Tag Archive: Newbery Award
By Melissa L.
Most children’s book authors are familiar with the Newbery Award, which is, as I’ve written in another post, very friendly to historical fiction. But there’s another award in children’s literature that is less well-known but definitely more interesting to historical writers. The Scott O’Dell Award, named for the author of the Newbery-winning Island of the Blue Dolphins, is given annually to the best work of historical fiction for children. And in addition to its specific focus, there are several things that make this award unique.
First of all, an author actually has to apply in order to win the Scott O’Dell Award. This may not seem that unusual, but consider all the other major awards given out in the children’s publishing world. A committee selects the winners from all of the eligible books published in a given year; authors don’t need to do anything for their work to be considered. This submission requirement may be part of why the award isn’t very well-known: since authors have to submit their books, the pool of eligible titles is presumably a lot smaller.
Second, the Scott O’Dell Award comes with a cash prize—the only award in children’s literature (at least to my knowledge) that does so. It’s true that winning any major award will help boost sales, but if you win this one, you’ll also receive a check for $5000. While I don’t know the exact rationale behind the cash prize, I’ll say that it’s definitely another incentive for you to submit your book for the award if it’s eligible.
Are you familiar with the Scott O’Dell Award? What do you think about these features that make it unique?
Melissa L. is the YA Editorial Assistant for Wonders and Marvels. You can read more about her here: Editorial Staff.
By Melissa L.
Over the years, I’ve noticed that a lot of the books that have won the Newbery Award (the most prestigious award in children’s literature) are historical fiction. Exactly half of the ten most recent award-winners were historical novels. And while 2010’s Newbery medalist isn’t historical, two of the honor books are—The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg and The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate.
Why is historical fiction so overrepresented among Newbery winners? Historical titles definitely don’t constitute half of all the books being published, or half the books that customers buy. Some people might argue that the number has to do with the Newbery’s selection process: Winners are chosen by a committee of librarians, who tend to be more partial to historical fiction than the rest of the population.
I think the reason runs deeper than that, though. When you write historical fiction, you have to review your text over and over again just to get your facts straight. And as you go over every single word so many times, your writing improves, too. The eventual result is a highly polished, well-written book.
This isn’t to say that writers in other genres can’t revise extensively and create beautiful stories. They can and they do. But extensive research and revision is a more necessary part of historical fiction, and overall I think this leads to better books.
Why do you think so many Newbery winners are historical? Is it because of the selection process, the quality of the writing, or both? Or is it another factor?
Melissa L. is the YA Editorial Assistant for Wonders and Marvels. You can read more about her here: Editorial Staff.
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