Writers frequently hear that one of the most important things they can do to improve their craft is to read.

Read in their genre.

Read broadly.

Read critically.

Today I’m going to ask writers to consider going one step further. Don’t just read, but to serve as a judge for a book award. Judging a book award forces you to read A LOT over a focused period of time. It also ensures you’ll think critically about the books you’re reading. We know you love all the books! But there can only be one winner, so you’ll have to constantly weigh whether one book is better than others in the category, and if so, why?

For the past 4 years, fellow Pennies and I served as judges for the Cybils book awards. The Cybils are the book bloggers’ book awards. They recognize the children’s and young adult authors and illustrators whose books combine the highest literary merit and popular appeal. Cybils winners may not have the most lyrical prose (though they may), but they will have that hard-to-find combination of excellent writing and an engaging story. After all, kids are tough critics. While an adult may feel they must finish a book once they’ve started it, how many 8-year-olds feel that way?

“If some la-di-dah awards can be compared to brussels sprouts, and other,

more populist ones to gummy bears, we’re thinking more like

organic chicken nuggets. We’re yummy and nutritious.”

– from The Cybils Awards Mission Statement

The Cybils Awards recognize books ranging from picture books to young adults. Award categories include:

• Fiction,
• Speculative fiction,
• Nonfiction,
• Poetry/books in verse,
• Graphic novels, and
• Audiobooks.

2020 update: Because of COVID-19,  judges may have less access to the nominated books. Also, everyone is stressed, has kids doing distance learning, or a family member or friend who is sick. Because of this, the Cybils committee has limited the book categories for this year’s awards. Check this post for the details. And know that books coming out this year need MORE LOVE THAN EVER since authors can’t do in-person book talks. If you have the time, consider applying to judge.

The Cybils Awards are extremely egalitarian. Any book published for children and teens in the U.S. or Canada over the last year can be nominated. Anyone can make the nomination. Then the reading begins.

6 ways reading for the Cybils Awards helped my writing:

1. It forced me to read more books.

I read a lot of books, but I don’t usually read as many I did between October and December  2017 when I served as a panelist. Any time I wasn’t doing something else, I had a book in my hand.

Panelists are the first-round judges. There were 130 books nominated in the young adult speculative fiction category and 7 judges to read them. Any book we short-listed needed to be read by everyone on the committee.

Last year, because I didn’t have as much time, I served as a round-2 judge. Round-2 judges read the short-listed books in January to pick a final winner. This means reading fewer books but the time-frame is also tighter.

2. It made me read a broader range of books.

The first year I read for the Cybils, I was asked to judge the junior/senior high nonfiction category. I don’t feel nonfiction is my strong suit, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed those books. Even once I moved to the spec fic category that lies closer to my heart, not every book on the list of nominees was one I would have pulled from a bookstore shelf. Nevertheless, I found some unexpected book loves!

3. It made me think carefully about how strong each book’s concept and storytelling were.

There are a lot of books with great back-cover copy and compelling first pages. To be considered for a shot at winning an award, a book needs more than just a good start. It needs characters with depth, a fully fleshed out world and a conclusion that delivers on its promise to the reader.

4. It gave me an opportunity to discuss the merits of books with librarians, book bloggers, and other writers on the award committee.

If you mainly discuss books with your critique group or book club, people who may have tastes similar to your own, discussing nominated books with a group of strangers will be illuminating. A writer can’t help but emerge from this process with a more thoughtful view about what makes a book work. You’ll be challenged to press further into books with first pages that didn’t draw you in. I found myself coming around after reading more of a couple of books other committee members loved.

5. It gave me practice writing book reviews.

I won’t say I’m a pro, but I’d say I’ve gotten pretty prolific. When I first applied to be a CYBILS judge in 2016, I’d written a handful of book reviews. In 2017, I wrote 11. In 2018, I wrote 16.

Book reviews are so important for drawing attention to books, but in the beginning, I spent hours fretting over every word. There are only so many reviews you can write when each one takes hours. Now I have much less fear about putting my thoughts about a book out there, knowing that others will disagree and that that’s part of the point of reviews. Multiple opinions.

Blogging also forces you to put your words out in front of people and get over the fear that someone won’t like them before you move onto putting your words out in printed books.

6. It made me understand “It’s subjective” viscerally.

Literary agents frequently say in their rejections to keep looking for the perfect agent. The process is subjective. But do they really mean it?

I realized very early in the reading process that they do. There were books I loved for the depth the author put into their characters’ goals and motivation. Other readers found them slow. There were books I found snarky and others thought were voicy and ground-breaking. When a committee reads over a hundred great books and can only short-list seven, you see how tough the market is and that you truly have to write to your ideal reader. You can’t please everyone, but only inspire your ideal reader to champion your book.

Bonus:  When you read for book awards, you may get some free books. You’re also going to be making friends with your librarian to check out a few books that the publisher didn’t make available to the committee.

What’s the downside of services as a judge for the Cybils or other awards? You have to read a lot of books. Yes, it’s both a pro and a con. No one would consider the position if they didn’t love to read, but most of us love to cuddle in a comfy chair and savor a good book. Reading your share of books for an award will stretch the schedule of the most avid bookworms and make you feel like you should be turning pages faster.

If I’ve convinced you that judging for the Cybils Book Awards is something you’d like to consider, look here for the details or apply when Cybils opens for applications on August 19th. You could also look into judging your state or other local book awards.

If you’d like another perspective on reasons to judge book awards, read this post by Charlotte on the benefits of being a judge or this post by Kate on her experience judging the Poetry category. And don’t forget to nominate your favorite books starting October 1st!

Feel free to ask questions in the comments below!

You can check out this or this Cybils Award round-up for some insight into what the shortlists look like. The short lists come out of the round 1 judging process and are the books the round 2 judges choose the winner from.

For more advice on writing middle grade or young adult fiction head to our Master Your Craft page where you’ll find dozens of posts to choose from!