FYI: First Call for Eric Hoffer Book Award!

FIRST CALL: THE 2010 ERIC HOFFER BOOK AWARD

SMALL PRESSES * ACADEMIC PRESSES * MICRO PRESSES * SELF-PUBLISHERS -- $1,500 GRAND PRIZE -- LOW ENTRANCE FEE

NEW THIS YEAR: Separate fiction/nonfiction LEGACY categories for books older than two years.

New or old, we want to read your book. … Each year, independent publishers release extraordinary books to little or no recognition. The Eric Hoffer Book Award recognizes excellence in publishing. A SINGLE REGISTRATION gives you FIVE WAYS TO WIN by genre, press, the Montaigne Medal, the da Vince Eye, and the Hoffer grand prize. There is a category for every book. (See submission guidelines below or check our listing in Writer’s Market or visit www.HofferAward.com.)

* $1,500 GRAND PRIZE * Low Entrance Fee of $45 * Many Categories *

AWARDS/BENEFITS:
* $1,500 GRAND PRIZE (the Eric Hoffer Award for Books)
* Winner of the Montaigne Medal for most thought-provoking book
* Winner and First Runner-Up awarded for every category
* Honorable Mentions for every category
* Individual Awards for Micro, Small, and Academic Presses, as well as Self-Published Books
* Coverage in The US Review of Books (www.theUSreview.com), the annual anthology Best New Writing, and on www.HofferAward.com.
* Gold Seal Certificates
* Worldwide Exposure

CATEGORIES: Art, Poetry, General Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Children, Young Adult, Culture, Memoir, Business, Reference, Home, Health, Self-Help/Spiritual, Legacy (fiction or nonfiction).

In this tough economic time, your book is always a great value, and the Eric Hoffer Book Award is the most economical way to achieve publicity and recognition. Read previous contest coverage in the US Review of Books (www.theUSReview.com) and view past winners and press releases at www.HofferAward.com.

Internet payment for entrance fee now accepted. (visit www.HofferAward.com)

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SUBMISSION GUIDELINES (entry deadline January 21st, 2010):

AWARDS ARE OPEN to academic, independent, small press, and self-published books that were released or copyrighted in the last 2 years, including unique books with small print runs. (Books over 2 years enter the LEGACY FICTION or LEGACY NONFICTION category.)

AWARDS/PRIZES: One grand prize will be awarded for the entire contest. In addition, each category will be awarded a winner, runner-up, and multiple honorable mentions. Books must be registered by CATEGORY and then are automatically considered for Individual Press Awards, the Montaigne Medal, the da Vinci Eye, and the Hoffer Grand Prize.

FOR EACH ENTRY, submit the book, entry form, and $45 fee (check, money order, or Internet payment receipt) to Hopewell Publications, LLC, PO Box 11, Titusville, NJ 08560. Be certain to specify award category and press type. Registration will be confirmed via e-mail. All entrants will be notified of winners, after April 30, 2010. Submissions must be postmarked by January 21, 2010.

JUDGES may include authors, editors, agents, publishers, book producers, artists, experienced category readers, and health and business professionals. Note: Contest closed to the staff of Hopewell Publications and previous WNBA winning entries. At the low entrance fee, it is not feasible to provide judge’s critiques for each entry.


ENTRY FORM (submit one entry form per book):
You may also visit www.HofferAward.com and click on the “Nominate” link.

Book Information

Title:
_______________________________________
Author:
_______________________________________
Publisher:
_______________________________________
ISBN:
_______________________________________
Category (see below):
_______________________________________

Press Designation (check only one; see description below):
Self-Published __ Micro __ Small __ Academic __

Contact Information

Name:
_______________________________________
E-Mail:
_______________________________________
Phone:
_______________________________________
Address:
_______________________________________

_______________________________________

_______________________________________


AWARD CATEGORIES (select one per entry application):

* ART: titles involving the experience, execution, or demonstration of the arts, including art, fine art, graphic art, architecture, performing arts, design, photography, coffee table books, and poetry.
* POETRY: Titles with poetry or highly stylized prose.
* GENERAL FICTION: non-genre specific fiction, including literary, short story collections, and mainstream.
* COMMERCIAL FICTION: genre specific fiction, including mystery, thriller, suspense, science fiction, religion, romance, and horror.
* CHILDREN: titles for young children, including stories and picture books.
* YOUNG ADULT: titles aimed at the juvenile and teen markets.
* CULTURE: titles demonstrating the human or world experience, including multicultural, essay, women’s issues, sexuality, gay, lesbian, memoir, aging, travel, sports, true crime, and current events.
* MEMOIR: titles capturing specific personal experience.
* BUSINESS: titles with application to today’s business environment and emerging trends, including general business, career, computer, and Internet.
* REFERENCE: titles from traditional and emerging reference areas, including history, psychology, biography, education, sports, recreation, training, travel, and how-to.
* HOME: titles with practical application to home or home-related issues, including general home, gardening, cooking, parenting, family, interior design, animals, and pets.
* HEALTH: titles promoting physical, mental, and emotional well-being, including psychology, fitness, and sex.
* SELF-HELP/SPIRITUAL: titles involving the mind and spirit, including religion, metaphysical, and mystical.
* LEGACY FICTION: all fiction titles over two years of age. (Unlike major trade organizations, we think good books last more than a single season.)
* LEGACY NONFICTION: all nonfiction titles over two years of age. (Unlike major trade organizations, we think good books last more than a single season.)


INDIVIDUAL PRESS AWARDS (select only one):

In addition to the above category awards, books will be singled out for additional awards in the micro press, small press, academic press, as well as self-published arenas. Please check one of the following types on the application.

