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Women Auther Awards 2026 | Honouring Voices That Inspire

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Auther Awards Nominations Eligibility & Guidelines

Eligibility Criteria
  1. The author of the book should be a woman.
  2. Works should originally be written in the English language.
  3. Year of publication: The book must be published between 1st Dec 2025 – 30th November 2026
  4. Author Nationality – the Author should be of Indian origin or should hold an “Overseas Citizen of India” (OCI) card or “Person of Indian Origin” (PIO) card. Proof of Nationality will be required with each entry.
  5. The nominated book should be available for sale in India.
  6. In case an author who lives outside India wins, documentation such as proof of address; Tax Residency Certificate (for Indians living out of the country), etc would be required.
  7. Women authors must have at least one book published (except in Debut category)
  8. The book should not be a re-published copy.

Important notes:

  • Textbooks/supplementary readers/coursebooks in any subject meant for K-12 or universities will not be considered. Nor will a story/stories written by an author that have been published in a multi-author anthology be considered for independent submission to AutHer Awards.
  • It is advisable that the Publishers do not disclose their list of entries to any third party, including the author(s) themselves.
  1. Forms to be submitted in English language only.
  2. Authors of the book can nominate themselves in a single/multiple categories.
  3. Friends and readers can also nominate their favourite authors and books published between 1st Dec 2025 – 30th November 2026.
  4. Only books published in hard copy can be nominated.
  5. Entries which are self-published or nominated by friends will be evaluated for Popular Choice Award.
  6. Multiple entries across categories can be submitted by the publisher, author and/or their friends.
  7. Only the entries submitted online will be accepted.
  8. The Awards’ Director may call in any eligible novel for the consideration of the Jury, at their discretion on a confidential basis.
  9. Any discrepancies observed during the eligibility check may lead to disqualification.
    – In any dispute about the rules, results or any matter relating to the conduct of the prize, the decision of the Literary Director will be considered as final and no correspondence will be entertained in this regard.
    – The Literary Director, in consultation with the jury, has the right to eliminate any book whose final version differs substantially from the version first submitted.
  10. Acceptance of declaration is mandatory for submission of forms/entries.
  11. For the ‘Best Debut’ category: please nominate the author’s Debut book.
  12. For ‘Best Children’s Author’ category: Authors who have written books for children between 8 – 14 years of age to be nominated.

For The Manuscript Category

Eligibility Criteria
  1. This award is only for women authors.
  2. Age group of the writer:  14 to 18 years old.
  3. The manuscript is the participant’s original work, and the manuscript has not had any prior publication, whole or in part, in any language and it is not under consideration for publication elsewhere.
  4. In case of a retelling, the plot and content should be original.
  5. The manuscript should be in the English language only.
  6. Preferred Category/genre of the manuscript: Fiction.
  7. The manuscript may be a collection of short stories, a novel or a novella. The word length of a novella should be between 15,000 – 30,000 words.
  8. Only the residents of India are eligible to participate.
  9. Writers should not be represented by an agent.
  1. Forms to be submitted in English language only.
  2. Only entries submitted online will be accepted.
  3. Last date for submission of entries is 4th December 2026.
  4. The Awards’ Director may call in any eligible manuscript for the consideration of the jury, at their discretion on a confidential basis.
  5. Any discrepancies observed during the eligibility check may lead to disqualification.
  6. In any dispute about the rules, results or any matter relating to the conduct of the prize, the decision of the Director will be considered as final and no correspondence will be entertained in this regard.
  7. In consultation with the jury, the Director has the right to eliminate any manuscript whose final version differs substantially from the first submitted version.
  8. Acceptance of “Declaration” (mentioned below) is mandatory for submission of forms/entries.
  9. The font size should be in the Arial font, 12 points, with double spacing between the lines. A 500-word synopsis.

  1. I, hereby confirm that:

    1. The Author is a female, between 14 to 18 years.
    2. The manuscript is an original work and has not been re-published/re-written or translated from any other language.
    3. It is an original manuscript written in the English language.
    4. The author resides in India.
    5. I acknowledge and agree that the author must disclose the use of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process along with the name of tools used and the purpose/extent of usage. Tick one of the following:
      • I have used generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process. In this case, the content will not be copyrighted by the author. The name of tools used and the purpose/extent of usage shall be provided by you along with this declaration.
      • I have not used any form of generative AI and AI-assisted technologies in the writing process.
    6. I take full responsibility for the accuracy, validity, and integrity of the content presented in the manuscript. Any errors or oversights are my sole responsibility.
    7. If the manuscript contains third-party copyright material(s), it is my sole responsibility to obtain permission from the relevant copyright holder for reusing the material(s), including any associated licensing fee.
    8. On behalf of all co-authors (if any), I shall bear full responsibility for the submission.
    9. In case of any third-party dispute due to my participation, I shall indemnify BCCL, JK Paper, their affiliates, directors, employees and any third-party related to this initiative against any such third-party claim.
    10. The organisers of the Contest shall be free to uphold and if necessary, cancel this participation in case of any doubts arising out from the content/documents/information being provided. Further, the organisers shall be at their sole discretion, be free to proceed against me if any information furnished is found to be incorrect or false.

For The Poetry Category

Eligibility Criteria
  1. The author of the nominated poetry collection must be a woman.
  2. Nationality: The author must be of Indian origin or hold an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card or Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card. Proof of eligibility may be required.
  3. Publication period: The book must have been published between 1st December 2025 till 30th November 2026.
  4. Language: The poetry collection must have been originally written in English.
  5. Format: Only full-length poetry collections published in print will be considered. Standalone poems, individual poems published in journals or magazines, and unpublished manuscripts will not be eligible under this category.
  6. Availability: The nominated book must be available for sale in India.
  7. Originality: The collection must comprise original work by the nominated author. Reprints, translations or republished editions of previously published collections will not be eligible.
  8. Minimum publication requirement: The author must have at least one published book (not necessarily in Poetry). Both debut and established poets are eligible.
  9. Exclusions: Individual poems published in multi-author anthologies will not be eligible for independent nomination. Textbooks, academic coursebooks and instructional poetry books will not be considered.
  10. Posthumous works: Posthumous publications will not be eligible.
  1. Who can nominate: Authors may nominate their own poetry collections. Friends and readers may also nominate eligible books, subject to the award’s general nomination rules.
  2. Number of entries: An author may submit eligible entries in multiple categories, where applicable. Each nominated book must meet the eligibility criteria for the relevant category.
  3. Submission process: All nominations must be submitted through the official online nomination form. Entries submitted through other channels will not be accepted.
  4. Nomination details: The nomination form must include the book’s title, author’s name, publisher, ISBN, date of publication and other requested bibliographic information.
  5. Supporting documents: The organisers may request a copy of the published book, proof of publication date, reviews of the poems/books nationality documentation and other information required to verify eligibility.
  6. Evaluation: Eligible entries will be assessed by the appointed jury on literary merit, originality, quality of language, poetic craft, thematic depth, distinctive voice and overall coherence of the collection.
  7. Selection and disqualification: The organisers reserve the right to verify all entries and disqualify nominations that do not meet the eligibility criteria or contain inaccurate or misleading information.
  8. Final authority: The decision of the award organisers and jury, in accordance with the award rules, will be final.