For local authors, discovering that their book is in the D.C. Public Library’s collection can be a thrilling moment.

“It’s always fun when an author searches our catalogue for their name and they find their book,” says librarian April DeRome. Now, self-published writers have a shot at having the same experience.

Inspired by a program in Portland, DCPL is planning to add works of fiction published by Washingtonians to its ebook collection.

But first, librarians have to find and read those novels. DCPL will take submissions for the next two months, then a panel will decide which meet their criteria of “entertaining, well-crafted works of fiction that will appeal to many D.C. readers.”

Once they’ve made their picks, the library will purchase copies through OverDrive, the distributor that DCPL uses for ebooks. The plan is to highlight the collection at the top of DCPL’s OverDrive homepage (which about 3,000 people use every day).

“We’re just excited to support local writers,” says DeRome, who oversees DCPL’s electronic collection. 

Anyone with a D.C. library card (fun fact: residents of nearly every surrounding jurisdiction are eligible for a card, as is anyone who works or goes to school in D.C..) can submit their work for consideration. The ebooks must be published on the Smashwords, Draft2Digital, or Kobo Writing Life platforms, and each author is limited to one submission.

Meanwhile, for those who are still in the writing trenches, DCPL and the Library of Congress are putting on an author festival next month with workshops, discussions, and other activities.

DCPL regularly gets requests from local authors to add their books to the collection, but so far it’s mainly been print titles, according to DeRome. As both ebooks and self-publishing continue to grow in popularity, that could change.

“Even if they’re not coming to us, we know that there are local writers in the area,” she says. “We’re reaching out and trying to help them.” 

The library will be taking submissions to the DC Writers Project until May 31.