How to submit a book for consideration

Rules of Submission

Submissions for the 2026 Prize open on 1 May 2025 and close on 30 June 2025.

Download a copy of the submission form in Arabic.

• IPAF is dedicated to the literary novel. Collections of short stories or poetry are not eligible, and determination as to whether any work submitted constitutes a novel is at the absolute discretion of IPAF.
• Electronic books are not eligible.
• Authors cannot submit their own work: submissions are to be made by eligible publishers but this must be done in consultation with the authors.
• An eligible publisher is one who has been in business at least 2 years and who is an active publisher of fiction (other than children’s books) with a catalogue or list of its fiction titles demonstrating its activity. This catalogue or list must be freely available and readily accessible to the public.
• The number of novels an eligible publisher can submit will depend on that publisher’s inclusion in longlists from 2021 to 2025, as follows:
  
  1 submission – publishers with no longlisting.
  2 submissions – publishers with 1 or 2 longlisting(s).
  3 submissions – publishers with 3 or 4 longlistings.
  4 submissions – publishers with 5 or more longlistings.
   
• The longlists for 2021 to 2025 are set out below.
• Self-published novels or novels which have been published via a commercial arrangement through which the publisher is paid by the author are not eligible. If the publisher is a company, then if the novel is by the person who owns the majority shareholding or otherwise controls the company it is not eligible. If the publisher is not a company, then if the novel is by a person who controls the publishing business or undertaking (whether alone or jointly with others), it is not eligible.
• The novel must be published (and this must be its first publication by any publisher) between 1 July 2024 and 30 June 2025.
• The novel must be written in Arabic: Arabic translations of a book originally written in any other language are not eligible.
• Authors must be living at the time of the award.
• Only one novel is accepted per author, and manuscripts are not eligible.
• Every novel submitted must have an ISBN number.
• A novel which has first been published in its entirety in instalments (in print or online) before 1st  July 2024 is not eligible. This prohibition applies to any type of publishing or publication.
• The novel must respect publishing rights and copyrights of the Arab country where it has been published and any novel which is published without the permission of the original author and/or publisher is not eligible.
• The publisher must submit seven copies of each novel, along with the application form, to the Administrator: Fleur Montanaro, IPAF, 11a Harbut Road, London SW11 2RA, UK.
• If a publisher submits a novel by an author who has previously been shortlisted for the Prize, this work will not be counted in the publisher’s submissions quota, that is, it is accepted automatically and in addition to the works which the publisher is otherwise allowed to submit.
• The Administrator of the Prize is unable to return any books entered by publishers.
• The decisions of the Judges at all stages of each prize cycle (longlist, shortlist and winner) are final and cannot be subject to objection.
• All submissions are made on a confidential basis.
• If a submitted novel is longlisted, the publisher must send twelve further copies of the novel to the Administrator immediately after the longlist announcement. Failure to do so will mean that the novel will not be considered further by the judges.
• By allowing publishers to submit their novels, authors are deemed to agree that if they are shortlisted, they will be available for promotional activities such as tours and media appearances related to the Prize, both in the Arab world and abroad.
• IPAF reserves the right to reject any novel (and at any stage of the prize cycle) that does not comply with the conditions set out above and its decision is final; it may impose other sanctions as it sees fit. By submitting their novels, authors and their publishers are deemed to agree that, for the purposes of determining eligibility, IPAF may call for relevant documents even if they would otherwise be confidential as between author and publisher.