Using Awards Lists As A RA Tool: Debut Fiction Prizes Edition

This is part of my ongoing series on using Awards Lists as a RA tool. Click here for all posts in the series in reverse chronological order. Click here for the first post which outlines the details how to use awards lists as a RA tool.  

I may be busy with 31 Days of Horror, but I am sill keeping track of awards lists that can help you help readers, and today I have 2 which are both short lists for debut author awards.

Before I get to the specifics, I want to remind you of a few things about prizes for debut authors in particular.

• Debuts are very popular. For example, last year, debuts were up 14% as a category and were the largest sub-category in adult fiction during 2022. (Stats from Publisher's Lunch). 
• Debuts make for excellent book discussion options, especially after the author has a few books, and even more so if further books become hits. Discussing a popular author's first novel is one of my favorite book club experiences because it gives you another layer of discussion.
• The backlist of debut novels from prize lists is ripe for using as a sure bet suggestion on a hard to help reader. They don't know what they want? 2-5 years ago's debut authors who were on prize short lists is an easy book talk. Simply share how this novel rose above all others from that year to be called out and it was a FIRST novel. Read it to see if he hype was worth it. These harder to help patrons often like he challenge of getting a book to check and see if others were "correct" or not. Even when they don't love it, they enjoyed being part of the book world conversation. (See me and last year's debut darling Rabbit Hutch, which I still don't get why everyone loved it but I am glad I read it.)

Of course, these points work in tandem with the general advice I have at the top of this post about awards lists being such a valuable RA  resource. 

Okay so now back to the two reputable debut award short lists I have promised. All of the titles here are worth adding to your collections and suggesting. Make a display of these titles (there are no overlaps) and other books from the same prize's backlist of nominees and call the display "Debuts Worth Discovering." 

And of course, make it interactive and ask your patrons (online or in person) to share their fav debuts. Add those to the display as it empties. You can do tis now, or anytime of year. It is an evergreen display idea. 

Now to the awards.

The Barnes and Noble Discover Prize for the best debut is chosen by the company's booksellers. The current short list is here. You can click here to access previous year's lists, well at least articles about said lists, although B&N does not make it easy. That is mostly because they are in the business of selling the newest books. 

The Center for Fiction's First Novel Prize is here. This one is chosen by a different jury of well known authors each year. Jury members are clearly listed and, hot tip, their debuts are also good to use here. Backlist access is easily accessible if you scroll down on the landing page for the prize.