An Post Irish Book Awards 2025
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Eligibility guidelines for individual awards:
If you are not sure which category of award your book falls into please read the guidelines below. Please note that some books may fit comfortably in two or more categories.
General Eligibility Guidelines
The book must have been published within the current awards year i.e. between November 1st the previous calendar year up to and including November 1st in the current year.
The author must be Irish by birth, citizenship or long-term residence.
The book must be original, ie neither a reprint nor a translation or adaptation of a previously-published book.
Consent must be obtained from authors, illustrators and any contributors by publishers before submitting titles.
All award categories are subject to change, dependent on the quantity and quality of the overall submissions in each. Categories could be cut or added to at the discretion of the organisers.
For the first time submissions for Gradam Love Leabhar Gaeilge Leabhar Ficsin Gaeilge na Bliana will be taken on the An Post Irish Book Awards website.
Gradam Love Leabhar Gaeilge Leabhar Ficsin Gaeilge na Bliana 2025:
Tá an chatagóir seo oscailte do litríocht chruthaitheach (ficsean nua) i nGaeilge do dhaoine fásta. Breithneoidh painéal ó thionscal na leabhar agus painéal na gcriticeoirí agus na léirmheastóirí ar na leabhair a chuirfear isteach agus fógrófar na gearrliostaí ar an 30 Deireadh Fómhair. Cuirfear scéala faoi rún roimhe sin chuig foilsitheoirí ar éirigh leo. De bharr líon na n-aighneachtaí is oth linn nach féidir linn a gheallúint go gcuirfimid foilsitheoirí nár éirigh leo ar an eolas.
This category is open to creative literature (new fiction) in the Irish language for adults. Submitted titles will be considered by the book-industry panel and the critics and reviewers panel and the shortlists will be announced on 30th of October. Successful publishers will be notified confidentially in advance. Due to the volume of submissions we regret that we cannot undertake to notify unsuccessful publishers.
Titles submitted for the Novel of The Year must be works of literary fiction.
The Non-Fiction Book of the Year will broadly cover narrative works of business, current affairs and politics.
The Lifestyle Book of the Year will cover lifestyle matters such as diet, mental health, wellness and for the first time, this year, food and drink, which will no longer be a separate category.
Titles submitted for the Best Irish-Published Book of the Year must emanate from an Irish-based publishing house. The award aims to reward the overall excellence of a title’s publication from intrinsic merit, to the aesthetic merits of the book itself, the publicity campaign, the impact on the market etc.
Titles submitted for the Children’s Book of the Year categories, should be carefully directed to the appropriate category:
- Junior category is for books aimed at the under-8 age group.
- Senior category is for books aimed at the 8-12 age group.
- Teen/Young Adult category is for books aimed at the 12 + age group.
Publishers must credit author and illustrator in their submissions whenever appropriate; all An Post Irish Book Awards materials will conform to this rule.
Titles submitted for the Crime Fiction Award should be novels which must fit comfortably within the generic constraints of “crime fiction”.
Titles submitted for the Newcomer of the Year must be the publishing debut of the author regardless of genre – including for the first time, short story collections. Titles submitted in this category may also be submitted in other categories.
Titles submitted for the Biography of the Year must be on the life of an Irish personality. The author must also be Irish.
Titles submitted in this category will range from biographies of Irish sports figures to accounts of great sporting seasons to histories of clubs or organisations. In all cases the personalities and contexts must be exclusively Irish.
Titles submitted for the Popular Fiction Book of the Year must be works of popular fiction.
The History Book of the Year will cover narrative works of history.
Tá an chatagóir seo oscailte do litríocht chruthaitheach (ficsean nua) i nGaeilge do dhaoine fásta.
This category is open to creative literature (new fiction) in the Irish language for adults.
External Submissions:
Poetry and Short Story Categories:
The An Post Irish Book Awards has partnered with the Irish Independent for the ‘New Irish Writing’ poetry and short story categories.
Writers who are Irish or resident of Ireland can submit their work for consideration and one short story and one poem is published on the last Saturday of each month in the Irish Independent.
Stories submitted should not exceed 2,000 words. Up to four poems may be submitted. There is no entry fee. Writers whose work is selected will receive €120 for fiction and €60 for poetry. You can email your entry, preferably as a Word document, to newirishwriting@independent.ie
Please make sure to include your name, address and contact number, as well as a brief biographical paragraph. Only writers who have yet to publish their first book can be considered.
From the pieces published monthly, the independent judges will select a shortlist of six short stories and a shortlist of six poems for each category. The winners will be announced at the An Post Irish Book Awards Gala dinner in November.
Please note that the following categories are externally adjudicated and not subject to open submissions:
LAI Author of the Year
An Post Bookshop of the Year
The Last Word Listener’s Choice Award
Beyond this stage, the additional requirements for books IF selected for the shortlist:
Publishers are requested to ensure that shortlisted titles remain in print at the time of the awards and must also ensure that such titles are generally available in the Irish market, ie available from the national wholesalers at appropriate discounts.
Publishers must also undertake to support the IBAS campaign and key events, ensuring that any shortlisted author is available to attend. Publishers should also provide promotional copies of each title if they reach the shortlist stage, as follows:
4 copies of each shortlisted book should be sent to:
Breda Brown,
Unique Media Ltd,
600a Cathedral Court,
New Street, Dublin 8
2 copies of each shortlisted book should be sent to:
Luke Giles, Agile Ideas,
Studio 106,
Leather Factory,
1 Brook Lane,
Holt,
Wiltshire,
BA14 6RL
Adjudication on all eligibility issues will be at the discretion of the Awards’ executive body. Their decision will be final.