* SELF-PUBLISHED – title financed by author or not by the publisher (regardless of press size).
* MICRO PRESS – title from a press producing 24 books or less per year.
* SMALL PRESS – title from a press producing 25 books or more per year.
* ACADEMIC PRESS – title from a press with an academic or library affiliation.


ADDITIONAL AWARD DISTINCTIONS:

All registered titles will automatically be considered for the following:

* MONTAIGNE MEDAL – most thought provoking book(s).
* DA VINCI EYE – books with superior cover art.


If you don’t see your category or cannot determine your press designation, please e-mail us with a description at info@hofferaward.com, and our staff will guide you. A great book will supersede any category designation. Category designations may be reassigned to better suit the submission. Judges may include authors, editors, agents, publishers, book producers, artists, experienced category readers, and health and business professionals. After the contest, books will be donated to libraries, schools, and hospitals where appropriate, which are fine places to promote your book!

QUESTIONS:

Visit: www.HofferAward.com
Email: info@hofferaward.com
Fax: (609) 964-1718
The Eric Hoffer Awards
PO Box 11
Titusville, NJ 08560

Please be patient. We receive many inquiries this time of year. We will help you.

Honor Due Won Award - Honor Defended Now Available!

Honor Due
By David H. Brown

Military Writers 2008 Award


In a suspenseful, sometimes-funny first book in his Citizen Warrior Series, DAVID H. BROWN, in But the Major found he was no longer alone in his war. Not only did neighbors prove to be trustworthy, but Blon, too, sought revenge. And, as she watched the Major and had to depend upon him for her life, she sought, too, to fill the empty place in his heart that had long been empty. As the Major follows the clues and tracks the men responsible, still he searches for the reason, the “why” this was happening. What he ultimately discovers surprises him…as well as the readers!

Look for this suspense-packed first book soon. The Major is already on to something new in HONOR DEFENDED. You won’t want to miss the Citizen Warrior Series!

HONOR DUE, has won a prime location on my bookshelf as a must-read author. I have found that I really enjoy books written in first person. Although the majority of publishers require third person in fiction writing, I think first person allows a much more personal feeling for the reader. It is as if the main character, the Major, is sitting right across the table and telling you his story—once in a while tossing in a joke or a “smart-ass” remark or action that enables you to thoroughly enjoy meeting the character. The reader is privy to his internal dialogue, his thoughts, conversations with his dog, and even his arguments with God. Bringing in the special care that he must take as a diabetic, even during traumatic times, makes the storyline even more realistic. I think you’ll grow to love the sensitive, loving, and protective man that lies within the Major’s gruff and gritty exterior.

The Major is “an ex-special forces vet whose years in ‘Nam taught him what he needed to know to work as a covert agent for the shadow branches of the government when he returned home.” Continuing from the book description, “in the 90's he realized his bosses weren't taking terrorism seriously. Finally, a diabetic and completely tired of the life, he'd had enough of the killing, and one day he simply walked into the Pacific Northwest rainforest and lost himself”(page 2).
Having done reviews on two other books by former Vietnam veterans, (The Road from Here to Where You Stay and the Negligence of Death*) I have found a haunting spirit that surrounds those veterans and their stories about the Vietnam era. They sadden me, and yet pull me in to share what proves to be intimate parts of their lives. I am always grateful for that experience. Perhaps it is because I wrote to a friend who was in that war and he would never talk about what was happening there. Indeed, there are many veterans who cannot talk about their Vietnam service time. In a way, because of the controversies over the war and the unwillingness for involved soldiers to share their experiences, there is a certain mystique that seems to have developed. As a lover of mysteries, perhaps that is why I am continuously enthralled by those novels I find that are written by veterans of this puzzling war.

No matter the reason—veterans of Vietnam never quite give up their warrior persona. The Major didn’t and when he arrived in the rainforest he’d brought all of his skills and talents, as well as his memories. Deep inside he knew that even though he’d had enough of the killing and he was now a civilian, he knew also that he would still always be a warrior and would be prepared whenever he was forced to again play that role.

It was a good thing that he’d prepared.

When the stranger showed up, asking questions, carrying his picture from his service days, instinct immediately told the Major there was trouble coming. He didn’t know why yet, but his instinct told him—he would have to kill that stranger. So he did.

Many of the Major’s war memories surrounded his wife and child and her Montagnard family. Though his wife and child had been killed, he had worked to bring her family to the United States. Indeed he had met his wife through one of his warrior brothers, Ang. Now, as he followed the trail that the stranger had taken, he found that brother, to be tortured, dead.

But he also found evidence that someone had escaped—perhaps Ang’s wife? The Major had to find out.

One of my favorite characters is Black Dog—truly the Major’s best friend. As the Major tracked through the rainforest, it was Black Dog who discovered the hiding place, and would not leave it, until Blon, Ang’s daughter, had been found, nearly frozen, nearly dead.

As he doctored and nursed Blon back to health, the Major had plenty of time to think—why was this happening now and who was behind it? Considering those with whom he had worked years ago, he was able to realize one thing quickly. The stranger that had been sent and who murdered Ang was really another victim—he had been sent to his death, as surely as he had died. He had become a victim of war and for that he had honor due him. The Major would see that honor was given to both of his warrior brothers—Ang and the stranger!

But the Major found he was no longer alone in his war. Not only did neighbors prove to be trustworthy, but Blon, too, sought revenge. And, as she watched the Major and had to depend upon him for her life, she sought, too, to fill the empty place in his heart that had long been empty.

As the Major follows the clues and tracks the men responsible, still he searches for the reason, the “why” this was happening. What he ultimately discovers surprises him…as well as the readers!

Look for this suspense-packed first book and HONOR DEFENDED which was just published You won’t want to miss the Citizen Warrior Series!