The Center for Fiction and ABA Partner to Promote Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize Shortlist

The Center for Fiction and the American Booksellers Association have announced a partnership to promote the seven shortlisted novels in the center’s annual Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize. ABA will select 450 bookstores focusing on literary fiction to receive tabletop displays, posters, and shelf-talkers for the seven novels. In addition, 50 booksellers across the country will be asked to be first-tier readers for the prize.

The Flahery-Dunnan First Novel Prize is awarded to the best debut novel of the year. The author of the winning book receives $10,000 and the other shortlisted authors receive $1,000 each. The selection of the shortlist and winning novel is determined through a two-tiered process. First, a network of booklovers reads submissions. Their recommendations create a long list, which is then forwarded to a committee of distinguished American writers. From those recommended novels, a panel of judges chooses the shortlist and the winner. The short list is announced in late summer and the winner is announced at the Center’s Annual Benefit and Awards Dinner in early December.

 “ABA is delighted to partner with The Center for Fiction to promote the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize shortlist for 2012,” said ABA CEO Oren Teicher. “We are honored that a group of ABA-member independent booksellers from throughout the country will serve as first-tier readers for this year’s prize, and look forward to working with the center to develop materials to be used by our member stores to celebrate and feature the books of the finalists for this very worthy award.”

Center for Fiction Executive Director Noreen Tomassi said, “We believe that there are no better readers than the people who continue against all seeming odds to own and operate independent bookstores. We are thrilled that we will be working with ABA, an organization we admire so much, to include these booksellers as readers and to feature the short-listed books at more than 450 stores all across the country.”

The prize was originally established in 2005 as the John Sargent, Sr. First Novel Prize. Center for Fiction board member and author Nancy Dunnan (How to Invest $50-$5,000) has underwritten the prize, which was renamed to honor of her journalist father, Ray W. Flaherty, since 2010.

Past winners of the Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize are: Lamb by Bonnie Nadzam (Other Press), Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes (Grove/Atlantic), Woodsburner by John Pipkin (Nan A. Talese/Doubleday), The Good Thief by Hannah Tinti (The Dial Press), The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz (Riverhead/Penguin), and Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl (Viking). The Center for Fiction was founded in 1820 as the Mercantile Library.