Winners announced June 26, social media premiere with book giveaways to follow.
[EMPORIA, KS]—[April 29, 2021] —Three books released by
Meadowlark Press in 2020 were named finalists in the the 31st annual
Midwest Book Awards. In the Mystery category, All Hallows’ Shadows, the
third book in the Pete Stone series, by Michael D. Graves, Emporia, was a
finalist. In fiction for Youth Adults, two of the three titles making the list
were published by Meadowlark: A Time for Tears, by Jerilynn Jones
Henrikson, Emporia, and Opulence, Kansas, by Julie Stielstra, Lyons,
Illinois. The awards program, which is organized by the Midwest Independent
Publishers Association (MiPA), recognizes quality independent publishing in the
Midwest.
“In so many ways, 2020 was a rough year for publishing. We
did not get to have any of our usual release parties as social distancing
restrictions upended our usual routes of getting books into the hands of
readers. But we continued to focus on the quality of our product, and, quite
honestly, our 2020 books are some of the best we’ve produced yet. All of our
authors are award winners from where I stand but making the finalists list for the
Midwest Book Awards is a wonderful bit of recognition. We have so many quality
stories being written by Kansans and about Kansas,” said Tracy Simmons,
publisher, Meadowlark Press.
The 31st annual Midwest Book Awards was open to
books published and copyrighted in 2020 in MiPA’s 12-state Midwestern region:
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North
Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
This year’s competition garnered 241 entries in 35
categories, submitted by 74 independent publishers and judged by a panel of nearly
one hundred librarians and booksellers from throughout the Midwest.
Historically, an awards gala is held in Minneapolis to
announce the winners, but this year, as in 2020, winners will be announced and
celebrated online, first in a Zoom webinar open to MiPA members and finalists,
and shortly thereafter in a social media premiere that can be shared with
friends and family. A period of book giveaways and winner highlights will
accompany the social media premiere.
“This shift to celebrating online has enabled us to engage
with a larger publishing community throughout the Midwest,” said Jennifer Baum,
executive director of MiPA. “The number of entries received in 2020 grew by
about 25% compared to the prior year, which can be attributed to our greater
online presence.”
Following the conclusion of the gala celebrations, winners
will be encouraged to participate in MiPA’s second season of the Virtual
Reading Series, a limited series launched last year on MiPA’s YouTube channel.
Finalist books will also be for sale in MiPA’s affiliate
shop on Bookshop.org, a website that shares proceeds with independent
booksellers. Buyers can opt to select which independent store will receive the
commission, or to leave it in a general pool to be distributed among
independent booksellers.
For a complete list of finalists, visit www.mipa.org/midwest-book-awards.
Follow @MIPAMidwestBookAwards on Facebook for updates on the gala’s social
media premiere and book giveaways.
The Midwest Book Awards, which began in 1989, recognizes the
best independent literature to come out of the Midwest each year and is
organized by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association (MiPA). Founded in
1984, MiPA exists today as a vibrant professional nonprofit association made up
of traditional presses, university presses, author-publishers, hybrid presses
and related support industries, such as graphic designers and printers. MiPA serves
the Midwest independent publishing community through regular educational
programming, networking and peer recognition.
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