Submission Rules Published Books
Published Books and Stories
Published submissions must be postmarked or courier-dated no later than December 15, 2012
The Arthur Ellis Awards, established in 1984 and named after the nom de travail of Canada's official hangman, are awarded annually by the CWC in the following categories:
- Best Crime First Novel (Must be the author’s first novel in any genre.)
- Best Crime Novel (Min. 50,000 words)
- Best Crime Novella (8,000 - 20,000 words) This category is being piloted for 3 years.
- Best Crime Short Story (Max. 8,000 words)
- Best French Crime Book (Fiction and Nonfiction)
- Best Juvenile or YA Crime Book (Fiction and Nonfiction)
- Best Nonfiction Crime Book
The Arthur Ellis Awards are for CRIME WRITING, and are not restricted to mystery writing. Crime-writing encompasses far more than the traditional whodunit. The crime genre includes crime, detective, espionage, mystery, suspense, and thriller writing, as well as fictional or factual accounts of criminal doings and crime-themed literary works. If you are not certain that your submission qualifies as a crime book or story, please contact us at:
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or
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Submission Rules: Published Work
To qualify, a work must fulfill the following criteria:
1. First publication (includes print, electronic/e-book, or self-published), whether in English or French, in the preceding year (2012) by a Canadian citizen regardless of place of residence, or by a writer, regardless of nationality, who has been granted Permanent Resident status in Canada. The year of publication is determined solely by the copyright date of the book or the short story.
2. If the work was originally published in a language other than English or French, the first English or French translation of the book is still eligible if:
- this translation is first published in the preceding year (2012), and
- the author fulfills the above citizenship/residency requirement.
3. If a work is co-authored, at least one of the authors must fulfill the citizenship/Permanent Resident requirement.
4. Special eligibility requirements for the First Novel category: In addition to the above eligibility rules, an author entered in this category cannot have had any other novel of any kind published commercially:
- in print, electronic/e-book, or self-published, and
- in Canada or any other country, and
- in any genre, including literary, and
- under the author's given name or a pseudonym, and alone or jointly with another author
Note 1: A novel that has an ISBN (or ASBN) is considered to be published commercially.
Note 2: The author may be published in other formats (e.g., short stories, non-fiction, plays/screenplays, poetry) and still be eligible to enter in this category.
5. The book or story fits into the crime-writing genre (see above for our description of "crime genre").
Please note that the following books and short stories are not eligible:
- Translations from English to French or from French to English that have been previously published in the other official language.
- New editions or revisions that are substantially the same (60% or greater) as the previously published version.
Entry Fees:
- $35 per title for novels;
- $25 per title for the novella category;
- $15 per title for short stories ($35 for a collection with 3 short stories that are being entered);
- $35 per title for all other books (French, Nonfiction, Juvenile).
Please make out your cheque or money order in Canadian funds for the appropriate amount to Crime Writers of Canada. If this isn’t possible, please contact
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for instructions.
If a category has fewer than six (6) submissions in a given year, all books or stories will be held over to be judged in the Arthur Ellis Awards of the following year.
For short stories, please include a photocopy of the original published version or of the table of contents of the magazine or book in which the story appeared. Short stories may be submitted as photocopies of the published work or in manuscript form. If more than one eligible short stories appear in an anthology, publishers may find it convenient to submit the anthology. Up to but no more than three (3) short stories per author may be submitted.
For e-books, please send hard copies of the book printed on 8.5 X 11, white paper. Please include cover, title page and indicia.
Submissions must be postmarked or courier-dated no later than December 15, 2012.
For each submission please include:
- Five (5) copies of each book title; or three (3) copies of each short story. (If submitting an eBook, please contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it first.)
- An entry form for each title. Attach your entry form to the cheque. If the books are being sent separately, please attach a copy of the entry form to the shipment. (Publishers, a cover with multiple entries is still acceptable if all the information in the entry form is included.)
- A cheque or money order in Canadian funds, made out to Crime Writers of Canada, for the entry fee(s). If you cannot send a cheque in Canadian funds, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
The shortlists will be announced in April 18, 2013. The winners will be announced at the Arthur Ellis Awards Banquet in Toronto on Thursday, May 30, 2013.
Please send your submission to:
Crime Writers of Canada – 2013 Arthur Ellis Awards
4C-240 Westwood Road
Guelph, Ontario
N1H 7W9
If you are sending books via courier and need a phone number, or for any other inquiry, email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
For information about the contest, please email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
For information about Crime Writers of Canada, please email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
PDF Call for Submissions/Rules
Copyright 2013 Crime Writers of Canada