Entries are now being accepted for the 2025 Awards
Next Generation Indie Book Awards ("NGIBA", "us", "we") is an awards program that supports indie authors and independent publishers through its annual awards program (the "Awards Program"), events ("Events"), educational resources and other services. These Terms of Service ("Terms") apply to your submission of books to the Awards Program, whether directly to us or by a third-party on your behalf (such books, however submitted, "Books", and each, a "Book"), and your participation in our Events, as well as your use of and participation in all other resources and services offered by NGIBA (collectively, the "Services"). Our Services also include the use of any websites operated by NGIBA (each, a "Website"), including indiebookawards.com.
By using the Services, you agree to be bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference (the Terms and Privacy Policy together, the "Agreement"). If you do not accept and agree to be bound by all of the terms of this Agreement, then you may not use the Services.
We may make changes to these Terms from time to time without notice to you. The most recent version of this Agreement will be posted to the Website and will be the version that applies to your use of the Services. By continuing to use the Services after any changes to this Agreement are posted to the Website, you agree to be bound by those changes. Therefore, you should check the Website regularly for the most recent version of this Agreement.
You must be at least 13 years of age to use the Services. By using the Services, you represent and warrant that:
By submitting a Book to the Awards Program, you agree to provide true, accurate, current and complete information about the Book, yourself, and others (the "Submission Data"). If you become aware that any Submission Data is no longer true, accurate, current or complete, then you must promptly notify us by email at info@indiebookawards.com. You hereby authorize us to update the Submission Data on your behalf, for the purpose of keeping the Submission Data true, accurate, current and complete.
Our Services include, without limitation, information, data, software, text, design elements, graphics, images, videos, and other content provided by us or by third parties (collectively, "Content"). NGIBA retains all right, title, and interest, including all intellectual property rights, in and to the Content. Except as explicitly set out in these Terms, you may not sell, transfer, assign, license, sublicense, or modify the Content or reproduce, display, publicly perform, make a derivative version of, distribute, or otherwise use the Content in any way for any purpose. You must retain all copyright and other proprietary notices contained in the Content. The use or posting of the Content on any social media page or other website for any purpose is expressly prohibited. The Websites use and display registered and unregistered trademarks, service marks and logos (collectively, "Trademarks") of NGIBA and other third parties. You may not use the Trademarks without our prior written consent and nothing on the Websites should be construed as granting any license to use the Trademarks.
Our Limited License to You
NGIBA hereby grants you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, non-sublicensable right to access and use the Services solely for the purposes of submitting Books to our Awards Program, attending our Events, and using and participating in the other resources and services provided by us from time to time, in each case (i) in compliance with these Terms, and (ii) to the extent permitted under all applicable laws and regulations (foreign and domestic). NGIBA explicitly reserves all rights not expressly granted herein. Use of the Services in a manner that is not expressly authorized hereunder is a material breach of this Agreement.
Your License to Us
The Website provides a platform for submitting Books to our Awards Program and may enable you to contribute, provide or make available other content ("User Content") through your use of the Services. You may also submit Books to our Awards Program by way of third-party submission platforms that accept Books on our behalf.
You retain all copyrights and other intellectual property rights in and to your Books and User Content. You do, however, hereby grant us and our sublicensees a non-exclusive, royalty-free, freely sublicensable, perpetual license to modify, compile, combine with other content, copy, record, synchronize, transmit, translate, format, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, and otherwise use your Books and all intellectual property and moral rights therein for the limited purposes of presenting excerpts of your Book at our Awards Program Events and/or otherwise administering or promoting our Awards Program and associated activities. We do not publicly screen the entirety of your Books. You also grant us the right to distribute, display and otherwise use your name to advertise and promote the Awards Program and Events. You expressly acknowledge and agree that once you submit a Book through your use of the Services, the Book will be accessible by others, and that there is no confidentiality or privacy with respect to such Book, including, without limitation, any personally identifying information contained therein.
To the extent that you provide other User Content, you grant us and our sublicensees a non-exclusive, royalty-free, freely sublicensable, perpetual license to modify, compile, combine with other content, copy, record, synchronize, transmit, translate, format, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, and otherwise use your User Content for the purposes of administering, providing or promoting our Services.
