13th Annual Shorty Awards Categories

The Shorty Awards honor the talented agencies, brands, and industry leaders behind the best and most innovative work on social media and digital channels, campaigns, websites and applications.

By Campaign
By Design
By Industry
By Overall Presence
Campaign by Platform
Content and Media
Influencer & Celebrity Brand Partnership
Strategy & Engagement
Video by Platform
Video Content
Virtual
Websites & Apps

From the 10th Annual Shorty Awards Best in Literature

Fact: we need literature. Fiction: Literature are a dwindling genre. Whether they are telling their story or someone else’s, seeking to educate or entertain, books can provide some of the most important commentary on society. There literary figures all use social media to expand upon their messages in the book and interact with their readers.

Winner

Literature
winner
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie has been one of the most internationally-acclaimed authors over the past 10 years. In addition to her novels, TED Talks, essays, and a speech sampled in a Beyonce’s “Flawless,” Chimamanda is responsible for drawing a new generation of readers to African literature. She uses her prominence to promote the beauty of her Afric…

Finalists

Literature
finalist
Cleo Wade
The New Orleans-born Cleo Wade has accomplished an incredible amount by the young age of 28. The poet and artist has been featured in The New York Times and Vogue, served as a national surrogate for Hillary Clinton, and has her first book, Heart Talk: Poetic Wisdom for a Better Life set for release in March of 2018. All this led The Cut to rightly…
Literature
finalist
Jon Ronson
Jon Ronson has been many things over his career: journalist, filmmaker, screenwriter, TV host, and, now, podcaster. The best-selling Welsh author enjoyed a successful 2017, with his podcast The Butterfly Effect with Jon Ronson debuting on Audible, and the Netflix Original movie Okja, which he co-wrote, premiering to critical acclaim. The subjects …
Literature
finalist
Jonny Sun
It’s impressive that an “aliebn confuesed abot humamn lamgauge” was able to write a graphic novel that became an Amazon #1 Best Seller. The Canadian comedian Jonny Sun’s publishing debut, “Everyone's a Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too,” is based on his hilarious Jomny Sun Twitter feed, telling the story of a lonely alien sent to Earth to observe and un…
Literature
finalist
Kevin Kwan
Author of the popular Crazy Rich series, Kevin Kwan was back on top in 2017 after publishing the 3rd and final installment of the trilogy, Rich People Problems, about one of Singapore’s wealthiest families fighting over a massive inheritance. It was also announced that the first novel in the series, bestseller Crazy Rich Asians, will hit the big s…
Literature
finalist
Rebecca Traister
Few writers have been as notable as Rebecca Traister over the last 12 months. As a writer-at-large for both New York magazine and its web imprint The Cut, Rebecca lends ink to various hot-button issues, focusing on “women in politics, media, and entertainment with a feminist perspective.” In a year like 2017, she’s had her work cut out for her. Fr…

Nominees

Literature
Atul Gawande
In addition to serving as staff writer for The New Yorker since 1998, Atul Gawande has written an impressive five books, three of which have been New York Times bestsellers. The Stanford- and Harvard-educated surgeon is also a Rhodes Scholar, a MacArthur Fellow, and can be seen frequently on television doling out health advice to the public. Atul takes to s…
Literature
Colson Whitehead
According to Twitter, Colson Whitehead could be “just another down on his luck carny with a pocketful of broken dreams.” Or he could be an author who’s won a Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, MacArthur Fellowship, and written a New York Times bestseller, earning him a massive international fanbase, including 200K+ followers on Twitter. In both essays and…
Literature
Curtis Sittenfeld
The sensational 2016 novel Eligible—a modern retelling of the classic Jane Austen tale Pride and Prejudice set in Curtis Sittenfeld’s hometown of Cincinnati—received acclaim from critics everywhere. It’s the most recent of the five novels the hard-working author published in just 11 years, and the second to get optioned for a TV pilot, with ABC looking to b…
Literature
Darcie Wilder
For years, Darcie Wilder has been one of the queens of the internet, with thousands of social followers parsing out her obsessions with her two homes: NYC and the web. Her second book, literally show me a healthy person, flew off the shelves upon its release in September 2017. The novel focuses on a character who struggles with constant urges and pressures …
Literature
Dwight Garner
One of the most respected literary critics in the world, Dwight Garner has reviewed literature for The New York Times for nearly 20 years, writing for other respected outlets like Salon and Esquire during his lauded career, as well. While he’s made a living as a journalist and critic, the West Virginia native also shows a mastery of Twitter, using the platf…
Literature
Owen King
There must be something in the King family DNA. The son of famed authors Stephen and Tabitha, Owen King’s novels and other written works have received much critical acclaim. But instead of fighting to be king of the family’s authors, Owen teamed up with his dad to write Sleeping Beauties in 2017. They even toured the country together to promote the novel, w…

About the Shorty Awards

The Shorty Awards honor the best of social media.

Millions of people participate in The Shortys to recognize individuals and organizations producing great content on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, TikTok, Snapchat, and the rest of the social web.

winners will be announced in may. follow us to be notified!