Rules and entry
Closing dates
Entry forms - 31 March 2008
Books - 30 June 2008
Download an entry form as a Acrobat PDF or as a Microsoft Word Document
1. The prize
a. The Prize is worth £50,000 to the winner. It will be awarded to the author of the best, eligible full-length novel in the opinion of the judges. The Prize may not be divided or withheld.
b. The judges will be responsible for compiling a longlist of twelve or thirteen books - 'The Man Booker Dozen' - followed by a shortlist of six outstanding books submitted for the Prize. For inclusion in this shortlist a title must have the full support of at least one judge in whose opinion it is a valid contender for the Prize. Each shortlisted author will receive £2,500 in addition to a leather bound copy of his or her own book.
c. The panel of judges is chosen by the Booker Prize Foundation Advisory Committee, appointed by The Booker Prize Foundation. The Prize is administered by Ion Trewin.
2. Conditions of award
Any eligible book which is entered for the Prize will only qualify for the award if its publisher agrees:
a. to contribute £5,000 towards general publicity if the book reaches the shortlist.
b. to contribute a further £5,000 if the book wins the prize.
c. to comply with Rule 4f.
3. Eligible books
a. Any full-length novel, written by a citizen of the Commonwealth, the Republic of Ireland or Zimbabwe is eligible. Such a book must be a unified and substantial work. Neither a book of short stories nor a novella is eligible. Entry for books is dealt with in Rule 4.
b. Authors must be living at the time of the award.
c. No English translation of a book written originally in any other language is eligible.
d. Self published books are not eligible where the author is the publisher or where a company which has been specifically setup to publish that book.
e. Online submissions will only be accepted from an established imprint and on the condition that 7 copies are downloaded for the judges' consideration. In the event that an online book is shortlisted, the publisher must undertake to produce hard copies and make these available for sale within ten days of the announcement of the shortlist.
f. Children's books will only be accepted on the condition that they have also been published by an adult imprint within the specified dates.
g. All entries must be published in the United Kingdom between the required dates (Rule 4a) but previous publication of a book outside the UK does not disqualify it.
h. The decision of the administrator as to whether a book is eligible shall be binding and no correspondence shall be entered into.
i. No entry shall be ineligible because its author has won either the Prize or any other prize previously.
j. All submissions are made on a confidential basis.
4. Entry of books
a. United Kingdom publishers may enter up to two full-length novels, with scheduled publication dates between 1 October 2007 and 30 September 2008. In addition, any title by an author who has previously won the Booker or Man Booker Prize and any title by an author who has been shortlisted in the last ten years may be submitted.
b. Entry forms must be submitted by 31 March 2008. At that date all available books, whether or not already published should be submitted to Colman Getty. Proofs of any book published after 31 March 2008 should be submitted to Colman Getty the moment they become available, followed up by finished copies. Final texts must be submitted by 30 June 2008. The Administrator of the prize in consultation with the Chair of the Judges reserves the right to reject any substantially revised proof or finished copy received after that date. Seven copies of each entry must be submitted to the judges of the Man Booker Prize, care of Colman Getty and not direct to the judges.
c. Each publisher may also submit, by 31 March 2008, a list of up to five further titles. These should each be accompanied by a justification for the submission of not more than 250 words. The judges will be required to call in no less than 8 and no more than 12 of these titles.
d. The judges may also, not later than 30 June 2008, call in any book published between 1 October 2007 and 30 September 2008, even if such a book does not appear on publishers' lists referred to in 4b. In that event the publisher will be asked to submit seven printed copies of the book to Colman Getty and be required to conform to the conditions of the award as specified in the rules.
e. No book entered by publishers or called in by the judges will be returned to the publishers.
f. Each publisher of a title appearing on the longlist will be required to have not less than 1000 copies of that title available in stock within 10 days of the announcement of the longlist.
g. Two copies of each shortlisted book in folded and collated form should be retained by the publisher. These must be delivered to a nominated bookbinder of leather binding within 48 hours of the announcement of the shortlist. If this should prove impossible, Colman Getty must be informed immediately. Colman Getty will supply shortlisted publishers with the name and address of the bookbinder to which copies must be sent.