YOU ARE ENTIRELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL BOOKS AND USER CONTENT THAT YOU SUBMIT, CONTRIBUTE, PROVIDE OR OTHERWISE MAKE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICES. By submitting Books or other User Content, you are representing that you are the owner of the Books or User Content, as applicable, or are making your posting or submission with the express consent of the owner of the Books or User Content, that you have the rights necessary to grant the license to the Books or User Content under the prior paragraphs, and that use of such Books or User Content by NGIBA as permitted by this Agreement does not and will not infringe or misappropriate the intellectual property or moral rights or any other rights of any person or contain any libelous, defamatory, or obscene material or content that violates this Agreement.
When using the Services, you agree to comply with the rules (the "Rules") in this Section 6 and that you will not use the Services for any unlawful purpose. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, you will not:
We reserve the right, in our sole and absolute discretion, to reject any submission of Books or User Content and to deny you access to the Services or any portion thereof, without notice, and to remove or otherwise limit use of any content that does not adhere to the Rules or otherwise violates this Agreement. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, we reserve the right, in our sole and absolute discretion, to (i) monitor, alter, edit, or remove any of your Books or User Content, in whole or in part, and/or (ii) rescind and terminate your right to use the Services at any time (with or without notice) for any reason or no reason. You acknowledge and agree that NGIBA may preserve Books or User Content, or any portion thereof, and may also disclose Books or User Content for any reason, including without limitation if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to: (a) comply with legal process; (b) enforce these Terms; (c) respond to claims that any Books or User Content violates the rights of third parties; and/or (d) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of NGIBA, its users and/or the public. You understand that the technical processing and transmission of the Services, including Books and User Content, may involve (i) transmissions over various networks; and/or (ii) changes to conform and adapt to technical requirements of connecting networks or devices.
As part of the Services, we administer the Awards Program. The eligibility criteria, submission instructions, submission deadlines, rules, policies, procedures, and other matters relating to Books and the Awards Program will be posted on the Website We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to restrict, suspend, or terminate the Awards Program, or to amend any rules, policies, procedures or other matters relating to the Awards Program, including rules relating to the content of Books submitted to the Awards Program, at any time and for any reason without prior notice or liability. We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to reject the submission of any Books to the Awards Program for any reason or for no reason.
From time to time, we may issue prizes (each, a "Prize") in connection with the Awards Program. We reserve the right, but not the obligation, to issue any Prize at any time for any reason or for no reason. Any Prize is non-exchangeable, non-transferable, non-refundable, has no cash-surrender value, and must be accepted as awarded with no substitutions. We may substitute or modify any Prize in our sole discretion. Winners and finalists will also have the right to use and display our Awards Program sticker seals in connection with the Book for which the sticker seal was awarded.
As consideration for submitting a Book to the Awards Program or making any purchase from NGIBA, you shall pay NGIBA all applicable fees and taxes. We (or our third-party payment processor) shall authorize your credit card, bank account, or other approved payment facility you provide to us for the full payment of the fees and any applicable taxes, and you hereby consent to the same. You also consent to automatically billing of your payment method for any payment plans or automatically renewing subscriptions.
You must provide current, complete, and accurate billing and credit card information. You must promptly update all billing information (such as billing address, card number, and expiration date) to keep your billing information current, complete, and accurate, and you must promptly contact us if your credit card is lost or stolen, or if you become aware of a potential breach of security involving your billing information (such as an unauthorized disclosure or use of your billing information). You hereby authorize NGIBA to obtain or determine updated or replacement expiration dates for your credit card in the event that the credit card you provided us expires. We reserve the right to charge any renewal card issued to you to the same extent as the expired card. If payment is not received from your credit card issuer, you hereby agree to pay all amounts due upon demand. You agree to pay all costs of collection, including attorney's fees and costs, on any outstanding balance. In certain instances, the issuer of your credit card may charge you a foreign transaction fee or related charges, which you will be responsible to pay.
If for any reason whatsoever a Book does not satisfy the submission criteria for the Awards Program, then we will issue a partial or full refund for any fees paid in connection with the submission of such Book. Otherwise, fees paid in connection with submission of a Book to the Awards Program are non-refundable, including without limitation if you decide to withdraw a Book from the Awards Program following submission of such Book. Eligibility for refunds for Book submitted to the Awards Program via third-party submission platforms will be governed by the terms of the applicable submission platform.
The Websites may contain links to third-party websites ("External Sites"). These links are provided solely as a convenience to you and not as an endorsement by us of the content on such External Sites. The content of such External Sites is developed and provided by others. We are not responsible for the content of any linked External Sites and do not make any representations regarding the content or accuracy of materials on such External Sites.
