New Delhi, Jul 19 (IANS): The fourth edition of the Oxford Bookstore Book Cover Prize is now accepting entries from Indian publishers and designers of covers of titles released between April 1, 2017 and March 31, 2018.

Acknowledging the importance of the balance of graphics and narrative, particularly in an increasingly visual age, the prize seeks to award brilliance in book design.

Submitted entries should include a high resolution image of the book's front cover, the spine and the back cover. The submissions will be taken in electronic format and participants are required to upload their entries on the link provided on www.kolkatalitfest.in or send it by email.

A copy of the book under consideration should also be submitted at the Oxford Bookstore in Delhi. The last date to apply is 16th August 2018.

As per the bookstore, an award money of Rs 50,000 with a trophy would go to the winning cover design.

The jury includes Apeejay Surrendra Group director Priti Paul, author-publisher Namita Gokhale, heritage hotelier and architectural restorer Aman Nath, art critic Alka Pande and photographer-bookmaker Dayanita Singh.

The final prize in the previous three editions was announced at Jaipur BookMark, the books and publishing segment of the Jaipur Literature Festival.

The Bookstore said in a statement that "a book cover interprets and decodes the ensuing text in crucial ways that contribute to its ultimate success" and designers and illustrators play a vital role in helping a book become iconic and create recall.