Watson, Little and Arts Council funded writers’ forum Indie Novella are together delighted to announce the Watson, Little x Indie Novella Prize, this year devoted to celebrating emerging voices from underrepresented communities. Watson, Little celebrated its 50th year as a literary agency in 2021 with the inaugural Watson, Little Prize. To mark a second edition of the Prize, Watson, Little have teamed up with Indie Novella, the online hub providing free advisory services to aspiring writers and a free online forum to help make novel writing and publishing more transparent and accessible.
In association with the Arts Council England, and in celebration of this commitment, we are jointly launching a Fiction Prize for emerging writers. The Prize invites writers to enter under any one of the following three themes, which are particularly timely and relevant in today’s society.
Community: One thing the recent pandemic has taught us is we need to celebrate the importance of Community. Therefore, we’re looking for distinctive, original, authentic stories inspired by a strong sense of place and community. Be it fiction resonating with a vivid sense of place, tales of diaspora, or stories centred around a particular group of friends or family, we are interested in what community means for you.
Climate: With temperatures in the UK breaking 40 degrees this summer, our second theme focuses on climate. This could be any interpretation of ‘cli-fi’, exploring any dramatic experience or narrative – whether romantic, crime, historical or other – in the context of our environment and climate change. Basically, stories which tackle climate whichever way an author can inventively and engagingly imagine.
Crime Fiction: An old favourite and with huge capacity for reinvention. We’re looking for crime fiction which breaks away from the mainstream and is told from fresh and different perspectives.
The Prize is open to writers aged 16 and over living in Britain (including the Channel Islands and Isle Of Man) and Ireland (Northern Ireland and Republic Of Ireland). Entries must be entirely the work of the entrant and by submitting you are confirming that the work is your own and is not already published or represented elsewhere.
Entrants should submit their opening 5,000 words, PLUS a 300 word synopsis which should form the first page of their submission document. Long listed entrants will be asked to submit their full manuscript for the next stage of the judging process.
Entries should be submitted between January 1st and February 14th 2023 (with the deadline closing at midnight, UK time on February 14th) via the Indie Novella website: https://www.indienovella.co.uk/Writing-Prize
Those selected for the longlist will be notified by 31st March and the shortlist by 30th April. The winners and commended entries will be announced on 31st May 2023. Winning entries will receive a one page report and one hour session from an agent at Watson, Little. If, after this process, the finished novel is suitable, Watson, Little Literary Agents will have first option to represent the winner and to offer it to publishers. Additionally, winners and commended entries will receive a short, written report from Indie Novella, with critical appraisal from all judges, and an extract of their novel will feature in an exclusive Prize anthology, made available as a memento for participants, containing exclusive artwork created for participants by Indie Novella Creative Director, Callum Hood.
There is no application fee. Further information, including terms and conditions and how to enter, can be found here: https://www.indienovella.co.uk/Writing-Prize-Terms
There is no application fee.
