Awards | Asian Festival of Children's Content

Awards

Hedwig Anuar Children's Book Award - updated

The Hedwig Anuar Children's Book Award is presented annually for an outstanding book for children and to recognise and inspire excellence in Singapore children's literature. Though this prize is biennial, for the inaugural award, books published from the year 2008 to 2010 will be considered.

The award aims to achieve two objectives:

• To encourage the quality and quantity of books published for children
• To meet the need for our children to be exposed to books set in familiar and meaningful backgrounds that are relevant to their experiences

The prize money is worth $10,000, and is to be shared by the writer and the illustrator. Should the book be a translated work, the award will be shared equally three ways: writer, illustrator and translator. In addition, the writer/illustrator/translator will receive a plaque each.

If, in any one year, none of the works submitted merit the Award, no winners will be declared.
The first Award will be given in May 2011 during the Asian Festival of Children's Content.

Rules and Regulations 

1. Eligibility

The award is open to all Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents who are at least 18 years of age. Awards will not be given to the same person consecutively. However, award winners are eligible for subsequent awards.

2. Category

The award will be held for any published work of creative writing published originally for children, i.e. fiction, picture books and poetry, published in Singapore or abroad, from January 2008 to December 2010. Reprints and reissues from previous years are not eligible.

3. Subject and Theme

Entries may be on any subject or theme.

4. Age Group

Children are defined as persons of ages up to and including 14.

5. Language

Entries must be published in English, including translated works. Where appropriate in content, the usage of words or phrases in another language is acceptable.

6. Originality

(a) Each entry must be an original work written by the entrant.
(b) The entrant must be the sole author of the work.
(c) Only published works will be accepted. To be eligible, works must be published in printed form for general commercial release.
(d) In exceptional circumstances, the judging panel may agree to consider a self-published work. Such a decision will be entirely at the discretion of the judging panel and subject to the approval of the organisers.

7. Selection

(a) There will be a panel of five judges comprising an academic, two writers, a librarian, and an illustrator. This panel will comprise the Book Award Committee.
(b) The decision of the judges is final and binding. No correspondence in relation to the judges' decision will be entertained.
(c) The Book Award Committee reserves the right to not award a prize should the entries fail, in the judges' opinion, to meet the required standard.

8. Judging Criteria

The book that wins the Award should be a book of outstanding literary value that demonstrates insight into the world of children or young people. It would be judged based on originality, the use of language, a well-constructed plot, consistent and convincing characters, an engaging synergy of text and illustration, the overall aesthetic qualities of the book and the lasting impact that the book has made on the readers.

9. Announcement of Winner

The judges will announce the winner of The Hedwig Anuar Children's Book Award in May 2011. The Prize will be awarded to the winner at an award ceremony during the Asian Festival of Children’s Content.

10. Post Prize Award Activity

(a) The publisher and the writer/illustrator/translator of the winning title must continue to promote the book after the award ceremony by giving interviews, attending book reading and book signing sessions.
(b) Publishers of winning titles must ensure that books supplied to bookstores carry the appropriate stickers. An appropriate reference on the book jacket should be included for any subsequent reprint.

11. The Book Award Committee

The chairperson and the panel of judges will be appointed by the National Book Development Council of Singapore.

12. Conditions of Entry

(a) An official entry form must be attached to each submitted entry.
(b) Entries can be submitted either by the author or publisher.
(c) Seven copies of the submitted title should accompany the completed official entry form. Each of the five judges will be sent a copy of the book, which will be retained by them. The remaining copies will be retained by the organisers and may be used for display and promotional purposes as necessary.
(d) A recent photograph and short biography (not more than 100 words) of the author/illustrator/translator must be provided for each entry at the time of submission. This should be on disc or by email to: jade@bookcouncil.sg.
(e) An entrant may submit more than one entry for the competition for a particular year provided that the works are different and not variations of the same work.

13. Closing Date

The closing date for the competition is 31st December 2010, 5pm. The organisers shall not be held responsible for any manuscript or book lost or damaged in transit.

14. Submission

All entries, including seven copies of each title submitted, and a disc containing the biographical data and photographs, should be sent through registered post or delivered by hand, in a parcel marked "Hedwig Anuar Children's Book Award 2011" and addressed to:

Chairperson – Hedwig Anuar Children's Book Award Secretariat
National Book Development Council of Singapore
50 Geylang East Avenue 1
Singapore 389777

Biographical data and photographs can also be emailed to jade@bookcouncil.sg.
Entries that fail to include any of the above will be disqualified.