Guidelines
THE PROCESS
Eligible books are submitted for consideration via a nomination form on insideadog.com.au.
A longlist of 10 Australian books and 10 International books is then selected by the Centre for Youth Literature, in consultation with previous Inky Award Judges and independent industry experts.
The longlist is then read by a panel of six (mostly teenaged) judges, who whittle the list down to ten books (5 Australian, 5 International). This shortlist is published on insideadog and anyone aged 12-20 can vote for their favourite. The Australian book with the most votes receives the Gold Inky and a cash prize, and the International book with the most votes wins the Silver Inky.
LONGLIST & SHORTLIST SELECTION
The longlist will reflect the quality and diversity of current Young Adult Literature.
Books will be selected on the basis of their originality, quality, readability, voice, character, age-appropriateness and something else that you can’t put your finger on, but you know it when you see it.
Books will not be selected either by their popularity or their “message”.
Whilst sequels are eligible for inclusion in the Inky Awards, a book needs to stand up on its own.
ELIGIBILITY
The Inky Awards are for fiction, poetry, and/or anthology books or graphic novels first made available to the Australian public during the eligibility period (the financial year just gone).
This includes publication in Australia and imports (for the Silver Inky).
Self-published titles are only eligible if they are readily available to Australian teenagers, in schools, bookshops, and public libraries.
Books may be a work of joint authorship or editorship.
All works must be in English. Bilingual editions where one of the languages used is English are also eligible.
To be eligible for the GOLD INKY, authors must be Australian citizens or permanent residents of Australia.
To be eligible for the SILVER INKY, authors must be a citizen or permanent resident of a country other than Australia.
In all cases not covered by these conditions and guidelines, or where there may be scope for interpretation, the nominator should seek clarification from the Awards Coordinator on 03 8664 7014 or youthlit@slv.vic.gov.au.
VOTING
Young people can vote online at www.insideadog.com.au.
You don’t need to register or ‘join’ in order to vote, but you do need to submit a valid email address.
You can only vote once for the Gold Inky, and once for the Silver Inky. Every attempt will be made to prevent multiple votes.
The Inky Awards are a choice award for teenagers (12-20 year olds). Whilst we cannot control who votes for the awards (as to do so would make the voting process unappealingly restrictive), we do ask that you only vote if you are between 12 and 20 years of age.
The Australian and International books with the most votes will be the winners. In the case of a tie, voting will be extended for a further seven days.
