Dengeki Novel Prize

The Dengeki Novel Prize (電撃小説大賞, Dengeki Shōsetsu Taishō^?) is a literary award handed out annually (since 1994) by the Japanese publisher ASCII Media Works (formerly MediaWorks) for their Dengeki Bunko light novel imprint. The contest has discovered many popular and successful light novelists, like Kouhei Kadono and Yashichiro Takahashi. Originally called the Dengeki Game Novel Prize, the name was changed in 2003. The main Dengeki Novel Prize awards consist of the Grand Prize (1 million yen), Gold Prize (500,000 yen) and Silver Prize (300,000 yen). In addition to the money received, the winning novelists get their work published under Dengeki Bunko with the addition of an artist for the illustrated aspects of the light novels. However, if an entry is awarded the Media Works Bunko Prize, the winning novel will be published under ASCII Media Works' Media Works Bunko imprint, along with the author winning 500,000 yen.^[1] Often, the name of the novel series is changed from what it was originally titled when it won the prize. There are over 4,500 submissions annually, and it is considered the largest prize for light novels.^[2]

Committee members

• Hitoshi Yasuda: Novelist, translator
• Mishio Fukazawa: Novelist
• Kyōichirō Takahata: Novelist
• Tatsuo Satō: The former board chairman of MediaWorks
• Kazutomo Suzuki: The managing editor of Dengeki Bunko

Prizes

Prizes	Awards
Grand Prize[A]	￥1 million
Gold Prize[A]	￥500,000
Silver Prize[A]	￥300,000
Media Works Bunko Prize[D]	￥500,000
Dengeki Bunko Magazine Prize[C]	￥200,000
Honorable Mention[B]	￥50,000

Participant numbers

Year	Participants
1994	656
1995	566
1996	953
1997	869
1998	996
1999	1,326
2000	1,469
2001	1,647
2002	2,080
2003	2,015
2004	2,603
2005	3,022
2006	2,931
2007	2,943
2008	3,541
2009	4,602
2010	4,842
2011	5,293

Prize winners

#	Year	Grand Prize	Gold Prize	Silver Prize
01	1994	Gorei Tōshi Ōki Den Gorei Tōshi Genrin! Hiroyuki Domon	Criss Cross: Konton no Maoh Kyoichiro Takahata	Bōken Phoniness Amurafi - Kaijin Doramu no Hiho Yuji Nakasato
				Kumo Yuki Ayashi, Ame ni Naran ya Ryosuke Tsubota
02	1995	Blackrod Hideyuki Furuhashi	Not awarded	Yamai wa Chikara: Special Man Naohiro Narishige
				Koseki Gakari no Yūutsu Ari Kayamoto
03	1996	Not awarded	Panzer Polis 1935 Minoru Kawakami	Horogram Seed Ayato Miyabi
			Naniwa Sōsinki Jiro Kurifu	Dark Eyes Saya Amo
04	1997	Boogiepop[3] Kouhei Kadono	Nekome Gari Tsumugu Hashimoto	Boku no Chi o Suwanaide Taro Achi
05	1998	Grand Prize	Gold Prize	Silver Prize	Honorable Mention
		Not awarded	Gakuen Bugeicho 'Tsuki ni Waraku' Nobutaka Shirai	Called Gehenna Gakuto Mikumo	Tsuki to Anata ni Hanataba o Kazuya Shimura
					Gimmick Heart Jun Nanami
06	1999	Ringtail Kachi Ikusa no Kimi Muku Maruyama	Double Breed Erika Nakamura	Wakagusa Yakyubu Kyosokyoku Submarine Girl Ginga Isshiki	Not awarded
07	2000	Not awarded	Tengoku ni Namida wa Iranai Kei Sato	Wizard's Brain Reiichi Saegusa	Ōdo Rakuga Akihiko Odo
			Onmyo no Miyako Soichiro Watase		Tenken Ohki Miwa Choshiro
08	2001	Daito Fūnki: Rakuyo no Shōjo Tosei Tamura	Not awarded	Akuma no Mikata Hisamitsu Ueo	A/B Extreme CASE-314 Emperor Yashichiro Takahashi
				Infinity Zero: Fuyu~white snow Mamizu Arisawa	Kyuketsuki no Oshigoto: The Style of Vampires Suzu Suzuki
09	2002	Kiri: Shishatachi wa Koya ni Nemuru Yukako Kabei	Nanahime Monogatari Wataru Takano	Not awarded	Sharp Edge - stand on the edge Shinichi Sakairi
			Baccano!: The Rolling Bootlegs Ryohgo Narita		Sylph Night Junichi Kamino
10	2003	Shio no Machi: Wish on My Precious Hiro Arikawa	Wagaya no Oinari-sama. Jin Shibamura	Sempai to Boku Masashi Okita	Kekkaishi no Fugue Hazuki Minase
					Shupuru no Ohanashi: Grandpa's Treasure Box Aki Amamiya
11	2004	Ruka: Rakuen no Torawarebitotachi Hirotaka Nanae	Hikari no Machi: nerim's note Masashi Hasegawa	Kiseki no Hyogen Mitsutaka Yuki	Serious Rage Toshiyuki Shirakawa
12	2005	Orusu Banshee Masatake Ogawa	Kanashimi Chimera Rei Rairaku	Spice and Wolf Isuna Hasekura	Tenshi no Recipe Makura Otogi
				Hime no Miko Hikaru Sugii
13	2006	Mimizuku to Yoru no Ō Izuki Kogyoku	Sekai Heiwa wa Ikka Danran no Ato ni Kazuya Hashimoto	Natsuki Fullswing: Ketsubatto Onna Warau Natsuki, Hideto Kido	Not awarded
			Tobira no Soto, Shinjiro Dobashi Shinjirō Dobashi
14	2007	Hōkago Hyakumonogatari Hirokazu Minemori	Kimi no Tame no Monogatari Marehito Mikagami	Ikai Nostalgia Kazuaki Sena	Hazakura ga Kita Natsu Kōji Natsumi
				Oshikake Ragnarok Hyōsuke Takatō

