Get your entries in! One week left to enter Ngaio Award giveaway

Keen crime fiction readers around the globe have a week left to enter the competition to win eight interesting crime and thriller titles - the books longlisted for the 2011 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel. The draw will be made next Friday morning NZT (one week away), in the lead-up to the presentation of the Ngaio Marsh Award on Sunday 21 August at the "Setting the Stage for Murder" event in Christchurch.

All eight of the longlisted titles received praise from the judging panel, and the decision on the four finalists this year was very close - with the judges noting the diversity of settings, storytelling, and styles on offer. No matter what type of crime fiction you prefer, you're bound to find something you really enjoy amongst this fantastic collection of contemporary crime fiction - and if you're like the judges, you'll probably find you really enjoy five or six of the novels a lot (though each person's five or six might be different).

You can enter the prize draw simply by emailing a photo of yourself reading any New Zealand crime, mystery, or thriller title - contemporary or from days gone by - to ngaiomarshaward@gmail.com. The book in your picture doesn't have to be set in New Zealand, as long as the author is associated with New Zealand (lives in New Zealand, was born or grew up in New Zealand, etc).

So whether it's a well-loved copy of a Ngaio Marsh, Laurie Mantell, or Paul Thomas novel that's been sitting on your bookshelf for years, or a brand new New Zealand crime novel you've recently picked up from a bookstore or library, grab your camera, take a smiling photo of yourself with the book, and send it to ngaiomarshaward@gmail.com.

If you need some inspiration when it comes to finding an eligbile, mystery, or thriller novel to read and photograph, check out this list of more than 80 authors and more than 250 titles here.

Photos will be displayed on the Ngaio Marsh Award Facebook page, which you can visit and 'like' here.

So come on, get your entries in. You've got to be in to win - and what a prize it is - the biggest and best ever offered in the two years of Crime Watch.