I'm bringing together the somewhat scattered SPFBO information onto this page.
SPFBO 6 is full!
The contest will start on the 1st of June 2020.
Phase 1 progress and the list of entries will be updated here.
Currently the doors are closed. SPFBO 6 filled in just over 24 hours!
Mission statement:
The SPFBO exists to shine a light on self-published fantasy. It exists to find excellent books that might otherwise have gone unnoticed. It exists to help readers select, from the enormous range of options, books that have a better chance of entertaining them than a random choice, thereby increasing reader faith in finding a quality self-published read.
It is not:
i) Perfect. Great books will slip through this net just like they do every other net.
ii) Aimed at getting traditional publications deals. Some authors opt for them but it would be an insult to suggest that the holy grail for self published authors is a deal with a big publisher.
iii) Charged for. This is totally free. The enormous effort given by the reviewers/blogs is a gift. Don't abuse it. #NoDrama
The rules are:
i) No book that was entered in a previous SPFBO can be reentered.
ii) The book must be #1 in a series or a stand-alone.
iii) The book must actually be self-published by the start date, not something you're considering self-publishing in future.
iv) It must be a fantasy book. (If you say it's fantasy then it is. But if it isn't really it won't get far.)
v) One book per author.
vi) No anthologies.
vii) No short stories - books must be 40,000 words or longer.
viii) Your manuscript must be uploaded via the online form when you apply to enter the contest. You will not be allowed to update or change it.
ix) Don't contact the blog to which you've been assigned. You can contact me about important issues.
.
Not a rule, an observation: It doesn't matter how long your book has been published, Ten years? Fine.
The winner will receive the prestigious Selfie Stick Award but the true prize is the publicity of being the winner, plus the bonus of being reviewed on the blogs of 10 highly respected fantasy bloggers.
Frankly you can't buy better publicity than that. The winning book will have been selected as the best from a field of 250+ self-published works.
My blog pages associated with last year's SPFBO got 70,000 views during the contest and well over a hundred reviews were posted on the ten blogs!
We have an SPFBO (Spifbo) group on Facebook. And on Twitter the #SPFBO hashtag is a good way to keep updated.
The contest progresses as follows:
In phase 1 which takes 5 months:
1. The blogs put on their agent's hat and go through the slush pile of novels allocated to them (between 25 and 30 books) to find the one title they will put through to the final.
This does not mean they have to read all the books. My own agent would go through that number in a day. But hopefully they will read part of all of them and all of some.
2. Review that chosen title.
3. Select their 3 favourite covers for the cover art contest in which they will later vote.
It is hoped that they will also review some of their favorite books from the selection they were given.
In phase 2 which takes 6 months:
1. The blogs read and score all 9 finalists from the other blogs.
2. Review their favorite.
3. Review the winner.
If their own finalist turns out to remain their favourite and to win, then they have no reviews to write in phase 2!
It is hoped they will feel moved to review some of the other finalists too,
The champions so far:
2019 2018
2017 2016 2015
![Where Loyalties Lie (Best Laid Plans Book 1) by [Hayes, Rob J.]](https://images-eu.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51pzjjuUxiL.jpg)
![The Grey Bastards (The Lot Lands) by [French, Jonathan]](https://images-eu.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51vzJNy9TQL.jpg)
![The Thief Who Pulled On Trouble's Braids (Amra Thetys Series Book 1) by [McClung, Michael]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51KQLSz%2BWiL.jpg)
A variety of award stickers are available here, covering years 2015-2025, many thanks to author Barbara Pickering. Here are two examples:
The finalists by year:
Finalists from five years of SPFBO
Blood Rush 7.75
A Tale of Stars and Shadow 7.75Fionn 7.20
Larcout 6.70
Under a Colder Sun 6.60
Jake Bloodfist 6.55
The Way Into Chaos 6.45
~1500 books considered so far!
& for the interested:
the takeaway here is that given the distribution of entries, the distribution of finalists is within the expected range that an unbiased selection of finalists would produce.
The Way Into Chaos 6.45
Priest 6.30
The Moonlight War 5.95
~1500 books considered so far!
& for the interested:
the takeaway here is that given the distribution of entries, the distribution of finalists is within the expected range that an unbiased selection of finalists would produce.
EmoticonEmoticon