International Illustrated Silent Book Contest 2018

International Illustrated Silent Book Contest 2018 now is over!

The town of Mulazzo and the International Organisation of Book Towns present the 2018 edition of the illustration competition titled International Illustrated Silent Book Contest expressly dedicated to silent books, that is, illustrated books without words.

About Competition

Given that the illustrated book and the visual language of illustrations and pictures is in no way secondary to written language, with a universal power and potential that supersedes any barrier of language or genre, the Silent Book Contest invites authors and illustrators to think up and design a book conceived exclusively for the telling of a story through illustrated images, on any subject and intended for a wide and diverse section of the reading public, regardless of genre or age.

The 2018 Silent Book Contest is reserved exclusively for new illustrated book project without words
Guidlines:

The book projects presented should contain no words, excluding the title and any subtitles. Narration of the story should be through a visual process resulting solely through looking at the illustrations and with a coherence of narrative and style.

No book projects that contain illustrations featuring either single words or partial texts will be accepted for selection. Pop-up books, cartoons and comic strips without words, and “colouring book” will also not be accepted for selection. Furthermore, neither will book projects photographs, or not corresponding to the present definition of illustrated images be accepted for selection.

The illustrations featured in the book projects can be in colour or black and white, with unlimited traditional or digital techniques.
The book project should be presented on double pages with a format of 57cms in width by 28.5 cms in height (to give a closed format of 28.5cms x 28.5cms and opening from right to left) and with a set number of double pages chosen by the author from the following options:

1 - 14 double pages with a format of 57cms width by 28.5cms in height, plus front and back cover.
2 - 19 double pages with a format of 57cms width by 28.5cms in height, plus front and back cover.
3 - 25 double pages with a format of 57cms width by 28.5cms in height, plus front and back cover.

For each book project sent to the competition, a complete layout should be created. The layout must be a single digital file with a maximum size of 10Mb, exclusively in high-quality PDF format.
Any book project sent in any other format and the number of pages not specified in points 1, 2 and 3 will not be accepted for selection.

A maximum of 3 book projects per single author is permitted.

Only original illustrated and unpublished book project that has been created and produced exclusively through narration by illustrated images it’s eligible for entries.

From the book designs sent to the competition an international Jury, comprised of seven members of recognized professionalism and standing from the worlds of publishing, illustration and literature, will select from 5 to 10 finalists to be announced at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair.

The book design, once declared winner of the 2018 Silent Book Contest will be published during August 2018 by Carthusia Edizioni, Milano, Italy, who will include it and promote it in their publishing catalogue.

Entry fee is 50 Euro for each book project