dagger in the library – Life of Cri.me

Crime fans everywhere can nominate their favourite authors online and the ten authors with the most votes will make up the longlist. The response received last year was staggering, with 1,384 crime fans voting for 636 different authors, highlighting the extraordinary quality and variety in crime writing.

Unlike most other literary prizes, the Dagger in the Library is awarded not for an individual book but for an author’s entire body of work and is one of six highly prized CWA Dagger Awards awarded to crime writers since 1955. This year’s shortlist and winner will decided by a panel of judges including previous winner Sharon Bolton, CWA Director Lucy Santos and a panel of UK librarians.

Anyone nominating an author (or three) via the Dead Good Books website will also be entered into a prize draw to win £200 worth of crime fiction from Penguin Random House.

Nominations close on Monday 14th April and the 2015 winner will be announced at the CWA Awards Dinner on the 30th June.

Together with Dead Good Books, this year the Crime Writers Association is giving UK readers the chance to vote for their favourite author to be added to the long list for their 2014 Dagger in the Library award.

The Dagger in the Library is one of six highly prized CWA Dagger Awards, which have been awarded to crime writers since 1955. It is a unique literary award in that it offers a chance for readers to nominate their favourite British crime fiction authors. Nominations close on September 1st 2014 and the Dagger winner will be chosen by a panel including previous winners, CWA representatives and UK librarians. The Dagger in the Library is awarded not for an individual book but for the author’s body of work to date and helps emerging authors gain deserved recognition and publicity for their writing. Previous winners of the CWA Dagger in the Library award include Belinda Bauer, Steve Mosby, Mo Hayder, Colin Cotterill, Stuart MacBride and Alexander McCall Smith.

Make sure you vote, your favourite crime author needs YOU! As the award is for a body of work, nominated authors should have published at least three books. To nominate an author, simply fill in the nomination form here Nominations close on September 1st 2014 and the Dagger winner will be chosen by a panel including previous winner Steve Mosby, CWA Director Lucy Santos and UK librarians.

As an added incentive there’s also the chance to win £200 worth of books, just for taking part.