CIPA EVVY™ Rules & Guidelines

2023 CIPA EVVY™ Awards are CLOSED!

Stay tuned for the dates for the finalist announcement and banquet!

The list of 2022 CIPA EVVY™ Finalists can be viewed here.

(Please wait to load.)

To receive information and updates, join our mailing list or check back here.

MEMBER REGISTRATION CLOSED
NON-MEMBER REGISTRATION CLOSED

Eligibility

  • The 2023 competition is open to any independently or self-published print or audio book.
  • Entries may be submitted by author, publisher or credited service provider (Illustrator, designer, editor, printer, consultant, etc.).
  • CIPA membership is not required.
  • The 2023 non-member fee includes a one year membership to CIPA

Each entry:

  • Must be in English or Bilingual with English as one of the languages.
  • Must have an ISBN and a publication date no earlier than 2021.
  • Must not have been entered in any previous CIPA EVVY™ Awards competition.
  • A book that has been revised and has been printed in a second edition may be entered a second time.
  • Books may be entered in as many regular categories as desired. Each category entered requires a full entry fee.
  • To enter a technical category the book must be entered in a regular category first. A copy of the regular category entry email confirmation must be included when books are shipped.

CIPA EVVY™ winners benefit from:

  • PR opportunities
  • Increased book sales
  • Better marketing position
  • Distribution deals

Timeline for Entries:

  • Entries accepted January 23 – May 23, 2023
  • August 2023: Finalists announced, date to TBA

*All books must be postmarked by May 23, 2023 and arrive no later than May 31, 2023

CIPA EVVY™ Awards Step-by-Step Process:

Step 1: Read the CIPA EVVY™ Details.

Step 2: Read the Rules and Submission Guidelines (below).

Step 3: Purchase Your CIPA EVVY Entry.

MEMBERS: Please login to receive member pricing.

Non-Members: You can purchase additional entries as a MEMBER after completing your first purchase.

Step 4: Complete the Book Submission Entry Form.  The link to the form is included on the payment confirmation email.

Step 5: Mail your books! Details on where and how many to send are below.

Questions? Get in touch with us.

Message CIPA

Registration:

MEMBER REGISTRATION CLOSED
NON-MEMBER REGISTRATION CLOSED

Award Submission Categories

Each book entered must be submitted in at least ONE regular category. You may submit your book in as many regular categories and as many technical categories as you wish. To enter a technical category, the book must be submitted in a regular category first.

  • The audio book and ebook categories are listed under the technical categories section.
  • EACH category entered requires a submission fee. (See “Fees and Submission Requirements”)

Regular Categories: Nonfiction Genres (click to view)

  • Academic/Educational
  • Animals/Pets/Nature
  • Anthologies/Story Collections
  • Art/Architecture/Design/Photography
  • Audio
  • Biography/Autobiography/Memoir—General/Historical
  • Business—General/Careers/Communications/Entrepreneurship/Finance/Marketing/Public Relations/Technology/Writing and Publishing
  • Children Nonfiction
  • Cooking (Cookbooks)/Entertaining
  • Cultural Studies/Social Issues
  • DIY/How-To
  • Health/Fitness/Medicine/Sports
  • History—General/United States
  • Motivational/Inspirational
  • Narrative Nonfiction
  • Parenting & Family Life
  • Poetry
  • Self Help—General/Relationships
  • Spiritual/Religion
  • Travel/Outdoors

Regular Categories: Fiction Genres (click to view)

  • Animals/Pets/Nature
  • Anthologies/Story Collections
  • Audio
  • Children’s Picture Books (Ages 0-5)
  • Children’s Story Books (Ages 5-9)
  • Fantasy/Fairytale-High Fantasy/Epic Fantasy/Dark Fantasy/Urban Fantasy/ Historical Fantasy/Contemporary Fantasy/Magical Realism/Folklore/Mythology
  • Historical
  • Horror—Psychological Horror/Gothic Horror/Occult
  • Juvenile Fiction—Middle Grade (Ages 10-14)
  • Literary & Contemporary Fiction
  • Multicultural Fiction—American experience from minority points of view.
  • Mystery/Crime/Detective—General Mystery/Cozy/Historical/Police Procedural/Paranormal
  • Religious/ Spiritual Fiction
  • Romance
  • Science Fiction—Hard Sci-Fi/Post-Apocalyptic/Dystopia/Military Sci-Fi/Alternate History/Cyberpunk/Steampunk
  • Thrillers/Suspense—Espionage Psychological/ Historical/Medical/Supernatural/Military/ Techno
  • Westerns
  • Women’s Fiction—These plot lines are characterized by central female characters who face challenges, difficulties, and crises that have a direct relationship to gender.
  • Young Adult 14 – 18 Years-old

