Novel Fair

The Irish Writers Centre has launched the next Novel Fair. The last two have been very successful in getting novels to publishers and out there. I do wonder how many of those already published or nearly there would have been picked up anyway.

The Prize

Twelve entrants will be anonymously selected by a judging panel to take part in the Irish Writers’ Centre Novel Fair on February 22nd, 2014. Each writer will have a stand at the Fair where they will present the synopsis of their novel, the finished novel itself and biographical material. Top Irish publishers and agents will be invited to the Irish Writers’ Centre to meet these writers in person.

Entry Details

There is no limitation on style, genre, or target market, the only requirement being that the writer has not published a novel before.

To enter send a synopsis and up to 10,000 words of a novel.

Deadline for submissions: October 16th, 2013.

Details here

Lunchtime Reading at the Irish Writers Centre

On Saturday 31st August at 1pm, there are some debut novelists reading at the Irish Writers Centre.

It's free and everyone's welcome.

 

Join us at the Centre for another Lunchtime Reading. This afternoon we have two new new writers who's debut novels have both been met with a great deal of fanfare. Niamh and Janet secured book deals following the Centre's inaugural Novel Fair competition. Niamh's debut The Herbalist, published by Penguin Ireland, is a rich multi-layered story of life in 1930s Ireland told through the eyes of four women, each of whose lives is changed irrevocably by the herbalist. Janet's novel Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World, published by Hachette, is the story of a restless kid growing up in rural Nova Scotia in the late 1980s, whose world comes to an end when he discovers that he’s in love with his best friend Mark.

Both writers will read from their work and muse on the challenges facing new writers - in particular how one sets about promoting their own work.'

Romance novel ebook competition

Piatkus Entice, pioneers of romance digital publishing and the online home of such internationally  famous authors as Sherrilyn Kenyon, Eloisa James and Christine Feehan, have teamed up with the Festival of Romance to offer you a fantastic opportunity!

We’re giving aspiring authors the chance to win an ebook publishing contract with Piatkus Entice. The winning author will receive intensive editorial guidance, publicity and marketing support and a contract with Piatkus Entice for the publication of the novel as an ebook.

I want in! How do I enter?

Just email the first two chapters of your novel and a short, enticing synopsis of no more than 100 words to Piatkus.Entice@littlebrown.co.uk

Deadline: 2nd September.

Your submission can be any genre of romance writing you can think of, but please attach it as a Word document, with the subject line ‘Piatkus Entice competition’. All submissions will be read and considered by the Entice Team who will, after copious cups of fortifying tea, compile a shortlist of their three favourite submissions.

More details here

Dalkey Book Festival

14-16 June get down to Dalkey

Kevin Barry - Carl Bernstein - John Boyne - Stuart Carolan - David Coleman - Eoin Colfer - Gary Cooke - John Colleary - Jonathan Dee - Roddy Doyle - Anne Enright - Robert Fisk - Selina Guinness - Sarah Harte - Declan Kiberd - Oisín McGann - Frank McGuinness - Bernard McLaverty - Pauline McLynn - Midnight Poe - Eamon Morrissey - Barry Murphy - Edna O'Brien - Dawn O'Porter - Colm O'Regan - Uri Orlev - Donal Ryan - Sarah Webb

- and many more

I like the Maeve Binchy retrospectives.  And there's an event in a graveyard that's sold out slready. Perhaps they'll put it on a second night?

No poetry though and No Poetry Diva magic!

Booking on line now - very reasonable prices

Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair

The Irish Writers Centre Novel Fair deadline is fast approaching. Last year's first fair was inundated with debut novels and had a number of successes.

Earlier in the year, Niamh Boyce sold her novel The Herbalist to Penguin Ireland and more recently Janet Cameron’s book, Cinnamon Toast and the End of the World, was snatched up by Hachette. As well as this, Liberties Press have laid claim to Kevin Curran’s novel, Beatspolitations. With nine of the authors signed up with literary agents and many in talks with publishers, they eagerly anticipate more book deals before the end of this year.

This time round they've added an extra prize of a seminar on 'How to Pitch your Novel' to better prepare the novelists for the day and they've cut the number of novelists participating
in half to give them more quality time with the publishers.

The deadline for the competition this year is on October 17th and the Novel Fair itself will take place on February 16th, 2013.

The Novel Fair was introduced last year with the aim of introducing, in person, up-and-coming writers to top publishers and literary agents who, in turn, have the chance to liaise with an eclectic bunch of talented, new authors. It gives promising, first-time novelists the opportunity to bypass the slush pile, pitch their ideas, bring characters to life and place their synopsis directly into the hands of the people they want to see it most.

More here 

Fiction Writing Master Class with Christine Dwyer Hickey

An intensive one-day workshop with the award-winning novelist and short story writer, Christine Dwyer Hickey

Twice winner of the Listowel Writers’ Week short story competition, Christine has also been a prize-winner in the prestigious Observer/Penguin short story competition. Her bestselling novel Tatty was chosen as one of the 50 Irish Books of the Decade, longlisted for the Orange Prize and shortlisted for the Hughes & Hughes Irish Novel of the Year Award. Her novel Last Train from Liguria was also a bestseller and was nominated for the Prix L’Européen de Littérature. Her latest novel The Cold Eye of Heaven was shortlisted for the Hughes & Hughes Irish Book of the Year 2011 and won the Irish Kerry Group Book of the Year in June 2012. 

