Book Awards

Big-Time Boosters to Bestselling Books and Authors

Guest Blog by Carol Abrahamson, founder of Book Award Mastery

What could be better than being a bestseller?

Have you ever thought about winning an award for your book?

Awards have all the same benefits of bestseller status – and then some because there are fewer living award winners than bestsellers – and being rarer brings an added level of prestige.

Let’s look at the benefits they have in common:

• Both are man-made systems that benefit authors who know how they work
• Both get you noticed and admired while boosting your book’s profile
• Both elevate your status versus thousands of other authors
• They put your book on a path to remarkable results
• And you can claim both achievements forever!

But millions of authors who put their energy into becoming a bestseller and not into winning a book award are missing out in a big way. Why? Three reasons:

#1. Award winners are rarer

Think about it. 10,000+ awards are given yearly. With its 16,000 categories, Amazon designates more #1 bestsellers every hour than there are book award winners in a year. Then add in the 20,000 bestsellers named every year by the New York Times and USA Today combined, and you can see my point. With 10,000 awards given per year, it will take 100 years to have even 1 million living winners – and we know there are many millions of bestsellers.

#2. Award winners have more prestige

Authors are sought by numerous collaborators and partners who only seek award winning books: libraries, book clubs, readers, podcast hosts, people seeking speakers, the media – to name just a few.

#3. Award-winning books are deemed to be well-constructed and well-written

Books are evaluated and scored by a multiple-expert, intensive judging process compared to bestseller status that reflects a book’s marketing success sometimes for only a short time.

Best-selling book status is not a direct evaluation of the permanent, inherent quality as an outstanding vehicle for delivering information, a message, or an experience – which is what awards’ scoring systems reflect. They are measures of 2 entirely different things.

Bottom line: If you’ve pursued bestseller status – or plan to – you need to also pursue awards. I liken them to salt and pepper – separately, they are very different things that are good on their own, and they are very good together – as thousands of savvy authors who have pursued both know.

Awards winners have elevated status and stand out in their niche in ways bestsellers don’t – so winning awards with or without bestseller status can be worth additional tens of thousands of dollars in opportunities and cash for you over the years.

What’s not to love about that?

About Book Award Mastery

Book Award Mastery is the only comprehensive book awards research, planning and application service that helps authors identify the right awards to apply for from the 10,000+ awards given annually to English-language books. Download the free PDF, 22 Free/Nearly Free Ways to Promote Your Award-Winning Book HERE.

To learn more about awards, checkout Book Award Mastery’s next free monthly 1-hour masterclass “Today’s New Essentials of Book Awards Pursuits: Everything You Need to Know Before You Begin Applying.