Anthony Award Nominations Open February 28
Help us celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Anthony Awards!
At the end of February all members who are registered for Bouchercon 2026 in Calgary, or who were registered for Bouchercon 2025 in New Orleans, will receive an e-mail with a link to nominate works for the 2026 Anthony Awards.
You will be able to nominate up to five works in each of seven categories. It is not necessary to nominate in every category, or to fill in all five options for the categories you do nominate in. Multiple nominations of the same work will only be counted once.
After submitting your nominations, you will receive a confirmation email. Once you have submitted your nominations, it will not be possible to make changes or additions.
𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬. The eligibility criteria for each category can be found on the nomination form or here: https://www.bouchercon.com/bouchercon-by-laws and https://www.bouchercon.com/bouchercon-standing-rules.
Help us celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Anthony Awards!
At the end of February all members who are registered for Bouchercon 2026 in Calgary, or who were registered for Bouchercon 2025 in New Orleans, will receive an e-mail with a link to nominate works for the 2026 Anthony Awards.
You will be able to nominate up to five works in each of seven categories. It is not necessary to nominate in every category, or to fill in all five options for the categories you do nominate in. Multiple nominations of the same work will only be counted once.
After submitting your nominations, you will receive a confirmation email. Once you have submitted your nominations, it will not be possible to make changes or additions.
𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬. The eligibility criteria for each category can be found on the nomination form or here: https://www.bouchercon.com/bouchercon-by-laws and https://www.bouchercon.com/bouchercon-standing-rules.
The categories are:
- Best Hardcover Novel
- Novels must have been published in hardcover format to be eligible.
- Best Paperback Original/E-Book/ Audiobook Original Novel
- Novels also published in hardcover format in the same year are not eligible.
- Best Short Story
- For works of 22,000 words or fewer.
- Best First Novel
- Must be an author’s first published novel. Authors who have previously published a novel in another genre are not eligible in this category.
- Best Juvenile or YA
- Best Critical or Nonfiction Work
- Best Anthology or Collection
Works must be relevant to the crime/mystery/suspense genres and have been published for the first time in 2025. Works that have previously been published outside of North America, and have been published for the first time in North America in 2025, are also eligible.
The five works in each category with the most nominations will make up the final ballot. That ballot will be announced in May. Voting for the awards will happen at Bouchercon 2026 in October. You must be in attendance to be eligible to vote on the final ballot. The awards will be presented at a live ceremony on Saturday, October 24, 2026.
The deadline to nominate is Thursday, April 30, 2026, at midnight EDT/9 pm PDT.
Attendees need to be registered by 6 pm EDT/ 3 pm PDT on April 27, 2026 to receive a nominating ballot.