What are the general eligibility criteria for the 2025 Thriller Awards?

To be considered eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards, the work must be a novel, short story, or audiobook that was published in English, for the first time, anywhere in the world, in the calendar year of 2024. The author must either be an Active ITW member or the publisher must be an ITW-recognized publisher. It’s important to note for a work to be submitted to ITW as consideration for membership or an award, registered copyright must be held 100% by the author or an authorized party acting on behalf of the author.

What is the deadline for submissions?

To allow our judges sufficient time to consider all entries, ITW has implemented staggered submission deadlines based on publication dates, as follow:

Works published on or before May 31, 2024 must be submitted by July 31, 2024.

Works published on or before August 31, 2024 must be submitted by October 31, 2024.

Works published on or after September 1, 2024 must be submitted by December 31, 2024.

No submissions will be accepted after December 31, 2024.

Are there any exceptions to the submissions deadline?

Absent good cause, there are no exceptions to the deadline. If you have a unique situation, please contact the Awards VP at awardsvp@thrillerwriters.org.

Is a work eligible if the author is not a member of ITW?

In order for a novel, short story, or audiobook to be eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards, the author must be an Active ITW member. If they are not an Active member, they may apply for membership. If the author does not qualify for Active status, then the publisher must be an ITW-recognized publisher.

Is the work eligible if the publisher is not ITW-recognized?

If the publisher of the novel, short story, or audiobook is not on the ITW-recognized publisher list, they may seek ITW recognition here. If the publisher does not qualify for recognized status, then the author must be an ITW Active member.

What if the publisher is not on the list, but is an imprint of an ITW-recognized publisher?

ITW requires both the parent and imprint companies to be recognized. There is a streamlined process for imprints to apply for recognition available here.

Are self-published works eligible?

Self-published novels, short stories, and audiobooks are eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards provided the author is an ITW Active member.

What is the eligibility period for the 2025 Thriller Awards?

To be eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards, all novels, short stories, and audiobooks must have been first published, in the English language, between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024.

Is the work eligible if it was originally self-published before the eligibility period, and later released by an ITW-recognized publisher during the eligibility period?

No. If the novel, short story, or audiobook was previously published in any form, in English, before January 1, 2024, the work is ineligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards.

Is the work eligible if it was released in English outside North America before the eligibility period?

No. The publication date of the work’s first English language release determines whether the work is eligible. If the novel, short story, or audiobook being submitted was first published in English anywhere in the world before January 1, 2024, the work is ineligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards.

Is the work eligible if it was first published in a language other than English before the eligibility period?

Yes. If the novel, short story, or audiobook was published for the first time in the English language between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024, it is eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards, provided all other eligibility requirements are met.

Can authors submit their own work to the 2025 Thriller Awards?

Yes. In most cases, publishers will submit eligible work on behalf their authors, but authors are also welcome to submit their own work. To avoid duplicate submissions, ITW advises authors to confirm with their publishers that their work has not yet been submitted, and then notify the publisher once their submission is complete.

Can an author submit more than one eligible work for the 2025 Thriller Awards?

Yes. If an author has published more than one eligible work (for instance, a short story and a novel), both works may be submitted. ITW will accept up to three eligible works per author.

To which category should a work be submitted?

For the 2025 Thriller Awards, works may only be submitted to one category, with the exception of Audiobooks. Novels that are released in audiobook as well as print book and/or e-book may also be submitted to Best Audiobook, provided both submissions meet all eligibility requirements.

Best Standalone Thriller (New for 2025):  This new category honors the best standalone thriller of the year. Debut novels must be submitted to the Best First Novel category.

Best Standalone Mystery (New for 2025):  This new category honors the best standalone mystery of the year. Debut novels must be submitted to the Best First Novel category.

Best Series Novel (New for 2025):  This new category honors the best series novel of the year, and may include works that are intended as the first book in a series. Debut novels must be submitted to the Best First Novel category.

Best First Novel:  All first novels, except for young adult, must be entered in this category. If an author has any prior published novels, including self-published, under the author’s own name or a pseudonym, the work must be entered in a different category.

Best Young Adult Novel:  All novels aimed at young adults (ages 12–18), including first novels, thrillers, mysteries, and series novels should be submitted to the Best Young Adult Novel category.

Best Short Story:  Short stories under 35,000 words must be published during the eligibility period either as a stand-alone or within an anthology. Original publication or a copy of the story published is admissible, provided it is accompanied by proof of publication (i.e., the publication’s copyright page/notice).

Best Audiobook:  A work may be submitted to both the Audiobook category AND one of the categories above, assuming the publication of a print or e-book edition, subject to other eligibility requirements.

What happened to the previous categories of Best Hardcover, Best Paperback, and Best Audiobook?

