Welcome to the entry site
for The Pulitzer Prizes in Books,
Drama and Music!

01/08/2026: The Books, Drama and Music portals have closed for the 2026 cycle (encompassing eligible work premiered or released in calendar year 2025). Following the May 4, 2026 announcement of the 2026 winners and nominated finalists, the Books, Drama and Music entry site will begin to reopen for the 2027 cycle (encompassing work published or premiered in calendar year 2026) in June 2026. The Books portal will open in the latter half of that month, while the Drama and Music portals will open discretely later in the summer.

The Books portal closed for the 2026 cycle in mid-October 2025. The recommended/non-binding deadline for books published between January and July was August 8, 2025; the final deadline for all Books entries (including titles published in the first half of the year) was October 15, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time.

Prospective entrants with eligible books scheduled for publication between October 16 and December 31, 2025 must have submitted the most finalized iteration of their work (whether a manuscript copy, galley or complete PDF) by the October 15 deadline in order to be considered. Books first published in calendar year 2024 (including those published in the fourth quarter following the 2025 competition deadline in October 2024) or earlier are no longer eligible; likewise, books first published in 2025 may not be entered in the 2027 cycle.

Please note that while prospective entrants may continue to register, entry accounts (which now require manual approval from our office for security reasons) initiated henceforth on the Books, Drama and Music entry site will not be approved until shortly before the Books portal opening in June 2026.

Each spring, Columbia University awards Pulitzer Prizes in eight Books, Drama and Music categories. The winners are chosen by the Pulitzer Prize Board, which seeks to recognize excellence by eligible American writers, playwrights and composers.

For a list with definitions of the eight categories — Drama, Fiction, History, Biography, Memoir, General Nonfiction, Poetry and Music — click here.

All entry forms and fees must be submitted electronically. Paper forms, checks and cash are not accepted.

Amended recommended deadline for books published between January 1 and July 31, 2025: August 8, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time. Final deadline for all book entries, including those published in the final quarter of the year: October 15, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time. Eligibility deadline for Drama and Music consideration: December 31, 2025.

Entry fee: $75 per entry - paid by credit card only (MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Discover).