope springs eternal in the human breast," wrote Alexander Pope, and such is the hopefulness of authors and publishers for their newly created books. The annual springtime announcement of the Independent Publisher Book Awards has been made, and the medal-winning books will be celebrated on May 29th during the annual BookExpo America publishing convention in New York.
Conducted each year to honor the year's best independently published books, the “IPPY” Awards recognize excellence in a broad range of subjects and reward authors and publishers who “take chances and break new ground.” Independent publishers, along with independent booksellers, have long held an important role in the world of books, offering an alternative to "the big five" conglomerated media publishers. Thanks to small presses, university presses, and self-publishing services that give experimental and entrepreneurial authors a platform, the IPPY universe is rapidly expanding -- and that gives adventurous readers a plethora of new choices.
Launched in 1996 as the first unaffiliated awards program open exclusively to independent, university, and self-published titles, IPPY gold, silver and bronze medallions are awarded in 77 national, 22 regional, and ten e-book categories.
What some don’t realize is that “indie” doesn’t mean “cheaply produced.” Many of this year’s winners were recognized for their fine craftsmanship: Within an African Eden, by Grant Leversha has a hand-tooled leather binding and won the Best Book Arts award; Desert Pageantry, by Henry Dallal features vivid photography, exotic paper, and won the Most Outstanding Design award. Anglophiles will appreciate the Coffee Table Book gold and silver medalists, TeaTime: A Taste of London’s Best Afternoon Teas, by Jean Cazals and London!by Marc Hoberman, published in England and South Africa respectively. Other winners came from Australia, New Zealand, and Hong Kong. Chosen from a total of 5,300 entries, the 382 medalists represent 44 U.S. states plus the District of Columbia, five Canadian provinces, and eight countries overseas.
Fiction is a large part of the contest, with 33 categories for children and adults. Both the Popular Fiction and Short Story Fiction gold medalists were debut efforts: All the Dancing Birds, by Auburn McCanta is a heart-wrenching first-person account of a woman’s descent into Early Onset Alzheimer’s disease. Eugene Cross’ collection, Fires of Our Own Choosing, expresses raw human emotion with an edgy blend of humor and sadness. The rest of the fiction winners are a mix of veterans and newcomers, of all ages and backgrounds, raising a joyful, diverse voice to the reading public.
So many books, such a perfect time…to start reading an IPPY Award-winning book today!
See complete results for the 2013 Independent Publisher Book Awards at http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1653
Outstanding Books of the Year: http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1655
Regional and E-Book Awards: http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=1656
Download a PDF version of results program: www.independentpublisher.com/ipland/IPPYprogram_2013_lo.pdf
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The IPPY Awards are presented by IndependentPublisher.com, “THE Voice of Independent Publishing” operated by publishing services firm Jenkins Group of Traverse City, Michigan. Members of the media are invited to attend the IPPY Awards celebration on Wednesday night before BookExpo America.
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For more details about the Awards, to attend the event, or to interview recipients, please contact:
Jim Barnes, Managing Editor & Awards Director
IndependentPublisher.com / Jenkins Group
IPPY Awards on Facebook
Ph: 1.800.644.0133 x1011
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Important IPPY Awards medalist links:
IPPY Awards merchandise site:
http://www.jenkinsgroupinc.com/store/index.php?p=catalog&parent=4&pg=1
Download a mail or fax-in merchandise order form:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/2012_Ippy_Paraph_Order_Form.pdf
IPPY Awards "IP" logo artwork:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/includes/IPPY/IPPY_Logo_master(1).pdf
IPPY Awards Gold Medal artwork:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/images/ippy_goldmedal_LR.jpg
IPPY Awards Silver Medal artwork:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/images/ippy_silvermedal_LR.jpg
IPPY Awards Bronze Medal artwork:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/images/ippy_bronzemedal_LR.jpg
Amazon IPPY Award Winner Bookstore:
http://www.independentpublisher.com/bookstore.php
IPPY Award Ceremony Program & Results PDF:
www.independentpublisher.com/ipland/IPPYprogram_2013_lo.pdf
White paper entitled "Using Book Awards to Boost Your Book Sales": http://www.independentpublisher.com/includes/IPPY/WP1update.pdf
IPPY Awards blurb:
The Independent Publisher Book Awards were conceived in 1996 as a broad-based, unaffiliated awards program open to all members of the independent publishing industry. The awards are intended to bring increased recognition to the thousands of exemplary independent, university, and self-published titles produced each year, and reward those who exhibit the courage, innovation, and creativity to bring about change in the world of publishing.
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Back to results article.
Outstanding Books of the Year article.
Regional and E-Book results article.