Letter from PROSE Chair

Dear PSP, AAP and AAUP Members,

Once again that time of year is upon us—when publishers from across the country compete for 50 prizes, including the prestigious R.R. Hawkins Award, presented by the Professional and Scholarly Publishing (PSP) Division of the Association of American Publishers. As a member of the PSP Executive Council and Chairman of the American Publishers Awards for Professional and Scholarly Excellence (the PROSE Awards), I invite you to submit your outstanding professional, reference, text or scholarly work for the 2012 Awards.

In 2011, for the fourth year running, the PROSE Awards broke its submissions record. With more than 500 entries from over 60 PSP, AAP and Association of American University Presses (AAUP) member companies, PROSE received more submissions than ever before in the 36-year history of the PSP awards program. The 2011 PROSE program featured increased social media presence through Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter; the creation of another dynamic multimedia presentation for the Luncheon ceremony, including the short film, Mapping the Slave Trade (now available for viewing on the PROSE website and on YouTube); and, for the first time in the history of the program, the PROSE Awards Luncheon was webcast live from Washington, DC, drawing viewers from across the globe.

Now entering its 37th year, the PROSE Awards will continue to build on its success and secure its status as the premier awards for outstanding professional and scholarly publishing in the United States. In 2012, the PROSE Awards continues to extend eligibility to all AAP, PSP and AAUP member presses. PROSE will continue its strong online presence and generate more promotion and publicity pre- and post-Awards. The 2012 Awards Luncheon will feature the debut of another new, specially produced film, more multimedia presentations and new special guests, and, again, the ceremony will be webcast so that publishers everywhere can hear the announcement of the 2012 winners live online.

This year, PROSE highly encourages publishers to submit their book cover art with their entries for use in these multimedia presentations. Again, PROSE will post these presentations online at www.proseawards.com and on YouTube, which means invaluable exposure for submitting publishers. The 2012 PROSE Awards also offer publishers an increased chance of winning a prize: there are no limits on the number of submissions per publisher in any category; the books and journals categories have been expanded to encourage publishers to submit both print and electronic products; and there are more categories than ever before. The Awards Committee also encourages publishers to provide more information about their submissions by including supplementary materials in the form of published reviews; reader reports; and/or editor, publisher or writer endorsements. These materials help immensely in the judging process.

Further details on judging criteria and eligibility rules, as well as the Awards entry form, can be found in the Call for Entries on the PROSE website at www.proseawards.com. Please contact the PSP Division at 212.255.0326 with any additional questions.

I sincerely hope that you will answer the call by submitting your most exceptional works for consideration for the 2012 PROSE Awards.

Best regards,

John A. Jenkins
President Emeritus, CQ Press
Chairman, 2012 PROSE Awards

 

The 2012 PROSE Awards entry period is now closed.
Winners will be announced on Thursday, February 7, 2013.
Stay tuned to www.proseawards.com.