Peterson Literary Prize
The Peterson Literary Prize is a biennial international book prize recognizing original works of nonfiction written in English or Ukrainian. The prize is awarded in even-numbered years.
The prize recognizes books that promote a better understanding of Ukraine or the Ukrainian people, or whose subject matter is relevant to the worldwide Ukrainian community.
Value
The Peterson Literary Prize is valued at $30,000 Canadian. The winning author will receive a prize of $25,000 Canadian dollars. An additional $5,000 CAD will be awarded to the book’s publisher.
Shortlisted Finalists will each receive $5,000 CAD.
Depending on the number and quality of submissions received in a given year, the Awards Jury has the discretion to name up to 5 Finalists.
Who can submit a nomination:
Nominations can only be submitted by reputable publishers or literary agents. Authors may not make submissions on their own behalf.
The Chair of the Awards Jury may “call-in” titles that have not been submitted by publishers. The Peterson Literary Fund will then invite publishers to submit these titles for consideration, assuming they meet eligibility requirements.
Nominations are made through our online submission platform. Before you submit a nomination, please carefully read the Submission Guidelines and instructions on How to Make a Submission below.
Submission Dates:
March 1 to March 31, 2024
Submission Dates:
March 1, 2024 to March 31, 2024 (11:59 pm EST)
For books published between May 1, 2022 and March 31, 2024
Shortlist Announced by: October 2024
Peterson Literary Prize Gala: November 30, 2024
Eligibility of the Literary Work Submitted
Nonfiction books must be first editions written in English or Ukrainian
Canadian citizenship of the nominated author is NOT a requirement
All books must have an ISBN.
English-language books must be distributed in Canada and/or the US, and/or the UK.
Ukrainian books must be distributed in Ukraine and/or Canada, the US, the UK, or the EU
All books must have at least 65,000 words between the covers.
Books that contain a compilation of historic documents or archival material must have at least 100 pages of original writing or analysis.
Restrictions
Books that have originally been written and published in both English and Ukrainian may be submitted only in one of the two languages. If the book is a translation, it is ineligible to apply for the Peterson Literary Prize and, instead, should be submitted under the Peterson Literary Fund Translated Book Award
Titles may be submitted only once (i.e. no repeat submissions)
Reprints will not be considered.
Eligibility of the Nominators
Works must be submitted by publishers or literary agents
After registering online, publishing houses may submit up to three titles per year
Foreign or new publishers may be asked to provide information confirming their track record as a publisher committed to marketing, promoting, and distributing the book in question, by providing background information or a catalogue of their published titles
Ineligible Submissions and Exclusions:
Works of fiction
Books previously submitted or previously shortlisted for the Peterson Literary Prize
Translated books (Entries for translated books should apply for the Peterson Literary Fund Translated Book Award)
Reprints or new format reprints of any kind
Spiral-bound or binder books
Books of poetry
Self-published books (If the author directly controls the decision to publish the books, then those books are considered self-published. Self-published books are usually printed by a vanity press or a publisher that prints books by only that author.)
Titles written by a ghostwriter
Textbooks, technical or instructional books, academic theses, conference proceedings, coffee-table books, how-to or self-help books, travel or guide books, cookbooks, exhibition catalogues, testimonials, journals, transcripts of interviews, collected letters, directories, bibliographies, reference books
Books whose author was deceased at the time of publication
Submission Guidelines
Only publishers or literary agents can submit/nominate a book
Nominations are submitted through our online submission platform (Read How to Submit a Nomination)
When filling out the online submission, you will be asked to attach:
A recent curriculum vitae of the author
An electronic PDF copy of the nominated book
A high-resolution jpg or png image file of the author
A high-resolution jpg or png image of the book cover
Publishers of shortlisted finalists will be contacted and will receive instructions to ship a pre-set number of hard copies to the Peterson Literary Fund’s book depot in advance of the Awards Gala Ceremony.
**If sending by North American courier, please ensure that book shipments are scheduled for delivery on a business day, and not on a weekend or statutory holiday.
REGISTER & SUBMIT A NOMINATION
How to Submit a Nomination
To nominate a book for the Peterson Literary Prize, a publisher or literary agent must register on our online submission platform, by creating a username and password.
Once your registration is confirmed, you can log into your online profile and fill out the submission form. You can save and go back to the submission form at any time, as long as you complete and submit your entry before the deadline date.
Notification
Winning authors must agree to keep the result of the decision confidential, until such time as the Peterson Literary Prize Awards Jury has consented to make the information public.
Conditions of the Prize
All entry material, including book copies, shall become the property of the Stanley Peterson Literary Fund at BCU Foundation, and its in-house literature collection.
Nominated and/or, shortlisted and winning author(s) consent to participate in all reasonable promotional events and publicity related to the Stanley Peterson Literary Fund, including media appearances, interviews, receptions, award dinners, and public readings.
Authors and publishers of shortlisted and winning books, consent to having selected excerpts of the book (or short book readings) available to the public for promotional or multimedia purposes.
Publishers will be asked to display a Peterson Literary Prize book emblem/decal on all future reprints of winning and/or shortlisted books.