Los Angeles Times Book Prizes: FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

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Book Prizes FAQ

UPDATED Jan. 21, 2026 | 12:17 PM

Who is eligible?

Eligibility for the prizes requires a book to have its first United States publication* between January 1 and December 31 of the prize year. This American publication must be in English; however, English does not have to be the original language of the work. Authors may be of any nationality. They should be alive at the time of their book’s qualifying U.S. publication although eligibility is also extended to significant new translations of the work of deceased writers. Books by current employees of the Los Angeles Times, by current employees of Tribune Company or any of its other affiliates, by currently serving judges of the Los Angeles Times Book Prizes, or by immediate family members of these groups are not eligible. *Graphic Novel/Comics and The Christopher Isherwood Prize are the exceptions to the U.S. publication rule. Books published in English from publishers outside the U.S. may be considered.

Can I submit my book to the judges?

NO. There is no external nominating process for the Book Prizes. Authors, publishers, agents or publicists cannot propose or submit titles for consideration. Responsibility for nominating books for consideration and for naming both the finalists and the ultimate winners rests solely with the judging panels.

Please do not send books directly to the judges. Unsolicited books will not be reviewed.

Where do I buy tickets to the ceremony?

Ticket sales will be open February 2026. All Friend of the Festival/Friend of the Festival+ package holders receive several complimentary tickets to the Book Prizes award ceremony. Stay tuned for more details.

Who are the judges?

The Book Prize judges are writers, academics, journalists, librarians and others who work in, or have a deep connection to, the fields in which they judge. Not all the judges are, in any given year, from Los Angeles, or even from California. Most, but not all, are published writers. None is ever a current Times employee. Judges are typically appointed for two-year terms, which are usually staggered. Responsibility for nominating books for consideration and for naming both the finalists and the ultimate winners rests solely with the judging panels. The best way to get your book noticed by the judges is to send it out widely for review.

Timing + other details

Five finalists in each single-title category will be announced on February 2026. At that time, the winners of the The Robert Kirsch and Innovator’s Awards, as well as the Christopher Isherwood Prize are revealed. A winner will be announced from each group of category finalists at the Book Prizes ceremony on the Friday before Festival of Books weekend.

Specific prize details

The Book Prizes cover 13 subject categories: audiobooks (sponsored by Audible, added in 2023), biography, current interest, autobiographical prose (the Christopher Isherwood Prize, added in 2016), fiction, first fiction (the Art Seidenbaum Award, added in 1991), graphic novel (added in 2009), history, mystery/thriller (added in 2000), poetry, science fiction/fantasy (added in 2019), science and technology (added in 1989) and young adult literature (added in 1998).

The Robert Kirsch Award recognizes the body of work of a living author who resides in and/or whose work focuses on The West and whose contributions to American letters deserve special recognition.

The Innovator’s Award recognizes the people and institutions that are doing cutting-edge work to bring books, publishing and storytelling into the future, whether in terms of new business models, new technologies or new applications of narrative art.

The Christopher Isherwood Prize for Autobiographical Prose spans fiction, travel writing, memoir and diary — all genres in which Isherwood worked. During his lifetime, he authored novels, an autobiography, travel books and over a million words of diaries. Katherine Bucknell, executive director of the Christopher Isherwood Foundation, says, “We are absolutely delighted to be giving this prize with the Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles was Christopher Isherwood’s adoptive home, and in 1984 he was awarded the Robert Kirsch Award for his own writing.”

The Robert Kirsch Award and the Innovator’s Award winners are selected by an anonymous internal Los Angeles Times committee and will be announced with the winner of the Isherwood Prize and all the category finalists on February 2026.