#	Year	Grand Prize	Gold Prize	Silver Prize	Dengeki Bunko Magazine Prize	Honorable Mention
15	2008	Accel World Reki Kawahara	Parallel Lovers Tōka Shigatsu	Tokyo Vampire Finance Junjō Shindō	Gankyū Kitan Tomo Takaha	Kataribe Jinei Kōzaburō Yamaguchi
				Ro-Kyu-Bu! Sagu Aoyama	Sukima Onna (Habahiro) Hideto Maruyama

#	Year	Grand Prize	Gold Prize	Silver Prize	Media Works Bunko Prize	Dengeki Bunko Magazine Prize	Honorable Mention
16	2009	Bakumatsu Mahōshi: Mage Revolution Sōji Tanabu	Vandal Garōgai no Kiseki Mamoru Minagawa	Goshujin-san & Maid-sama: Tō-san Kaa-san, Uchi no Maid wa Zu ga Takai to Okorimasu Mudai Enokizu	(Ei) Amrita Mado Nozaki	Seiren Sangokushi Shūniko Nana	Natsu Koi Shigure Jun Ayasaki
					Taiyō no Akubi Kaoru Arima		Sora no Kanata Manabi Hishida
17	2010	Shirokuro Nekuro Ryōto Takama	Seishun Lariat!! Takamaru Semikawa	Maōjō wa Rokujō Hitoma! Satoshi Wakabara	Gyogan Lens Natsu Asaba	See-through!? Ifusei Amou	Not awarded
			Idolizing! Sakaki Hirozawa	Anti-literal Sūgaku Yagi Uzuki	Ocharake! Kuchibaya
					Ten'i no Nyōbō Mutsue Nakamachi
18	2011	Escape Speed Nozomu Kuoka	Anata no Machi no Toshi Denki! Shibai Kineko	Wizard & Warrior With Money Ghost Mikawa	Shinryaku Kyōshi Seijin UMA Edward Smith	Ashita kara Orera ga Yatte Kita Rin Takaki	Minutes: Ichi Bunkan de Sekai o Horobosu Hōhō ni Tsuite Yomoji Kiono
				Yūsha ni wa Katenai Shirō Kuta	Yamabiko no Iru Mado Nariko Narita

Notes

• ^A The Grand, Gold, and Silver Prizes were originally the only three prizes offered for the first four rounds between 1994 and 1997.
• ^B Honorable mentions were added with the fifth round in 1998 and were originally called the "Special Prize". In the seventh round in 2000, the prize was renamed as "Honorable Mention".
• ^C The Dengeki Bunko Magazine Prize was added with the fifteenth round in 2008.
• ^D The Media Works Bunko Prize was added with the sixteenth round in 2009.

References

1. ^ "メディアワークス文庫 [Media Works Bunko]" (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. http://asciimw.jp/award/taisyo/mwb.php. Retrieved December 6, 2009. 
2. ^ "The Dengeki Novel Prize's official website" (in Japanese). ASCII Media Works. http://asciimw.jp/award/taisyo/. Retrieved 2008-05-18. 
3. ^ "Seven Seas Licenses Boogiepop". Mania.com. 2005-10-31. http://www.mania.com/seven-seas-licenses-boogiepop_article_84888.html. Retrieved 2009-12-07. 

External links

• The Dengeki Novel Prize's official website (Japanese)