Book Review FAQs

Submitted by Joyce Faulkner on December 5, 2011 - 21:25


  • Can I post my book to the site?
    • As a member, you are encouraged to post your book and information about it whenever you wish-for example, be sure to post your book in your profile and you can certainly put it in a forum discussion form or in your blog format. 
  • How do I submit my book/movie/CD for review on the MWSA website?
    • PLEASE... do not send us your book unsolicited! Do not send books to the MWSA PO Box address!
    • To submit a book for Review and or Award consideration go to the menu on the right side of the website and click on "Book Reviews." Wait for the drop down menu to open then click on "Submit Book for Review." Fill out the form completely, leave no blanks as that would only cause the form to be returned to you for completion. Select the method of payment based on "Review" or "Award" as a member or non-member.
      Once you have done that you wait until you receive an email from the Lead Reviewer that your book has been assigned to a reviewer, that may take weeks or months.
      You can make certain we received your request within a few days by again going to the right side menu on the website and click on "Book Reviews" wait for the drop down menu to open and click on "Reviews Pending." That shows the books assigned and waiting to be assigned. From date of assignment to a reviewer you have ten days in which to have the book in the reviewers hands.
      The above process also applies to tracking your book review. When the book is assigned to a reviewer a date will appear next to your book title, when the review is completed (published to the web site) the title and date will be deleted, this is your notice that the process is completed. It is the members responsibility to check.
    • Do NOT send anything but the book to the reviewer, any communications with the reviewer during the reviewing process will result in your book being disqualified from the annual awards contest.
    • MWSA reviews published books only. It must have an ISBN and a price. Please do not send manuscripts, ARCs or "treatments" -- including Adobe PDF, MS Word or MS Word Perfect files. Handwritten or typed drafts or outlines will not be accepted.
  •  Who can submit a book for inclusion on the MWSA website?
    • Any active MWSA member (dues current) whether author, co-author, or publisher or non-member, just be certain to indicate what you wish (review or award) and select payment option. Non-members may also submit using the same process and correct fee.
  •  Do I have to pay dues each year to keep my reivew online?
    • It would be impractical to add and remove listings based on whether or not a member has kept his/her dues up-to-date. However, once your membership lapses, we will not make any changes/corrections to your listing.
  •  Where do I find my book review once it's posted online?
    • There are several ways to find a book on this site:
      • Right side of the website screen enter the title of your book or the book you wish to search for. 
      • Under the Review Menu on the right, click on Book Reviews. The reviews will appear in reverse chronological order with the most recent on top.
      • Under Navigation menu on the right, click on Content Summary, and then Tags Used. When you click on a given tag, you will see all documents in the site related to that topic...for example, if you clicked on Thriller, all books and reviews, all articles, blogs, personal profiles, and forum comments with that tag will appear. This should be useful if you are doing research.
      • Finally, if you type the name of a book or an author in the search box above the Navigation Menu, books and reviews will appear.
  • Is anything off limits?
    • Anything clearly pornographic is not acceptable, but we're open to honest adult literature.  Clearly, not everyone can agree on what that means.  However, we will err on the side of freedom of expression.
    • It's not our intention to stifle honest debate and we understand that deep religious and political convictions may be part of an author's motivation to write. However, as an organization, we choose to stay apolitical and respect all religious perspectives. Our goals are to encourage storytelling within historical context and support authors working in the military niche. Books that promote hate speech or disrespect America and Americans will be disqualified.
  •  Who will review my book?
    • Once you submit your book for review, the Lead Reviewer will assign your book to one of our reviewers based on their expertise, interests, and workload. 
    • Our Lead Reviewer will then contact you and provide you with the reviewer's address.  At this point, you'll be able to send him or her a copy of your book, which will not be returned. NOTE: This is a volunteer organization and reviewers are volunteers with jobs and families. There is usually a queue. Books are assigned in order of first come first served as reviewers who review in your category become available. This may take a while--or it might happen right away. 
  • What criteria do you use?
  • How long does it take before my review is finished?
    • The review process (from assignment of an MWSA reviewer through completion and upload of the final review to our website) can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.
    • The timing for your book will depend upon many factors:
      • the number of active reviewers we have "on call" (please bear in mind that we're all volunteers!)
      • our reviewers' workloads (especially for books requiring a reviewer with special expertise and/or experience)
      • the number of books submitted 
      • rest assured that we will make every effort to complete your review as quickly as possible.  However, if you get the feeling that your book has been "lost in space," please check "Reviews Pending" it lists all the books assigned or waiting to be assigned, at least you will know your book is on the list. Do NOT contact the reviewer!
  • Where do I find my review once it's posted online?
    • You can find it several ways:
      • Under Articles and Reviews Menu, click on Book Reviews. The most recently posted books will appear first.
      • Browse the review page, using the appropriate author name or title listing

  • What awards does MWSA have?

