The Pulitzer Prize for Letters

The Pulitzer Prize for Letters is a coveted literary award for American fiction and non-fiction book authors. In addition to prestige and bragging rights, the Pulitzer Prize brings with it publicity recognition in the consumer book marketplace and with that, as a general rule, comes increased sales.

HISTORY OF THE PULITZER PRIZES
The Pulitzer Prizes are named for their founder, Joseph Pulitzer (1847 - 1911), a Hungarian-born immigrant to America. Pulitzer became a self-taught journalist and, eventually, owner of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the New York World newspapers. With a reputation for uncovering government corruption, Pulitzer wanted to leave a legacy that would help elevate and foster the profession of the journalist, in his words "... regarding it as a noble profession and one of unequaled importance for its influence upon the minds and morals of the people."

Pulitzer's contributions to journalism include an endowment to Columbia University for the founding of the Columbia School of Journalism and the establishment of the Pulitzer Prizes as an incentive to journalistic excellence. In addition to awards for journalism, Pulitzer Prizes were created to reward excellence in American letters--specifically, for an American novel, an original American play performed in New York, a book on the history of the United States, an American biography, and a history of public service by the press. The first Pulitzer Prizes were awarded in 1917 and Pulitzer's will allowed for amending the prizes as changing times warranted.

THE PULITZER PRIZES TODAY
Currently there are 21 Pulitzer Prize categories, which cover a wide range of journalism and letters areas, including poetry, editorial cartoons, photography and music.

OVERVIEW OF THE PULITZER PRIZES FOR BOOKS
Among numerous awards, the following Pulitzer Prize categories are specific to books:

Fiction
For distinguished fiction by an American author, preferably dealing with American life.

History For a distinguished and appropriately documented book upon the history of the United States.

Biography or Autobiography
For a distinguished and appropriately documented biography or autobiography by an American author.

Poetry
For a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author.

General Non-Fiction
For a distinguished and appropriately documented book of nonfiction by an American author that is not eligible for consideration in any other category.

HOW THE PULITZER PRIZES FOR LETTERS ARE CHOSEN
Eligible books are submitted to the Pulitzer Prize organization for judging. Pulitzer Prize jurors for each category read submitted works and choose three finalists for their category. An independent advisory board, comprised of professionals in the respectively-covered fields, deliberates between the finalists and administers the awards. The deliberations are confidential. The Pulitzer Prize Board may elect to bestow no award in a category in any given year, as was the case in 2012, when no Fiction award was given. On rare occasions The Pulitzer Prize Board will award a Special Award or Citation to a work or an individual of particular merit.

THE PULITZER PRIZE AWARDS The Pulitzer Prizes are announced each year in April and, since 1984, are awarded in May by the president of Columbia University at a luncheon. Each of the winners of the Pulitzer Prize for letters receives $10,000.

Read about other prestigious literary awards:

The National Book Foundation's National Book Awards

The American Library Association's coveted prize for children's books, the John Newbery Medal and the Randolph Caldecott Medal.