We’re excited to announce that submissions for the inaugural 2025 Bookshelfie Awards are now officially closed! Submissions for book review are of course still open, and any books submitted for review from now on will automatically be entered in the 2026 awards.
Thank you to every author who trusted us with their work this year. As this was our first year running the awards, we especially appreciate the leap of faith so many authors took in submitting their books to us. We’ve been overwhelmed by the quality, creativity, and passion we’ve seen across all twelve categories, from experimental fiction to heartwarming children’s books, from sprawling fantasy epics to thought-provoking literary fiction.
The indie publishing community continues to prove that extraordinary storytelling isn’t confined to traditional publishing houses, and this year’s submissions have been a testament to the incredible talent thriving in the independent space. Whether through innovative storytelling techniques, masterful prose, unforgettable characters, or bold creative vision, we were looking for those rare works that transcend their genres and remind us why we fell in love with reading in the first place. Thankfully, we received hundreds of submissions that pushed boundaries, demonstrated exceptional craft, and left lasting impressions on us.
Our panel will now begin the exciting (and challenging!) task of reviewing all submissions to select the most outstanding books of 2025. The truth is art is subjective and that for every category there are several books that probably deserve to win, so if you’re reading this and you didn’t win this year, it doesn’t mean your book isn’t worth being proud of.
What happens next?
Winners will be announced in the next few weeks. We’ll be revealing the recipients of our twelve awards: 1st Place Overall, 2nd Place Overall, 3rd Place Overall, Best Literary Fiction, Best Adventure, Best Fantasy, Best Romance, Best Non-fiction, Best Poetry, Best Children’s Book, Best Experimental Fiction, and Best Science Fiction.
We’ll be posting the announcements across our social media channels, especially on Instagram, so make sure you’re following us to catch the reveals!
Winners will receive a bespoke award medal graphic, a certificate, an invitation for an interview that will be published here on our blog, and a lasting place of honor on our website as part of the Bookshelfie Awards winners page. To all the authors who submitted: your creativity, dedication, and trust in us as a new awards program inspire everything we do at Bookshelfie. The courage it takes to put your work out into the world doesn’t go unnoticed, and we’re honored to be part of your publishing journey.
We can’t wait to celebrate the winners with you soon! And once again…
Keep writing!
— The Bookshelfie Team