On one of my author lists, everyone was talking about who won at Left Coast Crime's recent conference. (Congratulations, Kelli Stanley, recipient of The Bruce Alexander Memorial Historical Mystery Award for your Nox Dormienda, A Long Night For Sleeping published by Five Star.)On another list, all the talk is about who was nominated for a prestigious romance genre awards. (Congratulations, T. J. Bennett!)
I did a little research, just in case you're interested, and came up with a long list of awards for just about every genre. I thought I'd start with mystery since Left Coast Crime just finished their annual conference. Here are a few of the major mystery awards.
The Edgar® Award
Since 1946, the Edgar Allan Poe Awards® (the "Edgars®") have been given annually by the Mystery Writers of America to authors of distinguished work in various categories of the genre.
The CWA Dagger Awards
Since 1955, the Crime Writer Association (CWA) Dagger Awards have been given annually to celebrate the best in crime and thriller writing.
The Nero Award
Since 1979, the "Nero" has been awarded for literary excellence in the mystery genre. The award is presented at the Black Orchid Banquet, usually held the first Saturday in December in NYC.
The Shamus Award
Since 1982, the Shamus Award has been given by the Private Eye Writers of America to honor excellent work in the Private Eye genre.
The Anthony Award
Since 1986, the Anthony Awards have been given each year at Bouchercon World Mystery Convention. Winners are selected by the attendees. The award is named for the late Anthony Boucher (William Anthony Parker White) who was a well-known writer and influential critic from the New York Times. He also was one of the founders of Mystery Writers of America.
The Macavity Award
Since 1987, the Macavity Award, named for the "mystery cat" of T.S. Eliot, Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, has been given each year by the members of Mystery Readers International organization who vote for their favorite mysteries in several categories.
The Agatha Award
Since 1988, the Agatha Awards, named for Agatha Christie, of course, have been given to the best in traditional mystery books, or cozies. They are given annually by Malice Domestic, Ltd.
The Benjamin Franklin Award
Given since 1991 by the Independent Book Publishers Association to recognize excellence in independent publishing, with awards given in many categories including Mystery/Suspense.
The Hammett Prize
Given since 1991 by the North American Branch of the International Association of Crime Writers for literary excellence in the field of crime writing.
The Dilys Award
Named in honor of Dilys Winn, the founder of Murder Ink which was the first specialty bookseller of mystery books in the United States, the award has been given since 1992 by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association to the mystery titles of the year which the member booksellers have most enjoyed selling.
The Gumshoe Award
Given since 2002, the Gumshoe Award is selected by the editors of Mystery Ink to recognize the best achievements in crime fiction. Winners are selected from titles published in the previous year.
The Best Books Award
Since 2004 the Best Books Awards have been given to outstanding books from mainstream and independent publishing houses. These awards are sponsored by USA Book News, and there are over 150 categories with mystery and thriller included.
The Thriller Award
Established in 2006, these award winners are announced at ThrillerFest, an annual event hosted by the International Thriller Writers organization.
There are many more awards for mystery, suspense, thriller given on a regional and national basis. I didn't even touch on the Canadian and Australian awards just to mention a couple.
Takeaway Truth
Awards are nice, but the ultimate reward is having readers love your work.
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