Rubery Book Awards | Book Contest
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Home of the
​Rubery Book Award ... what's your story?

Discover. Celebrate. Elevate.


​Apply
for 2026

Closing date is 31 March 2026
Entries received after this deadline will automatically be considered for the 2027 awards.
Entries must be either self-published or published by an independent press. Both authors and publishers are welcome to submit books.

To complete your entry, please fill out the online entry form, send us a copy of your book, and pay the required entry fee. Full details can be found here.
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The Rubery Prize is a prestigious international book award seeking the best books by indie writers, self published authors and books published by independent presses, judged by reputable judges. Creative writing is a key part of life for those who enjoy writing yet it is increasingly difficult to become traditionally published. We consider a wide Genre Representation as winners come from across fiction, non-fiction, short stories, poetry, and children’s writing and more.
All books are Indie / Self-Published: Often they are deeply thematic, historically or culturally rich, emotionally complex, or stylistically distinctive. Winning the Rubery Award provides authors with recognition, a platform, and credibility in the literary world.

Our reputation is based on finding quality and outstanding books and therefore helping these authors gain the critical recognition needed to stand out in a crowded market. 

The Rubery Prize is a well-established name in the publishing world. 

And the 2025 winners are...

2026 ​JUDGES
Dr Paul McDonald, our resident judge, is an author of poetry, fiction and academic articles. We are indeed lucky to have him!
So that there is some variety each year, a different judge will join him in the hunt for some of the best books out there!
Guest Judge

Emma Purshouse​
​Information about our 2026 judges

Prizes 2026

Book of the Year
£2000 (approx 2760USD)
Category winners £200 (approx 276USD)
Every winner receives a glass plaque and all winners & shortlisted authors receive a write up.​

Entry Fee

We're often asked how much the entry fee is so we thought we'd add it to the Homepage.
Entry fee costs depend on which country you are in.  More information on the cost for your country can be found here.


We are completely self-funded and in order for the awards to function we must charge an entry fee. Other mainstream awards work by sponsorship and charging publishers thousands of pounds once their author is shortlisted. They are again charged thousands to have a table at an awards ceremony. Charges easily run into the tens of thousands, if not more,  for each book shortlisted.
​
We know that indie authors and publishers cannot possibly afford these costs so we charge a much smaller fee for everyone. 
 


The Rubery Book Award
2 Weights Drive
Worcestershire
B97 6DZ
​United Kingdom. 


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The International Rubery Book Award
​ ​ © 2025


  • Home
  • Enter
    • Enter
    • 2026 Judges
    • Checklist
    • Terms and conditions
  • Winners & Shortlists
    • 2025 Winners
    • 2024 Winners
    • 2023 Winners
    • 2022 Winners
    • 2021 Winners
    • 2020 Winners
    • 2019 Winners
    • 2018 Winners
    • 2017 winners
    • 2016 Winners
    • 2015 Winners
    • 2014 Short Story Winners
    • 2014 Book Winners
    • 2013 Short Story Winners
    • 2013 Book Winners
    • 2012 Short Story Winners
    • 2012 Book Winners
    • 2011 Short Story Winners
    • 2011 Book Winners
    • Author Success
  • FAQ
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Meet our Winners