THE WEBSITES AND THE CONTENT ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING THAT THE WEBSITES WILL OPERATE ERROR-FREE OR THAT THE WEBSITES, THEIR SERVERS, OR THE CONTENT ARE FREE OF COMPUTER VIRUSES OR SIMILAR CONTAMINATION OR DESTRUCTIVE FEATURES. NGIBA EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING THE WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, STABILITY, ACCURACY, OR NONINFRINGEMENT. NGIBA MAKES NO REPRESENTATION OR WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICES OR CONTENT: (A) WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS; (B) WILL BE AVAILABLE ON AN UNINTERRUPTED, TIMELY, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE BASIS; (C) WILL BE ACCURATE, RELIABLE, COMPLETE, LEGAL, OR SAFE; (D) THE QUALITY, SAFETY OR LEGALITY OF ANY CONTENT, PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INFORMATION OR OTHER MATERIAL PURCHASED OR OBTAINED BY YOU, OR EVENTS ATTENDED, THROUGH THE SERVICES, OR THE SERVICES THEMSELVES (OR ANY PART THEREOF), WILL MEET YOUR EXPECTATIONS; OR (E) ANY ERRORS IN THE SERVICES WILL BE CORRECTED. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. NGIBA IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY THIRD PARTY CONDUCT OR USER CONTENT ON THE WEBSITES.
THE WEBSITES OR CONTENT MAY CONTAIN TECHNICAL INACCURACIES OR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS OR OMISSIONS. UNLESS REQUIRED BY APPLICABLE LAWS, WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY SUCH TYPOGRAPHICAL, TECHNICAL, OR PRICING ERRORS LISTED ON THE WEBSITES. THE WEBSITES MAY CONTAIN INFORMATION ON CERTAIN PRODUCTS AND SERVICES, NOT ALL OF WHICH ARE AVAILABLE IN EVERY LOCATION. A REFERENCE TO A PRODUCT OR SERVICE ON THE WEBSITES DOES NOT IMPLY THAT SUCH PRODUCT OR SERVICE IS OR WILL BE AVAILABLE IN YOUR LOCATION. WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES, CORRECTIONS, AND/OR IMPROVEMENTS TO THE WEBSITES AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE.
YOU HEREBY IRREVOCABLY AND UNCONDITIONALLY RELEASE AND FOREVER DISCHARGE NGIBA FROM ANY AND ALL CLAIMS, DEMANDS, AND RIGHTS OF ACTION, WHETHER NOW KNOWN OR UNKNOWN, THAT RELATE TO ANY INTERACTIONS WITH, OR ACTS OR OMISSION OF, THE SERVICES, THE CONTENT, OR NGIBA. IF YOU ARE A CALIFORNIA RESIDENT, YOU HEREBY WAIVE CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SECTION 1542 IN CONNECTION WITH THE FOREGOING, WHICH STATES: "A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS OR HER FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH IF KNOWN BY HIM OR HER MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS OR HER SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR."
TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, NGIBA WILL IN NO EVENT WHATSOEVER BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY LOST PROFIT OR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM THIS AGREEMENT OR THE SERVICES, CONTENT OR THIRD PARTY SITES AND THEIR SERVICES AND PRODUCTS, EVEN IF NGIBA HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. ACCESS TO, AND USE OF, THE SERVICES, THE CONTENT OR THIRD PARTY SITES AND THEIR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES ARE AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND RISK, AND YOU WILL BE SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR MOBILE DEVICE OR LOSS OF DATA RESULTING THEREFROM. NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY CONTAINED HEREIN, NGIBA LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY DAMAGES ARISING FROM OR RELATED TO THIS AGREEMENT, THE SERVICES AND CONTENT (FOR ANY CAUSE WHATSOEVER AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE ACTION), WILL AT ALL TIMES BE LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF: (A) FIFTY CANADIAN DOLLARS ($50) OR (B) AMOUNTS YOU HAVE PAID NGIBA IN THE PRIOR 12 MONTHS (IF ANY). IN ADDITION, NGIBA HAS NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR, AND HEREBY DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY ARISING FROM, THE ACTS OR OMISSIONS OF ANY THIRD PARTY SERVICE PROVIDER, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION ANY SUBMISSION PLATFORM OR PAYMENT PROCESSOR. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES, SO SOME OR ALL OF THE EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS IN THIS SECTION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU.
