On October 2, 2000, when the finalists of the first Frankfurt eBook Awards were announced, an uproar by the independent epublishers of the industry could be distinctly heard.  From the very beginning, it was assumed that cards were stacked in favor of the large, established New York publishing houses and the list of finalists confirmed this. 

With only two exceptions, Paradise Square by E.M. Schorb, published by Denlinger Publishers Ltd. and Extension du domaine de la Lutte by Michael Houellebecq from publisher 00h00.com, the finalists titles were from established, paper-based publishers, such as Simon & Schuster and Random House.  Nomination guidelines excluded any title that was self-published or published by a commercial publisher with less than 20 (later revised to 10) new titles within the last year.  Critics argue that the Frankfurt eBook Awards run counter to the democratization process that ebooks offer self- and independent publishers.  Moreover, the ebooks were judged with the same criteria used to judge paper-based books, rather than encouraging and awarding authors and publishers for taking full advantage of the potential enhancements, such as the inclusion of multi-media, made possible by the digital format.    Within the categories of "Best Fiction Work Originally Published in eBook Form" and "Best Non-Fiction Work Originally Published in eBook Form" were titles by well established authors, such as Ed McBain, that were in ebook-only format for only a few days prior to the release of the hardcover edition.  The categories of "Best Fiction Work Originally Published in Print and Converted to eBook Form" and "Best Non-Fiction Work Originally Published in Print and Converted to eBook Form" did not contain any requirements that the book be enhanced when converted to ebook form.

Rather than sit back and bemoan their apparent exclusion from the Frankfurt eBook Awards, the independent and self-publishers are taking action.   The announcement of the Frankfurt eBook Award winners on October 20th coincided with the unveiling of the Independent e-Book Awards.   Largely the creation of M.J. Rose, author of the very successful ebook Lip Service, the awards " are designed to recognize and reward talent in electronic books, hypertext and digital storytelling from independent publishers and self-published authors"¹     Submissions must be made by December 31, 2000, in one of the following categories:

• Full-length e-books in Fiction or Non-Fiction
• Short Fiction or Non-Fiction (under 20,000 words)
• Children's Fiction or Non-Fiction
• Digital Storytelling in Fiction or Non-Fiction (use of multi-media enhancements to create stories on the Internet)
• Hypertext in Fiction or Non-Fiction (electronic hypertext literature)

It is not yet known whether the main-stream print publishing houses that have ebook-imprints, such as Random House and Time Warner, will submit some of their ebook titles for consideration for the Independent e-Book Awards.  Regardless, it looks as though the winners of the Independent e-Book Awards will be excellent examples of the enhanced reading experience that ebooks make possible.
 

Links:
Frankfurt eBook Awards-  http://www.iebaf.org/
Independent e-Book Awards-  http://www.e-book-awards.com/index.html