National Book Award for Young People's Literature

The National Book Award for Young People's Literature is one of five annual National Book Awards given by the National Book Foundation (NBF) to recognize outstanding literary work by US citizens. They are awards "by writers to writers". The judging panel are five "writers who are known to be doing great work in their genre or field". The category Young People's Literature was established in 1996. From 1969 to 1983, prior to the Foundation, there were some "Children's" categories. The award recognizes one book written by a US citizen and published in the US from December 1 of the previous year to November 30 in the award year. The National Book Foundation accepts nominations from publishers until June 15, requires mailing nominated books to the panelists by August 1, and announces five finalists in October. The winner is announced on the day of the final ceremony in November.

From the Wikipedia article “National Book Award for Young People's Literature”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Check the official rules of the National Book Award for Young People's Literature for the current eligibility window, accepted formats, residency or language requirements and any entry fee. For most established prizes the publisher submits on the author's behalf, often with a limit on entries per imprint.

If you are self-published, look for an explicit statement that independently published books are accepted, and budget for entry fees and copies for judges.