The Chicago Writers Association is accepting submissions for the 16th Annual Book of the Year Awards, for books published between July 1, 2025 and June 30, 2026.
The contest is open to members & non-members. Winners will be honored at a ceremony in January 2027. Exact date and location to be determined.
Categories of entry
Traditional Fiction: Published by the Big Five, independent (other traditional) publishers or small presses that do not charge the author a publishing fee.)
Indie Fiction: Self-published, Social or Assisted or Hybrid (publisher charges the author publishing fees.)
Traditional Non-fiction: Published by the Big Five, independent (other traditional) publishers or small presses that do not charge the author a publishing fee.
Indie Non-fiction: Self-published, Social or Assisted or Hybrid (publisher charges the author publishing fees.)
Poetry: Full-length poetry collections traditionally or indie published.
Poetry Collections Eligibility: Only original full-length collections (minimum of 40 pages) written primarily in English are eligible. Translations or collections primarily in another language will not be considered. Collections that contain occasional lines or phrases in a foreign language are acceptable.
Anthologies in any genre will not be considered for this contest.
Categories based on Jane Friedman’s Path to Publishing.
Rules
We will be unable to consider your submission without payment.
Checks will NOT be accepted.
Once you have registered, mail your entry (HARD COPIES ONLY) to: Jotham Austin c/o Chicago Writers Association, 9601 White Oak Ave, Munster, IN 46321.
Books submitted to the contest cannot be returned. We do not accept entries in any digital format.
ONE ENTRY PER AUTHOR (Publishers may submit an entry for one or multiple authors - each one must be submitted individually.)
Submissions must be received between June 1 through August 1. Entries postmarked after August 1 will be disqualified. Submitting your form alone does not complete your entry. You must also have your book postmarked and mailed too.
Please read the Artificial Intelligence Policy Below.
We look forward to reading your work!
For more details on Book of the Year Awards, visit our website.
Continue to Entry Form
Artificial Intelligence Policy
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Purpose
The CWA was founded to support writers at all stages of their writing careers through educational programming, community building, publishing, and celebrating outstanding stories and books. As artificial intelligence tools become increasingly prevalent in the writing process, we need to establish guidelines that protect the integrity of our writing competitions and literary submissions, while acknowledging the legitimate role technology can play in supporting authors. This policy distinguishes between AI-generated content, which is not permitted, and AI-assisted tools used for limited support, which are permitted.
We will review this policy annually as AI technology continues to develop.
Definitions
AI-Generated Content (Not Permitted):
Any narrative, dialogue, descriptive text, or other written content within a submission that is produced by prompting a computer program or accepted from an automated editing suggestion that represents the author’s creative work.
AI-Assisted Content (Permitted):
The use of AI tools for limited support tasks that do not replace the author’s original creative voice, writing, or editorial decisions.
Permitted Uses of AI Tools
The following uses of AI are acceptable, provided all final writing decisions originate from the author:
- Spelling and grammar checks
- Copyediting and proofreading suggestions (the author makes the final judgment and writes all changes)
- Research assistance and fact-checking
- Character generation, indexing, and naming
- Brainstorming and idea generation (the author develops and writes the resulting content)
- Structural or developmental feedback on author-written work
- Formatting and manuscript preparation
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Not Permitted
The following uses of AI are not permitted:
- Using AI to generate any narrative, dialogue, or descriptive text included in the submission.
- Using AI to produce or substantially rewrite any portion of the manuscript.
- Submitting content produced by predictive text or generative AI prompts as the author’s own work.
- Accepting AI-generated editorial rewrite suggestions that replace the author’s original creative decisions.
Compliance Certification
By submitting any work to the CWA, the author certifies that their manuscript complies with this policy and is their own original work. Compliance is based on the honor system.
Enforcement
While AI detection tools exist, they are not reliable to serve as the sole basis for disqualification, nor will they be used without the author’s consent. Concerns raised by editors, screeners, or judges will be communicated to the author and reviewed by the specific program CWA Director and Executive Board for a final decision.
Submissions found to violate this policy will be disqualified, and any awarded prizes must be returned.
Questions
For questions or clarification regarding this policy, please contact the CWA.
