The International Silent Book Contest 2027 – Gianni De Conno Award, one of the world’s leading competitions dedicated exclusively to wordless picture books, has officially opened its call for entries. Organized by Carthusia Edizioni, the competition welcomes authors, illustrators and artists from around the world to submit original and unpublished silent book projects.
Unlike traditional illustrated book competitions, the Silent Book Contest focuses entirely on visual storytelling. Participants are invited to create complete picture books in which the narrative unfolds exclusively through illustrations, without the use of explanatory text. The theme is completely open, with no restrictions on genre or intended readership.
Projects must present a finished and stylistically coherent sequence of illustrations rather than storyboards or works in progress. Apart from the title, an optional subtitle and purely decorative lettering, no words may be used to explain or support the story.
Original and unpublished projects only
The competition is open to creators of any nationality who will be at least 18 years old by 15 January 2027. Each participant may submit up to three original, complete and previously unpublished projects.
Projects that have already been published anywhere in the world, are simultaneously entered into other competitions, or have been selected or awarded elsewhere are not eligible.
Photography, pop-up books, comics, cartoons, colouring books and unfinished layouts are not accepted. The organizers also strictly prohibit the use of images generated, even partially, by artificial intelligence software.
Illustrations may be created in either colour or black and white using any traditional or digital technique.
Fixed book format
All entries must follow the competition’s required book format. Each project must include:
- 14 internal double-page spreads
- One frontispiece spread including the title, optional dedication and author’s pseudonym
- One double-page cover including both the front and back cover
This results in a total of 16 double-page spreads, prepared in a 28.5 × 28.5 cm closed format (57 × 28.5 cm open format).
Entries must be submitted anonymously as a single high-quality PDF file no larger than 10 MB.
Exhibition at Bologna Children’s Book Fair
An International Jury will normally select between 10 and 16 finalist projects. The finalists will be exhibited during the Bologna Children’s Book Fair 2027 before travelling to the Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino, where the winner will be officially announced.
The winning project is scheduled to be published by Carthusia Edizioni by June 2027 under a standard publishing contract. The winner will receive €2,500 as an advance on royalties. However, the publisher reserves the right not to publish the winning project if it is ultimately considered unsuitable, and the jury may decide not to award a winner if no project meets the required standard.
Junior Prize
Alongside the main award, the competition will also present the Silent Book Contest Junior Prize. Between September and November 2027, selected primary school classes from Italy and other participating regions will evaluate the finalist projects. The project receiving the highest score from the children will be announced as the Junior Prize winner in December 2027, with publication planned for early 2028, subject to the publisher’s approval.
Entry Fee and Deadline
The entry fee is €60 per project, with a maximum of three submissions per author. The registration fee is non-refundable.
All registrations, PDF uploads and payments must be completed online no later than 15 January 2027.
For complete regulations and online registration, visit the official website:
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