Nomination Guidelines
The Best American Essays
The Best American Essays features a selection of essays published in North American periodicals each calendar year.
These essays are works of literary achievement that show a keen awareness of craft and originality and forcefulness of thought. Many hundreds of essays are gathered annually from a wide assortment of print and digital publications; some are submitted by editors of these periodicals. These essays are then screened, and approximately one hundred are turned over to a distinguished guest editor, who may add a few personal discoveries and who makes the final selections. The list of notable essays appearing in the back of the book includes essays selected by the series editor.
The qualifications for nomination to the series are: (1) original publication as an unabridged, stand-alone essay in a nationally distributed North American periodical and (2) publication in English (or translated into English by the essay’s author). Writers whose essays have been published in the series and former guest editors are encouraged to nominate up to five of their own eligible essays, or up to five essays by other writers. These nominations must be submitted as tear sheets before or on December 31, 2024. Periodical editors who wish essays in their publications to be considered are invited to send subscriptions or, in the case of online essays, hard copies (up to five per calendar year, with clear citations and contact information) to the following address, to be received before or on December 31, 2024:
Kim Dana Kupperman, Series Editor
The Best American Essays
P.O. Box 569, Hartland VT 05048
Please note: Writers whose work has not been published in the series (including those listed in Notables) are invited to email bestamericanessayseditor@gmail.com to determine if a journal or magazine in which their work appears is a periodical to which the series is subscribed. If the series is not subscribed to a particular publication, authors are invited to send a copy in which their work appears to the above address. All nonfiction is reviewed, and all eligible essays are read.
The Best American Essays will not consider:
Abridgments and excerpts from longer works (published in a periodical).
Essays included in collections or anthologies which have not appeared in a periodical.
Works of specialized scholarship.
Unpublished work or work appearing in personal online publications such as blogs or self-published digital newsletters.
Nominations that do not include a full citation (name of publication, date, author contact information, etcetera).
More than five nominations from a single eligible author or publication.
Nominations that arrive after the December 31 deadline.
Please note:
Editors of print periodicals who include the series on their subscription lists need to do nothing further in the way of nominations. Please check to make sure that your publication is being sent to the correct address. Editors who wish to highlight specific essays for special attention, including those published in online editions, may nominate up to five selections per calendar year.
All nominations from print publications must be submitted as tear sheets, or copies from the publication (i.e., not in manuscript or printout format).
All nominations from online publications must be: printed from the digital source, readable in print, and contain all relevant citation and contact information.
Unfortunately, we are unable to reply to individuals who are nominating their own work or that of others.
Updated 6 April 2024