We reserve the right, in our sole discretion, to restrict, suspend, or terminate this Agreement and your access to all or any part of the Website and Content at any time and for any reason without prior notice or liability. We reserve the right to change, suspend, or discontinue all or any part of the Services at any time without prior notice or liability. If you breach Section 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6 of these Terms, then your permission to access and/or use the Services automatically terminates.
All provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination of these Terms or your right to use the Services shall survive such termination (including, without limitation, all limitations on liability, releases, indemnification obligations, disclaimers of warranties, and intellectual property protections and licenses).
Arbitration. You hereby agree that:
Class Action Waiver. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, YOU AGREE THAT NO CLASS OR COLLECTIVE ACTIONS CAN BE ASSERTED IN ARBITRATION OR OTHERWISE. ALL CLAIMS, WHETHER IN ARBITRATION OR OTHERWISE, MUST BE BROUGHT SOLELY IN YOUR INDIVIDUAL CAPACITY, AND NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY PURPORTED CLASS OR COLLECTIVE PROCEEDING. YOU HEREBY WAIVE ANY RIGHTS TO TRIAL BY JURY OR TO PURSUE OR PARTICIPATE IN A CLASS OR COLLECTIVE ACTION PERTAINING TO ANY AND ALL CLAIMS BETWEEN YOU AND NGIBA.
Limitation Period. ANY CAUSE OF ACTION ARISING OUT OF OR RELATED TO THE SERVICE MUST COMMENCE WITHIN ONE (1) YEAR AFTER THE CAUSE OF ACTION ARISES. OTHERWISE, SUCH CAUSE OF ACTION IS PERMANENTLY BARRED.
This Agreement shall be construed and governed exclusively by the laws in force in Alberta and the laws of Canada applicable therein, without regard to conflicts of law principles that would apply a different body of law. For users residing anywhere where the arbitration procedures set forth in Section 14 are prohibited by law, the laws in force in Alberta and the laws of Canada applicable therein will apply to any disputes arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the Services.
All claims arising out of or relating to this Agreement, to the Services, or to your relationship with NGIBA that cannot be submitted to arbitration in accordance with Section 14 will be litigated exclusively in the courts of Calgary, Alberta (and the Supreme Court of Canada, if necessary). You and NGIBA consent to the exercise of personal jurisdiction of courts in Calgary, Alberta and waive any claim that such courts constitute an inconvenient forum.
YOU AGREE, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, TO INDEMNIFY, DEFEND AND HOLD HARMLESS NGIBA, OUR AFFILIATES, AND THEIR AND OUR RESPECTIVE OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, AGENTS, AND EMPLOYEES FROM AND AGAINST ANY AND ALL COMPLAINTS, DEMANDS, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, LOSSES, COSTS, LIABILITIES AND EXPENSES, INCLUDING LEGAL FEES DUE TO, ARISING OUT OF, OR RELATING IN ANY WAY TO (i) YOUR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO OR USE OF THE WEBSITES, OTHER SERVICES OR CONTENT, OR (iii) YOUR BREACH OF THIS AGREEMENT.
This Agreement, and any terms disclosed and agreed to by you if you purchase additional features, products or services from us, contains the entire agreement between you and NGIBA regarding the use of the Services. If any provision of this Agreement is held invalid, the remainder of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. The failure of NGIBA to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. No agency, partnership, joint venture, fiduciary or other special relationship or employment is created as a result of this Agreement and you may not make any representations on behalf of or bind NGIBA in any manner.
All rights not granted to you are reserved by NGIBA.
All intellectual property in the Content and Services is owned by NGIBA.
This Agreement is the final, complete and exclusive agreement between you and NGIBA and supersedes all prior agreements between us.
This Agreement, and any rights and licenses granted hereunder, may not be transferred or assigned by you without our consent. We may assign the Agreement without restriction in connection with a merger, acquisition, reorganization or sale of all or substantially all of its assets, or bankruptcy or other operation of law, without your consent.
If we need to contact you about this Agreement, you: (1) agree to receive electronic messages from us; and (2) agree that all terms and conditions, agreements, notices, disclosures, and other messages we send to you electronically satisfy all legal requirements as if they were in writing. We agree that these Terms of Use and all related documents are in English.