COMBINED Fiction/Non Fiction (click to view)

  • Humor

Technical Categories (click to view)

  • Children’s Illustration
  • Cover Design – Adult/YA
  • Cover Design – Children’s
  • Cover Design – Midgrade
  • General Illustration includes adult and midgrade/YA categories
  • Interior Layout/Design for non-Children’s picture books

Submission Rules & Guidelines

Below you’ll find important CIPA EVVY™ Awards information pertaining to your submission, the judging and the awards process.

Award Entry Fees (click to view)

Regular Category:

Members $85

Non-Members $150*

  

 

 
Technical Awards**:

Members & Non-Members $40

*Non-member entry fees include a one-time introductory rate of $66 for one-year membership for CIPA! Additional categories, additional books and Technical Award entries are charged at the member rate after the non-member fee has been paid one time.

**Technical Awards MUST be entered in a regular category to be considered.

Entries must be received no later than May 31, 2023. A postmark of May 31 is not sufficient.

Entry fees must be paid online by credit card or PayPal. Checks are not accepted.

General Submission Guidelines (click to view)

General Submission Guidelines

  • Do not send any extraneous materials or materials that display mentions of other awards
  • Audio Books. Please submit three (3) Audible gift codes to [email protected]. If your audiobook is not available on Audible, please contact [email protected] for additional submission options before paying for an entry.
  • During the registration process you will need to upload a JPG file of your book cover. The file must be 300 dpi. Minimum width of the cover file should be 1500 pixels. Name the file with the book title. (Example: booktitle.jpg). Registration cannot be completed without this so please be prepared.
  • CIPA is not responsible for loss or damage to any entry.
  • Entries become the property of CIPA and will not be returned.  Books not used in judging will be donated to various charitable literacy organizations through CIPA ELF.

After online registration is completed mail three book copies for each Regular category entered, plus two copies for each additional category (including technical awards entries)

Melissa Serdinsky

c/o CIPA EVVY AWARDS

Thin Air Collective

5381 Oak Tree Court

Boulder CO 80301

Email: [email protected]

  • DO NOT send books with a receiving signature required.
  • It is a good idea to include tracking in your delivery. Because of the volume of entries, receipt of your shipment will not be acknowledged.

Award Process (click to view)

First, Second and Third place may be awarded for each category when minimum scoring criteria are met.

The Awards Committee reserves the right to restrict or eliminate awards in any category where entries do not meet minimum scoring criteria.  Duplicate Awards may be given in case of tie scores in any category. 

The Judging Process (click to view)

  • Judges are selected based on experience, specific expertise and prior judging experience
  • All judges are required to abide by the judging guidelines and code of ethics
  • The names of judges are confidential
  • Entry scores are confidential and will remain the property of the Colorado Independent Publishers Association. Scores and Judges’ comments (where available) will be returned to the party entering the title within 60 days after the CIPA EVVY™ awards presentations.
  • First, second and third place may be awarded for each category when minimum scoring criteria are met. If minimum scoring criteria are not met, awards may not be presented in a category.
  • Judges use category specific rubrics to determine their scores for an entry.
  • In the event of a tie score, duplicate awards may be given.

CIPA EVVY™ Judges Code of Ethics (click to view)

As a CIPA EVVY™ Judge, I hereby pledge to:

  1. Conduct myself with honesty and integrity and maintain the highest possible standards in my role as a CIPA EVVY ™ judge, and, 

  2. Judge my assigned books impartially and fairly according to the CIPA EVVY™ Judging Guidelines. If I cannot judge a book impartially, I will let the CIPA EVVY™ committee know immediately so the book can be reassigned to another judge, and, 

  3. Remain anonymous throughout the judging process, and, 

  4. Never reveal the scores I give or which books I judge outside of the official scoring system. I will retain my personal opinions of the books I judge until after the CIPA EVVY™ awards banquet in August, whether or not I remove my name from the list of judges. This includes not reviewing the books I have judged on any social media platform, online review sites, in any print publications or on any mass media, and, 

  5. Aside from being allowed to keep the books I receive to judge, I understand and accept that there will be no compensation for judging of books. 


Thank you for your help!