Q. Who can nominate a book for the Whitney Awards?
Q. Can I nominate a non-fiction book for the Whitney Awards?
Q. Does a novel have to be published by an LDS publisher in order to be eligible?
Q. Are self-published or e-published books eligible for the Whitneys?
Q. Can I nominate the same novel multiple times?
Q. Can I nominate more than one novel?
Q. What is the Whitney Awards Committee?
Q. Why aren't self-published authors eligible to vote in the Voting Academy?
Q. When is the deadline for nominating a novel?
Q. How will the winners be chosen?
Q. Is it possible for there to be no winner in a particular category?
Q. What if two books in a category receive the same number of votes?
Q. When will the Whitney Awards be announced?
Q. Who can nominate a book for the Whitney Awards?
A. Anyone can nominate a book, as long as:
Q. Can I nominate a non-fiction book for the Whitney Awards?
A. No. The Whitney Awards are given for novel-length fiction only. ("Novel length" is defined as at least 50,000 words. For the Best Youth Fiction category, a book must be at least 20,000 words.)
Q. Does a novel have to be published by an LDS publisher in order to be eligible?
A. No. The author must be a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, but the novel does not have to be published in the LDS market.
Q. Are self-published or e-published books eligible for the Whitneys?
A. Yes.
Q. Can I nominate the same novel multiple times?
A. You can nominate a novel only once.
Q. Can I nominate more than one novel?
A. Yes. You can nominate as many novels as you feel are deserving of the awards.
Q. I’d like to nominate a book for the 2008 Whitney Awards, but it was released in December 2007. Is the book still eligible for the 2008 awards?
A. No. Eligible books must be released between January 1st and December 31st of the award year.
Q. I’d like to nominate a novel that was originally released four years ago, but was re-released in the awards year. Is the novel eligible?
A. Not unless the nominator can provide persuasive evidence to the Whitney Awards Committee that significant and substantial changes have been made to the novel. A simple reprint or minor copyediting changes do not make an older novel eligible.
Q. If an author has published short stories before publishing a novel, would his/her novel still be eligible for the Best Novel by a New Author award?
A. Yes.
Q. If an author has self-published or e-published a novel in the past, would his/her first traditionally published novel be eligible for the Best Novel by a New Author award?
A. No. An eligible new novel must be the first novel-length work published by the author in any format. “Novel-length” is defined as any work greater than 50,000 words. (20,000 for Best Youth Fiction.)
Q. Does an author have to be a member of LDStorymakers in order for his/her books to be eligible for the Whitneys?
A. No. Authors do not need to be affiliated with LDStorymakers.
Q. What is the Whitney Awards Committee?
A. The Awards Committee is a group of seven industry professionals. The committee president is appointed by the LDStorymakers Executive Committee. The committee president appoints the members of the committee, which must include at least three members of LDStorymakers.
Any book written or published by a member of the Whitney Committee is not eligible for the awards on any year that the member serves on the committee.
Q. Why aren't self-published authors allowed to vote in the Whitney Academy?
A. This rule exists for the convenience of the Whitney Committee. While we know that there are many high-quality self-published books available--two of them were finalists in 2007!--the internet and vanity publishers have made it possible for anyone to quickly and easily publish a book. And, unfortunately, the Whitney Committee just doesn't have time to evaluate between the genuinely good self-published novels and the vanity publications.
That said, if a self-published novel is nominated and becomes a finalist, the author will automatically be given a vote.
Q. When is the deadline for nominating a novel?
A. Books must be nominated by midnight, December 31st of the awards year.
Q. How will the winners be chosen?
A. Any novel which receives five or more nominations will be placed considered an Official Nominee. Those Official Nominees will be evaluated by a panel of genre judges. Those judges will rate each novel. When a judge finds a book they consider exceptional, they will notify the Whitney Committee, who will review it for the two overall awards (Best Novel of the Year and Best Novel by a New Author). The five books in each category that receive the hightest ratings will be Whitney Finalists, and placed on the final ballot.
Final Ballots will be sent to all members of the Awards Academy. The Awards Academy consists of:
Q. Is it possible for there to be no winner in a particular category?
A. Yes. “No Award” is a voting option in each category.
Q. What if two books in a category receive the same number of votes?
A. In the event of a tie, all tied finalists will receive the Whitney Award.
Q. When will the Whitney Awards be announced?
A. The Awards Banquet will be on the last evening of the LDStorymakers Annual Writers Conference, held in the spring.