Posted in: Comics, Comics Publishers, Current News, Titan | Tagged: Dav Pilkey, Jamie Smart

Jamie Smart, Dav Pilkey, Titan & DFB Up For 2025 British Book Awards

Jamie Smart, Dav Pilkey, Sheena Dempsey, Titan Books and David Fickling Books are up for the 2025 British Book Awards

The shortlist for the 2025 British Book Awards, also known as the Nibbies, has been announced. Titan Books has been shortlisted for the Independent Publisher of the Year for the first time since 2012. The nomination states "Titan Books is shortlisted for the first time since 2012. Its prolific output topped 200 titles across sci-fi, fantasy and more genres, with horror a big growth area. There was an excellent year in the US, and American names, including Lindsay Ellis and Veronica Roth, were big here too. There were standout debuts from Caitlin Rozakis and Sofia Ajram and a hatful of prizes."

Of David Fickling Books, also nominated in the same category, it states, "DFB's tenth anniversary year was also its biggest by far. TCM sales shot up by 58%, and it is now ten times bigger than it was five years ago. Through its comic books—especially the remarkable success of Jamie Smart's Bunny vs Monkey series—it has done more than most to attract more reluctant readers for pleasure. New for 2024 were a Phoenix Comic Books imprint and Search for a Storyteller competition."

Comic book creators Jamie Smart, Dav Pilkey have been nominated for Illustrator Of The Year. Of Dav Pilkey, they say "In 2024, more than one in three graphic novels sold in the UK were by Dav Pilkey, published here by Scholastic. He had two number-one bestselling Dog Man books in 2024, in addition to being a global number-one bestselling author-illustrator. He accounts for 36% of the graphic novel category by TCM volume (34% by value). Pilkey's UK sales value increased by 41% year on year in 2024. As a neurodiverse creator who has made his ADHD and dyslexia his "superpowers", Pilkey is a powerful role model, whose books champion empathy, togetherness and doing good."

And Jamie Smart is described thus, "Reigning Illustrator of the Year Jamie Smart is back, having had an even better year in 2024. His Bunny vs Monkey series, published by David Fickling Books, sold well over 650,000 copies in a single year – an 82% year-on-year growth from an already very impressive 2023. Likewise, his Looshkin series saw a 102% increase in sales and Flember an 11% increase against the previous year. In total, Smart sold more than 800,000 titles last year. He also took part in a number of exceptionally successful events, including the sold-out Phoenix Festival in Oxford, sold-out Phoenix Digital Workshops to over 6,000 children, several sold-out Waterstones signings, and multiple sold-out signings and workshops across the independent bookshop market."

Their latest graphic novels, as well as one from Sheena Dempsey, were nominated for Book of the Year – Children's Illustrated. Bunny vs Monkey: The Great Big Glitch by Jamie Smart was described as "the top children's book in the week of its publication. David Fickling Books developed an exceptional campaign with a curated approach for each retailer. Different exclusive editions were created for Waterstones and WHSmiths and a pre-order campaign with The Phoenix comic generated impressive returns. DFB also commissioned Bunny and Monkey character costumes for Smart's sold-out event at Waterstones Piccadilly."

Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder by Dav Pilkey was described as, "Scholastic secured an instant children's number one, developing a bespoke package for independent bookshops that included an exclusive gift-with-purchase and branded character standees. The campaign incorporated quotes from children to put Pilkey's fans front and centre."

And Pablo and Splash by Sheena Dempsey from Bloomsbury Children's Books was listed, "Bloomsbury ran a fun and creative campaign for Pablo and Splash that championed Sheena Dempsey as a fresh new voice in children's graphic novels. A tour of indie bookshops in London was followed by 35 events across the UK and Ireland and a festival appearance in Australia. Dempsey also embarked on an illustrated window tour of bookshops and designed the Birdland Park and Gardens gift shop window." Children's Publisher Of The Year nominations included David Fickling Books, Nosy Crow and Scholastic. The British Book Awards 2025 will be presented on the 12th of May at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House, in London.

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