Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Announcing the Liz Norris Pay It Forward Writing Contest

To celebrate the publication of UNRAVELING by debut author Liz Norris we're sponsoring the Pay It Forward Writing Contest.


We're looking for a debut writer with a great voice and energetic prose (like Liz!)


We're looking for a novel that grabs us, enchants us, and keeps us glued to the page (like UNRAVELING!)

We're looking for the Next Liz Norris!

The contest is open to American writers who are not published in novel-length form (published includes self-published) and who are not represented by an agent.

The prize is:

1. Registration for the Backspace Writing Conference in NYC (May 24-26)
2. Hotel for three nights (Thurs, Fri, Sat)
3. Travel stipend of $300
4. Lunch with Liz Norris' agent

The winner will be announced on publication day for UNRAVELING by Liz Norris: Tuesday April 24, 2012.

Here's how to enter:

1. EMAIL your query letter and your finished novel to Janet@fineprintlit.com
The subject line must be: Liz Norris Pay It Forward Contest entry.
The query must be in the body of the email.
The novel must be an attachment in .doc form


2 SEND between March 1, 2012 and March 15, 2012. Entries received before or after those dates will not be considered.

3. Your entry will be acknowledged by email.

4. Your manuscript must be in English.

5. Your manuscript must be properly formatted: 1" margins, TNR font 12 pt.

We do not accept any responsibility for manuscripts that cannot be opened or read.
The contest is open to novels in any category or genre.

You are not eligible to enter if you have an agent, or have been published in novel-length form.

You agree we can publicize your name, the title of your book and your photo for publicity purposes.


To find out more about Liz Norris, check out her blog

To order UNRAVELING go to the Harper Teen site here

Questions? Post in the comment section of this blog post OR tweet to me @janet_reid

Ready?
Set?
GO!

37 comments:

Terri Coop said...

WOW! I'm not ready for this, but am spreading the word.

Congratulations in advance to those who enter and I've got my fingers crossed for all of you (so my typing may be worse than usual).

Terri

Leah said...

Best. Contest. Ever.

Unknown said...

Sounds great! I'm going to submit. Thanks! :)

Meg said...

This sounds amazing. Now the question is, can I finish editing my novel by March 15? I'm going to try!

Unknown said...

Janet's contests have a history of discovering terrific new authors. Good luck!

Anita Saxena said...

Definitely participating! Thank you for the contest!

Janet Reid said...

Karen's conference has a history of writers finding agents and getting published!

Michael Seese said...

I second (or third) the WOW. Since I want to be fair...

I have published a 220-page collection of short stories, and two NON-fiction technical books.

Does that exclude me? (PLEASE say "no," because I have a dynamite YA thriller.) But I will abide by your decision.

Shiela Calderón Blankemeier said...

Not ready either, but will pay it forward, too! Thanks for such a great opportunity!

Kalen O'Donnell said...

Wow, what an amazing opportunity! I do have a question though - what happens if the winner receives an offer of representation between submitting to the contest and the winner being announced?

Given that you're very vehemently against writers giving agents exclusives, I'm assuming you're not intending this to be treated as an exclusive by writers. So in the event of getting an offer, would you just expect the writer to notify you as they would if you just had their query/full via the normal query process?

Rachel Schieffelbein said...

What an amazing opportunity! If you currently have something of ours on request, are we still allowed to enter?

jesse said...

Oh my. This is a nice welcome back.

Jodi R. said...

Only in America, eh? Pity.

Riley Redgate said...

Backspace last November was the best two days of my life. Probably greedy for me to enter in hopes of going again, but welp, there you have it.

*prepares query*

Empress Awesome said...

Is it only one entry per person?

Janet Reid said...

One entry per person.

If you get an agent while the contest is going on, please let us know. If you have an agent, you don't need the prize!

Cindy C said...

What a great contest! I'm not ready yet, but good luck to all of those who are!

Laurisa White Reyes said...

Darn. I am in the market for an agent, but do have my first novel coming out in May with Tanglewood Press. Makes me ineligible I guess.

Liv Rancourt said...

Don't mean to split hairs, but is novella length (40k words) a disqualifier? Thanks!

Slush Pile Savant said...

Beyond excited! One question if you don't mind.
I see it states query letter, so is it safe to assume if you don't like the query you won't bother reviewing the actual manuscript sent along with it? Just curious. I know many (like myself) can bang out 300 pages of pure entertainment, but having to cram the creativity in such a small way screws with ya. :/

That's all!
Thank you for the opportunity!!

Juliana said...

I'm not American, but I live in the US as a legal resident, can I enter?

Thanks!

The Writer Librarian said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Can Canadians join in the fun?

The Writer Librarian said...

I should rephrase: Will there be a cap on the number of people who can enter?

Elizabeth Sogard said...

I can't wait to read UNRAVELING! Thank you Liz Norris for having the pay it forward spirit and thank you to Janet Reid for this awesome opportunity. Good luck to all who enter.

Nancy Thompson said...

This is about the most generous contest I've ever heard of. Thanks for the opportunity!

And, Unraveling is on my TBR short list. Going to Powell's Books tomorrow to find it.

Unknown said...

Wow, excellent contest!
I wish I were a little more prepared!

tanya said...

I am also curious to know if Canadians are allowed to enter (in the North American spirit of American).

Rebecca Christiansen said...

Another person asking if Canadians can enter! :)

Charlie N. Holmberg said...

Awesome contest! Thanks so much for holding it, I will surely enter! (And check out Liz Norris's book!)

Emi Lou said...

Why only American writers? Sobbing into my tea cup as I write...

from
www.nofunmum.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

I assume the genre is YA. any preference as to sub genre? romance, paranormal, etc?

misce-Laini-ous said...

Another wondering if the genre needs to be YA.

I'm American living in Canada. Do I still count?

Julie Weathers said...

Oh my gosh! What an awesome contest. Changes name and enters.

Jessa Russo said...

Would you prefer that contest entries be single or double spaced? I haven't found the answer anywhere and it just occurred to me. Thank you!

Jessa Russo said...

Just sent my manuscript! I know that there are others like me, who are doing something like this for the first time, and I just wanted to say GOOD JOB! Regardless of who wins, you've completed a manuscript that you are proud of and that's a big deal! YAY for us! ;-) Thank you so much for this opportunity. This is the first writing contest I've ever entered and I'm really happy I was able to participate. Good luck everyone! And good luck to the judges too!

Snowmen Write said...

We did not receive a confirmation receipt email. I hope you received our entry!