The Irish Book Awards burst onto the literary scene when, in 2006, Hughes & Hughes opted to expand the reach and influence of their widely-acclaimed Hughes & Hughes Irish Novel of the Year Prize.

This first wave of expansion added to the sponsors roster, The Dublin Airport Authority, who sponsored a new children's award and Argosy Independent Book Wholesalers, who sponsored a new nonfiction prize.

In 2007, a second wave of expansion augmented the the range of categories to nine with major new sponsors in Galaxy, Club Energise, Easons, and RTE's The Tubridy Show all coming on board. And, for the first time, all Irish bookshops participated in the Awards promotion.

New voting procedures were also established in 2007 whereby Ireland's booksellers voted to select the shortlists with the eventual winners being chosen by the newly-founded Irish Literary Academy, a collective of around 100 individuals involved in the book-trade, the media, and the arts. The Galaxy and RTE awards were decided by public vote. Winners included John Boyne, Patrick McCabe, Paul Howard, and Gisele Scanlon.

With a second successful year under our belts, we confidently expect that the The Irish Book Awards will become the premier promotional event in the Irish literary calendar.

Forgive us the grandiose title - we have no intention of usurping Aosdana - but the Irish Literary Academy is a new formation consisting of around 100 individuals connected in some way to the book business including authors, publishers, booksellers, journalists, academics, critics, and reviewers. In 2007, Members were sent a ballot paper of the shortlisted titles - excepting the publicly-voted categories - and invited to select their winners. The academy did not disappoint delivering a fine brace of winners in its first year.

The academy concept is, of course, the modus operandi of The Oscars and of our colleagues in the UK who have used this method very successfully in the massively-successful British Book Awards. And for those nostalgists who hanker for the convocation of elite experts passionately deliberating in smoke-filled rooms, consider the reading workloads, the necessary subjectivity of panels, and the advance of democracy. Or, as one recently-inducted member responded "I have instructed the wife and kids that I now belong to an Academy and they'd better start treating me with due respect."

For all these reasons, we reckon that the Irish Literary Academy will thrive and prosper in the years ahead delivering us worthy winners time after time.