ITW wishes to recognize works based on the author’s work versus the format of publication. The publishing landscape has continued to change, and the format of the work has become a challenging means of differentiation as works are released in multiple formats within the same eligibility period, sometimes simultaneously.

What is the difference between a thriller and a mystery, and how do I decide to which category I should submit?

ITW allows the author and/or publisher to make that determination. For very loose guidance, a mystery centers around a past event that the protagonist, and often the reader, must solve by the last page. A thriller focuses on escalating tensions, and often the readers is aware of both the protagonist and antagonist throughout the book. Of course, elements of both often co-exist in the same work, so it is up to the submitter to choose. Please note that all debut novels must be submitted to the Best First Novel category and all Young Adult novels must be submitted to the Best Young Adult category, regardless of genre.

What is a series novel for submission purposes?

This category has been created to recognize those works that focus on recurring characters published within the eligibility period. Novels intended as the first in a series may be submitted in this category unless it is the author’s first novel, in which case it must be submitted to the Best First Novel category, or a Young Adult novel, in which case it must be submitted to the Best Young Adult category. Please note that authors may choose to submit a series book to the Best Standalone Thriller or Best Standalone Mystery categories instead, with the caution that a work may only be submitted to one category, plus the Audiobook submission, if applicable.

Can I change the submission category later?

No.  Please choose with care, as each book may only be submitted in one category (except audiobook).  As works are qualified and submitted to our judges on a rolling basis, ITW is unable to accept requests to recharacterize submissions, including those submitted by someone other than the author.

Is a short story eligible if it’s longer than 35,000 words, but still not long enough to be considered a novel?

No. A short story longer than 35,000 words is ineligible for Best Short Story. At this time, ITW does not have a category for novellas.

Is an audiobook eligible if the print book and/or e-book was first released in a previous year?

Possibly. An audiobook is eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards even if the print book and/or e-book was released in a previous year, provided the audiobook meets all the eligibility requirements. However, if an earlier version of that book was submitted to the Thriller Awards in any format in a previous year, then the audiobook version is not eligible.

Are print books and/or e-books still eligible if the audiobook version was released in a previous year?

Yes. Print books and e-books are eligible for the 2025 Thriller Awards even if the audiobook version was released in a previous year, provided the print books and e-books meet all the eligibility requirements.

Where do I submit a novel, short story, or audiobook to the 2025 Thriller Awards?

ITW only accepts submissions electronically. You may complete the 2025 Thriller Awards submission form here. Please be sure to read through the submission guidelines carefully. Missing, incomplete, or incorrect information may disqualify the submission.

May I mail print books or CDs of my eligible work directly to the 2025 Thriller Awards?

No. ITW cannot accept hard copy submissions in any format. Please use the submission form here.

How should a novel or short story be submitted?

Eligible novels and short stories must be submitted in PDF format.

What if the PDF will not upload to the submission form?

Occasionally a PDF size exceeds the capacity of our system. Please contact the Awards Coordinator at toddgerber@thrillerwriters.org for assistance.

How should audiobooks be submitted?

As audiobook files are extremely large, eligible audiobooks must be submitted with a link to the book on Audible.com only. If the book has not been made available on Audible, please contact the Awards Coordinator at toddgerber@thrillerwriters.org for assistance.

If a link to an audiobook sample cannot be provided, can I send the digital file or physical CDs to ITW instead?

No. With the amount of submissions ITW receives each year, it is not possible to submit audiobook files, which are extremely large, through our submission form. Please do not email digital audiobook files to ITW unless you’ve been specifically asked to do so by the Awards Coordinator. ITW does not accept physical copies of any works, in any category.

What if the submission form isn’t working?

Often, changing browsers will resolve the problem, but please contact the Awards Coordinator at toddgerber@thrillerwriters.org if that does not resolve the issue.

What if I didn’t receive a confirmation email that my submission was received?

Be sure to check your spam folder. If the system is overloaded – as it tends to be closer to the submission deadline – it may take up to 24 hours to receive a confirmation email that your submission has been received. To avoid duplicate submissions, please do not send your submission again. After 24 hours, if you have still not received confirmation, please contact the Awards Coordinator at toddgerber@thrillerwriters.org to verify that your submission was received.

What if I’m an author and my publisher is unable to confirm whether they’ve already submitted my work?

Please contact the Awards Coordinator at toddgerber@thrillerwriters.org to verify that your work has been received.

When will the finalists be announced?

ITW will announce the finalists for the 2025 Thriller Awards in late February 2025.

When will the winners be announced?

ITW will announce the winners of the 2025 Thriller Awards during the Awards banquet at ThrillerFest in New York City June 2025.

What if I have still have questions?

For any questions not addressed in the FAQs, please contact the Awards VP at awardsvp@thrillerwriters.org