We’re thrilled to share the winners of the 8th Annual Indie Author Project Contest, recognizing exceptional independently-published titles across eight genres: Romance, Mystery & Thrillers, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, General/Contemporary Fiction, Memoir, and Young Adult Fiction. This year’s contest was open to submissions across the U.S. and Canada and received a remarkable response—almost 3,000 submissions, an increase from last year’s total that underscores the strength of indie publishing.

Each category was reviewed by librarian-led panels, who carefully and discerningly evaluated submissions, elevating books that demonstrate outstanding craft, original voice, and reader appeal. To celebrate that excellence, each winner received $2,500, and each runner-up received $500.

Many of these standout titles—and hundreds more top indie books—are available to libraries via the Indie Author Project Select collections on platforms such as BiblioBoard Library, The Palace Project, OverDrive, and Cloud Library, using unlimited, multi-user (simultaneous-use) licensing for sustainable access.

We also want to recognize two related statewide contests: the Minnesota Author Project and the Soon-to-Be Famous Illinois Author Project—congratulations to all entrants and stay tuned for those upcoming winner announcements.

Thank you to everyone who entered, to the librarians who judged, and to the indie author community for sharing stories that expand our world. Congratulations to this year’s winners and runners-up!