Social media premiere with book giveaways July 6
[Minneapolis, MN]—[July 6, 2021]— The Midwest Book Awards, organized by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association (MiPA), has announced the winners for the 31st annual literary competition for books published in 2020 in the Midwestern United States during a virtual gala on June 26th. A social media premiere with additional content and giveaway opportunities will follow on July 6.
During a virtual party following the gala, Adam Falkner, winner of the Debut Poetry Category with his collection The Willies from Button Poetry, commented on the event: “What an honor and exciting moment it’s been to be alongside each of your books and to watch each of your book covers roll by and to see the beauty of your work.”
As a regional professional association, MiPA takes pride in recognizing excellence in the publishing industry and seeks to promote growth and relationships among its network of publishers and supporting industries. This year’s competition garnered 241 entries in 35 categories, submitted by 74 independent publishers and judged by a panel of nearly one hundred librarians and booksellers from throughout the Midwest.
Zaylore Stout, winner of both the Arts/Photography/Table books category and the Education/Learning Category offered remarks on what it means to be recognized in the Midwest Book Awards: “As an author writing LGBT history, it was something I felt called to do. It’s always great to be recognized, especially outside of the LGBT history category.”
Winners will be encouraged to participate in MiPA’s second season of the Virtual Reading Series, a limited series launched last year on MiPA’s YouTube channel. Finalist books will also be for sale in MiPA’s affiliate shop on Bookshop.org, a website that shares proceeds with independent booksellers. Buyers can opt to select which independent store will receive the commission, or to leave it in a general pool to be distributed among independent booksellers.
For a complete list of gold and silver winners, visit www.mipa.org/midwest-book-awards. To view the social media premiere and participate in the giveaways visit the Midwest Book Awards social media accounts: Facebook – @MIPAMidwestBookAwards, Instagram: @midwestbookawards, Twitter: @MIPABookAwards
The Midwest Book Awards, which began in 1989, recognizes the best independent literature to come out of the Midwest each year and is organized by the Midwest Independent Publishers Association (MiPA). Founded in 1984, MiPA exists today as a vibrant professional nonprofit association made up of traditional presses, university presses, author-publishers, hybrid presses and related support industries, such as graphic designers and printers. MiPA serves the Midwest independent publishing community through regular educational programming, networking and peer recognition.