Spotlight on 2023’s Book Edit Writers’ Prize Shortlisted Novelists

Continuing our series of spotlights on 2023’s Book Edit Writers’ Prize shortlist, this week we hear from Jenni Brooks and Ramya Julian.

Jenni Brooks' short fiction and poetry has been published in The Paul Cave Prize for Literature Anthology and Streetcake Magazine. Her spoken-word film 'Women and Autism', won the Best Professional Short Film, in the National Autistic Society’s Autism Uncut Awards, hosted at BAFTA. She is currently working on her first short story collection, Autism-Friendly Mom Jeans for Adult Women and a novel, Teggies.

Contact: brooksjenni434@gmail.com

Teggies is a novel about 12-year-old Keziah, who tells the story of how she became sex-trafficked to a necrophiliac client she is waiting for. The client is prepared to pay Keziah’s pimp £100,000 to rape and kill her. Keziah, however, has a plan to escape. She has stored a mobile in her vagina, and has been instructed by fellow victim, Lucia, to call for help, once he is on the way. 

Author, illustrator, and dentist, Ramya Julian wrote her first novel when she was ten. She says it was very well-received, though it was read only by her brother. When she’s not guilt-tripping her daughters into good behaviour, she can be found devouring books, crafting poems, and chuckling at her own witticisms. She grew up in India and now lives in London. She has experienced so much joy through the artistry of many creators, that she aspires to share at least some of it through her writing. Read more at www.ramyajulian.com

Malathi

Malathi, a twenty-year-old aspiring physicist, agrees to an arranged marriage with Prasad. However, struggling academically and facing discord with Prasad while grappling with the complexities of a large family, she flees. Malathi finds solace in building the school in her grandmother’s village, Malliyoor, until tragedy strikes. However, Prasad and his sister, initially at odds, join forces with her. Together, they create the change required in this tale of family, growth, and love.

Congratulations, Jenni and Ramya! We hope you enjoyed their readings as much as we did.

Next week, we’ll hear from more of our shortlisted writers so watch this space!

Want to find our more about what we offer at the Book Edit, from editing to mentoring to consulting on every aspect of publishing, including self-publishing? Hit the button below and we will get back to you with more information.

One week left to submit!

With just seven days left to send us your Writers’ Prize submissions, what better way to encourage you than to share news of one of last year’s longlisted writers, Hamish Morjaria?

Pan Macmillan India have acquired Hamish’s ‘heart-stopping thriller trilogy, The Harveen Gill Mysteries in a pre-empt. His first book, The Muziris Empire, which he submitted for the prize last year, will be published in summer 2024.

Speaking of his involvement with the Book Edit prize last year, Hamish said “The journey to publication can be a difficult one, perhaps even more so for writers who come from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds. Entering and being long listed for The Book Edit Writers’ Prize in 2022 was an important step for me. The kind words from Emily about The Muziris Empire were a welcome boost as I navigated the querying process.”

Congratulations, Hamish! We can’t wait to see your books in print!

And for those of you inspired by Hamish’s journey, why not see where submitting to this year’s prize might take you?

The Book Edit Writers' Prize 2023 launches soon!

The Book Edit Writers’ Prize 2023 opens for applications on September 11 and this year we are delighted to announce that the prize will be judged by the writer Deepa Anappara.

Deepa was born in Kerala, southern India, and worked as a journalist in India for eleven years. Her reports on the impact of poverty and religious violence on the education of children won the Developing Asia Journalism Awards, the Every Human has Rights Media Awards, and the Sanskriti-Prabha Dutt Fellowship in Journalism. 

Her debut novel Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line was named as one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time and NPR. It won the Edgar Award for Best Novel, was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2020, and shortlisted for the JCB Prize for Indian Literature. It is being translated into 23 languages.

Deepa is also the co-editor of Letters to a Writer of Colour, a collection of personal essays on fiction, race, and culture, published by Random House (US) and Vintage (UK) in March 2023.

“I am thrilled to judge the Book Edit Writer’s Prize, which was set up only three years ago and has already had tremendous success,’ writes Deepa. ‘Despite recent initiatives, access to publishing remains difficult for those in marginalised groups, and the Book Edit prize aims to highlight the incredible diversity of talent in this country. To be part of the prize is a real privilege, and I am looking forward to reading the submissions.

”

— Deepa Anappara

Aiming to support talented writers who might not otherwise have access to the industry, The Book Edit’s Writers’ Prize is a writing competition for unpublished British and/or UK-based novelists from backgrounds and communities currently under-represented in UK publishing.

“Winning the Writer’s Prize was the first time I’d had any external validation for my work and the showcase led to interest from a literary agent. This gave my confidence a massive boost and answered the question that I’d been asking myself for a long time which was “Am I capable of writing something with the potential to get published?”. The whole experience has spurred me on and I’m now more focussed than ever on that goal. Emily and the team at The Book Edit were so supportive through the whole process and am truly grateful for them running the prize.”

— Alexander McPhail, 2022 winner

Eight lucky winners will have the chance to read their work at a live Zoom showcase event in front of industry guests and The Book Edit contacts. After the event, an anthology of the readings will be published online. 

Winners will have the opportunity to rehearse and train for the showcase event with writer, editor and Novel Studio tutor, Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone.