    MWSA awards are given to active MWSA members and Non-Members provided they have followed the rules and requirements, in several categories and are subject to change each year given the submissions:

    The Author of the Year, Founders, and Presidents Awards competition is made from books selected from the years entries into the medal awards and are active member awards only. As we only provide one award per book the qualifying books are removed from the medal portion of the awards for consideration in these prestigious awards.

    • Author of the Year 
    • Founder's Award (Selected by Bill McDonald, Founder & Past MWSA President)
    • President's Award (Selected by MWSA President)
    • Gold, Silver and Bronze Medals for the following:
      • Military
      • Memoir
      • Historical Fiction
      • Fiction
      • Children's
      • Young Adult
      • Poetry
      • Spiritual & Religious
      • Photography
      • Reference
      • Anthology
      • Thriller/Mystery
      • SciFi/Fantasy/Horror
      • Romance
      • Non-Fiction
      • Biography
      • How-to/Business
      • Humor
      • Pictorial
      • Graphical
      • Audio Book
  • In addition to our annual awards, MWSA recognizes its members' contributions on a monthly and quarterly basis
    • Author and Book of the Month
    • Quarterly "MWSA Reading List" or "MWSA Recommends"
    • William E. Mayer Prize for Literary or Artistic Excellence
    • Special awards sponsored by other entitites such as the 2011 Korean Book Awards sponsored by the Center for the Study of the Korean War at Graceland Univeristy in Missouri.
  • How will I know if I've won an award? 
    • Nominees are notified by the Lead Reviewer to forward one copy each to the two judges of their book in an email. NOTE: Not all awards go through the nomination process! The Author of the Year, Founder's Award, President's Award, and William E. Mayer Awards do not go through the nomination process. 
    • They will also be announced on this website no later than the Monday after the Conference and tweeting by @MWSAPresident. if time permits.
    • It will also be announced in a national Media Release.
    • Winners will be announced at the Awards Banquet at the annual Conference. 
  • What will I win? 
    • Winners will receive a medal and 100 seals to put on their books. (Additional seals may be purchased from MWSA.)
    • Author of the Year, Founder's Award, President's Award winners recieve either trophies or plaques and seals (if the award is book based).
    • Special Award winners will depend on the sponsor and will be announced at the time as the Special Award Contest.
    • Active Member Winners also receive buckaroos.
    • All levels of awards may not be awarded each year. Winners are decided by scores only, the medal if any, a book may win is based solely on score not on how many entered a given genre. You could be the only finalist in a genre and fail to win a medal, or perhaps only win a bronze medal. 
  • What if I can't come to the Conference?
    • You will be missed and you will be sorry you missed it.
    • Winners are posted to the site as soon as possible after the Banquet.
    • There will be a National Media Release.
    • Your award and if applicable stickers for your books will be mailed to you upon request and payment of $7.00 to cover postage/processing [For outside the continental U.S.A. add an additional $7.00]. MWSA is not responsible for lost shipements and members may wish to have their shipment insured at a cost of $2.50, MWSA will not replace lost shipments.
  • When and where will the Conference and the Awards Banquet be?
    • The conference normally takes place the last weekend in September-the exact date is announced as soon as MWSA signs a contract with the venue. The location rotates around the country. We have been in San Diego, Branson, Orlando, Pittsburgh, Dayton in 2012/2013. and Phoenix in 2014 & 2015.
  • Can I purchase extra Medals, Stickers or copies of the Anthology?
    Stickers are sold in quantities of 100. The cost is $20.00.
    An extra medal can be purchased for a recorded award for $20.00.


    The above prices include shipping costs and can be paid by check to; MWSA, P.O. Box 1768
    Cranberry Twp., PA 16066 or by requesting a paypal invoice from the Lead Rreviewer.

    We do not provide insurance for your shipment and cannot accept responsibility for your orders replacement. We recommend that you include $2.50 to have insurance included to protect your shipment. 



 

Tags: 
How To
MWSA Info