An ideal course if you are working on a novel or on a collection of short stories. Christine will familiarise herself with a sample of your work beforehand so that you get the most out of the time you spend with her. The course will conclude with a reading by Christine at the Moth Studios. 

Date: 27 October 2012

Cost: €80

Venue: The Moth Studios, Cavan, Co. Cavan, Ireland
 

www.themothstudios.com

Cavan is just an hour and a half away from Dublin, and there are regular bus services. If you would like to know more about travel/accommodation, or to find out more about the course or to book a place, please contact Rebecca O'Connor at editor@themothmagazine.comor call (0)494362677.

Spaces are limited, so do book early!

Yeovil prize

This competition is unusual in that it includes the novel.

• Entries may have appeared online but may not have been published in any commercial online form (e.g. in a journal or magazine, or as a publication requiring payment to access.)

You have to be careful these days as come competitions insist that entries may not have appeared online.

• The word count for the Short Story category is 2,000 words. All genres accepted.
• In the Poetry category each poem should have a maximum of 40 lines.
• Novel entries must have a synopsis, and either the first three chapters, or, the first (up to) 15,000 words, whichever is relevant. Do not exceed the combined word count of 15,000 words. 

Judges for 2012.
Sophie Hannah , who is the author of many books for children, collections of poetry and several psychological crime novels, will judge the Novel category
Sue Freestone, who has a wealth of experience in the publishing world, will judge our Short Story category
Multi-talented Louis de Bernières, who writes poetry, novels and short stories, will judge our Poetry category.

Category 1 Novel - The Betty Bolingbroke-Kent Award Great opportunity for creative writers Excellent cash prizes
Requirement : Synopsis and Opening Chapters (combined maximum 15,000 words)
Prizes : 1st £1000 2nd £250 3rd £100
Entry Fee : £11

Category 2 Short Story Requirement : maximum 2,000 words
Prizes 1st £500 2nd £200 3rd £100
Entry Fee : £6

Category 3 Poetry Requirement : maximum of 40 Lines
Prizes : 1st £500 2nd £200 3rd £100
Entry Fee : £6 ; £9 for 2 ; £11 for 3

Deadline: 31 st May 2012
Link here

Crime pays £5,000

Stylist magazine have joined forces with publishers Faber and Faber to launch the career of a new crime writer.

The winning author of our fiction competition will have their debut novel published by Faber and Faber publishing house and will receive a book advance of £5,000. The runner-up will receive a place on a three-month writing course of their choice – worth up to £1,750 – at Faber Academy, Faber and Faber’s esteemed creative writing programme.
   Here’s an outline of the competition rules:
“To enter Stylist’s Crime Fiction Competition you will need to complete the first 6,000 words of your original crime or thriller novel. The novel must feature a female protagonist. Alongside this you will need to submit an outline, no longer than 300 words, to show how the story will develop but which doesn’t reveal the ending, plus a 250-word biography of the central character.”

Deadline: 12th July 2012 

the panel of judges includes bestselling crime author Ruth Rendell.

Entrants must live in the UK. (UK address!)

You can find full terms and conditions, plus the all-important entry form, on the Stylist website.

J G Farrell Award

Part of the imaginative West Cork Literary Festival, The J G Farrell Award will be adjudicated by novelist Claire Kilroy. This award is for the best novel-in-progress by a writer resident in Munster. The winner will receive a place on Claire Kilroy's The Novel : Beyond the First Draft workshop which takes place during the festival and a week's accommodation at the 4 star Maritime Hotel.

The award is generously sponsored by Richard Farrell.

Applicants should forward the first chapter of their novel (no longer than 3000 words) to the West Cork Festival office at 13 Glengarriff Road, Bantry, Co Cork or to info@westcorkliteraryfestival.ie. 

Deadline: 25^th May.

Your entry should be printed on one side of the page only, and double spaced. Please send two copies of your entry. Place your name and address on a separate sheet.

Check out the other workshops here

Lucy Cavendish College Fiction Prize 2012

Lucy Cavendish College has a particular interest in supporting female writers, with many events such as talks, dinners, book launches and writing workshops taking place throughout the year focusing on female fiction and female authors. The highlight of these events is the annual Women's Word festival towards the end of June each year. During Women's Word the College opens its doors to the public for a programme of talks and special events.

A cornerstone of this annual festival is the Lucy Cavendish College Fiction Prize (now in its second year), which is awarded to a remarkable, unpublished female fiction writer over the age of 21 who successfully combines literary merit with "unputdownability" in their entry.

To enter the competition, participants will need to submit the first 30 pages of an unpublished novel and a synopsis of the remainder of the novel (max. 10 pages long).

Deadline: Friday 27 April 2012.

The Judging Panel for the 2012 competition will consist of:

• Rowan Pelling, Daily Telegraph columnist
• Isobel Maddison, Director of Studies in English, Lucy Cavendish College

The judges will draw up a shortlist of five submissions; the five shortlisted entrants (plus one guest each) will be invited to a prize-giving dinner at Lucy Cavendish College, Cambridge where the winner will be announced. 

Lots more info here