As if all that wasn’t enough, this year we have partnered with the brilliant Legend Press who will be offering a unique opportunity for each of our winners to submit their first chapters to Legend’s Commissioning Editor, Lauren Wolff-Jones, followed by an hour’s Zoom mentoring session, during which Lauren will provide expert feedback and guidance.

And even if you aren’t one of the lucky winners, it’s a competition you can’t lose: completely free to enter, all entrants will receive advice on other options including courses, mentoring and editing.

All you need to submit is the first 1,000 words of your novel. For full competition details, judges, dates and submission guidelines follow this link.

The competition opens on Monday 11th September 2023, with a deadline of midnight on the 23rd October 2023. The Book Edit can’t wait to read your submissions and share your talent!

The Book Edit partner with Legend Press for their third annual Writers’ Prize for underrepresented novelists

We are really pleased to announce a new partnership with Legend Press for our third annual Book Edit Writers' Prize. Aiming to support talented writers who might not otherwise have access to the industry, the Writers’ Prize is a national writing competition for unpublished British and/or UK-based novelists from communities and backgrounds currently underrepresented in UK publishing.

 We are also delighted to confirm that this year the prize will be judged by acclaimed writer Deepa Anappara, author of Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line and editor of Letters to a Writer of Colour.

By joining forces with Legend Press — an independent house dedicated to championing original voices — we hope to amplify the voices of writers from underrepresented communities and provide them with the necessary tools and resources to bring their stories to the forefront.

“The Book Edit Prize was a really special experience for me. I’d never read my work aloud before, so having Rebecca’s expert training really gave me the confidence to take part - and even to enjoy it! Being part of such a prestigious award meant that my work was shared with some incredible agents - I had a full manuscript request before we’d even finished the Zoom session!”

— F.Q. Yeoh, Writers' Prize Winner 2022

‘This partnership reflects our ongoing commitment to improving access to the publishing industry for all,’ says Emily Pedder, Founding Director at The Book Edit. ‘The prize is an opportunity to shine a spotlight on talented writers from communities that have been historically underrepresented in UK publishing.’

Lauren Wolff-Jones, Commissioning Editor at Legend Press, says ‘I am so incredibly honoured to be partnering with The Book Edit on the Writers’ Prize. Emily shares not only a passion for discovering new talent but also a commitment to inclusivity for the literary landscape. As a mentor for this prestigious prize, I am thrilled to be able to help nurture creativity and guide authors in what is such a competitive market. I can’t wait to discover each unique story that emerges from this collaboration.’  

2023 Writers’ Prize Judge, Deepa Anappara

Deepa Anappara, the judge for this year's Writers' Prize, says ‘I am thrilled to judge the Book Edit Writer's Prize, which was set up only three years ago and has already had tremendous success. Despite recent initiatives, access to publishing remains difficult for those in marginalised groups, and the Book Edit prize aims to highlight the incredible diversity of talent in this country. To be part of the prize is a real privilege, and I am looking forward to reading the submissions.’ 

“The fact that this competition is for under-represented writers, and free to enter, is another wonderful opportunity for unpublished novelists to gain access to the industry and to get their work in front of top literary agents. The advice, training and support from Emily and Rebekah - both before the showcase and afterwards - is phenomenal, and it is obvious they’re committed to getting underrepresented voices out there. I am so grateful to have been a part of this amazing experience, and to have forged strong friendships with the other winners chosen. Opportunities like this for writers are very few and far between - go for it!”

— Julie Rea, Writers' Prize Winner 2022

Submissions for the third Writers' Prize will open on 11th September 2023 and close on 23rd October 2023.

The eight winners will have the chance to read their work at a live Zoom showcase event in front of industry professionals and The Book Edit’s contacts. After the event, an anthology of the readings will be published on The Book Edit’s website. Winners will also have the opportunity to rehearse and train for the showcase event, and all entrants will receive advice on other options including mentoring, courses and editing. The competition is completely free to enter.

As a result of the partnership, this year’s winners will have the added bonus of submitting the first chapters of their novels to Lauren Wolff-Jones, followed by an hour’s Zoom mentoring session during which Lauren will provide feedback and guidance.

For information about former prize winners, visit here.

Any questions about the prize, please email writersprize@thebookedit.co.uk.

Happy 2023

A belated Happy New Year to you all and a big thank you for being a part of The Book Edit this year.

This is the second year we’ve run the Writers’ Prize and we’re extremely proud of our winners.

Book Edit Writers’ Prize winner 2022, Julie Rea

Book Edit Writers’ Prize winner 2021, Malachi McIntosh

Hot off the press, one of last year’s winners - Malachi McIntosh - has won the Royal Society of Literature’s Giles St Aubyn Award for Non-Fiction, while one of 2022’s winners - Julie Rea - has just signed with Juliet Pickering, at Blake Friedmann. We can’t wait to see what our winners do next on their writing journeys.

This year we’ve got some exciting plans in store. We’ll be launching our first course - an introduction to developmental editing - for anyone who’s interested in finding out more about this creative art. Hit the button below to be first to hear about the course when it launches.

And for anyone who wants a boost to their writing, we’re offering a 10% discount on our mentoring, agent submission packages, and developmental editing services up to the end of February 2023. Just quote BENEWYEAR23 when sending an enquiry. 

Wishing you all a creative, inspiring 2023.