2023 Entry Eligibility

• Entries are open to all publishers in North America, along with the designers, typographers, and printers supporting them.
• Books must have been published or produced between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023.
• Books may be soft- or hard-cover.
  
• Entries in the Cover categories must be submitted as a finished book – no separate/detached jackets or covers will be accepted.
• Books will be judged for overall design and production quality.
• Categories have changed; please read carefully! 

2023 Rules for Entry

1. An individual title may be entered in no more than three categories.
   
   
2. A separate book must be submitted for EACH CATEGORY entered.*
   
   
3. An entry fee of $75 for PubWest members (publisher and associate members) must be paid for each submission**. Fees for nonmembers will be $100 per entry.
   
   
4. Deadline for entries and fees is December 15, 2023. All books must be received no later than December 22nd, 2023. Please submit your best edition(s). Books will be judged for overall design and production quality.
   
   
5. After completing the online entry form, print a copy and place it inside the front cover of each submission. If you are submitting a title in more than one category, include a copy of the entry form in each book.
   
   
6. Ship entries and all forms to:
   PubWest Design Awards
   c/o Janet Benson
   12727 Highland Ct
   Auburn, CA 95603

* Items submitted for judging will not be returned. 

** Special! If you are submitting a title into another category, you can select "Cover Add On" as your registration type when entering that same title into the Cover category. If you are ONLY entering a Cover category then proceed with the regular member/non-member fee.

A diverse panel of interdisciplinary judges will review each submission. Judges will be selected from industry professionals with book design and production expertise. Entries will be judged on format, layout, typography, jacket, materials, and production quality. Judges are presented with uniform criteria for evaluating each category.

Judges reserve the right to select the Judges’ Choice award at their sole discretion.

A pool of finalist entries for each of the categories will be determined, from which three levels of awards may be chosen (Gold, Silver, and Bronze). 

Not all categories are guaranteed to have a Gold, Silver, and Bronze winner.

Publishers will be notified after completion of the final judging. Winning entries may be displayed at regional and national trade shows and other events throughout the year by PubWest.

Please contact the PubWest office for more information.