Thanks to a three-way alliance of interested parties, a new crime-writing prize has been founded to encourage the work of “unagented, debut authors, born or resident in the UK and Ireland.” Shotsmag Confidential reports that the London-based literary agency A.M. Heath, the Orion Publishing Group, and the “true-crime obsessed” magazine Crime Monthly are together launching Criminal Lines 2023, which offers £3,500 to the winning entrant.
Organizers and contest judges are looking for everything from psychological thrillers to serial-killer yarns and cozy mysteries. Submissions should comprise the first 5,000 words of a novel “with ‘criminal intent,’” plus a synopsis of the completed work that runs to no more than 1,000 words in length. Entries are already being accepted; the deadline for their presentation is December 7. Details about eligibility and how to submit your work are available here.
Shotsmag Confidential explains that “this year’s judges will include A.M. Heath agents Euan Thorneycroft and Oli Munson, Crime Monthly assistant editor Lisa Howells, Orion Fiction editors Leodora Darlington and Sam Eades, and authors Vaseem Khan and Mari Hannah.” Commenting on his hopes for the new writing award, Khan is quoted as saying, “It took me two ego-bruising decades and seven unpublished novels to finally find myself in print. This new prize aims to help shortcut that journey for unpublished writers with the talent, commitment and sheer bloody-mindedness to become crime and thriller novelists—bloody being the operative word.”
In addition to that £3,500 in cold hard cash, the winner of Criminal Lines 2023 is set to receive an offer of representation from A.M. Heath. The runner-up won’t do badly either: their reward will be a full 12 months of mentoring from Orion.
The results of this competition are to be revealed in the March 2024 edition of Crime Monthly.
Wednesday, August 09, 2023
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment