THE 2012 STEPHEN LEACOCK MEMORIAL MEDAL FOR HUMOUR
AND THE TD FINANCIAL GROUP $15,000 CASH PRIZE
The Stephen Leacock Associates offers the annual Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for the best book of humour written by a Canadian and published in the current year (2011). The winning author also receives a cash prize of $15,000, presented by the TD Financial Group. Each of four runners-up are awarded cash prizes of $1,500.
Deadline: DECEMBER 31 of the current year * Entry fee: $100 prior to December 1; $200 after December 1 * Submit: 10 copies of each book with payment, author biography sketch, and author photograph 5 x 7 inches or larger. No submissions until June 15, please.
RULES FOR ENTRY
1. The major emphasis of each entry MUST be on humour, but literary merit is also important. Books of cartoons are only eligible if they contain a substantial amount of textual material.
2. All entries must carry an ISBN.
3. All entries must have been published in the current year (2011).
4. The author or authors must be Canadian citizens or landed immigrants and living at the time of publication.
5. The language of the entry must be English. In the case of a translation from another language, the translation must have been published in the current year (2011).
6. The fee is $100 per entry if postmarked prior to December 1, 2011. The fee for entries received after December 1 is $200 per entry. Payment, a biographical sketch of the author, and a photograph 5 x 7 inches or larger of the author must accompany each entry. Make cheques payable to the Stephen Leacock Associates. *We cannot return books entered.*
7. The following are not eligible:
a. Books of which significant or substantial parts have been previously published in book form.
b. Collections of writings compiled by someone other than the original author.
c. Books with more than two authors.
d. “Virtual” or electronic books.
8. The deadline for submissions is December 31 of the current year (2011), but earlier submissions are appreciated by the judges. To encourage this, the fee for submissions postmarked earlier than December 1 is $100 per entry; the fee for entries received after December 1 is $200 per entry.
9. Submitted books are distributed among the judges and/or added to collections of works of Canadian humour held for purposes of literary research in the Orillia Public Library and in libraries of the following universities: McGill, Toronto, McMaster and Alberta. They are, therefore, not returnable.
Ten copies of each book, together with the items listed under Rule 6 above, are to be submitted to:
Ms Judith Rapson
Chair, Award Committee
Stephen Leacock Associates
4223, Line 12 North, RR 2
Coldwater, ON L0K 1E0
Tel: 705-835-3218 Fax: 705-835-5171
E-mail: Judith Rapson judith.rapson@gmail.com
or Don Reid don_reid@sympatico.ca
The shortlist — the titles of the five books judged to be best — will be made public April 1. The identity of the overall winner will be announced late April at a luncheon in Orillia, Ontario. The medal and cash award will be presented at a dinner in Orillia in early June. The winning author MUST attend this dinner and give an address. Publishers are requested to ensure that the winning author meets this obligation. The publisher is also responsible for the expenses of the author on this occasion (travel, accommodation, etc.).
If the winning book has two authors, both will attend the dinner and both will speak. Each will receive a medal and one half of the cash award.
Special Adhesive Seals — Gold for the winner and Silver for each of the other shortlisted books — may be purchased from the Associates at a price of fifteen cents each. Alternatively, the authorization to place imprints of the seals on the covers of subsequent editions of any winning or shortlisted book, without restriction as to numbers, may be obtained from the Associates at the current price of $1,000 per title.
