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Milkweed Prize for Children’s Literature
Milkweed Editions invites writers to submit their works of fiction for middle-grade readers for the Milkweed Prize for Children’s Literature. The winning author will receive a $10,000 advance against royalties and join a growing list of award-winning children’s authors.

THE PRIZE

Milkweed Editions will award the Milkweed Prize for Children’s Literature to the best manuscript for children ages 8 to 13 that Milkweed accepts for publication during the calendar year by a writer not previously published by Milkweed. All children’s manuscripts received are automatically entered into the competition. Judging will be by Milkweed Editions; the winner of the prize will receive a $10,000 cash advance as part of any royalties agreed upon in the contractual arrangement negotiated at the time of acceptance. Milkweed Editions reserves the right not to award the prize for a particular year. We are now accepting submissions for the 2008 prize.

MILKWEED'S BOOKS for YOUNG READERS

Milkweed Editions is committed to publishing the highest quality children’s books for middle-grade readers. Previous prize winners—such as Perfect (a Book Sense 76 pick), Parents Wanted (Bank Street College Best Children's Books of the Year), The $66 Summer (New York Public Library Best Book for the Teen Age), The Ocean Within (Sunshine State Young Reader’s Award), and Behind the Bedroom Wall (with more than 80,000 copies in print)—introduce young readers to memorable characters struggling with the kinds of difficult decisions that young people of any era must face.

Our goal is to encourage both writers of children’s literature and writers of books for adults to turn their attention to creating books for this discriminating and important group of readers. At this age, readers are ready for well-written books that range widely in subject matter, from fantasy, to fiction grounded in history, to books about everyday life. Milkweed Editions is looking for manuscripts of high literary quality that embody humane values and contribute to cultural understanding.

SUBMISSIONS

Submissions should adhere to Milkweed’s children's literature submission guidelines. Manuscripts should be novels for children ages 8 to 13. Picture books and collections of stories are not eligible, nor are retellings of legends or folktales. Work previously published as a book in the United States is not eligible, but prior magazine publication of a portion of the manuscript does not render the work ineligible. Manuscripts previously submitted to Milkweed should not be resubmitted. Questions concerning the prize may be directed to editor@milkweed.org.

WINNERS of the MILKWEED PRIZE for CHILDREN'S LITERATURE:

  • 2007 The Linden Tree by Ellie Mathews
    • 2005 Trudy by Jessica Lee Anderson
    • 2004 Perfect by Natasha Friend
    • 2001 Parents Wanted by George Harrar
    • 2000 The $66 Summer by John Armistead
    • 1999 The Ocean Within by V. M. Caldwell
    • 1998 The Dog with Golden Eyes by Frances Wilbur
    • 1996 Behind the Bedroom Wall by Laura E. Williams
    • 1995 The Summer of the Bonepile Monster by Aileen Kilgore Henderson
    • 1994 A Bride for Anna's Papa by Isabel R. Marvin
 
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Milkweed 2008 Catalog


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